Pride, Not Just for Clicks

It’s the month of June and the world is celebrating Pride. Like every year, the LGBTQ+ community comes together. The month-long observance coincides with the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Riots—a series of gay liberation protests that sparked in response to a police raid at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighbourhood of Lower Manhattan, New York City.

All those years later, Pride is now celebrated across the globe. Some believe it has become more commercialised, with big brands and celebrities jumping on board—making some in the community feel the message of Pride is getting lost, reduced to a fashion statement or a bandwagon for corporations to ride for a month before abandoning it as soon as June ends.

We caught up with some of our LGBTQ talent to hear what Pride means to them:

Helen Ratner said, “I believe Pride is incredibly important, especially for those living in less progressive areas where access to LGBTQ+ representation can be limited. For many, commercialised Pride content from larger organisations might be one of the few visible affirmations of their identity.

I currently live in Brooklyn, where I'm fortunate to be surrounded by a vibrant and vocal queer community. I don’t have to rely on corporate Pride campaigns to feel seen—but I recognise that’s not the case for everyone. While commercialisation has its flaws, it can still serve as a vital entry point for visibility and awareness. Ideally, this visibility can evolve into something deeper—where Pride becomes more than a month-long celebration and instead a sustained, everyday part of life for individuals and communities everywhere.”

To view Helen’s work click here​

Kyla Philander said, “We’ve arrived at a particularly complicated moment in the world, especially in the context of how our community is perceived and affected. So, I think as creatives and cultural influencers, there are ways we can hold brands and institutions accountable through honest, brave, and real storytelling. There are ways we can foster community within our creative ideation, and Pride reminds us all of the importance of connection.”

To view Kyla’s work click here​

Ira Giorgetti said, “Pride isn’t about glitter or parades. It’s about showing up, showing care, and creating space that feels like home. That’s no easy feat, but everyone has their unique way of helping others feel safe and seen. Photography lets you share the world as you see it, and for me, that means capturing moments of truth, not just surface. Queerness is part of that truth.

I don’t shoot ‘diversity’. I shoot people, stories, and the small, quiet details that make us real. And if my work can help shift how someone sees themselves or the world around them for the better, that feels like something worth celebrating.”

To view Ira’s work click here​

Kulay Labitigan said, “I grew up in a place where being gay is considered a sin by the church and many of its followers. But at the same time, on an individual level, there’s an unspoken, deep-seated reverence for LGBTQIA+ people—something encrypted in our DNA, rooted in our pre-colonial (pre-church) wisdom of Pakikipagkapwa, where we look at and treat others as sacred beings like ourselves.

This contradiction creates a push and pull of confusion between what’s taught and what’s innate—not just for members of our queer community but for society at large.
So the celebration of Pride for me is a profound call for a communal moment of self-reflection—to look at others as ourselves, and to help and give the ‘others’ the same things we enjoy: Love. Dignity. Rights. Respect.

This is the world where I let my creativity and imagination inhabit, through the images I create and the stories I capture—because that’s the divine gift I received. So that’s the divine gift I should rightly give. And the hope is for everyone else too. HAPPY PRIDE, LOVES!”

To view Kulay’s work click here​