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In June, Pride Month is more than an excuse to don every color of the rainbow. It marks a special time for some members of the LGBTQ+ community and their allies to join forces for
celebration and advocacy. Pride Month has been observed for decades.The month was officially recognized when President Bill Clinton designated June as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month in 1999.
The commemoration recognizes the LGBTQ+ community, which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning. A Statista poll found that 5.1 percent of Generation X, 3
percent of boomers and 1.8 percent of the silent generation identified as LGBTQ+, as of 2024. According to a 2023 Gallup poll, the LGBTQ+ community has grown over the years, with 7.6 percent
of U.S. adults identifying as LGBTQ+. But despite growing representation, the LGBTQ+ community still faces some challenges. “Our elder pioneers’ strength and activism, during other
extremely difficult times, paved the way for the freedom that we celebrate in this Pride season,” says Michael Adams, CEO of SAGE, the country’s largest and oldest organization dedicated to
serving older LGBTQ+ individuals. Jackie Lees, 72, from Asheville, North Carolina, is on the board of directors for Blue Ridge Pride Center and a member of its AARP North Carolina-affiliated
Generation Plus Committee – a group dedicated to serving members of the LGBTQ+ community who are 55 and older. She is also transgender. Lees’ local Pride festival doesn’t happen until the
fall, but she recognizes the importance of giving people 50 and older a space to embrace their identities without fear or judgment. “[Pride] means a celebration of the struggles we went
through to get to this point,” Lees says. “Whether we know each other or not … it’s a good feeling to be around others.” One of those struggles most often honored during Pride Month is the
Stonewall Uprising, a pivotal event for the gay rights movement in the U.S., which began June 28, 1969, in the New York City neighborhood of Greenwich Village. Lees says older members of the
LGBTQ+ community can use Pride to close the “generational gap.” “We’re here to mentor the younger ones, if they want to hear us,” Lees says. Check out our nationwide round-up of events.
It’s certainly not all-encompassing, so if you don’t see an event local to you, try an online search for nearby Pride Month events.