WorldPride in D.C.  It's More Than Pride

At Pride parades around the world, queer people celebrate diverse gender identities and sexual orientations and demand equal rights for everyone, especially big in Washington, D.C. this year. But where does this tradition come from?

The Birth of a Movement

At the Stonewall Inn, a bar in Lower Manhattan, the modern LGBTQIA+ movement first saw the light of day in the midsummer of 1969. Suppressed by discriminatory laws and persecuted by state violence, the queer community often had no choice but to retreat into private and sometimes illegal spaces. Police raids were no rarity. But the brutality with which state forces proceeded at the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street in New York City prompted the guests of the queer bar to fight back. The battles in the streets lasted for days and sent a signal of resistance to peers in the USA and beyond – up to the present day. A Safe Space
For many people, pride parades are a safe space. Surrounded by like-minded people and free from hostility, queers can celebrate: “Pride is a chance to celebrate and really be proud of who you are and who we are, no apologies”, say Roman and Richard Baran from New York, who have been married since 2012. For many, however, it is more than that – the phrase ‘Stonewall was a Riot’ can be read again and again on signs or rainbow flags. It is a reminder that equal rights and the recognition of their identities had to be fought for against massive resistance. Battles of the Past?
For many younger members of the queer community, a key issue will have been same-sex marriage. In the last 25 years, the USA, Canada and many countries in Europe, as well as Mexico, Argentina and other nations, have made it possible for same-sex couples to marry. In the past, other issues dominated: The AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, to which hundreds of thousands fell victim, the pathologization of homosexuals – the WHO considered homosexuality a mental illness until 1990 – as well as their demonization and criminalization. In Germany, paragraph 175, which criminalized sexual acts between men, was only removed from the penal code in 1994 after reunification. Before that, the National Socialist version of the law had been applied in West Germany. The pink triangle, which was used to mark homosexuals in concentration camps, is now a symbol of resistance for the LGBTQIA+ movement. Many of these developments have not yet reached parts of the world. Homosexuality is illegal in 66 nations, with the death penalty being used in some of these. The legal situation for trans people is also critical in many countries, their transition is made more difficult or even prohibited. These issues are particularly important for WorldPride and its guests. In addition to sporting events, festivals and, of course, the big parade, a Human Rights Conference is held, ecumenical church services and events with a focus on Black, LatinX and deaf people are organized. Pride sees itself as political, global and intersectional.

Roll Backwards
But even in countries such as the USA and Germany, the situation is no longer what it had been just a few months ago. The organizers of Berlin's Christopher Street Day, one of the largest Pride events in Europe, are losing sponsors and are therefore unable to send a delegation to Washington. With regard to the policies of the current administration in the USA, the board of the CSD in Berlin reports: Queer people have repeatedly been the target of discrimination. Treatment of HIV patients at national and international level is being questioned, and soldiers who have received honors are being discharged from service. It was only 15 years ago that the USA legalized homosexuality in the military. Members of the queer community fear repression and are uniting. “As the political climate becomes more dark, more unfriendly to the LGBT+ community, it is important that we take stand and demand our rightful place in society", say Richard and Roman Baran, pushing their fears aside. Tradition of a Demonstration
Similar to Stonewall, the March on Washington has become a symbol. In 1964, the Civil Rights Movement laid the foundation for denouncing inequalities and taking political demands to the streets and into the heart of US democracy. In 1979, people from many different countries traveled to Washington, D.C., to demand equal rights for the queer community. Like World Pride this year, it was a protest and a celebration all at once: