Our San Diego GLBT and allied communities have shown tremendous vision, courage and determination to change the fact that we live in a nation that does not yet grant us or our families the full measure of citizenship.

Not content to bemoan our status as second-class citizens or as victims, we instead continue a 35-year tradition of standing up – standing up for what is right and fair, standing up and moving forward. As we prepare to gather together for our 33rd GLBT Pride celebration in San Diego, this is what I’m most proud of.

I am deeply proud to be part of a community that stands up – that stands up for others, that stands up to injustice, that stands up to demand that our America be even better and make good on those promises we celebrate every year during this month of July and on Independence Day.

I’m immensely proud to be part of a community that stands up when people tell us we can’t, or shouldn’t, be parents. Standing up when people tell us our relationships are less important than those of our heterosexual peers and deny us the freedom to marry, or when they deny our youth the freedom to be educated in safe spaces, or try to relegate our seniors to isolation because of their sexual orientation.

I’m moved to pride by those who stand up for our right to attend a professional baseball game as a group without suffering harassment and protest; and by those who buy tickets and show up, even if they don’t like baseball, because they understand the power of unity.

We are a community that stands up for other communities who have suffered the consequences of discrimination, prejudice and oppression. We don’t always get it right, or show up in all the places we could or should, but I’m so proud when I see us try, and particularly proud when we get it right. I’m proud of our collective efforts to secure equality through true collaboration, and that we don’t just show up for others, but we invite them to join us as well.

I’m proud when I watch our community struggle with difficult issues, such as choice, immigration, race and poverty. As we grapple with these intensely personal and political issues, I have seen us show a maturity and a consistency of logic, even when it’s been difficult and we clearly don’t have consensus. We continue to struggle to focus on our unity of purpose rather than the differences that divide us.

I’ve been so proud when we have respected the rights of others to have the same freedom of speech we desire (even when they are saying horrible things), but also never backed down from our efforts to fight against allowing those beliefs to be imposed on us through legislation or violence.

We are part of a community that has consistently shown a compassionate commitment to the most vulnerable among us – whether through the HIV/AIDS pandemic, supporting homeless GLBT youth, creating a place for GLBT seniors or ensuring that all members of our community have a place to access services and programs that will offer them support, care and empowerment.

This is a community that keeps standing up, again and again and again. We’ve kept standing up, even though some of us might never have believed we’d be able to take such stands in our lifetime. We’ve kept standing up, even though for some, standing up has involved great risk.

I’m so proud to be part of a community that does all of that.

This Pride weekend, please sign up with the non-profit organizations that need your support, and give charitably to them. Get active in any of the array of political or social or business organizations. They need your voice and your energy. Learn more. Enjoy yourself and be safe. We have so much to be proud of, and, together, we can stand up and continue to build an even better future.

Happy San Diego Pride!