Time for another one of those posts about word choice and meaning. Again, it would be best to read until the end before making a judgement. The concept of Gay Pride is one that I believe is completely counter to what those who express such pride actually know. Follow me on this...
Are you "proud" that you have two feet? Are you going to join a "BiFooted Pride Parade"? Are you going to wear shirts that are two feet long with a pair of feet on them? No. Of course not. OK, so you might just to spite me and try to prove me wrong, but that's not how this works. Well, why not? Isn't having the two feet you were genetically determined to have a reason for pride? No. It isn't. Did you choose to have two feet? No again.
Pride is great! Having pride in accomplishments is something to be admired. But you can't feel proud that the sky is blue. You had no control over that. You see, pride is something you feel because you succeeded at something. You can only succeed in doing things that have the possibility of failure. Pride is what you feel when you make a choice and it resolves in a positive way.
Therefore, to suggest that you are proud of being gay (or white, or male, or a dog) also suggests that you had a choice in becoming that. I have yet to meet the gay man or woman who said to me, "You know, I could have been straight but I really wanted to be gay. So I tried my hardest, worked on it, and finally managed to become gay." This is because gay isn't a choice. This is a central tenet of the entire idea; you don't CHOOSE to be gay, you just are. Yet, by declaring it "Gay Pride" then you are telling the world that you had a choice. This is the exact opposite statement that you are trying to make.
You can, and should, be proud of being open and accepting of alternative lifestyles. You should be proud to be actively supportive of your movement and working for change. But, being gay? That's not a choice. Just be gay. Nothing to be proud of. After all, you didn't really have a choice...
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