Resisting with PRIDE
The month of LOVE and all it entails
What is Pride - what is Love? Baby, don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me no more.
Pride was born from a “riot” – an uprising. Pride was born from resistance. Pride was the flower that bloomed from the hard fought struggle of trans women, sex workers, the AIDS community, the so very queer and beautiful fringes of society people did not want to look at. It was rooted in anticapitalism, antiimperialism, antistate, antipatriarchy–
And yet when we look around us now, our Pride parades are sequestered into paid events sponsored by big corporations and banks, freshly painted in rainbows. The Stonewall Uprising was the point of origin, where Pride truly began. It was a week’s worth of police and state sanctioned brutality, met with resistance unlike they had seen before. The LGBTQ+ community would not tolerate these raids on their spaces any longer; they dove headfirst into the fight, putting it all on the line. It began so loudly, with a bang, and over time we were silenced, our voices quieted and stuffed within the same ballot box they deigned to trap us inside.
Pride began as an uprising. A brilliant, blazing uprising… at a dive bar, in the middle of the night, where they threw bottles, debris, bricks, whatever they could. It was not graceful or refined - if it was, we wouldn’t have Pride.
…That is what Pride is. Pride is a fight; it’s the flames of resistance, stoked by love. It isn’t General Electric in a new color palette, or an elected official using the community to masquerade as an ally of the people, or pinkwashing (the act of using LGBTQ+ rights to purport imperialism; many Zionist benefactors employ pinkwashing to detract from their atrocities). It is not a month where corporations – who exploit thousands of people whether it be in the global south or here, you and me, me and you – get to co-opt our spirit. It is not the one month in which the queer community is allowed to exist in the eyes of the public.
It is not about being a “good” queer versus a “bad” queer. Pride is a fight. One day, it won’t have to be.
But for now? It is, more than ever. Our trans sisters, brothers and siblings are being disappeared and murdered by the month. June began with the brutal hate crime of a beloved gay voice actor, Jonathan Hill, who defined many of our childhoods. The alt right continues to sharpen the blade beneath our throats while neoliberal bureaucrats try to weaponize us against other minorities under the guise of “protecting” us.
Where is the pride in abandoning one another? Where is the pride in being yourself, but with a caveat - yourself, so long as you say the right things, buy the right things, do the right things? Yourself without the risk?
Now, we watch our comrades in Los Angeles confront the peons of the state - police officers, ICE agents, Marines - armed and impassioned. Our comrades are protecting our immigrant and unhoused communities with their two hands. And this, this speaks to the spirit of resistance to me.
This homage is for the queers on the street, the queers under siege, the queers in countries where they are at constant risk of being killed, the queers who are too weird or grody or incomprehensible to market to, the queers who never had the luxury of knowing they’re queer because of the demands of capitalism and patriarchy and society. This is for the queers who people don’t want to look at, my siblings, the same queers who are why we get to stand here today and talk at all.
Pride is an uprising, before it’s anything else. Let’s remember that this month!
So, you wanna be an Ally? How to be a good Ally in PRIDE month and always.
Merriam Webster defines ally as such:
ally
1
: a sovereign or state associated with another by treaty or league
America and its allies
2
: one that is associated with another as a helper : a person or group that provides assistance and support in an ongoing effort, activity, or struggle
a political ally
She has proven to be a valuable ally in the fight for better working conditions.
—often now used specifically of a person who is not a member of a marginalized or mistreated group but who expresses or gives support to that group
The storyline on "Glee" captures something larger that we are seeing with a new generation of allies (allies are people who support LGBT rights but aren't LGBT themselves).
—David M. Hall
What does it mean to be a helper? A provider of assistance and support in an ongoing effort, activity or struggle:
It means your ego takes a back seat because in allyship it is not about you. Being an ally means that you are willing to check your biases and assumptions and trade them for listening, learning and yielding. Over and over and over again.
When you are an ally to an individual or a cause you are willing to recognize, own and use your privilege as a bridge to amplify voices of the oppressed. When necessary you are willing to utilize your privilege as a shield for the oppressed. As an ally you have to be willing to be brave, stand up and stand in when asked, without assuming you know what is best for an individual or a cause. You are there to hold space, respect and love.
As an ally it is my responsibility to continue my education and learning journey and to continuously check my prejudices and be open to feedback. It means I am willing to be uncomfortable, take risks and accept loss to stand up for what and who I believe in.
Allyhsip means leaning into and growing my ability to connect in empathy and compassion.
Allies are necessary to advancing causes and connecting with our fellow humans BUT we must be willing to come into these sacred, invited spaces with respect and humility.
Ways to turn up in June
The Treasure Coast Black Chamber of Commerce is proud to present the inaugural Juneteenth 5K Run/Walk on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at Clover Park. To register click HERE.
PowerU Center for Social Change needs our voices on Tuesday, June 17th to let the Miami city commission know that WE ARE AGAINST agreement 287(g) allowing the Miami Police Department to collaborate with ICE and authorize local officers to enforce federal immigration laws. Sign up to speak out HERE. To learen more about Power U events in the Miami area check out this LINK.
Following on the heels of the Freedom Flotilla the “Caravan of Steadfastness” is on its way to Gaza to break the siege. Check it out HERE!
Walking together, opening roads to life for Gaza.
Global March To Gaza.
Just as the Freedom Flotilla activists have been illegally and brutally taken hostage by Israel their message remains strong and continues with the “Caravan of Steadfastness” and the upcoming global march. ALL EYES ON GAZA! To learn more about how to get involved in this journey check out their WEBSITE.
"My Story, My Power" celebrates Juneteenth by exploring Black stories through art, writing, and more. Kids and teens will learn about history, share their own stories, and honor the power of personal narratives. Register HERE!
COMPASS Center in Lake Worth compiled a list of fun activities to celebrate PRIDE all month long. To stay up to date on all COMPASS events follow them on Instagram OR their Website. We are putting this for those who may be interested in community events.
To check out PRIDE events being hosted by PRISM click HERE.
Get your NO KINGS protest on this Saturday with a march, a car caravan and a rally. Choose your course of civil disobediance HERE and we’ll see you there!
If you live in the Miami area check out all the events the Miami Freedom Project is highlighting on their Instagram page and their Website. They will keep your mind, body and spirit full and in community.
This haunting image out of Krome Detention Center in Miami. Miami Freedom Project highlights some ways we can express our outrage.
FLIC has compiled a helpful pathway to keep our immigrant community safe while undergoing court proceedings. To view the entire post click HERE. Please share FLIC resources with those who may need and stay informed and safe!
Check out the enriching events ROHI’s READERY is bringing to the community in June.
Online Webinars for Palestine
Step 1: Donate to Sameer Project here (sugg. donation $60)
Step 2: Register for “Forgotten Pages from the History of the Palestinian Resistance” here
Over the course of three sessions (June 14, 15, & 21), this workshop will explore some of the lesser known episodes of the history of the Palestinian Resistance.
The first session will explore the early struggles that the Ottoman Palestinians and Arabs waged against the Zionist project as early as the first Zionist settlement, recognizing how the years 1878-1920 shaped the contemporary Palestinian struggle.
The second session will explore the history of Fateh's "Student Brigades," its trajectory in the "Jarmaq Battalion" and later the Islamic Jihad Brigades.
And the final session will focus on the internationalist dimension of the Palestinian struggle. While emphasizing the imperialist nature of the Zionist movement (relying mainly on Kanfani's study of the 1936 uprising) the session will revisit the history of the "external operations" and the careers of internationalist individuals and groups that dedicated their lives to the Palestinian aspect of the anti-imperialist struggle. Hosted by workshops4gaza.
Step 1: Donate to Momen’s family here (sugg. donation $40).
Step 2: Register for “Organizing Fundamentals” here.
This workshop will introduce participants to the basics of community organizing, including: the organizing cycle, base building, and structure. Participants will draw on personal experiences and examine historical examples of organizing as the basis of our learning. As we look to strengthen our movement and collectively develop the skills necessary to build power, this workshops offers a place for people who want to get active to learn the fundamentals of organizing.
Ari (they/them) has been active in community organizing in Brooklyn for over ten years and involved in several different campaigns related to housing, divestment, and raising awareness around intimate partner violence. They are a part of G-REBELS a grassroots organization which is currently working on their People’s Power Network, which offers material aid, political education, and childcare to local community members. They meet bi-weekly at the Central Library in Brooklyn. Hosted by workshops4gaza.
Step 1: Donate to Sameer Project here (sugg. donation $40).
Step 2: Register for “Proposals for Life Against the Fourth World War” here.
According to the Zapatistas, the 4th World War is underway, a war against humanity. What constitutes this war? What are its defining characteristics? In this workshop, renowned journalist Raul Zibechi will provide an overview of the Zapatistas' framing of the 4th World War. We will also cover the ways in which pueblos or peoples throughout Latin America and forging new pathways for life in the face of the 4th world war.
Raúl Zibechi is an Uruguayan writer, popular educator, and journalist. He writes for La Jornada, Desinformémonos, and NACLA Report on the Americas, among other outlets. Zibechi has published numerous books, including Dispersing Power, Territories in Resistance, and Constructing Worlds Otherwise. Hosted by workshops4gaza.
Parents of little activists or activists in the making- a post by mamasmatterhere that I found interesting and helpful to organically develop our future freedom fighters.
If your heart is in LA and you are looking for ways to support, here are vetted resources you can support.
DONATE to the immigrant bond fund of Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice.
Support Immigrant Workers in LA. LA turned out in force against the ICE abductions of our neighbors and the cowardly and disgusting attack on our immigrant communities. The deportation machine has been built by both Democrats and Republicans to keep working people vulnerable to exploitation by the rich, to push narratives of criminalization and fear, and to destabilize the safety and security that our communities build. Help keep them safe!
Featured Substack
Happy Juneteenth
Juneteenth, a national celebration dubbed as the United States’ second independence day was forged from the forced federal ending to the 246 year old practice of brutal enslavement of African Americans in the United States.
When president Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1st, 1863 declaring all persons held in slavery to henceforth be free it did not result in instantaneous and immediate freedom for all enslaved. In fact, according to the Equal Justice Initiative, the proclamation was not humanitarian in its goal but a war driven strategy to weaken the Confederacy, gain potential manpower for the Union and to curry support of Britain and France. In actuality the Emancipation Proclamation declared the freedom of only those enslaved people held in states in rebellion against the United States, namely South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Arkansas, and North Carolina. The proclamation exempted Tennessee, as well as Union-occupied portions of Virginia and Louisiana, and left slavery wholly intact in the border states of Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, and Missouri.
For many held in bondage the Emancipation Proclamation did nothing to change their status. They remained enslaved by vicious masters who employed methods of trickery, deception, threats and violence until the Union Army gained control of geographical areas informing and liberating people. Which was the case for the first Juneteenth on June 19th, 1865 when 2,000 Union troops marched into the Galveston, Texas area and declared via executive decree that the more than 250,000 enslaved people in that area were free.
Juneteenth has been celebrated annually ever since. Though initially celebrated mostly by Texans the celebration of independence expanded via the great migration. Today Juneteenth represents, not only the celebration of hard-fought freedom but also the ongoing fight to smash systemic racism and demand equity for BIPOC in the United States
Juneteenth became a recognized national federal holiday in 2021 only through the determination of the “Grandmother of Juneteenth”, Dr. Opal Lee. In 2016, at 89 years old Dr Lee walked from Fort Worth, Texas to Washington DC. She walked two-and-a-half miles per day signifying the years between the Emancipation Proclamation and General Orders No. 3. She also started an online petition which garnered 1.6 million signatures.
How will you celebrate Juneteenth this year?
Media of the Month
Cinema Fouad (1993)
A documentary on the life and ambitions of a young Syrian trans woman. The video follows her journey from soldier to cabaret dancer in an effort to raise funds for her sex-change operation. Shot in Beirut, CINEMA AL FOUAD weaves a complex and multi-layered story of sexuality, identity and desire and paints a compelling portrait of its subject.
Paris is Burning is a 1990 film by director Jennie Livingston, that documented the Harlem ballroom circuit over six years. Since its original release 30 years ago, the film has acted as a capsule of the 1980s era of the subculture and to this day is considered a staple in LGBT cinema.
It’s streaming on multiple platforms, but it may or may not be on the Internet Archive at no cost… who knows, though? I certainly didn’t tell you that…
Haymarket Books’ Pride reading list!
Check out this reading list of books surrounding queer and trans politics, history, and liberation, offered in solidarity with everyone across the world standing up against injustice. For the month of June, they are offering 40% off on these titles!
In closing: Guess what! Roots of Resistance Newsletter is SIX MONTHS OLD!
To all of our fellow activists, our supporters, our community:
We are so grateful to be able to create, curate, share and grow the south Florida activism scene. Our hope is that we bring you reliable, informative activities, events and organizations that you feel impassioned to continue this fight with us so that we may one day actualize a safe and equitable world for all.
If you take anything away from this newsletter, let it be a reminder that you are not alone. The fight continues, always, and it needs you more than you know. We exist. We’re real. They can’t take that away from us.
Much love,
N&M