A Field Guide to Pride

Celebrating global LGBTQ+ stories 🌈

Field Guide Vol. 248

This week marks the beginning of Pride month in numerous countries. To celebrate, this Field Guide is all about the stories of LGBTQ+ people and communities across the globe. Join us as we journey from Ho Chi Minh City and Denmark to Chicago and Brazil, and share some of our favorite Stranger's Guide stories about LGBTQ+ identity around the world. 

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The Pink Choice

By Maika Elan

Many people say that they are open about homosexuality, but when I showed my photos of LGBTQ couples in intimate moments, most people found them disgusting and unacceptable. Their reactions were a source of inspiration to me. My goal was to make photos about queer life that incite feelings of natural, beautiful, romantic love. I chose to capture daily activities of queer couples, casual moments that can feel familiar to everyone.

Many artistic portraits of LGBTQ people in Vietnam tend to focus on either deviance (especially in movies, with images of homosexuals portrayed in ridiculous clothing and makeup, mincing, with shrewish or rude manners) or solely symbolic images. In photography, gay people are not presented as themselves; if they are, they’re usually photographed from behind or with masks on. These all further misunderstanding of queer life rather than encourage more understanding perspectives. In turn, LGBTQ people become even more intimidated and isolated.

The Pink Choice has a different approach: it seeks out personal stories using direct language and uses documentary photography to capture people’s real moments.

Media stories about gay life in Vietnam usually end in tragedy, especially in movies. On one hand, this tragic style of storytelling can make audience members more sympathetic and understanding of the difficulties that LGBTQ people experience. But playing up the the drama can also cause misunderstandings, promoting the idea that the lives of queer people are vulnerable and full of regret, and that the choice to “come out” is an effort against the community’s way of life. But what is true, in Vietnam as everywhere, is that many queer people live happily, at peace with their identity.

The Pink Choice is a series of photos about the love of gay couples with a focus on sharing space, affectionate touch and, most importantly, the synchronized rhythm of lovers in their life together.

See the photo essay here

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Did you know?

Denmark was the first country to legally recognize same-sex unions in 1989 but did not technically legalize marriage. Netherlands was the first country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2001. As of 2021, there have been more than 18,000 same-sex marriages in the Netherlands since 2001.

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