§
afi

esbian, gay, bisexual. trans-
Lgender, and queer (lgbtq)

people cut across race. class,
gender, and nationality lines and
represent a full spectrum of politi-
cal opinions. There are queer peo-
ple in the military and a visible
queer presence at almost every
recent peace rally. Queer organiza-
tions, listserves, and communities
have been rife with debates about
what position to take on a war with
Iraq. Meanwhile, lgbtq people
remain under attack by military and
fundamentalist governments around
the world, including the U.S.

I recently had a pride
epiphany. While I have been peck-
ing away at the things barricading
me in and preventing me from
being my true self, I was not
embracing the pride I have for who
I am and for the community in
which I live. I know that there are a
lot of horrible, evil, no-good things
out there that should frighten me as
a transgendered person, but, I now

We have
earned

the right

to’ be,’ proud

I $5 I
r "F. ‘-
§ e

small victories
A we each
have made.

know I need to let my pride guide
me past all of that into a brighter
place in my life, happiness.

My brother once said to
me that he remembered a time in
his life when he struggled to find
his purpose and place in life. He
_worried about me, as my challenge
was compounded with gender and
sexual identity struggles. For a time
I bought into his empathy, believ-
ing that I was weighed down with
all of these extra burdens, giving
me an excuse. It gave me a copout
to use for everything that went
wrong in my life. I could use it to
explain why I gave in when there
were pressurespat work or why I
caved at the face of oppression. I

piphariy of Pride

 

could use it at my whim to suit my
fancy. It had lost its legitimacy in
that it was only a tool for weak-
ness, not for my growth.

When I take pride in the
transsexual I am, I am no longer
able to accept my brother’s empa-
thy. I find it false. Pride in myself
and my community encourages me
to step into challenges with a smile
and face oppression head-on. Pride
gives me the inner energy to realize
that my gender and sexual identity
struggles are not struggles, but

[rather are a part of ‘me, and the

struggle has come to an end.

I now know who I am and
am able to embrace my true gender
and my sexual orientation as
strengthsgl am able to use them as
sources of power to step forward
into the world saying, “Look at me!
I am here to make the world a
brighter place.” My brother need
not worry about me. I have more
going for me then he ever did. I
may still be figuring out exactly
what I want to do with my life, but
I know exactly who I am.

It is easy, when we get
wrapped up in our daily lives, to
forget about the joy that we experi-
ence from the community in which
we live. It is hard, at times, to
remember how long we have strug-
gled to get where we are and how
much pride we each should hold
for where we stand today. Our
community has a right to hold its
head high and we, as members of
that community, have a right to
hold our heads high, within it.

It takes a lot of energy to I

survive in this world as a gay man,"
lesbian, bi-sexual person, transgen-
dered person, questioning person,
or intersexed person, whether you
are closeted or out to the world, or
somewhere in between. This strug-
gle earns each of us the right to be
proud of our survival at the very
least, if not at the triumph we each
have made over the oppression we
face each and every day. We also
have earned the right to be proud
of the ‘small victories we each have
made in our own ways toward
beating back discrimination. Be it
by educating someone or by not

   

laughing at ajoke. we have all
done it somewhere. We have all
fought the battle, be proud ofit.
Pride gives us strength to
do the work. There is a lot of work
involved within our community.
For gays, lesbians and bisexuals,
there is the work of coming out, if
they so choose. The challenging
and emotional work is taxing. It
can be costly emotionally and
socially. It is also extremely

I rewarding once the individual finds

the freedom to live their life hon-
estly. For transsexuals there is the
work oftransitioning. This is emo-
tional, expensive and often lonely
work. It is not uncommon for trans-
sexuals to lose friends, family and
jobs during this process. But again

-the reward of living life as their

true selves is worth the price.
None of this work would

be accomplished were it not for
individuals having pride in them-
selves and in the community. Pride
in self helps to build the esteem
needed to get through the chal-
lenges placed before us. Pride in
the community helps to build the
support needed when things get
rough. It is this sort of working
pride that binds us together as a
working unit. It is this form of

pride that helps each of usmake it . ,

through the worst of times. When
we feel so very low, it is pride in
our deepest feelings of ourselves,
whether it is in our sexual orienta-
tion or in our gender or both that
gives us the strength to keep going.
Pride comes in many

forms and at many times in our
lives. It serves many purposes and
many fimctions. It serves the com-
munity to keep it together, serving
its members and its many organiza-
tions. Pride helps to build an even
stronger community. It serves the

individual when they are struggling

through the darkest of times.

Pride is something to celebrate. We
have all done the work to earn the
right to celebrate with pride. Each
of us, whether strong activists or
quiet members of the community
not yet out, we are all doing the
work. Celebrate with pride. Who
we are is an asset. Never let it be a
burden. Never let anyone convince
you or persuade you that your gen-
der or your sexual orientation is
anything other than an asset to who
you are. Knowing who you are is
something to be proud of and will
help you make other decisions in
you life with more confidence. Let
pride guide you to happiness. V

Sierra Burke lives and writes in
central Vermont.

Solstice

continued from previous page

bring my power to bear rightly
and where I misuse my power. As
the.sun rises to its zenith, I can
contemplate whether I am Apollo
Alexikakos, the I-Iealer, or Apollo

Hecatabolos, the Archer. Or
maybe, like Apollo himself, we all
have the capacity for both mani-
festations.

Get out there and enjoy
the sun, Dearies, but don’t forget
to wear your SPF 45! V

Pippin is a radical faerie working

with Faerie Camp Destiny in
Grafton, Vermont. He is also
known as Christopher Kaufman,
the Executive Director ofR. U. 1.2?
Community Center. He can be
reached at pippin@sover net.

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