Forward Together: Joyful Resistance
Let's make our joy so loud it drowns out the voices of hate.
In times of oppression, how do we fight back? With joy.
Joy becomes an act of resistance. This truth hit home for me last night when I attended my first event of this Pride week in San Diego, a fun happy hour timed party hosted by Equality California (for transparency, I am a board member of EQCA).
Approximately 250 people, friends and strangers, community leaders and tourists gathered, buying tickets to support the important work of EQCA in both protecting and advancing rights for LGBTQ+ people. It felt joyous to be among my community during what has been a very difficult period for LGBTQ+ people since Trump was reelected.
Joy as Resistance
A friend mentioned in passing how it felt good but also weird to be celebrating right now. We hugged. We talked about it. After a few moments I said, “Our joy and Pride is part of our protest”. This isn't just feel-good rhetoric – it's a proven strategy.
Throughout history, authoritarian movements have tried to crush the spirit of marginalized communities. By celebrating openly and joyfully, we demonstrate our resilience and inspire others to step out of the shadows.
Taking Action Together
As we think about moving Forward Together: From Anxiety to Purposeful Action as LGBTQ+ or allied people, here are some small but mighty actions to consider:
Live Out LOUD: Be your fully authentic self. Live the joyous moments.
Share those joyous moments on social media or in real life. My friend Toni took the picture of me below last evening. At first it made me uncomfortable but then I thought about it through the lens of this article and decided to share it.
Join me in supporting the important work of Equality California. With Donald Trump’s second term, fear and uncertainty has surged as his administration immediately rolled back LGBTQ+ rights through Executive Orders. Empowered by his actions, extremist lawmakers at the state levels have also followed suit.
a. You can sign up for their mailing list at https://go.eqca.org/a/eqca-email-
updates-web orb. Take a step further in joining me in financially supporting their work by clicking this button.
Remember: Every smile, every celebration, every moment of pride is an act of resistance. Let's make our joy so loud it drowns out the voices of hate. Forward together!
In solidarity and Pride,
Darrell
P.S. Any revenue from subscriptions from this post will also be donated to Equality California!
This is wonderful!