Happy PRIDE! That’s how we greet each other at the annual PRIDE celebration (held in October in Atlanta and celebrated globally in June.) PRIDE is the celebration and recognition of the LGBTQ+ community. It is a time to recognize the struggle and the progress and very importantly to recognize the value of each and every one of us – those that have been rejected by their families, cast out by their communities of faith and oppressed by their governments. And those that have found loving families and safe places to land. All of us in the LGBTQ+ community. PROUD of who we are.
As I write about PRIDE and the smile it brings to my face, I recognize that so many people need their own PRIDE – insert identity here. People with disabilities, those with physical or mental health issues, people of every ethnicity and skin color, those that are homeless and the list goes on. Self-hate is not an option. Hate is not an option. Only PRIDE and LOVE.
In Jimmy’s Shining the Light CA blog, I read this line by Lillian Davis, “Just a simple recognition of your existence can have a greater impact than you will ever know.”
So, shout it out, HAPPY PRIDE! Be who you are. Love yourself and your neighbor. We will all feel better.
Leanne Rubenstein
Co-Director
Compassionate Atlanta
