This year's Pride Month calls for "unity" to push back against new legislation
MIAMI - Pride Month is here, but this year's celebrations also call for unity to push back against new legislation such as the "Don't Say Gay" bill.
Meanwhile, others worry about the potential ruling of Roe vs. Wade might have on gay marriage.
"May we acknowledge that this month of June is a time when we truly can be proud that we were created correctly, we are not broken, we are not something to be repaired or educated out of," Amy Morrison, a rabbi said.
Over the years, progress has come through people willing to stand up and fight for rights and protections.
"It kind of felt like being a French Fry and being dipped in boiling oil," Damian Pardo said.
He remembers coming out at 13 years old when Anita Bryant was leading the anti-gay movement in Florida.
"It was a very bad environment in fact that's what led to me telling my mother, at one point she said are you gay, and I said, yeah I am," Pardo recalled.
He would eventually have to come out repeatedly to people after that, often it was scary.
"The best road to equality has been sharing, telling stories building community," Pardo said.
Pardo has worked to push for inclusion and sits on the Miami LGBTQ Advisory Board.
He has also part of 4Ward Miami, a non-profit that promotes diversity and acceptance.
"I really felt like I could be myself here. I came out as trans I came out as gay, all these things, and then once I'm finally getting comfortable, we hear about this legislation and it feels like we're going backward," Ryan Hires said.
This year's pride celebrations have new meaning to people like Hires, who feels it's necessary to protest the "Don't Say Gay" law.
"It's just hard to handle because we have to essentially take over the movement," Hires said.
It may be hard to keep fighting for what feels like the same issues, but some like Pardo believe the fight will never end, that is why it's so important not to give up, and to provide support to a new generation.
"We need to be very visible and do very hard work in building those bridges because that's the way we bring people to understand what the issues are," he said.
Though the work is challenging, Pardo is hopeful things will continue to move forward.
