What if we extended Pride Month to be year round?

When I first came out as queer, my dad asked why there needs to be a whole month dedicated to queerness. Over time, I’ve come to understand that when a community has been so burdened with stigma and violence, this celebration is more than a party—it’s a lifeline. Pride is the light at the end of the tunnel each year. Pride parades are an exception to the straight pride parade that happens on every other day, in every other month.

Pride isn’t the same thing as happiness. For many of us, Pride comes with a side of grief of what’s been lost and a shoring up of strength for the fight still to come. For some of us, it comes with increasing anxiety as we feel the clock ticking towards July 1, a date when anti-trans legislation will still exist, where queer youth will still be unhoused.

My commitment this year is to work towards a world in which June does not feel like an exception. Big picture, this looks like helping every queer person access queer community right where they are. Personally, I’m planning a June that doesn’t burn me out—a Pride from which I don’t have to recover. I’ve put my commitments together into a manifesto for you to download (and create your own!).