ATL Black Gay Pride -- Can U Feel It

As this summer marks the madness and mass anticipation of Black Gay Pride 2005, I cannot help but get swept up in it. I plan to attend my very first Pride Celebration in Atlanta (Aug. 31-Sept. 5). The excitement of being around a multitude "people like me" is almost too much to contemplate. You may think this enthusiasm is a bit much for just a weekend of parties, workshops, parties, seminars, and more parties. But I'm looking forward to being around "my family" and taking in everything Pride has to offer. When do we ever have a time just for us to come together in camaraderie and solidarity (and possibly find friendsip or love)? This year's Atlanta Black Gay Pride, sponsored by In the Life Atlanta (www.inthelifeatl.com), promises a throng of activities for black gay men and women. The organization is hosting a career expo, a black pride marketplace, informative workshops, poetry readings, and worship services, as well as several social events. Of course, the clubs will be jumpin, jumpin as many of the local spots will hold their own same-sex celebrations. The culmination of Pride ends with the Stand Up and Represent Black Pride March, where brothas and sistahs will walk with pride to the Georgia State Capitol. And I want to be in the midst of it all. Hopefully I'll be able to attend most of these functions and be able to see my family united in self-respect and love. I want to be in that number when we march from the MLK Center to State Capitol meeting people in all walks of life and with their own life stories. I may be romanticizing a bit, but this is what Black Gay Pride should be about. Parties and socializing may be fine, if that's what you're looking for--and please believe that I plan to do that, too. But it should also be about something bigger. So I'll be there at In the Life Atlanta. Maybe I'll see you there.