It’s Pride Month, and the flavor of the rainbow is in full throttle 🌈
The couch didn't mind me being horizontal while I reflected on the day's adventure. It might have been my first time attending, but it was the Lavender Convention's (aka Lavender Con's) second rodeo. And it was special given the convergence of rad rainbows from around the globe for World Pride in Washington, DC.
Have you ever gone to a show or hopped onto a rollercoaster not quite sure what you're in for but glad it's a thing—a real thing—regardless? That was me at the registration table picking up my access wristband. I had visited the queer-centric sponsor hosting the LGBTQIA+ book festival, Little District Bookstore, the day prior. And it was gay in all the best ways. So I was in anticipation for what was ahead.
First up was an author panel that delved into the parts of fantasy and speculative fiction that navigate all of the gray that is life and humanity. Then a diverse panel had me and the rest of the audience near bursting at our creative seems unearthing how reading's political, period. Another cohort of queer wordsmiths heated things up spilling the tantalizing tea on erotic reads afterwards. And a panel about romance in all of its trope-laden glory brought some levity and perspective in a political age that's well, bleak.
It's incredible what a tiny bookshop in historic Cap Hill can do with a lot of will and a little help from a lot of queer friends. As a black queer author, I wished to have witnessed more chocolate chips and butterscotch buttons in the panels. Still, the wide array of culture-shaping queer authors from around the country—and world—was remarkable.
And it was an accessibility struggle for fellow spoonies given that the panels were in different stair-access buildings a few blocks apart. Yet, perhaps, that was a trade off the host had to make to keep Lavender Con accessible in terms of the wallet. (I nailed a one-day pass for $40. A two-day pass had a $100 sticker price.) And the short margin in between panels and the absence of name tags made networking a nonentity. So the fact that the meeting rooms were cozy helped go-ers get to know their seat neighbors.
There was an era where LGBTQIA+ folx had to hide to avoid ostracization, injustice, or suffering. And there are forces at work to revive these atrocities. But it's institutions like Lavender Con that help fuel my hope that love wins and will always win. Who or what's been hugging your hope this month?
That's my story morning glory. Keep living out yours. And, remember, stories tell us.
Peace ~ D.V. Gwyth