We Celebrate Pride Month 2022

Pride month, a national observance, begins June 1. Across the city, New Yorkers will celebrate with joyous parades and colorful flags. The June celebration is a commemoration of the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City, which became a catalyst for the LGBTQ rights movement in the U.S.

Over the past decade, the LGBTQ movement has achieved significant progress. In 2015, marriage equality became law, whereby U.S. citizens in all 50 states could marry their same-sex partners. In 2020, the Supreme Court held that it is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an individual based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Since 2011, LGBTQ individuals have been permitted to serve in the military; in 2021, the ban on transgender people serving in the military was lifted, allowing transgender individuals to serve openly in their self-identified gender. However, the work toward equality is not done. Across the states, over 240 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced. Most of those bills target transgender individuals, potentially denying them the medical care they need.

As health care professionals, we are committed to compassionate patient care and to leading with empathy. We can each do our part to ensure access to what we believe are basic human rights, and to promote a bias-free society. For example, the risk of depression and suicide markedly decreases when transgender youths are called by their chosen pronouns. A simple and powerful way to show our solidarity is by visibly donning the Pride stickers and the pronoun pins shared throughout the department this month.

Let’s do our part and celebrate!

To learn more:

Columbia University has a rich history of LGBTQIA+ scholarship and activism. Please check out some of the resources available online.

The riveting PBS documentary, The Lavender Scare  gives a glimpse into the little-known decades-long federal government campaign to identify and fire employees who were believed to be homosexuals.