To me it's acceptance, even though true acceptance seems light years away.
Crossdressers are the little t. in LGBT. Enjoy this thrill ride anyway....dana
To me it's acceptance, even though true acceptance seems light years away.
Crossdressers are the little t. in LGBT. Enjoy this thrill ride anyway....dana
Pride Month is for people who are proud to be who they are. Not people who are ashamed and closeted. Most of the closet cases will be openly "disgusted" by pride parades and such, so that nobody would suspect that they are actually accepting of the LGBT community. Oh no, you can't be accepting and supportive, or somebody might automatically think you're wearing panties.
Pondering this issue makes me feel as tho my head is going to explode, so I am just going to slowly back away from my keyb.............................................. ...
I believe therefore I can [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Very good idea Michelle same here.............................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .........................................
Same here.............................................. .... ............................................. ..........................................
Ooooo ooooo me me! I will jump in.
It only means something to you if you want it to. There you have it. If you want to sit at home and just ignore it, so be it. It is your prerogative. If you want to participate, then you can and as much as you are comfortable with.
I don't know if I would agree with the little "T" comment. There may not be more crossdressers than any other description you can come up with, or there may be more, but we all have numbers and we all matter.
I didn't have time to do anything to help with this year's festival or parade. But I certainly will entertain it in the future. We seem to have a lot of the young people doing the work so it would be good to get an old fogey in the mix. But we will see. As it is, the parade and festival are this weekend and I will go and probably have quite a good time. I am also meeting up with a dear friend I haven't seen in a while and a Facebook friend I hadn't met in person before. So go have fun with it.
Oh its pride month?! Well since I'm out of the closet I'm going to enjoy this wonderful occasion to the f--kin fullest! Now I have no reason not to buy a rainbow flag and prance around in femm when I'm in Rehobeth Beach next week
hEll
while I'm not going to go marching down the road with them, I will still applaud their courage. I don't know that closeted cases will openly bash them. I think that would be very hypocritical. There are plenty of NON-LGBT people in our society that have no problem with us and are very accepting. I don't think you would out yourself if you told someone "That's awesome for them!" You don't have to come out of the closet to be supportive. No one says you must be one of them if you are supporting them. Now with that being said... if you decorate your car with gay pride stickers and you carry the rainbow flag around, you might as well come on out. But just supporting them verbally is not outting yourself. If we don't set the example, we are doing everyone in this community a great dis-service!
Let everyone live to each is their own. We absolutely should encourage tollerance whether we are part of this or not.
I go out on a average weekend anyway but I make the effort to go be in the parade each year. I've marched in Boston's Pride Parade since 2007. The whole thing about Pride is to be visible. People can't pretend we don't exist if they actually see us in real life. I also take it as a fun time to get together with my friends and have a lovely day out in the city.
Sally
I will stand on the side and give my tacit support but I don't wish to come out fully yet.
EVERYBODY in my pride march knows each other and most respect your privacy.
Work on your elegance,
and beauty will follow.
Here I go dating myself again! But, I remember when the slogan was:
"June is dairy month!"
U can't keep doing the same things over and over and expect to enjoy life to the max. When u try new things, even if they r out of your comfort zone, u may experience new excitement and growth that u never expected.
Challenge yourself and pursue your passions! When your life clock runs out, you'll have few or NO REGRETS!
[SIZE="3"]
[SIZE="4"][/SIZE]
We have a Pride festival here... but I don't really think it's a parade. I've never been though. My boyfriend is going to go to help out at the SAGA booth (San Antonio Gender Association)... basically a transsexual organization. I may go too if it's not too hot. We basically go so people who are transgender, transsexual or questioning and are looking for support can find it. We get new members in SAGA often, but Pride Fest usually gets several people to find us that otherwise may not have.
And of course, it's always good to show support for the entire LGBT community.
I couldn't disagree with you more. Whether I want to be in the closet or in the open or flaunting my CDing doesn't mean I can't be supportive of LGBT rights. Even if I considered myself severely closeted ( which I do not ) I am not ashamed of who I am or what I want to do.Originally Posted by Badtranny
For Pride month to really be a success and for there to be LGBT rights it doesn't just have to matter to the people who are "proud" as you put it, but everyone. Once we have a situation where even people who are not part of the LGBT community (or even know someone in the LGBT community) care about LGBT rights then we will truly have equality.
It means whatever you want it to mean. I myself dont carry around a rainbow flag or have gay pride sticker on my car. I am not exactly ashamed of being a crossdresser though. People should be proud no matter the month.
New facebook page feel free to add me as a friend. http://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn...00003349942987
And you would make a great "Dairy Princess" RS.
Second star to the right and straight on till morning
I'm out and proud, and I'll show my support, but from the cool air conditioning of a club in the neighborhood. I dress for fashion, not Texas in June outside!
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
I guess if we are proud of who we are as a person, we have it pretty much in the "bag". Participating in a parade or pride event would be optional I think.
Second star to the right and straight on till morning
Pride events aren't to boost your self esteem, they are to show the world we are out there and to push our goals of being treated as equals. But of course they are optional... lol. No one's forcing anyone to go and just because you are a member of the LGBT community doesn't mean you have to go.I guess if we are proud of who we are as a person, we have it pretty much in the "bag". Participating in a parade or pride event would be optional I think.
But gays, crossdressers and transsexuals aren't seen as normal members of society by a lot of people. They don't get the same rights as cisgendered people. The more exposure we get, the more people have to deal with us existing and slowly accept who we are and treat us like who we are... normal people that deserve the same rights and respect everyone else does. So it is beneficial if more people show up to these events... and if more LGBT people show the world who they are every day.
But if you are just a closet cross dresser and want to live the rest of your life that way, you probably have no reason to help members of the LGBT community, since to the rest the world you are a normal guy. But you might go anyway just to show your support for others who need it.
I would love to go in the June parade in my city but my SO would not like that idea. Maybe if it was in another city that would be ok.
I have to think that we are not alone in this area by having a lot of folks not in the LGBT community attending our Pridefests weekends! I know several non LGBT folks who are/were even on the board of directors for the Denver pride Center and Colorado Springs Pride center. Not to mention the folks in the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) groups. I really think we can not belong to a group and yet still support others rights. The only way others are going to incriminate you by being there is if you let them and then you can ask how they saw you without being there themselves!
Dana
[SIZE="3"]Dana Rachael Stevens
The person I have always wanted to be, is within me![/SIZE]
I don't have any problem whatsoever doing what I believe in. I do think it's someone else's turn to carry the ball though, I paid my dues long ago with two tours in Nam. I did this even knowing I was different from the mainstream but did it to ensure the rights we enjoy right now to be able to even have a Pride Month. Just because I don't directly participate doesn't mean I don't believe in it. Just wanted to set the record straight.
Second star to the right and straight on till morning
I'm sorry if you took my post the wrong way. I didn't mean to imply you didn't do your part, or that you even had to take a part. I tried to make that clear that it's each individuals personal choice to participate or not, and not participating doesn't make you any worse of a person than if you did participate.I don't have any problem whatsoever doing what I believe in. I do think it's someone else's turn to carry the ball though, I paid my dues long ago with two tours in Nam. I did this even knowing I was different from the mainstream but did it to ensure the rights we enjoy right now to be able to even have a Pride Month. Just because I don't directly participate doesn't mean I don't believe in it. Just wanted to set the record straight.
My entire post wasn't aimed at you... I was just kind of rambling. And to also set the record straight, aside from being myself, I've never attended any kind of Pride event. I was just trying to explain the benefits of attending and some reasons why different people would want to attend. Two tours in Nam is more than I've done... lol
That remains to be seen ;-)
Well you agree with me right there. If it weren't for the support of "straight" people than there would be no parades. My point was about NOT being supportive. I basically have an ongoing bone to pick with the conservative types that inhabit this forum yet don't support us in the real world.Whether I want to be in the closet or in the open or flaunting my CDing doesn't mean I can't be supportive of LGBT rights.
I couldn't have said it better myself. I've been openly gay since 2006 and I've never been to a parade much less been IN one. The point of pride isn't a parade, it's pride. It's about being proud that your are living YOUR life. Homosexuals no longer live in fear of coming out in most places. They can be themselves and actually be free to follow their heart. Pride is a celebration of that freedom. People who refuse to come out and live an authentic life don't get to experience that pride. I have had to come out TWICE in my life. Once as gay, and then a second time as trans a few years later. I am not proud to be trans as I had very little to do with it. I am proud however that I was able to face it and live the life I want to live without shame and fear holding me back. Some people have very good reasons for staying closeted and that's perfectly understandable, but there are NO good reasons for not supporting your community because you are afraid someone might think you are one of "them".For Pride month to really be a success and for there to be LGBT rights it doesn't just have to matter to the people who are "proud" as you put it, but everyone. Once we have a situation where even people who are not part of the LGBT community (or even know someone in the LGBT community) care about LGBT rights then we will truly have equality.
I am NOT an advocate for coming out at all costs, but I have no tolerance for those that want the fellowship of our LGBT community but refuse to support us as humans with the same inalienable human rights. I have wonderful straight friends of course but these guys are REAL men and they didn't bat an eye about being seen with me back when I was an obvious CD or later when I looked like a femmy gay guy. They likely won't go to any parades, but their support came in real actions right up close. They didn't care what people thought because they were confident in who they are. Likewise my "pride parade" is every day that I get up and go to work as an obviously transitioning TS. Everybody knows, there is nothing I can do about it, but I face the world everyday ...and I'm proud of that.
It's always great to hear the opinions of the open minded. "The closet cases!" Couldn't you think of a more pejorative term for people who prefer to shun the limelight? I thought Pride was about people being free to be who they are and show if they wish, not as an obligation. Such comments as these clearly show the author does not embrace fully the message they purport to espouse. Maybe you too, have issues to consider?
One of my sons, openly gay and currently working in America, has been on UK Pride since the age of 16 and is supported and loved by all of his family, so your generalising is off target.
Dana, have a great time, but as you say, true acceptance seems light years away. Sadly, even amongst our own forum.
Rebecca
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