El Orgullo en la Ciudad de Mexico
Celebrating Pride in another country
First of all, this post is LONG overdue! I’m sorry for the delay in getting it typed up. To be honest, after having such an amazing Gay Pride experience in Mexico City, only to return to the US where families are still facing the separation of their children for seeking asylum… I just needed a minute. Here we go…“I mention this because out of the AIDS crisis, the Gay Men’s Chorus was born”
Okay, for starters, it is important to remember why June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month. You can learn all about it at my former blog post here. It is then really important to know about the AIDS crisis that affected queer communities as well as communities of color since the 80’s and still continues to plague both American and African communities. This plague was a very multifaceted pandemic. Of course, first and foremost, millions have died, and many of those millions were leaders in the queer community of the 80’s and 90’s, leaving my generation at a deficit for role models and mentors. Beyond that we’ve been stigmatized, both from the outside and from within, as carriers of this plague that disproportionately affected us. I mean… we still can’t even freely donate blood. Seriously. I mention this because out of the AIDS crisis, the Gay Men’s Chorus was born.
It might sound crazy to say that a choir of queer men and women fought the good fight against the epidemic, but it’s totally true. Gay men’s choruses began popping up across the nation in communities traditionally LGBTQ+. This was more than just singing though. These choruses became a rallying point for the political movement to end AIDS. These choruses raised money to donate to institutions, they spoke openly about the havoc being reeked in their communities, and perhaps most importantly, they provided a smile and a song in the middle of dark and trying times. And as a proud member of the Gay Men’s Chorus of NYC, I can attest to something even deeper. The NYC GMC holds space, every single year, to mourn the loss of literally thousands of friends and lovers, and it changed my life.
I found myself falling into a deep well of tears, of anger and tangible loss. One man said that he’d lost over 200 friends in his personal circle over the last 40 years. Providing support and levity through hardship comes at a cost: processing your own grief even as you bring joy to others in need of a reminder of happiness.
So why am I talking about the NYC GMC when I spent Gay Pride 2018 in Mexico City? Well, my feyonce (trademarked) and I not only had the pleasure of visiting an incredible city full of food and music and homemade tamales (OMG so good). We also had the honor of marching with El Coro Gay (the GMC of Mexico City) for La Marcha Del Orgullo (Pride March). Luckily he and I speak Spanish, and many of them spoke English, but regardless of language it was clear from the start that we were all family. They allowed to march with them, they showed us awesome places to go and neighborhoods to visit, and provided us a slice of Pride in their magical city. And of course, they sang their HEARTS out, putting smiles on the faces of the 500,000 (like seriously half a million!) people that lined the streets in support of the queer community!
“People from other countries, especially those countries being vilified right now like Mexico, are good people I would welcome as friends, neighbors, and if they wanted it, as Americans”
So for this post, I have a carousel of photos for you to flip through from our magical trip. And rather than beat you over the head with this idea, I just want to state it simply: Queer people are everywhere; Mexican queer people are people, fantastic people, who have rights; Mexico City is wonderful and magical; People from other countries, especially those countries being vilified right now like Mexico, are good people I would welcome as friends, neighbors, and if they wanted it, as Americans. Don’t buy into the hype. Go there, break bread, dance like kids, and always order another margarita.
Celebrating Pride in another country
First of all, this post is LONG overdue! I’m sorry for the delay in getting it typed up. To be honest, after having such an amazing Gay Pride experience in Mexico City, only to return to the US where families are still facing the separation of their children for seeking asylum… I just needed a minute. Here we go…“I mention this because out of the AIDS crisis, the Gay Men’s Chorus was born”
Okay, for starters, it is important to remember why June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month. You can learn all about it at my former blog post here. It is then really important to know about the AIDS crisis that affected queer communities as well as communities of color since the 80’s and still continues to plague both American and African communities. This plague was a very multifaceted pandemic. Of course, first and foremost, millions have died, and many of those millions were leaders in the queer community of the 80’s and 90’s, leaving my generation at a deficit for role models and mentors. Beyond that we’ve been stigmatized, both from the outside and from within, as carriers of this plague that disproportionately affected us. I mean… we still can’t even freely donate blood. Seriously. I mention this because out of the AIDS crisis, the Gay Men’s Chorus was born.
It might sound crazy to say that a choir of queer men and women fought the good fight against the epidemic, but it’s totally true. Gay men’s choruses began popping up across the nation in communities traditionally LGBTQ+. This was more than just singing though. These choruses became a rallying point for the political movement to end AIDS. These choruses raised money to donate to institutions, they spoke openly about the havoc being reeked in their communities, and perhaps most importantly, they provided a smile and a song in the middle of dark and trying times. And as a proud member of the Gay Men’s Chorus of NYC, I can attest to something even deeper. The NYC GMC holds space, every single year, to mourn the loss of literally thousands of friends and lovers, and it changed my life.
I found myself falling into a deep well of tears, of anger and tangible loss. One man said that he’d lost over 200 friends in his personal circle over the last 40 years. Providing support and levity through hardship comes at a cost: processing your own grief even as you bring joy to others in need of a reminder of happiness.
So why am I talking about the NYC GMC when I spent Gay Pride 2018 in Mexico City? Well, my feyonce (trademarked) and I not only had the pleasure of visiting an incredible city full of food and music and homemade tamales (OMG so good). We also had the honor of marching with El Coro Gay (the GMC of Mexico City) for La Marcha Del Orgullo (Pride March). Luckily he and I speak Spanish, and many of them spoke English, but regardless of language it was clear from the start that we were all family. They allowed to march with them, they showed us awesome places to go and neighborhoods to visit, and provided us a slice of Pride in their magical city. And of course, they sang their HEARTS out, putting smiles on the faces of the 500,000 (like seriously half a million!) people that lined the streets in support of the queer community!
“People from other countries, especially those countries being vilified right now like Mexico, are good people I would welcome as friends, neighbors, and if they wanted it, as Americans”
So for this post, I have a carousel of photos for you to flip through from our magical trip. And rather than beat you over the head with this idea, I just want to state it simply: Queer people are everywhere; Mexican queer people are people, fantastic people, who have rights; Mexico City is wonderful and magical; People from other countries, especially those countries being vilified right now like Mexico, are good people I would welcome as friends, neighbors, and if they wanted it, as Americans. Don’t buy into the hype. Go there, break bread, dance like kids, and always order another margarita.
Nathaniel Gray
Founder, Writer, and LGBTQ+ Empathy Mentor
Nathaniel is a social worker, mentor for parents of LGBTQ+ youth, and facilitator/empathy mentor. He started out in NYC as a singer/dancer/actor from the heartland (O-H-I-O) getting his BFA in Musical Theater from Pace University. After years of performance, Nathaniel turned to working with youth, as an educator and administrator at Fusion Academy. Since then he has completed his Master’s in Social Work at Fordham University and started The Proud Path, as well as worked with the Ali Forney Center and the Hetrick-Martin Institute, agencies addressing LGBTQ+ youth homelessness. His mission is to learn everything he can about the coming out process to assist others through it, and develop empathy within those who never have to.
Nathaniel Gray
Founder, Writer, and LGBTQ+ Empathy Mentor
Nathaniel is a social worker, mentor for parents of LGBTQ+ youth, and facilitator/empathy mentor. He started out in NYC as a singer/dancer/actor from the heartland (O-H-I-O) getting his BFA in Musical Theater from Pace University. After years of performance, Nathaniel turned to working with youth, as an educator and administrator at Fusion Academy. Since then he has completed his Master’s in Social Work at Fordham University and started The Proud Path, as well as worked with the Ali Forney Center and the Hetrick-Martin Institute, agencies addressing LGBTQ+ youth homelessness. His mission is to learn everything he can about the coming out process to assist others through it, and develop empathy within those who never have to.
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