June is a significant month for different reasons. It starts with World Environment Day which is on the 5th of June and finishes up with World Pride Day which is to be celebrated on the last Sunday of June. Not forgetting to mention that June is also a month to celebrate the father figures in our lives, on the third Sunday of June which is when Father’s Day falls.
While all annual days of commemoration mark a particular day, Pride “day” was considered to be a flexible day in June which resulted in people across the global celebrating the occasion on different days. As a result, Pride is celebrated all over the world throughout the month promoting LGBTQ+ propaganda classifying June as World Pride Month. This event is celebrated through parades, festivals and other similar activities that bring unity all whilst working towards highlighting the current pride issues at hand that require immediate solutions.
For a little background story on the history of Pride month and why June, we go back all the way to the early hours of June 28th 1969. The Stonewall Inn located in New York City was raided in the early morning by the police due to it being a local watering hole for the LGBTQ+ community. As an injustice of the police violence that grew that morning, the community fought back ensuing protests and activist groups demanding for the right to live without the fear of being arrested and to be treated no different to the common man. This is thought to be the turning point for the Gay liberation movement and the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States. This riot lasted from June 28 1969 to July 3 1969. Pride month began in June 28th 1970 for when the first Pride march began in New York City as a commemoration of those who revolted in the name of human rights the previous year.
Ever wondered what the multitude of colors mean in the Rainbow Pride flag you see companies change their social media logos to?
Red – Life
Orange – Healing
Yellow – Sunlight
Green – Nature
Blue – Harmony/Peace
Violet – Spirit
Leaving aside the global platform and their take on Pride, the Sri Lankan community is usually close minded and unaccepting of things that aren’t considered part of our culture. However, with the progression of times, Sri Lanka is becoming more and more accepting of this part of the world. There are pride marches happening in Colombo, and the Sugar Bistro & Wine Bar in Crescat had also put up Pride flags to show acceptance. There are several conversations going on in parliament to amend the penal code in favor of the community and to decriminalize the people for who they are. Transgender people are also able to undergo certain changes with the help of hospitals including officially changing your gender. We even have non-profit organizations such as Equal Ground Sri Lanka (@equalground.srilanka) that promote pride in Sri Lanka including organizing pride themed events.
Sri Lanka is far off from accepting that everyone deserves to love who they want consensually, but we can say with pride that we are off to a good start.
