5 Ways to Celebrate Pride Month in 2021

Rep your Pride flags, get creative, and join in the celebrations, because June is Pride Month and this year is set to be bigger, brighter, and more fabulous than ever. There are tons of events going on around the country with opportunities to participate in-person, virtually, or with a hybrid of both—just do what feels most comfortable to you. In whatever forms we choose to come together to celebrate LGBTQ+ life, culture, and community, it’s set to be a memorable month of music, arts, crafts, fashion, and so much more. Here’s how to get involved, have fun, and make a difference.

Support Queer Creators and Artists

Communities don't have to just be IRL to stand strong together. Queer creators have huge presence on social platforms like TikTok and Instagram and run daily content. It stands to reason then that they'll be celebrating Pride Month with their audience, through interactive videos, fundraisers, Instagram Lives, dance parties, creative initiatives, and a whole host of other online events. Here's a list of just a few creators to follow if you're not already: Hawwaa, Isa Matisse, Ve’, Arrows, Ashley Lukashevsky, and Natalia Seth. And, this is just the beginning. Take time to discover emerging LGBTQIA+ artists from all across the world, whether on social media or elsewhere, and find ways to support them and spread their message.

Connect with the Communities

If you can’t support causes in person right now, there are plenty of ways to work as a remote volunteer that are just as impactful and meaningful. JanSport’s partner The Trevor Project has opportunities for you to volunteer as a crisis counselor over text or phone. You have to be 18 years old or over, and there's some training involved, so check out the requirements first. It’s a great opportunity to learn new skills, offer your support, and give back to the communities.

Make a Pride Playlist

Make sure you have a soundtrack worthy of the energy and fun of Pride. Spotify has a Global Pride 2021 playlist featuring icons and plenty of up-and-coming artists you might never have heard of. Play DJ and make your own personalized playlist for friends and family. Whether in-person or virtually, you can video chat, do karaoke, host dance parties or competitions, however you choose to celebrate, make sure you share these inspiring tunes and give shoutouts to the artists.

Make a Pride Outfit to Match

Let your creativity run free. Nothing’s off limits and there’s endless creative potential here from designing a fun tee, tie-dying, making your own costume, drag, makeup, face paint, and so much more. Even if you're not heading outside for Pride Month, the simple act of creating an outfit that truly represents you is such an empowering way to join in the fun. And, if you want to accessorise in style, you could decorate a plain backpack with pins and artwork that celebrates the people you love, or go for rainbow patterns that include colors from Pride flags, ready to show off when you’re ready for in-person events again. Take lots of snaps and share to your social channels.

DIY Posters and Decorations for Your Walls

So after a lot of time indoors, no doubt you’re a pro at DIY craft projects, and Pride is actually a great opportunity to put all your artistic skills into practice and add some fun flourishes to your space. Whether collages, Pride messages you connect with, art that speaks to you, poetry, inspiring icons, or designing your own Pride flag and posters, the sky's the limit on what you could create. And, if you need some inspo, Pinterest is a great place to start building out a moodboard. 

These are just a few of the ways you can participate in Pride Month. How will you be celebrating? Tag us on social media with #LifeUnzipped