Where Pride Comes From and Why We Need It
Pride Month is upon us! There are a lot of feelings around this month. One thing I hear often is that people do not understand why we need it. To understand why we need it, it can help to understand that Pride grew out of resistance to normalized and persistent harassment and discrimination.
People in the community have long experienced significant discrimination. Same-sex sexual activity was illegal in Canada until 1969 [1]. In fact, same-sex marriage only became legal in Canada in 2005 [2]. The 1950s and 1960s were not a great time to be gay. As mentioned, it was illegal in Canada, as well as the United States [3]. Police forces and the FBI were tracking "known homosexuals", including people who frequented underground gay bars in both Canada and the United States [4]. Throughout America, there were regular police raids on suspected gay and lesbian bars [5]. It was illegal to wear clothes for the opposite gender (having implications for trans people, drag kings, drag queens, butch lesbians, and anyone wanting to step outside of traditional gender norms).
Discontent was brewing throughout Canada and the United States [6]. There were beginning to be rebellions resulting from police raids of gay bars. The Stonewall Inn was a popular underground gay bar in New York City which became iconic, not because it was the first uprising, but because of a complicated combination of timing, media coverage, and impact [7]. It started as a police raid. Some people were arrested; many were not. Accounts vary, but tensions escalated until a five-to-six day rebellion erupted now known as the Stonewall Uprising. It is worth noting that the uprising was significantly led by transgender women of color. Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera were among those at the forefront, and their courage and activism were instrumental in shaping the movement that followed [8]. Yet for many years, their contributions were overlooked or erased from mainstream tellings of this history [9]. People were tired of the oppression and wanted to be treated equally and live and love freely. The first Pride parades happened in June of 1970, exactly a year after the Stonewall Uprising [10]. This is a brief and simple summary of a complex, multifaceted event. For anyone interested in a deeper dive, the Calgary Public Library offers more information.
Today, being a sexual or gender minority is illegal in many countries around the world [11]. Many churches still preach that members in the 2SLGBTQ+ community will go to hell unless they "repent". Today, members of the 2SLGBTQ+ still face disproportionate discrimination and harassment, and kids identifying as 2SLGBTQ+ are more likely to suffer from depression and die from suicide [12].
Pride is important for a lot of different reasons for different people. From a mental health perspective, it is important because it helps to destigmatize the 2SLGBTQ+ community, promotes community, and celebrates queer joy, all things that lead to better mental health outcomes. So next time you see a pride flag, understand that somewhere, someone feels that they do not belong and even unsafe, until they see that flag.
References
[1] Human Dignity Trust. "A History of LGBT Criminalisation." Human Dignity Trust. https://www.humandignitytrust.org/lgbt-the-law/a-history-of-criminalisation/. Accessed May 26, 2026.
[2] Canada. Civil Marriage Act, S.C. 2005, c. 33. Ottawa: Department of Justice Canada, 2005. https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/annualstatutes/2005_33/FullText.html.
[3] Human Dignity Trust. "A History of LGBT Criminalisation." Human Dignity Trust. https://www.humandignitytrust.org/lgbt-the-law/a-history-of-criminalisation/. Accessed May 26, 2026.
[4] Adam, Barry D. The Rise of a Gay and Lesbian Movement. Boston: G. K. Hall & Co., 1987.
[5] Adam, Barry D. The Rise of a Gay and Lesbian Movement. Boston: G. K. Hall & Co., 1987.
[6] Adam, Barry D. The Rise of a Gay and Lesbian Movement. Boston: G. K. Hall & Co., 1987.
[7] Armstrong, Elizabeth A., and Suzanna M. Crage. "Movements and Memory: The Making of the Stonewall Myth." American Sociological Review 71, no. 5 (October 2006): 724–751. https://doi.org/10.1177/000312240607100502.
[8] Smithsonian Institution. "Marsha Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and the History of Pride Month." Smithsonian Institution, June 2021. https://www.si.edu/stories/marsha-johnson-sylvia-rivera-and-history-pride-month.
[9] National Women's History Museum. "Sylvia Rivera." National Women's History Museum, 2021. https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/sylvia-rivera.
[10] National Sexual Violence Resource Center. "Fact Sheet on Injustice in the LGBTQ Community." NSVRC. https://www.nsvrc.org/blog_post/fact-sheet-injustice-lgbtq-community/. Accessed May 26, 2026.
[11] BBC News. "Where Is It Illegal to Be Gay?" BBC News, February 10, 2014. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-25927595.
