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By: Mia Held, MCRP
Senior Consultant, Aviation Planning & Sustainability at C&S Companies

Did you know that, “the first pride was a riot”? In 1969 in New York City, there were very few places for those identifying as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, or as an Ally (LGBTQIA+) to feel safe being themselves. One of the only safe havens at that time was the Stonewall Inn Club located in Greenwich Village.  “Stonewall” while not entirely safe, was mostly left to LGBTQIA+ people to gather, dance, and socialize safe from a world that at the time, considered them at best, immoral and at worst, criminal. 

This was the case until the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 when an unexpected police raid of the Stonewall Inn was met with resistance from the clubgoers present. The Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender people stood their ground and refused to be removed from the premises. Standing together with LGBTQIA+ pioneers, drag queen, Marsha P. Johnson, self-identified lesbian, Stormé DeLarverie and trans woman, Sylvia Rivera, clubgoers at the Stonewall Inn fought back to protect their rights to live and love. While there were certainly calls for recognition of LGBTQIA+ individuals prior to this, “Stonewall” generally is accepted as the spark that lit the fire of the Gay Rights Movement in the U.S. A number of LGBTQIA+ organizations were founded soon after and led to the first New York City Pride Parade on June 28, 1970- marking the one-year anniversary of Stonewall.

Pride Month as we know it today, is many different things for many different people.  It is a riot, a remembrance, a party, a safe space, and a symbol of the power of coming together to create real and lasting change. There is a lot to celebrate, and also, still a lot to be done to achieve true equality.

So why does Pride Month Matter?  As transportation professionals, we are empowered with the great responsibility of turning mere spaces into flourishing places.  This pride month, we ask you to consider what you can do in your role to make places that are open and welcoming to all no matter a person’s gender or sexual orientation. Our role is to listen to those with different lived experiences, to raise up our LGBTQIA+ community especially those identifying as transgender or gender non-conforming. At the present, these folx (a gender-neutral group term commonly used in the LGBTQ+ community to include members of commonly marginalized people in an intentional way) are most in danger of encroachment on their rights and violation of their safety and personhood.

How else can I help?

• Make it your common practice to ask someone how they identify instead of making assumptions
• Take steps to make your firm a safe environment for those who identify as LGBTQIA+ to bring their whole selves to work
• Stay informed on the state of LGBTQIA+ rights in the U.S. and Internationally
• Learn about and support LGBTQIA+ owned businesses in your community
• Consider a donation to an organization working to ensure the equality of all.