"Why Do You Need a Whole Pride Month?" Steve asks

“Help me understand what a group of people need to achieve to qualify for a month-long acknowledgement of their particular cause/lifestyle/or choice, to deserve a month-long celebration or recognition? …

Does that mean we should advocate for a change to Anzac Day to Anzac Month? … I’m just trying to understand what seems an imbalance

I guess I’m also asking why in America they don’t celebrate or acknowledge a “White Month” for the great achievements of progression, inventions and attributions of some of the greatest minds in history … I’m just trying to find some balance in all these events.

Steve”

Hi Steve, I have wondered the same myself at times, along with why do lesbians get a week of visibility and gay men get nothing. Your question comes up every year.

A brief history might help with context.

The first Pride marches were held in June 1970 in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco to mark the first anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising in New York City. The initial riot was ignited because the police raided a bar in Greenwich Village, which was popular amongst the gay community, the Stonewall Inn, on the morning of June 28, 1969.

What followed was not a single night but several days of protests, demonstrations, and clashes that, even though there had been protests before, became a catalyst for the modern LGBTQ rights movement. It became our Rosa Parks moment.

Stonewall was not significant because it was the first police raid on a gay bar; police raids were common. Stonewall became historic because, after years of harassment, violence, and discrimination, LGBTQ people fought back, and in significant numbers.

After 1970, each year the number attending the Liberation Day parades grew and began in other parts of the world where the same issues were being faced: criminalisation, discrimination and violence.

Australia’s first major Pride march, as part of a growing international Gay Solidarity Celebratory Day, did not occur until 1978. It’s now known as the first Mardi Gras. Like the US, there had been protests before.

Those initial marches were not so much celebrations as protests against laws that treated LGBTQ people as criminals. They were acts of defiance against ignorance, prejudice, and discrimination. People marched at the risk of ending careers, losing jobs, being rejected by families, and being evicted.

After the first few years, the organisers realised that June was not ideal in Sydney. It was cold, wet, and often difficult for large outdoor events. The event shifted into our summer in 1981. The move to summer dramatically increased attendance and public visibility.

While the date has changed, the event’s roots remain firmly connected to the June 1969 Stonewall uprising and the struggle for LGBTQ rights.

In Australia, we tended not to align ourselves with the northern hemisphere Pride events. When I came out in 1992, hardly anyone acknowledged Pride, but in recent years, it has become more popular.

But how did it go from a march to a month?

As the LGBTQ movement grew and laws changed, it moved from protest and defiance to celebration. Educational, entertainment, cultural, and arts events began to be added which couldn’t be held on one day or even a week. June was first officially recognised in the United States as “Gay and Lesbian Pride Month” by Bill Clinton in 1999. Many places now have a full month’s calendar of events, as we do in Sydney’s Mardi Gras season in February. This year the Sydney Mardi Gras festival had over 80 individual events listed. Melbourne’s Midsumma Festival featured 220 events.

Having a month raises awareness. It’s also an encouragement to those still closeted and helps family and friends coming to terms with their loved ones’ newly revealed identities.

You mention why we don’t have months for things like Anzac or White month. I’m sure others could be added to that list. The thing to be considered is what the purpose of the day, week, or month is.

A useful way to understand it is that commemorative events are usually created to recognise groups or issues that have been historically overlooked, marginalised, or excluded from mainstream narratives.

For example:

Women’s History Month was created because women’s contributions were often omitted from history books and public recognition.
NAIDOC Week highlights the history, cultures, and achievements of First Nations Australians.
Men’s Health Week focuses on specific health challenges affecting men.
RUOK? Day encourages conversations about mental health and suicide prevention.

There is no universal rule as to the length of an observance, whether a day, week, or month. It’s usually the result of historical development, advocacy, community support, and government or organisational recognition. It is not a ranking system that says one group is more important than another.

Anzac Month? or White Month?

As for the suggestion, “Should we change ANZAC Day to ANZAC Month?”, most people would probably say no because ANZAC Day already has a very specific purpose and tradition centred on a day of remembrance. I’m sure you’ve been in an RSL club at 6pm before. Everyone stops talking, stands, the last post and the ode are played and everyone responds, “We will remember them. Lest we forget”. Three hundred and sixty-five days a year. And so we should acknowledge those who served our country and the lives lost to war.

The reason there isn’t a “White History Month” is that the achievements of white people have been extensively represented throughout mainstream history, education, museums, public monuments, and national celebrations. History and awareness months were generally created to recognise groups whose contributions were often overlooked or excluded, not to diminish anyone else’s achievements.

I hope this helps Steve.

PS….it would be good to mention that being gay is not a “lifestyle” or a choice. The only choice we had was to be ourselves.