SCOTT

‘GRUMPY OLD BUGGER’

I’D FORGOTTEN ABOUT THE DEADLINE FOR THIS ARTICLE. I’D PUSHED IT INTO MY LITTLE MENTAL BOX OF ‘THINGS I REALLY OUGHT TO MAKE A START ON…AT SOME POINT’. IT’S NO LONGER A LITTLE BOX. IN FACT, IT MAKES THAT ROOM AT THE END OF RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK WITH ALL THE CRATES IN LOOK LIKE A PORTAKABIN.

Easy little jobs that would take me five minutes. Like cleaning the microwave. Or making a doctor’s appointment. They would take five minutes if I did them when they first cropped up…but I don’t. I prefer to forget about them until they’re no longer five minute jobs. I prefer to wait until the smoke detector is going off and flames are billowing out of the kitchen or doctors are rushing you into an operating theatre for emergency surgery.

Things get buried in that box and you forget all about them. Parking fines. Anniversaries. I’ve also realised, the older you get, the less time you have to do things. Time passes faster.

No really, bear with me. What I mean is your perception of a unit of time changes. Think about it. When you’re ten years old, and you break up for the school holidays, that extended break seemed to last forever. But back then a year represented a tenth of your life. Six or eight weeks off school naturally felt like forever. Do you remember that last Friday at school before the holidays? I used to walk home from school that last day feeling like I was a lottery winner. You couldn’t have knocked the smile off my face with a cricket bat.

When you’re 52, and you’ve been round the track so often you can’t jump the fences any more, six weeks is nothing. I think I’ve waited longer than that for a Just Eat driver to show up. So it was quite a surprise when our editor Daniel nudged me to say the deadline for this article was looming.

‘It’s the Pride edition’ he began. As my head filled with images of Prides gone by… ill-fitting hot pants, lesbians fighting over chips and people with what I assume to be ‘great personalities’ blowing whistles in my face, he casually cut me off at the knees with something along the lines of, ‘With you being from the Jurassic era you might want to talk about what Pride used to be like…in olden times.’ made a few quid.

Before I could summon up a ‘How very dare you’, the article started writing itself. How in my day we didn’t have apps and access to gay ‘literature’ or media. We had to get our porn from drawings on a cave wall. How it wasn’t so much about if your were top or bottom but whether you walked on all fours or upright. Whether you had an excess of Neanderthal DNA. Side note, apparently I do, (thanks 23 and me) hence the big fat head, T-Rex arms and barrel chest.

No, unfortunately a rapidly deteriorating hip joint had me stood swaying in the wind, balancing precariously on a stick like an old drunk. As I marvelled at the sights before me I realised my only (real) point of reference was the many Manchester Prides I had attended in the past. An event that if I reach back far enough I being called ‘Mardi Gras’, a free to

Please note, this column is the opinion of the columinst and not that of GNI or Romeo & Julian Publiccations Ltd.

I cast my mind into the more recent past and was reminded of last year’s Pride. My first in Belfast. I showed up with a cane.

As a walking aid I mean. I wasn’t administering spankings, though never say never. Had I thought ahead I could have attend event that somehow managed to raise more money for HIV charities via collections on the day using volunteers with buckets, than the current one is alleged to raise now (the money all seemingly swallowed up with security and performers fees with a fraction going to charity). Over time, the street party got ‘managed’, policed and in making the obvious connection to the worldwide ‘Pride’ celebrations somehow simultaneously lost its way. No longer a protest, but a piss up.

And let’s not forget, back in 1969 it was indeed a protest. A police raid on the Stonewall Inn, NYC, sparked six days of protest and clashes with law enforcement. The aftermath leading to the creation of the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) which provided support to homeless LGBTQ+ youth and advocated for transgender rights.

I had the misfortune recently of attending Blackpool Pride. It’s my own fault, I wasn’t paying attention when someone suggested we go. I heard, ‘Ride the big one’ and it seems I misunderstood.

If anywhere didn’t need a riot, its Blackpool. It looks like it’s just had one. I’ve been in some rough bars in my time, but I’d not send convicts to Blackpool. There’s talk of housing refugees from war torn countries there. Like they haven’t suffered enough. Never mind Rwanda, suggest Blacpool and nobody will cross the channel again. I’ve seen less mutants in Fallout. If you smile, and you have teeth, they think you’re posh.

At least here in Belfast the atmosphere is welcoming. Ultimately it’s a parade, drinking and a higher than usual concentration of homosexuals. What could possibly go wrong. You get the same basic ingredients wherever you go, its just in Belfast people seemed more happy. Pleased to be out. When it comes to ‘having a good time’, you lot don’t need telling twice.

I found myself trying to analyse what was different and just kept coming up with similarities. The corporate sponsorship was still there. Tesco pushing their lettuce, guacamole, bacon and tomato ‘LGBT’ sandwich (good luck with the extra letters next year. Quinoa on a sandwich anyone? Quiche? ). I saw a Stena Line float. Moving slightly faster than the actual thing I get here on.

Most notably, amongst the various organisations keen to show their alliance with the community, PSNI weren’t represented. I made a point of checking why and saw they had released a statement to say that ‘officers and staff can participate in such events provided they do so in a personal capacity and do not identify as members of the Police Service’

On the one hand I felt a little aggrieved by that. Almost that they had to hide who they were. Yes you can be gay…but you can’t be gay AND a police officer. On the other hand, oddly, somewhat reassured. You could argue that the police taking this stance demonstrates they still recognise Pride for what it is…was, a protest. If they were part of it, how could they then be impartial in policing it?

That evolution from protest to party isn’t the only development that’s been discussed of late. The flag becoming another oddly polarising subject. How could something so inoffensive as a rainbow get so many peoples backs up for so many reasons. It’ll be unicorns and glitter next. Mark my words, five years from now I’ll have to write gli**er or risk a martini to the face by someone covered in the sparkly stuff.

On the one hand you have the new and ‘inclusive’ flag, with more obvious representation for people of colour and the transgender community, without whom let’s not forget we wouldn’t have a pride in the first place. On the other, you have, mainly older people, saying the original was inclusive. That it’s a spectrum and didn’t need changing. It’s generally white cis men saying it. Well, not saying…telling. Telling people who don’t feel included that they are included.

They’ll be telling you your gender next. Oh wait, they already do. Mind you, as long as you don’t identify as police, at least you can still walk in the parade.

You hear those same people flexing that they have ‘Never attended a pride’. The only inference I can draw being that they somehow perceive them themselves to be more outwardly masculine or manly by virtue of being a miserable git. They tend to marry it with other great one liners such as ‘People never guess I’m gay’. Newsflash, They do. They just don’t want to burst your little self-loathing bubble. Nodding benevolently when you’re busy proclaiming you must be the ‘only one who doesn’t like [Kylie / Madonna / Drag Race etc etc] . If you don’t like something, that’s fine. If you start criticising others for liking something and looking down on them as a result, that’s not fine.

So what’s my takeaway from all this? Well regardless of the creative licence of ‘who threw the first brick’, there is no denying that in 1969 gay and trans people stood side by side. We knew then, as we should know now, that it doesn’t matter if one group are bound by sexuality and the other aren’t. They were bound by a common persecution and started a fight that is not yet over. It may often be subtle, it may be something you can deal with, but in parts of the world it’s life or death.

Those early protesters were targeted simply for being who they were. As gay people we owe it to our trans peers to stand up and be counted. Its not that long ago our very lifestyles were illegal. Lets not get too comfortable because our own little world is better than it was. You don’t have to understand someone else’s gender. You don’t have to like it.

You do however owe them your support – like they supported you.

Who knows…you might just make some friends.

Scott Aldred

elebrating Pride doesn’t have to be going to the Parade’s and drag shows and massive colourful events – some of us are introverts – so for those of us that think that the perfect pride is curling up on the sofa with far too many snacks – here are some excellent movie recommendations that fit the theme – and are also excellent for those of you that have gone to the parade and are feeling a little delicate afterwards.

We are starting right off the bat with an absolute classic – Rent. Rent is genuinely one of my favourite movies, it has me laughing, crying and singing along all at the same time. It follows a year – or 525,600 minutes – in the life of a group of friends living in the East Village of New York. We have our narrator in the form of Mark Cohen, a film-maker who is still very much in love with his ex-girlfriend, Maureen Johnston. But alas, she is in love with her polar opposite, a very prim and proper lawyer, Joanne Jefferson. We also have his roommate – ex-junkie and HIV positive struggling musician Roger Davis and his girlfriend, Mimi, who is also HIV positive, a dancer, and addicted to drugs. We also have Angel – a drag queen and Tom – a computer nerd, who are both living with HIV as well. The storyline, as you probably have guessed, explores the AIDS epidemic in the year of 1989-1990 in a way that will have your heart breaking and your eyes watering – in a way which is both heavy and heartbreaking but also doesn’t make you feel to bad because you will have the songs stuck in your head for the entirety of Pride month – did I mention it was a musical? The sensational way that this movie brings together a bunch of seemingly very different people is smack bang in the middle of the meaning of Pride – we measure in love.

Dead Poet’s Society is another great watch – It does not explicitly state that any of the characters are gay but it can be very relatable, especially for those of us that struggled because we were told that we ‘didn’t like the right things for our gender’, or any of us that were made to feel lesser than. It follows a group of schoolboys who are inspired to show the world the real them and to pursue their passions by their English teacher. However, the boarding school they attend is very strict – and the ideals are, well, not on progressive side. The boy’s passions may not be looked upon as acceptable for young men. The boys struggle through various tragedies on their journey as they try to find their place in this world. I won’t spoil it, but it is not necessarily the happy-go-lucky coming of age story that we so often see, it is heartbreaking and potentially triggering for some, so grab tissues and, if needed, a trusted friend.

If you are a sucker for a rom-com filled to the brim with classic tropes and moments where you yell at the TV, “Why won’t you two kiss already?!” – you need to watch Red, White and Royal Blue. The Prince of England and The President of the United States Son – a strong hatred for each other – forced to spend time together to fake a political alliance. Smile for the camera’s boys. You see where this is going. They may or may not fall in love. However, being thrusted full force into the public eye, their families opinions, and the need to uphold tradition would cause problems in any relationship. Will they overcome it? Will they not? An absolute must watch for all the gooey romantics - and the lovers of shameless flirting.

If you can get over the subtitles, an absolutely sensational film is Blue is The Warmest Colour. It is another coming of age tale of high school student Adèle beginning her journey into life, womanhood and sex. She begins as seemingly straight but after a slight rendezvous with a male classmate, it seems she may not know herself, or her sexuality, as well as she thinks. And in walks Emma, an out and proud lesbian with bright blue hair. The movie follows their journey into adulthood navigating unaccepting friends, sexuality and the emotions that always crop up when you fall in love. It is heartwarming, dramatic, and extremely highly recommended. It has won an award at the Cannes Film Festival and Steven Spielberg’s approval – neither of which is an easy task, so you know it is going to be excellent.

Another few other fantastic watches are Call Me By Your Name, Brokeback Mountain or Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – but Pride doesn’t have to be celebrated within a 2 hour time frame – if you prefer a series binge over a movie, we have loads of those too!

Now we can’t talk about LGBTQIA+ representation in programming without mentioning Grey’s Anatomy. Spanning 20 seasons it has been going on since 2005 now, and it has brought us many many LGBTQIA+ characters and relationships. From Arizona and Callie to Micah and Helm – from Levi and Nico to Amelia and Kai. They’ve had storylines surrounding HIV myths and perceptions, the difficulty in legally changing pronouns and just about everything in between. Whatever they are doing, with that long a run, it must be something right.

Another great example that shows the journey from being in the closet to being out and proud is Sex Education with the characters of Adam and Eric. While Eric is out and proud from the beginning of the series – Adam struggles a bit more and turns to bullying others – another classic trope. Although how good of a trope it is? Debatable at best. However, through the seasons we get to see them explore their sexuality, culminating in that all-too-important first time. With the importance however, so to comes nerves and worry, and Sex Education does a good job of highlighting that in all relationships, communication is key – but that we should start extending our own sex education to include the LGBTQIA+ community to make that communication a little bit easier.

In this day and age, it is becoming more and more common to see the LGBTQIA+ community being represented in our favourite movies and TV shows. A lot of the stigma has been taken away, and due to the demand for representation, the industry has responded by giving us what we want, to see ourselves in our favourite characters, and to have characters that we can relate to. However, we also have to consider that not all representation is good representation.

There are still an unbelievable number of shows that have the ‘token gay character’. One of the best examples, and jokes, surrounding this is in the movie ‘Isn’t It Romantic’. At the beginning of the movie, when life is boring and grey, the main character has a gay neighbour, and he is nothing remarkable, he isn’t stereotypical, he is simply a guy that likes guys and doesn’t really talk much. When she hits her head and falls into a life where everything is like a movie, he is suddenly a neon-Lycra wearing, high-pitched talking, over-the-top gay best friend – to which the main character responds with “Now I have a gay sidekick, who’s setting gay right back, like a hundred years”.

While ‘Isn’t It Romantic’ pokes at the gay best friend trope in a hilarious way – why is this still a trope we are seeing? In more and more TV shows we see LGBTQIA+ characters – but they are always the best friend, always the side character, and often weird, or poked fun at. For example, in ‘Never Have I Ever’ – we get a wonderful, smart, lesbian character in Fabiola Torres, but she’s the best friend, and shown to be a bit weird and nerdy. However, the opposite is true of ‘Ginny and Georgia’ –where yes, it is the best friend, but Maxine Baker is cool, bubbly and popular.

All of this to say, where are our LGBTQIA+ main characters – that are cool and complex and not just there to hit a diversity quota or be available whenever the main character is in a crisis. We have come a very long way. The first gay couple wasn’t even shown on a TV until 1975, the first gay kiss in the UK wasn’t until 1989. That’s only 35 years ago. We have come leaps and bounds in terms of representing what is actually there. Gay people, lesbians, bisexuals, queers, the trans community, asexual and every single one of you lovely humans that fall into the + in the acronym. But until we have genuine inclusivity and diversity, and every single one of you has a main character you can relate to, we need to keep leaping and bounding.

Written by Megane Herrick