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#my sister saw my ace pride flag  that i had kinda not visible on my desk
marv3l-drag0ns · 3 years
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Sibligns siblings siblings siblings
This is my sister this is my brother i dont like them even though we’re supposed to care for each other
they dont respect my privacy and they like to complain
Im just trying to stay pretty sane
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The effect of LGBTQ+ visibility in a fandom (and how you can become a part of it)
When we, as Takemehomefromnarnia, started Rainbow Direction in 2014, the vision was to have at least one person per show bring their rainbows with them to showcase that the LGBTQ+ portion of the One Diretion fandom is indead a significantly important one, but also for other LGBTQ+ fans to see that they are not alone. The aim was - essentially - to make at least one other person feel a little safe and welcome in an environment surrounding something they love so dearly.
With an amount of devotion and dedication that we could never have expected, you guys took this idea and wish to an unthinkable dimension and we want to take that spirit to all of the upcoming shows of the now solo going band members - Liam, Harry, Niall, Louis and Zayn.
To help you see what your participation can do, we browsed the around hundred reports of shows we’ve collected over the years and picked a few quotes for you:
“When Sheena offered me a rainbow ribbon today, adorned in a headband and snazzy shoelaces herself, it felt like an invitation into exactly what rainbow direction stand for - a safe space.
Walking around London, I could see people clocking the wristbands, but for the first time in a very long time, I didn’t care.”
“I had some great conversations with people who wanted to share either their coming out stories with me or just stories of their fears and insecurities about being themselves. It was so rewarding and I was so honored to be able to share stories with these lovely people and listen to their experiences. I also gave away a beaded heart to a girl who told me she had been afraid to represent herself until she had seen me and a few of the other Rainbow Direction people wearing rainbows. She put the heart on her chest so proudly as she walked back to her seat.”
“(A woman accompanied by her very young daughters) asked us why we were wearing those rainbows and if it had anything to do with gay pride. We gladly told her about RD and she was she amazed by it, because her daughter came out to her one year ago and she thinks that it’s so important to see rainbows at places where the atmosphere can be homophobic. We gave her some of Lisa’s hearts and she was so happy about it that she even called her daughter to tell her about us. She also showed us a picture of her and her girlfriend.”
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“We carried on chatting and then during a lull in conversation a very lovely girl shyly asked if I was wearing rainbows for RD. I confirmed I was and she thanked me and told me it was lovely to see and really important.”
“A mother saw my RD t-shirt, and asked if I was a participant. When I told her that I was and introduced myself, she gave me a HUGE hug and thanked RD for working to create an environment where her daughter felt safe being herself. She took a stack of pamphlets to hand out in their section as well.”
“I found 4 teenager girls, holding little rainbow flags and I stopped and introduced myself. I asked if anyone else was LGBTQ+ and one boldly raise her hand and I said “I’m 35 years old and I just discovered myself this year” and four girls whom I never met before (...) each gave me a hug, congratulated me and told me to have a great time.”
“(...)I remember seeing a group of people with rainbow clothing, flags, and hearts and feeling so happy seeing that kind of representation, as I had not seen any of that kind of representation in the 1D fandom so far (I’m pansexual & was only out to my older sister-the person who I was attending the concert with). Finally, after passing by this group a few times, my sister and I kinda bumped into you guys (...) and I complimented them on the rainbow attire. They responded so warmly and offered me and my sister a rainbow sticker, which I immediately stuck on my cheek and my sister stuck on her shirt in support of me. It was a very brief meeting, but I wore that rainbow sticker on my cheek the entire concert and I felt kinda like I was screaming out my sexuality to the world and it was scary but also so invigorating. After the concert I felt so much more confident about my sexuality because I had seen people look at my sticker and smile and had no negative reactions whatsoever and I just felt so warm and fuzzy and free and included because of the rainbows that I saw represented there. I honestly think that the whole concert experience is what gave me the confidence boost to come out to my friends last weekend, who, despite being conservative Christians, had such wonderful and supportive reactions.”
“(...) A girl made her way through the rather large crowd and against the flow to come and say how much she loved my outfit. She and her girlfriend almost made me cry because they were so young and so happy to be at the concert, holding hands openly. It was so beautiful. I luckily had some extra safe spaces hearts printed so I was able to give them one.”
“I brought my ace flag to this show, which I was a bit nervous about. I’m glad I did though! 100percentsassy posted a picture of me with it on tumblr before the show last night, and when I got into the stadium I had a message from someone thanking me for bringing it & I just started crying. It was truly such a beautiful moment and I’m so grateful for that individual for sharing their story with me.”
“I also had the pleasure of meeting a gentleman named, Tommy (...). He came over to me and asked for a picture because he noticed my rainbow direction shirt and was quite happy to see have seen it.”
“This girl just looked at me and mouthed “I like your rainbow” in the traffic for the stadium.”
“Now, you have to understand that by this point I was feeling very uncomfortable with my rainbows due to the stares we had been getting. When I saw this fan approaching I legitimately thought to myself “Oh no. Here we go. They’re going to be rude” However, what they said to us was a thank you. This fan told us that they had also signed up for rainbow direction but they couldn’t wear their rainbows due to the fact that they had come with family and they weren’t out to them just yet. They were originally going to attend with a friend but they had a falling out. After explaining their story, they gave us both a hug and when they started tearing up, I hugged them again.”
“I have no way to thank the individuals who quietly commented me on my rainbows and thanked me, the lovely flower crown girls who made sure to tell me I was awesome every time I passed, all the thumbs up I received and every other acknowledgement I saw.  I left tonight’s concert feeling loved, accepted and more validated than I have perhaps ever in my life.“
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So, if you want to be a part of this fest of visibilty, safe spaces and love, all you need is your concert ticket and some pride colours.
Rainbow Direction concert FAQ (everything you need to know!) Sign Up See other participants on the map
We hope to see many of you joining in and can’t wait to see the rainbows return to the venues along with your joyful faces and happy hearts!
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