The Importance of Celebrating Pride Month: What it is & When

Every June, millions of people around the world come together to celebrate Pride Month — a time dedicated to honoring the LGBTQ+ community, reflecting on its history, and advocating for equal rights.

Pride Month is more than just parades and rainbow flags. It’s a powerful reminder of the struggles and triumphs that have paved the way for LGBTQ+ acceptance and visibility, and a celebration of LGBTQ+ culture and self-worth.

In this article, we’ll explore the origins of Pride Month, its significance, and why celebrating it continues to matter today.

What is Pride Month?

Pride Month is the celebration of those who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community. During this time, people come together to show how far gay and trans rights have come and what work must continue to be done to result in full equality globally.

The celebration of Pride emphasises how important inclusivity is and to not put up barriers that make people feel that they don’t belong – building communities and promoting acceptance.

When Did it Start?

Originating in 1969 after the Stonewall Riots took place and historically changed gay rights, Pride Month was conceived to remember this event; a time for individuals to come together with love, support and acceptance.

When is Pride Month 2025?

Pride Month is celebrated annually in the UK throughout June, with many cities dressing the streets for the occasion with LGBT colours, including the gay pride flag, recognised worldwide as the famous rainbow flag. Many major cities additionally hold their own celebratory Pride events, including the widely attended London Pride parade, the Birmingham Pride concert - (held in the famous gay village), and Manchester’s Pride festival!

Although June is the focus for this celebration, it’s also a time to raise awareness. Additionally, it’s crucial to remember that Pride must be celebrated throughout the entire year, as the battle for equality is a constant, ongoing effort.

Why Celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month?

Pride Month is more than just a celebration. It’s a powerful acknowledgment of the LGBTQ+ community’s history, resilience, and ongoing fight for equality. It serves as a reminder of the struggles faced by LGBTQ+ individuals, from the Stonewall Riots to current battles for rights and recognition.

Here are 5 reasons to celebrate Pride Month:

• Promote inclusivity for people of all genders, identities, and sexualities.
• Ensure everyone feels seen and respected, regardless of their sexuality or gender.
• Educate yourself and others about LGBTQ+ history and current issues.
• Create a safe space for self-expression.
• Combat discrimination and promote equal rights locally as part of a global movement.

Raise Awareness of LGBTQIA+ Issues

Although we have made fantastic steps towards equality, there is still so much work to be done. This is why we continue to celebrate and promote Pride Month all these years later, to continue to raise awareness for the past and current issues facing the LGBT community.

Along with Pride Month, many awareness and visibility weeks take place throughout the year for this community, including Lesbian Visibility Week, Transgender Awareness Week and Bisexual Awareness Week!

Our blog post ‘Celebrating your Authentic Self’ was written for Transgender Awareness Week, and is still incredibly relevant.

Pride Month isn’t Just Gay Pride

While often associated with gay pride, Pride Month is a celebration of the entire LGBTQ+ community. It includes everyone who identifies outside the cisgender and heterosexual spheres, including those who identify as lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, non-binary, asexual, intersex, and all identities across the spectrum.

Each identity within the LGBTQ+ community faces unique challenges. More recently, transgender and non-binary individuals have stepped up their fight for visibility and rights, while bisexual people combat erasure and asexual individuals work to gain broader recognition.

Pride Month is a time to amplify all voices, ensuring no one feels overlooked or excluded.

Support Local Pride Events

As previously touched on, various cities hold their own Pride events to show their support during June. Some of these local events feature singers, famous members of the LGBTQIA+ community and speakers.

Speakers at Pride events commonly focus on diversity, equality and inclusion; although there are many routes that can be taken when speaking at pride events, be it adversity, human rights or politics!

Stand in Solidarity with the LGBTQIA+ Community

Pride should create a safe space for the gay community to celebrate a part of themselves they may hide on a day-to-day basis. The colourful celebration allows them to truly be themselves in a place where they feel accepted and appreciated by other community members and allies.

Companies are taking fantastic steps into openly standing in solidarity with the community, for example, Apple has introduced the Pride flag emoji and Starbucks released Pride reusable cups – to name a few! However as previously mentioned, it’s crucial to remember not to tokenise this month as the only time when pride matters - Pride matters all year round.

How Can You Celebrate Pride?

Hosting or attending any event where LGBTQIA+ individuals come together, builds community and celebrates diversity, inclusion and equality. These events also promote opportunities to support those within the community, whilst encouraging acceptance.

You can also celebrate pride by educating yourself on the importance of equality and diversity. Simply learning about this cause is a great way to start, as it’s vital to fully contextualise the meaning of pride month with background knowledge.

Educating yourself on the history of pride also means that you’ll understand the importance of education moving forward. Improving equality and celebrating diversity is one of the main goals of pride month, after all!

If you’re able to, donating to notable charities is another fantastic way you can help celebrate and support pride. There are many incredible organisations that do brilliant work for the community.

Why is Pride Month Important for Your Business?

While recognising Pride Month is first and foremost about celebrating your LGBTQ+ staff, it can also bring benefits to your business. An inclusive workplace is crucial for cultivating teamwork, appreciation, wellbeing and many other factors that together, create a positive work environment.

When employees feel valued and respected for who they are, they’re more likely to collaborate effectively, communicate openly, and contribute their unique perspectives to the team.

Inclusivity fosters a sense of belonging. This can enhance employee morale and job satisfaction, making staff more engaged, motivated, and committed to their work. This leads to increased productivity, creativity, and innovation, as different viewpoints and experiences drive problem-solving and fresh ideas.

An inclusive workplace also supports overall wellbeing by reducing stress and anxiety associated with discrimination or exclusion. Employees who feel safe expressing themselves are more likely to experience job fulfilment, mental wellbeing, and professional growth.

Organisations that prioritise inclusivity build stronger teams — but they also attract and retain top talent, creating a dynamic and forward-thinking workplace culture.

How Speakers Corner Can Help You Celebrate Pride Month

Bringing in a diversity, equality and inclusion speaker to speak to your team is a fantastic way to encourage open conversations within the workplace and will also begin the formulation of making work a safe space for community members.

When your employees feel safe at work, it makes the world of difference to not only morale, but business performance; happy team, happy business!

Additionally, being educated on prominent issues (such as Pride) can make your work more considered – if relevant to your job and/or industry.

Our friendly, impartial and expert team will find the perfect speaker for your pride event, no matter the subject matter - get in touch today!