Each year, June marks Pride Month across the globe, and Greater Cincinnati is no exception.
To mark the occasion this year, WCPO 9 News planned special coverage to cap off the month but also to propel these conversations forward into the rest of 2021 and beyond.
After all, Pride is more than just a month.
Kicking off WCPO's special coverage, anchor and reporter Evan Millward takes us back in time to show how, even though Pride was born at New York's Stonewall Inn, Cincinnati has also played a leading role in LGBTQIA+ history.
After looking at how far we've come, reporter Lucy May examines how much work still lies ahead to bridge persisting gaps in equity and resources for people in these communities.
One of those gaps: health care. Anchor Kristyn Hartman dug deeper into the barriers that LGBTQIA+ communities still face when it comes to accessing and following through with healthcare providers, and what some local doctors are doing to provide "affirming" care.
Part of that "affirming" care is something as simple as a place for patients to identify their preferred pronouns as they fill out paperwork. Hartman also breaks down why pronouns have become central to LGBTQIA+ conversations and defines some other helpful terminology, too.
Anchor Tanya O'Rourke then introduces us to a man who spent decades as the liaison between the Cincinnati Bengals and local news media, all the while harboring a secret he didn't dare make public until just recently, but that is also a central part of his sense of self.
And the gay club tradition, which provided LGBTQIA+ people with opportunities to meet each other clandestinely for decades, is still vital even in a more accepting world. E19, a bar and discotheque in Over-the-Rhine, is dedicated to keeping gay club culture alive and encouraging its patrons to express who they are.
(And as a bonus: Here's a breakdown of the various flags associated with Pride across the U.S. and the world.)
For WCPO's extended coverage from throughout the month of June, be sure also to check out Evan Millward's "Points of Pride" series and our complete Pride coverage here.
