Celebrating Pride: 3 Ways to Be a Better Ally
Pride is about love.
It’s about celebrating our differences. It’s about acceptance.
While we welcome and celebrate diversity year round, the month of June offers an opportunity to direct our focus and attention to the dynamic and vibrant LGBTQ+ community. Regardless of how you define your gender, sexual identity or orientation, we can all align in our commitment to allyship and building empathy.
But how do we do that? Keep reading to learn more about what you and your family can do to become an effective, empathic ally to the LGBTQ+ community.
1. Be open. Be accepting.
In a world where there is pressure to conform, it takes an incredible amount of strength and courage to be our authentic selves. If we can meet vulnerability with acceptance, we open our hearts and minds to new relationships. As allies, it’s important to be open and receptive to all members of our diverse population. If we can accept that love is love, our LGBTQ+ friends and family members will feel safe, comfortable and encouraged to be who they are.
2. Educate yourself.
It’s easy to communicate your support and allyship, but what do we even know about who we’re aligning with? Acceptance and education go hand in hand when talking about being an ally. Educate yourself and show an interest in learning more about what it means to be part of the LGBTQ+ community. What do the letters stand for? What is the significance of the rainbow on the Pride flag? Showing an interest in expanding our knowledge and understanding demonstrates an openness that is critical to being an ally.
3. Take action. Show your support.
There are many simple, accessible ways to take action and show your support to the LGBTQ+ community. Things like wearing a Pride pin on your lapel at work, or on your baseball cap, or adding your pronouns to your email signature, are all examples of showcasing your support both to the LGBTQ+ community and the community at large. Whether a new employee, a child’s friend from school, a teacher, a neighbor, he or she will see your display of allyship and feel comforted.
Becoming an ally does not end simply with direct support to the LGBTQ+ community. It continues with communicating our acceptance to our broader networks. Get involved as an ally with work and community initiatives that support inclusivity or march as an ally in the Pride Parade. In our diverse city of Toronto, it is critical that we both communicate and demonstrate our commitment to celebrating our differences and our identities. When we accept and celebrate love is love, we enrich our lives and our hearts.
This post was written by wellbe’s social worker Torey Belzberg. If you or your family are in need of support, you can book an in-person or virtual visit with our social workers here.