I’m Matt. I’m a second-year history student and also a transgender gay man. I love learning about the history of the LGBT+ community and sharing what I have learnt with others. That’s why I’m sharing these resources with you ahead of Liverpool’s online Pride March, which is taking place this weekend (Saturday 31 July 2021).
University of Liverpool’s LGBT+ Library Collection
The library have put together a list of fiction and non-fiction books focusing on stories of LGBT+ individuals. Many of these are great for educating yourself on things you might not have heard a lot about before, such as non-binary identities and asexuality, and others are great stories to read with amazing representation, for example Felix Ever After includes a transgender main character! You can find the list here or a list that focuses specifically on trans visibility here.
LGBT+ Instagram Creators
A great way to educate yourself on LGBT+ issues and identities is to follow people who are LGBT+. Here are some suggestions to help you find this kind of content on Instagram:
Matt Bernstein (@mattxiv) posts educational posts on homophobia and transphobia as well as a variety of other important issues.
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Mars Wright (@mars.wright) focuses on empowering other trans people to be proud and creates art on identity.
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Liverpool LGBT+ Society
Though events for the year have calmed down, the committee and members of Liverpool LGBT+ society are still around and active online. You can join the society through the Guild’s website and find a wonderful community of allies and LGBT+ people upon joining the society as a member. From there, you can get involved in campaigning and awareness, or just make new LGBT+ friends and play games with them if that’s what you want. Regardless of what you want to get involved with, the LGBT+ society will welcome you with open arms.
Visit LGBT+ Friendly Businesses and Support LGBT+ Owned Businesses
A great way to support LGBT+ people is to support their businesses. Instead of buying Pride pins and flags from a big company, try looking for a local LGBT+ shop that sells the same or similar products, like News From Nowhere.
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Support LGBT+ Charities
Not just by donating, but also volunteering and fundraising. Charities like Mermaids work to support LGBT+ individuals and improve the quality of life for transgender and gender variant children and their families.
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Being the Best Ally You Can Be
The best way to celebrate pride month as an ally is to learn new ways to be a better ally. Here are a few useful ways to get started.
You could buy a pronoun badge (from a local LGBT+ business) and wear it to work, university and events to help trans people feel safe enough to share their pronouns with you and open conversations about why it is important to share your pronouns with others.
Use the resources shared in this article to educate yourself on different identities and the history of the LGBT+ community. This puts less pressure on LGBT+ people to educate you about their identities, which can be very harmful and draining, especially if you have lots of questions about their identity. You could also share resources you find useful with other allies.
Have Fun and Be Proud
While educating yourself is a great way to connect with your community, it’s also important to have fun and celebrate the progress of the LGBT+ community. You could sit back and watch LGBT+ films, like Pride, or create LGBT+ themed crafts, like bracelets. You can find lots of amazing ideas for LGBT+ themed crafts on Instagram and Pinterest, such as this Hama Beads LGBT+ flags design.