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In November of 1969, the first Pride gathering happened in New York City. Building on the mantra of the black community who coined the term, “black is beautiful,” the LGBT (the abbreviation of the time) community coined the term “gay is good,” and a movement of being publicly proud of one’s sexual and gender identity stepped out onto the streets of America.

A designated month or parade does not fix the problems still with us today. The LGBTQIA+ community has faced a sea of challenges over the millennia, and even in the recent decades since the Stonewall riot and the subsequent establishment of Pride month. Facing rejection from families, discrimination in schools and workplaces, and violence and denial of rights from a public plagued by bigotry and fear, the queer community continues to fight for its rights and to affirm its identity in the private and public sectors. Pride Month acknowledges that so many obstacles must be overcome to be “out and proud.”

In this week’s Torah portion, Moses sends 12 spies into the land of Israel on a reconnaissance mission to ascertain the conditions of both the land and the inhabitants and whether the Israelites could enter safely or would face defeat. Because 10 of the 12 returned reporting that the Israelites would most certainly be defeated, God decided that the Israelites would not be able to enter the land until the generation that escaped slavery died off and those born free could enter with self-confidence that they would be able to overcome any obstacles that they might encounter.

Parashat Shelach L’cha displays a people who lacked pride and were full of fear. It is a reminder that until we believe in ourselves we cannot claim the richness of life that is rightfully ours. While Pride month acknowledges the struggles and achievements of the queer community, it is a clarion call for all of us to not only derive strength from our identities but to band together and fight for lands flowing with milk and honey; because we all have a right to have our place in the world.

This week we will celebrate Pride Shabbat and welcome Rebecca Stapel-Wax, Executive Director of SOJOURN, the Jewish LGBTQIA+ advocacy and education organization, to our bima to speak to us about the current climate of gay rights which really mirrors the struggles for all minorities including the Jewish people.

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom and Happy Pride,

Beth