Pride...?
http://www.vimeo.com/12698971
This video is well put together and I think the guy did a great job who made it. I guess for me, I just have this internal conflict. I really feel about three things when this happens. First and foremost, it really makes me miss Columbus.
I have to say that Columbus is really the first city that felt like home for me. I was born and raised in Defiance, but well, there were so many things that happened there that I just had no interest in. I never got involved in life there because well, I never really had a life there. I could never really be myself openly anyway, so what was the point in getting involved in a town where I felt overwhelmingly unwelcome anyway.
So I moved to Columbus, which I feel is the most open and liberal city in the state. No one really cares who you are or what you do. It's not that I suddenly was involved in all these events and just had this amazing life. I still pretty much stuck to my group of friends, but I felt like I could walk around, and wasn't constantly being judged. I could be honest with not only myself but with other people about who I was, and what I wanted in life.
Columbus is the city where I met the man I love. We've been together for almost 6 years now. I know for a fact that there is no other possible way I would have met him. Boy is French after all. So really, Columbus is not just about me, it's really about us. It's a place that I want to go back with my family and see how it's changed, and remember the old times.
Now continuing with the whole discussion of Pride. It's not that I don't think Pride is important. There's still a lot of injustice in the world, especially for the LGBT community. There's no question that we need to make our presence known and live every day showing the world who we are and more importantly that we're not ashamed of that fact. The protest at the Stonewall Inn was just one of many small steps, and it's important. I am even happier to see that Toledo will be having Pride too!
So, here's where things get sticky. I guess this is really the eternal argument though. Where does the community stop and the pageant begin? Did you notice that two of the most photographed and commented on parts of the gay community are the bars and the drag queens? Is this the race to the bottom for the gay community? I think I have already made comments on the fact that pretty much anytime there is/was money to be raised, it always ended the same way. Let's have a drag show!
What I liked about this video is that it shows a great diversity of the parade. There were families with children, leather bears, drag queens, marching bands, etc. I really like that the creator of this video didn't just spend all his time following around boys in speedos and drag queens. I think this video should be shown to demonstrate what and how to film in a parade.
So what's the takeaway from this, you're probably asking? For me, I think it's great that there are people who are willing to speak out in the community and we need voices, of all kinds. Sometimes it takes a fierce drag queen to get things done. Other times, let's get a leather daddy in. Circuit boys are effective at drawing in other parts of the community. But we are the sum of all of our parts.
So this year at Pride, I am glad to see that there was less focus on the carnivalesque, and more on our diversity and political issues. Let me know though. I am taking what I saw from the video. If I am wrong, I would love for someone to let me know what I got wrong.
For now, I hope everyone had a great pride, or will have a great pride if it's not finished.
This video is well put together and I think the guy did a great job who made it. I guess for me, I just have this internal conflict. I really feel about three things when this happens. First and foremost, it really makes me miss Columbus.
I have to say that Columbus is really the first city that felt like home for me. I was born and raised in Defiance, but well, there were so many things that happened there that I just had no interest in. I never got involved in life there because well, I never really had a life there. I could never really be myself openly anyway, so what was the point in getting involved in a town where I felt overwhelmingly unwelcome anyway.
So I moved to Columbus, which I feel is the most open and liberal city in the state. No one really cares who you are or what you do. It's not that I suddenly was involved in all these events and just had this amazing life. I still pretty much stuck to my group of friends, but I felt like I could walk around, and wasn't constantly being judged. I could be honest with not only myself but with other people about who I was, and what I wanted in life.
Columbus is the city where I met the man I love. We've been together for almost 6 years now. I know for a fact that there is no other possible way I would have met him. Boy is French after all. So really, Columbus is not just about me, it's really about us. It's a place that I want to go back with my family and see how it's changed, and remember the old times.
Now continuing with the whole discussion of Pride. It's not that I don't think Pride is important. There's still a lot of injustice in the world, especially for the LGBT community. There's no question that we need to make our presence known and live every day showing the world who we are and more importantly that we're not ashamed of that fact. The protest at the Stonewall Inn was just one of many small steps, and it's important. I am even happier to see that Toledo will be having Pride too!
So, here's where things get sticky. I guess this is really the eternal argument though. Where does the community stop and the pageant begin? Did you notice that two of the most photographed and commented on parts of the gay community are the bars and the drag queens? Is this the race to the bottom for the gay community? I think I have already made comments on the fact that pretty much anytime there is/was money to be raised, it always ended the same way. Let's have a drag show!
What I liked about this video is that it shows a great diversity of the parade. There were families with children, leather bears, drag queens, marching bands, etc. I really like that the creator of this video didn't just spend all his time following around boys in speedos and drag queens. I think this video should be shown to demonstrate what and how to film in a parade.
So what's the takeaway from this, you're probably asking? For me, I think it's great that there are people who are willing to speak out in the community and we need voices, of all kinds. Sometimes it takes a fierce drag queen to get things done. Other times, let's get a leather daddy in. Circuit boys are effective at drawing in other parts of the community. But we are the sum of all of our parts.
So this year at Pride, I am glad to see that there was less focus on the carnivalesque, and more on our diversity and political issues. Let me know though. I am taking what I saw from the video. If I am wrong, I would love for someone to let me know what I got wrong.
For now, I hope everyone had a great pride, or will have a great pride if it's not finished.