by Bright Ewuru | Jun 3, 2024 | Articles
“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognise, accept and celebrate those differences.” – Audre Lorde
It’s no secret that history is replete with various forms of discrimination against people because of race, religious beliefs, gender, socioeconomic background and sexual orientation. However, our global society has worked to turn the tide and celebrate diversity.
One such example is Pride Month, happening every June, which makes it the perfect time to shine a spotlight on awards and recognition programs that celebrate diversity across the globe.
International Pride Month is a month-long celebration held in June each year to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and reflect on its continued march towards equality. Its main objective is to laud the diversity of the community, enhance its visibility, advocate for the rights of its members across the globe and educate the general public on LGBTQ+-related issues.
Deeply rooted in the community’s struggle against discrimination and oppression, International Pride Month was born from the Stonewall Riots of June 28, 1969. A police raid on Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York, spurred an unrestrained revolt from the LGBTQ+ community. In a time when assaults on them were common, this marked their first united pushback in demand for equality.
Exactly a year later, the first Gay Pride marches were organised in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago to memorialise the riot and continue the struggle for LGBTQ+ rights. The success of these marches encouraged other cities and countries to organise similar parades. As the movement grew and garnered support throughout the 1970s to recent times, the month of June became formally recognised as Pride Month.
It’s worth mentioning that Pride Month differs from Diversity Month and Global Diversity Awareness Month.
Diversity Month is celebrated in April and mainly in the United States; Global Diversity Awareness Month is celebrated in October. While Pride Month is a global celebration of the LGBTQ+ community, Diversity Month is primarily US-based and celebrates all forms of diversity. The Global Diversity Awareness Month aims to recognise diversity globally.
Queerty is a well-known online publication that centres on LGBTQ+ news and culture. Their awards program, The Queerty Awards or simply “The Queerties”, recognises those who make remarkable contributions to the LGBTQ+ community and also celebrates accomplishments in LGBTQ+ entertainment.
The awards program champions creativity and visibility in the community by acknowledging the contributions of members in the movie, TV series, podcast, drag performance and social media scenes.
The GLAAD Media Awards are presented yearly by GLAAD to recognise organisations and individuals in different aspects of media for accurate representation of the LGBTQ+ community.
Founded in 1985 to promote fair depiction of LGBTQ+ concerns, the program recognises movie and comedy series that feature notable LGBTQ+ storylines. Musicians, albums and live performances that positively represent the community are rewarded as well. Awards are also given to acknowledge journalism, in print or digital media, that accurately covers and enhances the visibility of the community and its challenges.
The Transgender Day of Visibility Awards recognise efforts of individuals and organisations that positively impact the visibility and rights of transgender and non-binary people. The program is equally aimed at celebrating the accomplishments of transgender and non-binary individuals and ultimately raising awareness about the challenges faced by members of its community.
This awards program is held in conjunction with Transgender Day of Visibility celebrations annually on the 31st of March. Multiple prominent groups in the LGBTQ community take part in overseeing the awards—think Transgender Europe (TGEU), GLAAD, Human Rights Campaign (HRC), National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) etc.
Another popular awards program that celebrates pride is the Stonewall Awards presented annually by Stonewall. Named after the Stonewall Riots of 1969, the awards program and its UK-based founding organisation symbolise resistance against oppression of the LGBTQ+ community.
The awards program celebrates entities and projects that support LGBTQ+ rights and promote a diverse and inclusive environment. Some categories of its awards include:
In 1967, the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) established the NAACP Image Awards to applaud remarkable strides in the fields of arts and literature by people of colour. This awards program honours diversity, encourages inclusion and amplifies underrepresented voices in media.
The NAACP Image Awards are currently one of the most prestigious awards programs celebrating racial diversity and excellence in the entertainment space.
During its convenings every few years, the Parliament of the World’s Religions presents the Parliament of the World’s Religions Global Interfaith Awards to recognise individuals who champion interfaith understanding, peace and sustainability through interreligious collaboration. The goal of the awards is to promote the importance of interfaith dialogue and highlight how interreligious understanding can contribute to world peace.
True strength lies in our differences. These awards programs celebrate and recognise our diverse communities worldwide.
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