Happy Pride!
June marks the beginning of Pride month, a celebration for the LGBTQ+ community which is an inclusive term that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and others. All throughout June members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies take extra measures to acknowledge and show love towards the marginalized group, but the journey to the commemorative 30 days was sparked from a dark moment in LGBTQ+ history.
The concept of Pride month began with a series of riots for gay liberation that took place over several days beginning on June 28, 1969, known as the Stonewall riots. The riots began after police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in the Lower Manhattan section of New York. The first pride marches took place a year after the riots and were held in cities across the United States to commemorate the Stonewall riots.
In June 1999, President Bill Clinton declared the month as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month for the anniversary of Stonewall, and in 2011, President Barack Obama expanded the inclusion of Pride month to include the entire community. The battle for LGBTQ+ rights continue to be an uphill battle but especially for the month of June, the community can take a moment to live and love out loud boldly and proudly.
To celebrate Pride month, here are 12 projects to stream that center around the LGBTQ+ community.
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Who’s in it: Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, Michelle Williams, Randy Quaid, Anne Hathaway, Dave Trimble, Valerie Planche, Linda Cardellini, David Harbour, Kate Mara, Anna Faris
Synopsis: “Ennis and Jack are two shepherds who develop a sexual and emotional relationship. Their relationship becomes complicated when both of them get married to their respective girlfriends.”
Where to watch: Prime Video
Bros (2022)
Who’s in it: Billy Eichner, Luke Macfarlane, Guy Branum, Miss Lawrence, TS Madison, Dot-Marie Jones, Jim Rash, Eve Lindley, Monica Raymund, Guillermo Diaz
Synopsis: “Two men with commitment problems attempt a relationship.”
Where to watch: Prime Video
But I’m a Cheerleader (1999)
Who’s in it: Natasha Lyonne, Clea DuVall, Michelle Williams, Brandt Wille, Bud Cort, Mink Stole, RuPaul, Cathy Moriarty, Eddie Cibrian, Melanie Lynskey, Dante Basco, Joel Michaely, Kip Pardue, Douglas Spain
Synopsis: “A naive teenager is sent to rehab camp when her straitlaced parents and friends suspect her of being a lesbian.”
Where to watch: Pluto TV, Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Tubi
Carol (2015)
Who’s in it: Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Sarah Paulson, Kyle Chandler, Jake Lacy, John Magaro, Cory Michael Smith, Kevin Crowley, Nik Pajic, Carrie Brownstein
Synopsis: “An aspiring photographer develops an intimate relationship with an older woman in 1950s New York.”
Where to watch: Netflix
Call Me By Your Name (2017)
Who’s in it: Timothée Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar, Esther Garrel, Victoire Du Bois
Synopsis: “In 1980s Italy, romance blossoms between a seventeen-year-old student and the older man hired as his father’s research assistant.”
Where to watch: Netflix
Fire Island (2022)
Who’s in it: Joel Kim Booster, Bowen Yang, Margaret Cho, Conrad Ricamora, James Scully, Matt Rogers, Tomas Matos, Torian Miller, Nick Adams, Zane Phillips, Michael Graceffa
Synopsis: “A group of queer best friends gather in Fire Island Pines for their annual week of love and laughter, but a sudden change of events might make this their last summer in gay paradise.”
Where to watch: Hulu
Heartstopper (2022 – )
Who’s in it: Joe Locke, Kit Connor, Yasmin Finney, William Gao, Tobie Donovan, Cormac Hyde-Corrin, Rhea Norwood, Sebastian Croft, Jenny Walser, Olivia Colman, Corinna Brown, Kizzy Edgell
Synopsis: “Teens Charlie and Nick discover their unlikely friendship might be something more as they navigate school and young love in this coming-of-age series.”
Where to watch: Netflix
Moonlight (2016)
Who’s in it: Mahershala Ali, Naomie Harris, Trevante Rhodes, Alex R. Hibbert, Shariff Earp, Duan Sanderson, Janelle Monáe, Jaden Piner, Herman ‘Caheei McGloun
Synopsis: “A young African-American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.”
Where to watch: Max, Pluto TV
Pose (2018 – 2021)
Who’s in it: Michaela Jaé (MJ) Rodriguez, Dominique Jackson, Indya Moore, Angel Bismark Curiel, Billy Porter, Hailie Sahar, Dyllon Burnside, Jason A. Rodriguez, Ryan Jamaal Swain, Jeremy McClain, Angelica Ross, Sandra Bernhard, Alexia Garcia, Evan Peters
Synopsis: “In the New York of the late ’80s and early ’90s, this is a story of ball culture and the gay and trans community, the raging AIDS crisis, and capitalism.”
Where to watch: Hulu
Sense8 (2015 – 2018)
Who’s in it: Bae Doona, Jamie Clayton, Tina Desai, Tuppence Middleton, Max Riemelt, Miguel Ángel Silvestre, Brian J. Smith, Daryl Hannah, Freema Agyeman, Alfonso Herrera, Terrence Mann, Eréndira Ibarra, Naveen Andrews, Purab Kohli, Paul Ogola, Michael X. Sommers, Toby Onwumere
Synopsis: “A group of people around the world are suddenly linked mentally, and must find a way to survive being hunted by those who see them as a threat to the world’s order.”
Where to watch: Netflix
They/Them (2022)
Who’s in it: Kevin Bacon, Theo Germaine, Anna Chlumsky, Carrie Preston, Quei Tann, Austin Crute, Anna Lore, Monique Kim, Cooper Koch, Darwin del Fabro, Hayley Griffith, Boone Platt
Synopsis: “A group of teenagers at an LGBTQ+ conversion camp endures unsettling psychological techniques while being stalked by a mysterious masked killer.”
Where to watch: Peacock
Queer as Folk (1999 – 2005)
Who’s in it: Sharon Gless, Hal Sparks, Michelle Clunie, Robert Gant, Thea Gill, Gale Harold, Randy Harrison, Scott Lowell, Peter Paige
Synopsis: “Brash humor and genuine emotion make up this series revolving around the lives, loves, ambitions, careers and friendships of a group of gay men and women living on Liberty Avenue in contemporary Pittsburgh, PA.”
Where to watch: Freevee, Paramount+, Prime Video, Showtime Anytime, The Roku Channel, Tubi
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