Why Pride matters to me (this will get personal)

The category is LOVE. Stockholm is where I call come right now, and this week, we are celebrating Pride. Many times, people ask me why Pride exists, where it came from and why it matters so much to me at the workplace. I will try to do a quick review of those below while listening to?Charli XCX’s Crash ?— my favorite glitter bop of the year. Just note that I am not a DEI expert by any means. I am just a queer man trying to use my voice to deal with the healing of not growing as the norm and as a People & Culture person, to inspire people to be who they are.

As?Michaela Moua ?said (thanks,?Austin , for the brilliant article?link ),

Before Pride went corporate, it was about radical activism. The word “radical” seems to have a negative connotation attached to it. Still, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, it is a departure from tradition and has synonyms like “revolutionary” and “progressive.”

When did it start, and why is it called Pride?

Officially?Pride ?started on November 2, 1969; Craig Rodwell, his partner Fred Sargeant, Ellen Broidy, and Linda Rhodes proposed the first Pride march to be held in New York City by way of a resolution at the Eastern Regional Conference of Homophile Organizations (ERCHO) meeting in Philadelphia. The first parade to commemorate the Stonewall Riots was the Christopher Street Liberation Day March. Craig Schoonmaker was the first to suggest using the term “pride” in order to inspire change.

“We were going to create a number of events the same weekend as the march to bring in people out of town and wanted to unite the events under a label. First thought was ‘Gay Power .’I didn’t like that, so proposed gay Pride. There’s very little chance for people in the world to have power. People did not have power then; even now, we only have some. But anyone can have Pride in themselves, and that would make them happier as people, and produce the movement likely to produce change.” — Craig Schoonmaker from?Allusionist podcast 12: Pride — transcript .

What does it mean to me??This will get pretty personal.

I was raised in the south side of Brazil in a school full of white?cis ?straight people. My parents had the conditions to support my private education, which gave me many opportunities. I did not see any different person from the standards. I still remember when being bullied in high school (now both in Brazil and in the US) when I told everyone around me I identified as being straight. At that time, I was a skinny geeky guy who was much more into watching MTV and trying to “become indie” than dating the cheerleaders — no one believed me.

I felt bullied for a long time, and multiple times people told me I was lying. I was not. At that time, I thought I was heterosexual. Understanding my sexuality and my overall identity took me time. It did not just happen. It took time for me to understand my body and my desires. I still remember the first time I kissed a boy, the first Grindr download, the first Drag bingo, and the first time a male friend was harassed at the metro for wearing feminine clothes. More importantly, I still remember the first time I come out to almost everyone I know.

“But why do you come out? Why does it matter?” is a common question I receive.

I want to come out to people (and, in many ways, celebrate Pride as much as possible) because it is about my narrative, my way of processing and dealing with it. My relationship with celebrating Pride is about me. It’s about my growth, about not being able to be myself at school, with my friends, at home. I share that I am a gay man, tell people pronouns matter, that language matters, and by being myself, I try to inspire everyone around me that we will get the best of people by creating a safe space.

In a more personal way, I hope to show I am ready to discuss those topics and tell my story. I have had people at work sharing intense and thoughtful stories about their family members going through the challenges of growing up queer, having issues trying to raise a family, or just genuinely being open and curious about why we, queer people, need to have more representation — from the movies (Brokeback Mountain truly broke my heart!), til the leadership of our organizations.

What can you do about it? ??

These days there are a lot of ways to become an?LGBTQIA+ ally .

• Firstly check your company’s approaches to discrimination and harassment. Do they have any? Are those policies working, being developed, and used for internal and external usage?
• I hope you already understand that?more diverse teams mean more business .
• Employee Resource Group s are a great activity to open up conversations and create spaces for your employees to see you are starting to open dialogues.
• Decide how much?DEI means to your Talent Strategy. ?Are you willing to report your progress? Can you/Will you invest in attracting, hiring & developing minorities?
• What can you do for a layoff to be as inclusive as possible? This is when DEI is put into practice, IMHO. Are you conscious that?queer people may face more mental health issues ?than heteronormative people?

Honestly, be open about it. Don’t make Pride (our when people come out) about you. As an employer and individual, do your best to understand that people have struggled quite a lot, and we are all different. Not everyone will want to come to your Pride events, will want to talk about it, or need to be consulted if you are a good ally or not. Just acknowledge you want your teams to be who they are.

By promoting a safe space, everyone will be able to feel Proud. Happy Pride! ??? ????? ??