Pride!

I was there at the beginning of Pride. Those were the days when being out was still a courageous political act. Like the book title, I felt young, gay and proud (and I carried a placard that showed the book cover), although my pride was somewhat muted.

1996 was the same year that anti retroviral cocktails began to positively impact those living with HIV/AIDS, and their death rate was plunging. After that year, HIV would become a chronic, largely manageable medical condition instead of a death sentence. Coming barely two years after Australia’s greatest annual mortality rate for AIDS, our communal sense of being under threat of death was cautiously evaporating.

But while that battle was waning, others were continuing or becoming heightened. Newly-elected Prime Minister John Howard was opposing gay adoption rights and his government was restricting immigration for same-sex couples (he would later legislate to ban same-sex marriage). Homosexuality was still illegal in Tasmania, and considered immoral across the country. Discrimination and prejudice were widespread.

Hence my hesitation. Although I excitedly marched with my placard as a member of the Queer Archives contingent that year, I was careful to avoid being filmed by the ABC-TV cameras. There was no anti-discrimination protection, and being a school teacher, I faced possible instant sacking from my job just upon the suspicion of being gay.

I marched in many groups over subsequent years: PFLAG, the Archives, the AIDS Quilt, Amnesty International, Spaced Out (a queer sci fi group), the Victorian AIDS Council (now Thorne Harbour Health), and the first school group to join the march (Eltham Secondary College?) But then I decided not to march one time, due to community politics, and I lost the impetus. I did not march again for some years.

I was there at the beginning of Pride – and I was there again this week, at the latest March. I had come home. I was not so young, still gay, and equally proud. This year’s contingent was a mix of LGBT+ and allies in Rainbow Atheists and Humanists Australia. It was the first time that humanists had marched, but curiously humanist LGBT+ activism predated probably every other group in the March. Some pioneer activists were finally getting representation.

There are many differences between the Pride Marches of old, and the Pride March of today: most of my old friends (such as Kate Doolan) are no longer here, and I am now among the older marchers. A fresh generation of community members is now out and proud. But the biggest difference is the celebratory tone of the event. We are no longer under attack. We no longer face almost universal and legalised discrimination. We even have a community centre there (in that same street where we marched) of which we can all be duly proud. It even played Abba for the occasion.

But our fight is far from over. Queer people around the world still face hatred, discrimination, imprisonment, violence or death, and it is up to us to use our voices on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves.

©2023 Geoff Allshorn