A flyer for Salvador Pride (Brazil); a drawing in one of the museums of São Paulo (also Brazil) (photos credits: me!)
I am not here to convince you that all people deserve equality.
I’d like to think you already believe that – on Pride Day or any other day.
In my episode, I quickly summarise several important arguments why we still need Pride and where, among other areas, there’s still a lot of work ahead.
Where might that work be needed in your country?
We have to look at its legal base. For example, the rights and anti-discriminatory laws that exist to protect the LGBTQ community. Media laws regarding LGBTQ representation. Marriage laws.
We can also look at statistics surrounding hate crimes and violence towards our LGBTQ friends.
We can look at heart-breaking statistics on LGBTQ youth suicide rates and different indices on mental health.
In short, even if it’s incomplete, there is a LOT of data showing that in many countries, to use very simple language, the situation is just not great.
That’s why, as I’ve been saying in my previous episodes:
Political representation matters.
Visibility matters.
Raising your voice matters.
It’s a short episode. I hope you find it valuable and even share it with the ones who might appreciate it, too.
But before I proceed to it, let me potentially sabotage my own prospects of you actually listening to it.
Because there are two videos that I would love you to watch.
I’ve seen them multiple times, shared them with friends, and cried….realistically, every time I’d watch them.
They’re beautiful, strong, personal, and very very needed.
First, it is the coming out speech by Elliot Page (then: Ellen Page).
Second, it’s the speech by Rory O’Neil (Panti Bliss), an Irish drag performer and a gay rights activist.
They will be worth your time, I promise you. And you will probably want to share them with your friends just like I did.
And now, my episode!
References:
- Maps of anti-LGBT Laws Country by Country, by Human Rights Watch
- A National Epidemic: Fatal Anti-Transgender Violence in the United States in 2019, by Human Rights Watch
- Human Rights Watch statistics, US, 2019
- Brazil: transgender murders increased 41% in 2020, Brazil de Fato
- Associação Nacional de Travestis e Transexuais (ANTRA)
- Suicide rates in the US
- Hungary passes law banning LGBT content in schools or kids’ TV, by The Guardian
Latest
Articles and Episodes:
If We Praise Henry Kissinger, What Do We Have to Negate?
As Henry Kissinger turns 100 years old today, what can we say? Will we praise his diplomacy skills or will we choose to see what’s behind those potential praises? I invite you to do the latter.
#JusticeForShireen, A Year Later
Exactly a year ago, Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was murdered by an Israeli sniper. What happened in a year in Palestine? And what lenses can help us understand what’s been happening in Palestine for decades, as seen through Shireen’s painful example?
Ramadan in Palestine: Disregarding Human Rights is Democracy; Criticising Those Same Abuses Is Antisemitism
The Palestinian town of Huwara was just violently attacked by a big mob of Israeli settlers. This is not an incident – it’s is all part of what a brutal system of military occupation, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid entails.
What Are Political Prisoners And Why Should We Care About Them?
Why can it seem problematic at first sight to even define the concept of ‘political prisoner’? What can help us to do so? And, most importantly, why should we care? In short, we should care about our political prisoners if we care about human rights and our humanity. In my episode, I talk about the…
The Brutality and The Illegality of The War in Iraq, 20 Years Later
If you’re an empire, you can destroy another nation and continue preaching about international law and human rights. Twenty years after the US-led invasion of Iraq, the country remains struggling and the war criminals unpunished.
International Women’s Day: Flowers Are Great, But What About End of Oppression?
What’s better than flowers on International Women’s Day? In short, a lot. That’s what I talk about in my episode.
Don’t miss an update! Follow The Exploding Head
Get new content delivered directly to your inbox.
The Exploding Head Blog & Podcast 