Pride is a Protest

Picture it: New York, 1969. LGBTQ+ people had endured generations of criminalization, shame, and relentless police violence. Then, on a summer night outside the Stonewall Inn - a rare haven where queer people could dance freely - the powder keg metaphorically exploded. When yet another police raid began, the community didn’t back down. They fought back. The uprising that followed lit a fire that would never be extinguished.

One year later, people gathered in the streets of New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, not in mourning, but in defiant celebration. These weren’t just parades; they were acts of rebellion. Public. Political. Unapologetic. This was the birth of Pride.

Today, as Pride organizations face slashed funding and the chilling rise of fascist rhetoric and policy, we must remember: Pride has always been protest. It was born in resistance, forged in fire, and made to be loud. Be proud. Be gloriously subversive.

Scent: black currant, pear, jasmine, vanilla, patchouli