Millennials Share What Pride Means to Them at Iconic LGBTQ Landmarks

LGBTQIA2S is the full acronym for describing gender and sexual minorities, and yet it still doesn't feel completely accurate in describing people that fall outside of straight identities or hetero gender norms. The term queer, a slur reappropriated by the community, is often used as a catch-all for the various orientations and genders outside the binary cisgender and male-female attraction. The diversity of the community is as varied as the colors of the rainbow, which, along with the Babadook, has become the ubiquitous symbol of Pride.

VICE Impact spoke with nine people across the spectrum of queer identities and asked each of them what prides means to them at historic LGBTQ sites across New York City in honor of Pride month. Their stories emphasize that being queer isn't a monolithic identity, but an intertwined community of different experiences, challenges and reasons to be proud.

Pride to me means that there is a world without judgment, where no one is uncomfortable, and where love and sex are not controlled components of society. It's a time to celebrate how far we've come, and for me, it's reassurance that I can still walk around hand in hand with my partner without worrying about being harassed. -Reema

To me, Pride is living my truth as a queer South Asian woman each and every day. It's about celebrating community and chosen family, in the light of marginalization and oppression. Pride means honoring the work of all the activists and pioneers who came before us, whose groundbreaking advocacy gives us the right to be out, march and marry. It means celebrating love in all its forms and using the privilege of being out to create visibility for those who remain in the shadows. -Priya.

I am from the Netherlands, one of the most liberal countries on earth, but even there young LGBTQ people experience discrimination. My first Pride was a shock as so many people were not only accepting, but celebrated me being me. Seeing others involved in activism made me want to the join the movement for equality too. Standing side by side, united in our fight for equal rights is what pride means to me.

Radical self-expression, love, community, validation and inclusion make Pride month great. I am so proud to be a part of the LGBTQI+ community and Pride month is a time for community views to be amplified so the world can see we exist. Pride is recognizing where we came from, the work we are doing and hoping that one day we will live in a world where differences are celebrated loudly all year long.

Pride is and has always been political. Whether it's marching with Act Up, dancing at a circuit party or just holding hands as we cross the street, anytime a queer person lives an out and honest life it's a political act. Almost 50 years after Stonewall and we still make a statement by simply living our lives.

Pride is cementing yourself in your beliefs, even in the face of adversity. When you're proud, there's no room for fear.

"For me, pride is about celebrating and feeling confident in my voice. In a field like comedy, which has not traditionally been the easiest for marginalized voices to break into, being a lesbian - being other - gives me the power to hold my own in spaces and situations often dominated by loud men. I love feeling like part of the legacy of queer women in comedy that Moms Mabley, Lily Tomlin, Wanda Sykes, Margaret Cho, and others have laid the foundation for. I love feeling connected to legends like that by this thing we all have in common!"

Pride isn't just one month in a year, but the everyday act of harnessing the courage to unabashedly be yourself. It isn't just celebrating who we are today, but honoring the queer, trans and LGBTQ people of color before us who fought against oppression and erasure. Pride is being loud, being visible and actively resisting the gender binary and cishet-centrism that have tried to silence us.

Pride to me means knowing that the most radical thing I can do every day is wake up, moisturize, kiss my girlfriend goodbye, go to work, advocate for diversity, and take up the most space I can. It means unapologetically being myself and paving the road for more representation in media and policy. Pride to me means decolonizing my body, loving myself, and being louder/greater than the system wants me to be.

Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.