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Sometimes it very much feels like asexuality is invisible. It is often also misunderstood, not taken seriously and even sometimes directly discriminated against. That A in the alphabet soup often feels like a last add on, if it is included at all. I've heard people say: “Why do you need to have ace pride? As an asexual person you don't want anything so there's no reason for you to protest or show pride.”

For the longest time I thought I was broken, that something was wrong with me, because I had no interest in sex and didn’t feel any sexual or romantic attraction to other people. We live in a world that is obsessed with sex and sexuality. It is expected and regarded as normal to want and have sex and to seek out a romantic partner. Not only are these things considered normal, it is often regarded as the highest achievement of happiness and completeness and good for your emotional and physical health. Sherronda J. Brown describes this as compulsory sexuality: “…the idea that sex is universally desired as a feature of human nature, that we are essentially obligated to participate in sex at some point in life, and that there is something fundamentally wrong with anyone who does not want to - whether it be perceived as a defect of morality, psychology, or physiology.”

Ace pride is important to me because I want to help make asexuality more visible. Had I known about it earlier I could have spared myself a lot of pain and bad experiences. Also knowing about compulsory sexuality and how rigorous our society upholds these rules around sex, is not only beneficial for asexual people but also for everyone else.

I might not want to have sex or a romantic partnership. But there sure are a heck of a lot of things I do want, starting with people being able to live their lives in peace, without being judged or discriminated against.

I am proud to be part of that A in the alphabet soup. I love how diverse we all are.

Happy Pride Everyone!

Sherronda J. Brown has a much better way with words than I could ever have. Check out the book: Refusing Compulsory Sexuality, A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture

If you want to know more about asexuality: www.asexuality.org/

My webiste: klaramaier.com

My instagram: instagram.com/aral_k_lara

Description

Sometimes it very much feels like asexuality is invisible. It is often also misunderstood, not taken seriously and even sometimes directly discriminated against. That A in the alphabet soup often feels like a last add on, if it is included at all. I've heard people say: “Why do you need to have ace pride? As an asexual person you don't want anything so there's no reason for you to protest or show pride.”

For the longest time I thought I was broken, that something was wrong with me, because I had no interest in sex and didn’t feel any sexual or romantic attraction to other people. We live in a world that is obsessed with sex and sexuality. It is expected and regarded as normal to want and have sex and to seek out a romantic partner. Not only are these things considered normal, it is often regarded as the highest achievement of happiness and completeness and good for your emotional and physical health. Sherronda J. Brown describes this as compulsory sexuality: “…the idea that sex is universally desired as a feature of human nature, that we are essentially obligated to participate in sex at some point in life, and that there is something fundamentally wrong with anyone who does not want to - whether it be perceived as a defect of morality, psychology, or physiology.”

Ace pride is important to me because I want to help make asexuality more visible. Had I known about it earlier I could have spared myself a lot of pain and bad experiences. Also knowing about compulsory sexuality and how rigorous our society upholds these rules around sex, is not only beneficial for asexual people but also for everyone else.

I might not want to have sex or a romantic partnership. But there sure are a heck of a lot of things I do want, starting with people being able to live their lives in peace, without being judged or discriminated against.

I am proud to be part of that A in the alphabet soup. I love how diverse we all are.

Happy Pride Everyone!

Sherronda J. Brown has a much better way with words than I could ever have. Check out the book: Refusing Compulsory Sexuality, A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture

If you want to know more about asexuality: www.asexuality.org/

My webiste: klaramaier.com

My instagram: instagram.com/aral_k_lara