Is it just me or do Pride Parades seem too sexualized?

[noigel]

Everytime I see an LGBT Pride parade, it usually constitutes of gay men wearing nothing but tight underwear shaking their butts and boners everywhere. I feel this is the same for other Pride events too. Am I just looking at the wrong videos or are there actually LGBT Pride events that are family friendly? I think it would be good to better spread te hawareness of LGBT issues and tolerance if the kids were involved even if they don't quite understand sexuality.
Has anyone else felt this way?  

[ForeverDreamWithinADream]

I've never been to one, but I am pretty sure it depends on where you live/go. I've seen pictures of parades that were family friendly.

I do feel that some people take it too far at times, which makes others look bad.  

[Blackrose_Knight]

Halloween is Straight Pride day, well I like to think so anyway. Compare and contrast and see what you get.  

[noigel]

Blackrose_Knight

Halloween is Straight Pride day, well I like to think so anyway. Compare and contrast and see what you get.

lol. I never really pay attention to halloween, but I've heard it gets crazy. c;  

[Blackrose_Knight]

noigel

Blackrose_Knight

Halloween is Straight Pride day, well I like to think so anyway. Compare and contrast and see what you get.

lol. I never really pay attention to halloween, but I've heard it gets crazy. c;

Rather. I am of the belief sexuality is integral to humanity and social expression. I don't mind skimpy outfits or such. I do mind during all ages functions simply because culture as stigmatized sex and nudity and the effect that would have on children. Folk walking about naked is only a problem if the culture makes it one (indigenous folk of Africa, South America, and other warm climates walk around nude or mostly nude all the time and it is no big deal to the culture)  

[Esiris]

noigel

lol. I never really pay attention to halloween, but I've heard it gets crazy. c;

To add to what Rosie said- on Halloween you get short skirts and lots of cleavage from lots of women but for the most part people don't bat an eyelash at them expressing "sexiness"- because they're assumed to be straight. I think shaming sexual expression in LGBT pride is a sneaky way of shaming LGBT people and saying it is about over-sexualization because if it was really about sexiness, there would be more people pissed off at how tight Black Widow's and Catwoman's outfit were in the theaters- think about it, Batman and Catwoman wear tight clothing and kiss and everyone thinks it is awesome in the theater- but if it were Batman and Catman, everyone would be pissed off at how they sexualized them.

Or Google Miss USA and see what they're wearing for a family-friendly event- it isn't any worse than some of the stuff you see at Pride, but it's ok in our society because of sexism which allows them to be seen as sexual objects and because they're assumed to be straight so they're not trying to "force gay sex" on anyone- just straight sex which is "normal".  

[Saint Sims]

Never been to a pride but I can say that the event is meant to be an expression of sexuality.

Sexuality, in our minds, is typically in reference to sexual orientation but sexuality itself is something much greater.

Pride is meant to express sexuality beyond the limits of attraction. It's supposed to be a show of self acceptance, liberation, and, well, pride of course, in who one is.

Naturally, we all perceive sexuality much differently and our tolerances vary person to person but frankly I see no issue in men or women parading around scantily clad so long as genitals maintain their places, since pride is constantly trying to gain "family" support.

I suppose pride is attempting to remove the sensitivity and taboo aspect of sexual expression and encourage people to reciprocate that expression. I'm all for it.

 

[Xada Lourin]

It's not just you, a lot of it is sexualized.. but being in Utah, that sort of thing is minimal. The Las Vegas one has no boundaries though... But it's all in good fun and expressing one's self and celebrating pride!  

[noigel]

Esiris

noigel

lol. I never really pay attention to halloween, but I've heard it gets crazy. c;

To add to what Rosie said- on Halloween you get short skirts and lots of cleavage from lots of women but for the most part people don't bat an eyelash at them expressing "sexiness"- because they're assumed to be straight. I think shaming sexual expression in LGBT pride is a sneaky way of shaming LGBT people and saying it is about over-sexualization because if it was really about sexiness, there would be more people pissed off at how tight Black Widow's and Catwoman's outfit were in the theaters- think about it, Batman and Catwoman wear tight clothing and kiss and everyone thinks it is awesome in the theater- but if it were Batman and Catman, everyone would be pissed off at how they sexualized them.

Or Google Miss USA and see what they're wearing for a family-friendly event- it isn't any worse than some of the stuff you see at Pride, but it's ok in our society because of sexism which allows them to be seen as sexual objects and because they're assumed to be straight so they're not trying to "force gay sex" on anyone- just straight sex which is "normal".

Yeah but people on Halloween and in pageants aren't try to bring awareness to an important cause. I just feel that they are deterring potential supporters who would want to be involved because not everyone would feel comfortable by putting too much emphasis on sex and not enough on love.  

[Taeryyn]

Depends on the parade.

The parade here isn't risqué at all. The local PFLAG group has a float, so do some of the GSAs. A couple of local businesses throw in their own floats, and there are a lot of people walking with rainbow flags and balloons. Very low-key.

The parades I've seen in other cities in my region have been a mixed bag, with some floats being "sexy" and others being tame.

The scantily-clad, sexualized aspect of the community exists; hiding it or pretending that it doesn't, in an effort to make people hate us less, seems kind of backwards to me. As others have already mentioned, dressing up (or, er, down) like that is hardly unique to pride parades, and I feel that some people use the "sex" aspect as a handy excuse to bash Pride events in general. (You know the ones. When you point out that some Pride parades are totally G-rated, their next excuse is, "Well, when's my straight pride parade?" razz )  

[Esiris]

noigel

Yeah but people on Halloween and in pageants aren't try to bring awareness to an important cause. I just feel that they are deterring potential supporters who would want to be involved because not everyone would feel comfortable by putting too much emphasis on sex and not enough on love.

And to me it comes across as anti-lgbt that the media can push cis-hetero struff on us all the time and that the only acceptable way for us to be sexual is in secret because we might offend people. It's a way of saying "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"- something that we've fought hard to erase in the military- only to have it be part of our culture at large?  

[Saint Sims]

noigel

The emphasis is not, nor ever was, "sex".

Again, sexuality is something much broader than orientation or intercourse.

To think of oneself as a "sexual person" is to be comfortable in one's own skin, uninhibited by society's "rules", and able to express personal liberation, in all forms, including the release from material bindings (clothing, etc).

Think of it on par with the feminist movement, where women would burn bras and protest the traditional "housewife" motif.

It's all just a matter of perspective, I suppose, but you have to be a bit open-minded and even inquisitive about how and why people do what they do. This includes individuals strut around in banana hammocks and a**-less chaps. If you want a "clear-cut" answer you'd best off actually asking one of them.

 

[TyDaCat]

noigel

Everytime I see an LGBT Pride parade, it usually constitutes of gay men wearing nothing but tight underwear shaking their butts and boners everywhere. I feel this is the same for other Pride events too. Am I just looking at the wrong videos or are there actually LGBT Pride events that are family friendly? I think it would be good to better spread te hawareness of LGBT issues and tolerance if the kids were involved even if they don't quite understand sexuality.
Has anyone else felt this way?

Personally I love it. They are being proud of their sexuality, bodies and community. It that regard it is good but in return, a lot of people believe that our community is overly sexualized and other things, and in some ways it is and other it isn't.

This year I was at pride in skimpy short shorts and a crop top working my shirt like I was the only one there. I ain't ashamed, I loved every second of it.  

[Canada737]

noigel

Everytime I see an LGBT Pride parade, it usually constitutes of gay men wearing nothing but tight underwear shaking their butts and boners everywhere. I feel this is the same for other Pride events too. Am I just looking at the wrong videos or are there actually LGBT Pride events that are family friendly? I think it would be good to better spread te hawareness of LGBT issues and tolerance if the kids were involved even if they don't quite understand sexuality.
Has anyone else felt this way?

It is true that often there are people dressed that way but at the pride parade I attended there where children there and in the parade itself. Although there were also men dressed in a fashion that makes many uncomfortable not myself personally but quite a few people  

[On_A_Cold_Stormy_Night]

I agree with the person who made this topic. I mean its fine but my sister wants to watch pride parade vids with me and its too gnarly yknow? I know everyone wants to show it off but make it family friendly.