Proud Moments

This month, all eyes are on Copenhagen for the ten-day WorldPride and EuroGames event. And although WorldPride has been happening for more than two decades, this is an event of firsts. It is the first time WorldPride is held here in Scandinavia, first time the festival, WorldPride, and the sports event, EuroGames, are combined into one big celebration, and it is the first time the event is spread over two cities – with Malmö being a partnering host. To celebrate the proud milestone for the city, we have reached out to inspiring voices from the community. Here, they let us in on how they are celebrating Pride, the significance of the rainbow colors, and what we can all do to become better allies.  

Mathias Broe is a queer film director aspiring to build bridges between people and creating beautiful moments in and with the world. He is particularly noted for his film ‘Amfi’, which won a Robert price for best short film in 2020. 

What is your best Pride memory? 
For me, Pride is a reminder of the pride of being queer that I have build-up in my body. My favorite memory is therefore not attached specifically to the Pride event, but to the process I had making my film ‘Amfi’. It is about relieving yourself of shame and doubt through conversations and rituals, and during the process of making the movie I went from having a difficult time holding the hand of men on the street to feeling completely comfortable with my sexuality. I am proud of that process and look back at it as a very beautiful time with a lot of inspiring people. 
 

Who inspires you the most from the community? 
I’m very inspired by my transgender and non-binary friends that fight each day for all of us to understand how important it is that we listen to them and change our language and limiting binary understanding of the world. To liberate yourself from the binary can also liberate you as a person, and I’m very inspired by their courage and persistence because it’s necessary – both for them and for all of us to move forward and away from a system that isn’t working.  
 

How are you celebrating Pride?
I’m supporting Nørrebro Pride who is fighting for justice and queer liberation at a more political level, while simultaneously focusing particularly on the intersectional aspect of Pride. Queer liberation is inextricably linked with anti-racism and no one is free until we all are, and that is something the volunteers behind Nørrebro Pride has taught me. 
 

What does the rainbow-colored flag mean to you? 
It actually didn’t mean that much to me until recently when I watched images from Georgia, where right extremists burned the rainbow flag and tore it apart. Watching this, it appeared to me that there was a similarity between the representation of the rainbow flag and myself. The images hit me because I took them in. As a queer person you teach yourself to keep things out in order to survive emotionally, but when I let down that wall then a symbol like the rainbow flag starts having a significance to me. 

Fie Gammerath is studying to become a social worker but would rather work with branding and marketing. Fie is an extrovert, open, honest, and tolerant, and then she is excellent at taking the important fights – even if it will ruin the good mood.  

Nanna Wright is non-binary but doesn’t care much about the pronouns you address her with. Most people will use she/her but in the supermarket children and older women tend to use he/him. Nanna finds comfort in routines and cuts her hair and nails every Friday. She is always positive and lives by the motto ‘why fight when you can be friends’ – although girlfriend, Fie, doesn’t always agree. 
 

What is your best Pride memory? 
Fie: That must be from Copenhagen Pride 2019. In the months leading up to the parade, I had arranged a float where all of my friends and I could celebrate Pride together. The theme was ‘Horror’ with the slogan ‘When did inclusivity become so scary?’, and I had put so much time and effort into it. Before we drove off I just stood and watched my dancing friends on the float with a lot of journalists taking photos. That is my best Pride memory. 

Nanna: I have attended Copenhagen Pride for many years and one feeling is the same every year; when the parade starts, and the floats start rolling, and we are in the middle of Vesterbrogade, that is when I can really feel the Pride atmosphere and diversity. So my favorite Pride memory must be in the middle of Vesterbrogade with loud music and a damn good vibe.  
 

Who inspires you the most from the community? 
Nanna: I’m very inspired by my girlfriend’s brother, Frederik Taus. I think he is doing important work for the LGBTQIA+ community by breaking down gender norms in fashion and design. I have never been in the so-called ‘women’s departments’ to shop so I think it’s extremely important and about time someone dissolves notions of ‘male’ and ‘female’ clothing. Clothes are just clothes. 
 

What is one thing we can all do to be better allies?
Fie: Say no. It is very short and simple. Say no to discriminatory use of language and behavior. Educate yourself. Google is your friend and it would be so much easier for everyone if LGBTQIA+ persons don't have to explain why they are who they are. Remember, being a good ally isn’t a title but actions.  
 

What does the rainbow-colored flag mean to you? 
Fie: For me, the rainbow flag symbolizes a community. I love that you have no doubts the rainbow flag is a symbol of the LGBTQIA+ community. Actually, my iPhone cover is the colors of the rainbow so everyone can see that I’m here and I’m queer. 

Nanna: For me, the rainbow flag signifies diversity and community. It is amazing to see Copenhagen raising the rainbow flag in August every year – although we are here for the rest of the year as well. When I see a rainbow flag in a bar or restaurant then I know it is a safe space for me.

Jeuru Antoine swapped the hustle of his home town, New York, for the cobbled streets of Copenhagen where he is pursuing a career as soul singer. The rising talent signed with Sony Music and released his debut EP ‘King of the Cruel’ in 2018. 
 

How are you celebrating Pride?
I will be performing at the closing ceremony on August 21st at KB Hallen. 
 

What is one thing we can all do to be better allies?
Listening is key. Educating yourself on what you don’t understand is another. And putting your power where your mouth is and stepping up when you see ignorance is what we all need right now.

What does the rainbow-colored flag mean to you? 
Strength, Community, Humanity, and Power. 
 

With Copenhagen hosting WorldPride this year, what is one thing we can teach the world? And what is one thing the world can teach us?
At the end of the day, it all comes back to love. We as beings all need it and even though it takes on many different shapes, forms, voices, and sexual orientations, the message remains the same; love is the root and the answer to the cause. 

Christof Kiefer is originally from Germany, where he has a bonus son with a lesbian couple. Now, he has settled down in Copenhagen where he works for the money for the Danish Design Center, and for the love for an NGO providing university scholarships for Madagascan students. 

Mads is a visual artist, born and raised in Copenhagen. He is also a landscape photographer, the only thing he knows how to cook is chopped veggies with lemon, and then he enjoys stuffing his tiny French balcony with as many plants as possible. 
 

What is your best Pride memory? 
Mads: My best Pride memory is from a few years back dancing in one of the tiny streets in central Copenhagen completely engulfed in a pre-corona, carefree crowd. But even though the streets were bursting with people dancing, talking, walking in different directions, drinking etc. there was an air of consideration and care shown towards other people, making it an inclusive and safe space. I also see Pride as a space where dancing, talking, walking in different directions and drinking can be regarded as more than just a party, it’s highly political. 

Christof: For me, Pride is about seeing how many we actually are and how many allies we have. At times you can feel very alone in the world, especially when you’re met with adversity for who you are. At pride I can wander through the streets and get reassured that all those people are also in town throughout the year, even if they don’t always wear the same outward social markers. It’s also a reminder for how good we have it that we can march the streets. In countries such as Hungary, Poland, and Turkey, our brothers and sisters get beaten and arrested for doing what we do during pride. I also walk for those who cannot.
 

Who inspires you the most from the community? 
Christof: In the Copenhagen Queer Community, it's definitely Paulie Amanita Calderon-Cifuentes. Amanita is probably the fiercest and most intelligent person I know. As a POC, HIV-positive, trans woman, she ranges on one of the most underprivileged levels on the “intersectionality scale”, and has been met by so much hate, mistrust, walls and glass ceilings. Nevertheless, she seems to just burst through them in true Wonder Woman style. Today, she is both kicking ass in her role as researcher and consultant (she holds a PhD in molecular biomedicine from KU) and as a front figure for people living with HIV as well as for transgender people (e.g. as a chairwoman of TransAktion). She’s also a mentor for queer kids, who come to her for support almost on a daily basis. When I meet people like Amanita, I can only be humbled and in awe about the energy she generates to face the world and change it, one little step at a time. 

Mads: An initiative I really admire is the café and artist studio ‘Dzidra+BG8’ in Nørrebro. Isabella and Andreas, who started it, have from the beginning been very conscious about the social and political agenda of their space. When you go there, the landscape of people should not just include the typical majority. They have been very vocal about not only making great food for an already accepted crowd but rather making a space that should be inclusive and safe for a queer community as well as people of all backgrounds and nationalities. Making alliances across sections and groups. 
 

With Copenhagen hosting WorldPride this year, what is one thing we can teach the world? And what is one thing the world can teach us? 
Christof: Denmark is probably the most homogeneous society I have experienced. Almost every Dane above the age of 15 has experienced being drunk, wet and dirty in a broken tent at Roskilde Festival. Experiences like that lead to a common reference ground that makes it super easy to navigate life and relationships amongst the members of society. But they can also be very limiting and straight out boring. We can learn from the world that pluralism, diversity, and being different is not a threat but a nourishing ground and prerequisite for a well-functioning and livable society.
On the other hand, I have experienced the Danes as a very tolerant society. And I mean tolerant in the actual sense of the word – to endure the other that I might not agree with. Maybe it’s only due to the conflict-avoiding nature of most Danes but I see tolerance as a super important virtue for coexistence in a democracy and the world as a whole. Let’s export that!

Editorial staff

Photographer: Frederik Andersen