My First Pride Parade

Sometime in 2011...I think.

A taxi stopped by the side of the road and dropped off a lady that had a baby on her back. Another taxi stopped behind them and beeped then the taxi driver shouted something and sped away. Just opposite the road, a group of children played in mud. A group of teenagers stood by the side of the road and laughed loudly. A young man walked by with his chest out and a wig on his head, he seemed scary and creepy. The group of teenagers laughed at him and the children playing in mud looked at him and laughed too.

The one thing that surprised me was that his confidence grew and he kept walking unbothered, I think he even told them to keep staring or something. Looking back at this incident now, I realize that that was when this picture was painted in my mind that being gay was the biggest crime you could commit; in the community and in the eyes of the God.

Even though I didn't publicly shame people for being gay or lesbian, I was scared or felt uncomfortable hanging around them because I got the idea that it was so wrong and that one should be ashamed of such a thing. These were my thoughts when I was around eleven years old, maybe even thirteen. The topic was just so sensitive, I don't remember actually having conversations about that.

As I grew older and started hanging around different people, my opinions about a lot of things in life changed as it should. It reminds me of how you think you know yourself and the next moment you are suddenly questioning who the fudge* you are. But the again, because we are social beings, our thoughts about things are expected to change as we gain more shared knowledge and start seeing things from other people's points of view.

By the time I reached high school, 8th grade, I was aware of how people can have different personalities and that all I could do was respect, also learn form that because, well, aren't we just curious?

I became great friends with my cousin who had always been gay, so to say and honestly, he's one of the best people that I know. I'm referring to them as he because he doesn't put emphasis on which pronoun he identifies with or whatsoever. I know of another friend that uses female pronouns when referring to him and he's okay with that too. Anyway... the pride parade!

Some of my classmates and I agreed to go to the pride parade that took place last Saturday. We felt like we identified with the LGBTQ community and we thought it would be a great experience, which it was. Although the parade only lasted for about an hour, it was probably one of the most informative activities I have ever taken part in, in terms of my sexuality and I was so proud that I was representing my cousin too, and all the others back home. Mind you, I sent my cousin some pictures and he was thrilled, but that was no surprise haha, it is his world after all.

I think what can be confusing about the LGBTQ community is that if you say you identify with that, people just assume that you are straight up lesbian or gay and that you are a waste, that you are not religious or that you are just confused (at least back home in Namibia). I've also spoken to some friends back home and one of them asked me, "Why do you help promote gay rights?", and I was like, "ERRRR? WHAT'S WRONG WITH THAT?', he responded that he was a guy and that he would never support that madness.

I get the drill, people are allowed to have their own opinions, what I don't get is why we sometimes butt into other people's lives and try and decide things for them, forgetting that what's wrong for you might be right for them and vice versa.

Learning about people, how different and yet similar we are in so many ways is probably one of the best things I have learned and observed so far. It's oddly satisfying.

I'll tell you what, if it makes sense inside your head, just go for it!