It’s Pride month! It is a time for queer people of all stripes, everyone who comes under the LGBTQ+ umbrella – gay, bi, pan, asexual, trans, trans man, trans woman, non binary, and all the other people who are included and very welcome – can celebrate who they are.
Pride month is celebrated in June because the Stonewall Riots happened at the end of June in 1969. You’ll find many Pride marches and celebrations going on over the summer, though.
Pride month is needed, even in somewhere like the United Kingdom – recent news showed a horrible increase of 462% in reports of sexual orientation related hate crimes since 2012, and a truly shocking increase of 1426% increase in the reports of transphobia related hate crimes in the same period.
But let’s focus on some positives rather than the negatives. I’m going to showcase some artists who are queer, whether that be artists, writers, or musicians. If you’re straight and cis, maybe you could spend some money on supporting some of these queer creatives – monetary support is extremely important because LGBTQ+ people are more likely to have other marginalisations (like being disabled or a person of colour, for example) and this makes us more likely to be poorer. If you’re cis but queer, please consider supporting our trans siblings. Hatred against them is growing daily and we all need to stand together.
Here’s some things to check out in June:
Books
For younger readers
I have read several of Sarah Hagger-Holt’s books and have really enjoyed them. They are ‘middle grade’, meaning they’re best suited for kids aged ten to thirteen-ish. Sarah writes about different types of queer kids and families.
In Nothing Ever Happens Here, Izzy’s dad comes out as trans. In Proud of Me, Becky and Josh have two mums, and the same sperm donor dad. In The Fights That Make Us, Sarah looks back at her own history – our history – by looking at Section 28 and a teenager involved in fighting the clause back in the late 80s, while Jesse, who is nonbinary, finds their own place in the community in the 2020s.
I love Sarah’s writing; she writes lovely prose, with brilliant characters and excellent accessibility for younger readers.
I loved Ana on the Edge by A J Sass. Ana is a young figure skater living in the United States, trying to navigate the tricky world of gender in a binary world. I loved this world and wanted Ana to succeed so much.
I also have to mention the Murder Most Unladylike series by the author Robin Stevens. There is a queer character, and you will love her!
For teens
There are so many LGBTQ+ books by queer authors for teen readers, but I will mention a few of my favourites:
The graphic novel Welcome to St Hell: My Trans Teen Misadventure by Lewis Hancox is absolutely brilliant. I know him from TV and Twitter, and knew that he was trans, so I picked up this book.
Thank you Waterstones @PompeyBookshop for letting me sign copies of Welcome to St Hell! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/8JWmsK1MrU
— Lewis Hancox (@LewisHancox) September 1, 2023
It’s really good, it shows what it is like being any kind of teenager who finds it hard to fit in, never mind when you’re trans and haven’t really figured it out yet. Lewis has been so honest in this book, showing his struggles and revealing a lot of personal info, that I think this would be amazing for any gender questioning teen.
Queerbook by Malcolm Mackenzie is an excellent introduction to queer people throughout history. There are sections on music, on art, literature, and so on. There are bits on definitions and on different identities, and some helplines if they’re needed. This is a great introduction, and proves that we have always been here, loud and queer!
Heartstopper by Alice Oseman has been turned into a Netflix show and has gained a huge following, but it’s worth reading the graphic novels too. Nick and Charlie meet at school and gradually fall in love. They are surrounded by some of the best secondary characters ever. Anything by Alice is worth a read but a lot of my generation have found solace in Heartstopper, because it makes our hearts hurt for what we never got to have when we were younger.
I would also recommend writers like Tanya Byrne, Dean Atta, Simon James Green, and Becky Albertalli.
For adults
I loved Neon Roses by Rachel Dawson, which is about a young woman living in South Wales during the Miners’ Strike in the mid 80s. The village is visited by some of the campaigners from Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, and Eluned meets June, a young lesbian from Birmingham, and Eluned realises she may not be as straight as she assumed.
The book is a riot through the eighties and I would recommend it if you were there or not!
I really liked The House on Half Moon Street by Alex Reeve. The lead character, Leo, is a trans man, although he doesn’t have those words to explain himself, as the book is set in the 1880s. He is a coroner’s assistant and is shocked one day when the body of a young woman that he knows is wheeled into the mortuary. He needs to solve Maria’s murder, but needs to keep his own secrets too. This book is the first in a series and I need to read the rest!
Chloe McGenn is a queer artist living and working in Leeds. Disclosure: she is a close friend of mine. And she’s brilliant.
Her graphic novel, Incomplete, is about a queer couple. Matt broke his neck playing rugby aged eighteen, and while he’s in hospital learning to live with his spinal injury, he meets Pip. Matt is gay and Pip is bi. The two start a relationship and the added complications of Matt’s disabilities are brilliantly described.
I’ve read all the books and love Pip and his shirts especially.
Music
I have to tell you about The Masochists, a hardcore punk band from Calderdale in West Yorkshire including queer and trans musicians. They sing songs about Hebden Bridge.
If you like your music slightly less loud but no less punk, try Grace Petrie for size. She is a protest singer and a butch lesbian.
I was once at one of her gigs in Leeds when some transphobes kicked off and demanded their money back because she vocally stood up for trans people. She was bemused and wondered if they were confused about her.
Check out the song Black Tie if you want to feel a lot of feelings about being a queer teenager in a ‘year 11 hell’. I’ve loved Grace for years and wish more people knew of her!
Image: Stephen and Helen Jones
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