JamesBK54's Blog

It's the holidays again. Those of us that are lucky to have good realationships with our families need to remember our gay friends that might not. Let's take care of each other and remember that love is our greatest asset. Have a wonderful holiday season and a great 2008!

We are coming up to another season of pride fetivals and parades. They are always fun, somewhat drunken affairs (that part can get tedious if you don't drink.) But they reflect a sense of community and comradery as members of the LGBTQ community and this is always a good thing.

My first pride parade was in San Francisco in 78. I was twenty four and pretty new to organized gay life. I don't think I will ever forget the first time I saw a multiple block contingent of Dykes on Bikes. Harvey Milk was also there, riding in a convertable with a flowered lei around his neck. There were The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgance in all their quazi nuns habits and various other examples of drag. The leather contingency spooked me the most (at that age, anyway.) Big guys in leather jackets and chaps leading guys wearing only leather jock straps and dog collars by leashes. I better understand that scene now but at the time it really freaked me out. But above all, there was a patchwork quilt of men and women reflecting just about every part of American Society. There were even a few guys that looked kind of like me.

If I can make one request to all of my fellow members of the community it would be to maintain that sense of openness and inclusion. More than ever, we need to nurture and take care of each other.