16 Ways to Celebrate Pride

Pride is celebrated in June to commemorate the Stonewall riots, which started on June 28, 1969 when police raided the gathering place frequented by gay, lesbian, bisxual, and transgender people. Trans women of color led the movement , and now, 50+ years later, Pride has grown from a fight for equal rights to a celebration of the progress made by LGBTQIA+ activists and allies in securing those rights. 

Pride is a joyous celebration, but it’s also a moment to honor the activists who made that celebration possible and to commit to continuing their mission. There’s still a lot of work to be done to ensure that the world is a welcoming place for LGBTQIA+ individuals and families.

At Clyde, we believe in doing that work as a company. From pursuing ongoing DEI training to ensuring that our team is made up of diverse perspectives , we’re committed to standing for equality and dignity for all. We do that during Pride, but also all year round, through things like offering inclusive parenting benefits for our employees, making donations to LGBTQIA+ advocacy groups, and sharing ways for our great community to show up and support.

Just like our platform makes product protection easy, we wanted to make it easy to show support for the LGBTQIA+ community this Pride and beyond. Whether you’re interested in supporting with your money, with your attendance, or with your action, check out these 16 ways to celebrate Pride.

With your money

Support organizations doing the real, on-the-ground work to create safety and justice for the LGBTQIA+ community by funding their efforts. Consider giving donations to:

1. Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice : This foundation raises money for initiatives led by and for diverse groups, especially lesbians and queer women, trans and gender nonconforming people, intersex people, and people of color. They give grants of up to $3,000 to LGBTQI activists making transformational change.

2. Griffin-Gracy Educational Retreat & Historical Center : The center was started by Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a Black trans woman who survived the riots at Stonewall, and its mission is to positively impact the lives of transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals. Their biggest project is a house in Little Rock, Arkansas, where they host retreats for transgender people, especially Black trans women, to come together for fun, fellowship, and restoration.

3. True Colors United : This project, co-founded by Cyndia Lauper, focuses on supporting LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness. They offer free training for service providers and help create job opportunities for young LGBTQ people facing housing insecurity.

4. The Transgender Law Center : This trans-led organization advocates for self-determination for all people. They’ve won legal victories that advance the rights of transgender and gender-nonconforming people in areas like employment, prison considtions, healthcare, and immigration. 

5. The Trevor Project : This national organization offers crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to LGBTQ people under 25. With phone, live chat, text, and social media options, they respond to over 100,000 outreaches each year. 

6. The Okra Project : This collective offers free, nutritious, and culturally-specific meals to Black trans people experiencing food insecurity. From mutual aid funds to free therapy programs, their efforts work to care for the overall health and wellbeing of their community.

These are just several examples — feel free to find an organization local to your area or near and dear to your heart, and set up a recurring donation if you can! Check out Charity Navigator's list of LGBTQIA+-affiliated charities to start.

You can also support LGBTQIA+-owned businesses, both during June and all year round. Even as an individual, being thoughtful about your buying power lets you make a statement of support to the LGBTQIA+ community. Consider supporting places like:

1. Dr. Botanicals : This UK-based LGBTQ+-owned brand makes vegan skincare like lotions and serums, and they’ve committed to raising $100,000 this Pride for charities that support the LGBTQIA+ community.

2. JZD : Founded by a queer Latina and led by her and her wife, this brand’s unisex shirts for LGBTQIA individuals and allies are cute, playful, and size-inclusive.

3. Wildfang : This gender-supporting clothing company is queer-run and female-founded, and they give over $400k to nonprofits like the ACLU and Tegan & Sara each year.

4. The restaurant(s) of your choosing: Thrillest gathered a list of queer-owned restauraunts in NYC and suggested getting “American fare at Elmo , Mexican meals at Fonda , signature bowls at Blue Park Kitchen , New Mexican (the American state) burritos and more at Ursula , cafe food at Foster Sundry , Lebanese dishes and goods at Edy’s Grocer , or Italian plates at Via Carota .” Look for local options in your city and support, whether you dine in or order takeout! 

Again, these are just a sampling of LGBTQIA+-owned businesses. For more inspiration, check out this list of queer-owned bookstores , these recommendations of queer-owned brands from Tan France, and Eat Queer , a community-driven directory of queer food and drink establishments.

With your time

Time is a finite and precious resource. Spending yours to develop a deeper understanding of the LGBTQIA+ community is a worthy endeavor.

1. Read and discuss queer books: Have your book club read one of Book Riot’s recs from this list of 100 must-read books from queer authors (and bonus points if you buy the book from one of the queer-owned bookstores linked above!).

2. Watch and discuss LGBTQ+ movies: From Moonlight to Portrait Of A Lady On Fire, there has been an outpouring of critical and commercial success for queer movies in the last few years. Rotten Tomatoes created a list of the 200 best LGBTQ+ films —all feature LGBTQ characters and themes in fair, realistic lights—that are worth watching, debating, and learning from.

3. Learn and listen: History is Gay is a much-acclaimed podcast that explores the role that queer people have played throughout history, like in the civil rights movement and WWI and ancient Rome.

With your action

With COVID restrictions lifted across the country, you can now make a difference in-person.

1. Volunteer with the Human Rights Campaign : HRC’s all-volunteer committees are the ones on the front lines, pushing for LGBTQ equality. Look for virtual events like writing to elected officials, text banking voters, and fundraising for service initiatives, or in-person ones like canvassing for local elections and helping to set up and take down events. 

2. Use your political voice: Contact your representatives to tell them you support LGBTQ-affirming laws. Start with The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center’s guidelines to find your representative, and research specific legislation to support here .

3. Attend Pride. Big cities are starting to return to in-person Pride events this year, though some have pushed them out from the traditional June dates to address public health concerns as we come out of the pandemic. Seattle, New York, Chicago, Denver, and others are celebrating June 25-27; Austin’s is August 14; Philly’s is September 14th; Miami’s is September 10-19; Las Vegas’s is October 8-9; Atlanta’s is October 8-10. LGBTQ-friendly travel app misterb&b has put together a guide of 2021’s events —look for what’s going on in your city and show up to march, clap, and cheer!