All posts tagged: Pride

Celebrating Pride Month | Andrew Copson – Humanists UK

Celebrating Pride Month | Andrew Copson – Humanists UK

Published by Sam Flores

Author: Andrew Copson From A J Ayer and Bertrand Russell leading the charge for decriminalisation of homosexuality in the 1950s, to the founding of the Gay Humanist Group in 1979, humanists have been marching, campaigning, and fighting for LGBT+ rights for well over a century. To celebrate Pride Month, we’re spotlighting five iconic LGBT+ humanists. Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) ‘For here again, we come to a dilemma. Different though the sexes are, they intermix. In every human being a vacillation from one sex to the other takes place.’ (Orlando, Virginia Woolf) Virginia Woolf’s modernism can be understood as fundamentally a humanist project, one deeply shaped by her challenge to conventional ideas about gender, sexuality, and personal freedom. She rejected the static, patriarchal, and divinely ordained models of Edwardian society, choosing instead to explore the complexity of human consciousness and desire. In 1912, aged 30, Virginia Stephen married Leonard Woolf, and the pair continued to cultivate the tight-knit circle known as the Bloomsbury Group. Bloomsbury was an LGBT-inclusive network of friends and lovers that celebrated sexual equality …

During Pride Month, “Rainbow Washing” Isn’t Enough

During Pride Month, “Rainbow Washing” Isn’t Enough

Published by Jenni Sidey

It’s June, and many cafes, bars, shops, restaurants, schools and other businesses, including therapy spaces, are awash with multicoloured flags and banners in overt displays of solidarity with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning (LGBTQ+) communities. Or so they claim. June is Pride month, and an important reminder, if one were needed, to acknowledge diversity and celebrate and welcome all members of our communities. But many corporations seem guilty of what has become known as “rainbow-washing” in June when, for the rest of the year, they’re ambivalent at best and un-LGBTQ-friendly at worst. I am a year-round LGBTQ+ and TNBGQ (transgender, nonbinary, gender questioning) ally and advocate. I display Pride and straight ally flags in my therapy room and in the office where I conduct online meetings. There are books on the shelves of my therapy room about gender and sexual diversity suitable for readers of different ages and ethnicities, which are visible to all clients, all the time. I display the straight ally flag in visual marketing on my business cards and website, as well …

Kathy Hilton pulls out of Pride parade role following backlash over Trump ties

Kathy Hilton pulls out of Pride parade role following backlash over Trump ties

Published by Daniella Wilson

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kathy Hilton has pulled out of her role at this year’s West Hollywood Pride Parade after she faced backlash for her ties to President Donald Trump and his MAGA campaign. Hilton had previously been announced as the grand marshal icon for the June 7 parade, which is a ceremonial title typically awarded to celebrities or prominent individuals for their work in advancing LGBTQ+ visibility and representation in popular culture. However, officials from the city and WeHo Pride made the announcement Wednesday that Hilton would be standing down, writing in a statement: “After thoughtful discussions, the City of West Hollywood, the WeHo Pride production team, and Kathy Hilton have determined that the 2026 WeHo Pride Parade will not …

25 New Queer YA Books to Add to Your Pride TBR

25 New Queer YA Books to Add to Your Pride TBR

Published by Jenni Sidey

It’s Pride Month, which is the perfect excuse to buy queer books! There are so many excellent new queer YA books out in 2026. Below, I’ve highlighted 25 of the most exciting ones, including contemporary fiction, mysteries and thrillers, SFF, horror, nonfiction, and graphic novels. An aro/ace love story, a sapphic thriller, trans horror, a pansexual mystery, a trans retelling of Dorian Gray, a queer graphic memoir—you’ll find that and more in the new queer YA books of 2026. Most of these came out earlier this year, but there are a few anticipated releases to preorder, like the final volume of Heartstopper by Alice Oseman, which is out in July. Now, let’s get started expanding your Pride Month TBR! New Queer YA Contemporary Books Out in 2026 Bad Queer by Gayathiri Kamalakanthan This mesmerizing YA romantic novel-in-verse follows a nonbinary teen in London as they come out to their family, navigate changing friendships, and fall in love for the first time. Poet Gayathiri Kamalakanthan writes with compassion, tenderness, and radiance that makes their debut book …

The Best Books to Read This Pride, According to All the Lists

The Best Books to Read This Pride, According to All the Lists

Published by Jenni Sidey

Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. The New York Times’ Best Books of June Last week, we took a look at the books The New York Times highlighted as the best of the summer. Now, with the start of the month, they’ve shared their most anticipated releases of June. Of course, there is some overlap—Ann Patchett’s Whistler and Maggie O’Farrell’s Land, for instance—but June’s list also zooms in to include the chaotic romance debut They All Fall in Love at the End by Haili Blassingame and Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim. There’s also a memoir by Lavern Cox (Transcendent), fabulist lit fic by Amitav Ghosh (Ghost-Eye), the latest by the Pulitzer Prize-winning Andrew Sean Greer (Villa Coco), gothic fantasy by YA horror/fantasy-author-turned-adult-author Melissa Albert (The Children), and more. The Best Books to Read This Pride, According to Everyone and Their Mother Pride Month is on and poppin’, which means these Pride Reading Lists are on and poppin’, too. The month has …

Pride celebrations struggle as corporate sponsorships dry up : NPR

Pride celebrations struggle as corporate sponsorships dry up : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Lyndsey Sickler, one of Pittsburgh Pride organizers. Hannah Frances Johansson hide caption toggle caption Hannah Frances Johansson PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Pride celebrations across the country continue to lose out on large sponsorships as corporations, a key source of funding, shrink their affiliation with diversity causes and LGBTQ+ events. Corporate sponsorships of celebrations in several cities, including New York City, Salt Lake City, Louisville, St. Louis, Orlando, and Pittsburgh are down from previous years, organizers said. Jordan Braxton, co-president of the United States Association of Prides, which supports Pride celebrations nationwide, said that while some smaller Prides have seen a growth in sponsorships, a majority have seen a reduction. She said the Trump administration’s dismantling of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, has scared corporations away from sponsoring Pride celebrations. “I think that’s why some of the corporations have pulled back, because they don’t want that government scrutiny,” she said. In his first days in office in 2025, Trump issued presidential actions targeting DEI within the federal government and encouraging the private sector to end what the …

‘Boy,’ queer anthems, AIDS, horror movies

‘Boy,’ queer anthems, AIDS, horror movies

Published by Daniella Wilson

Book of Love — the Philadelphia-bred synth-pop quartet best known for the hypnotic 1985 single “Boy” — are releasing a 40th anniversary reissue of their landmark debut album on June 26, just in time for Pride. The band emerged from Philadelphia’s art school scene in 1983, relocating to New York’s East Village at a moment when the downtown creative world was colliding with the nascent synth-pop revolution. Their early break came as the opening act for two Depeche Mode tours in 1985 and 1986, exposing them to massive audiences who recognized a kindred sensibility. Their music built on tubular bells and deadpan vocals and an emotional undertow that felt unlike anything else in the American pop landscape. They never became household names, but in queer clubs and on college radio they built a following that has proven remarkably durable Ahead of a sold-out 10-city fall tour with all four original members, The Hollywood Reporter caught up with songwriter and keyboardist Ted Ottaviano and lead singer Susan Ottaviano (no relation) over Zoom. I want to start …

Budapest Pride allowed to take place in 2026 – POLITICO

Budapest Pride allowed to take place in 2026 – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Magyar’s predecessor, right-wing prime minister Viktor Orbán, was known for his government’s crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights. In early 2025, Hungary’s parliament passed legislation that eventually led to the banning of the Budapest Pride parade. Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony, a political rival of Orbán and Green politician, however, found a legal loophole and proceeded with the march last year despite the ban. More than 100,000 people attended, including several European politicians and critics of Orbán’s government. Karácsony was subsequently charged for defying the government ban, but the court suspended proceedings in March. Last month, the EU’s top court struck down the anti-LGBTQ ruling by Orbán’s government. Karácsony welcomed the unbanning of pride parade this year. “This is the right decision. It demonstrates that, despite the suffocating political climate of the past decade and a half, the culture of freedom in Hungary has endured,” he told POLITICO on Friday. “It shows that there are still people with the courage to stand firm. It shows that what is plainly true cannot be obscured by dishonest rhetoric,” he added. …

Pride in his work | Radio Times

Pride in his work | Radio Times

Published by Daniella Wilson

Add Tip Toe to your watchlist Sat in the penthouse suite of a chi-chi London hotel on a sunny Saturday, Alan Cumming is halfway through explaining how hedonism and activism aren’t mutually exclusive when he suddenly stops mid-sentence and stares at his hand. For a moment, he looks confused – then suddenly relieved. “I wondered what was wrong with my finger – it’s green. But I’ve got green eye make-up on, haven’t I, from this morning,” he says. “And I’ve still got my blotches from my dermatologist zapping them the other day in New York. It’s a good look. I’m glad this isn’t a Zoom.” This stream-of-consciousness interlude midway through an insightful socio-political analysis is typical Cumming. Later, for example, we’ll jump from how much he loves presenting The Traitors US to the fact that the kitchen of his new Highlands home isn’t finished. And later still, we leap from how the new mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, didn’t attend the shindig to celebrate Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2026, despite being …

Queer Horror Books Hitting Shelves for Pride Month 2026

Queer Horror Books Hitting Shelves for Pride Month 2026

Published by José Betancourt

Pride Month is just around the corner, so it comes as no surprise that there are so many new queer horror books dropping in June. If you’re looking for more queer horror stories to add to your TBR for Pride Month and beyond, here are four LGBTQ horror novels you have to get your hands on. And lucky you! The first book comes out right at the start of June. Grab your TBR because it’s about to grow. We want to hear from you! As we move through 2026, we want to make sure Book Riot remains your go-to destination for all things bookish. Whether you’re here for the curated recommendations, latest industry news, or deep dives into reading culture, your feedback informs our media kit and how we represent this community. It will also shape our content and make Book Riot a place you want to be. To show our appreciation for your time, everyone who completes the survey will be entered for a chance to win a $50 USD ThriftBooks Gift Card. Complete the …