International Nurses’ Day is marked every day on May 12th. This day celebrates the vital role of nurses in health care and recognises the difference nursing makes. The day co-incides with the birthday of Florence Nighingale, the pioneer of modern nursing. This year’s theme is the economic power of care which creates healthy people and societies and drives healthy economies – this is with the aim of reshaping perceptions and demonstrating how strategic investment in nursing can bring considerable economic and societal benefits. Everyone across Sonderwell, and the people we support and their families and carers, shares a huge thank you to the nurses who work across the organisation. The impact their work has on helping significantly contributes to improving people’s lives and we thank them for their hard work and dedication.
June is Pride Month since it was during this month that the Stonewall riots occurred. The Stonewall riots were significant protests in the United States in 1969 that changed gay rights for many individuals in the United States and throughout the world.
Pride is a celebration of individuals coming together in love and camaraderie to highlight how far LGBTQ+ rights have progressed and how much work remains in some areas.
Acceptance, equality, honouring the achievements of LGBTQ+ persons, learning about LGBTQ+ history, and raising awareness of issues impacting the LGBTQ+ community are all part of Pride Month.
If you would like to learn more about the origin of Pride month, articles and videos can be found on the BBC on this link. https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/48796870
The Pride flag was created by American artist and gay rights activist Gilbert Baker, and was first displayed in 1978 to be a symbol for the LGBT community.
Over the years the original rainbow flag has been redesigned, with some within LGBTQ+ movements arguing it needed to better represent and reflect more communities.
In 2017, Philadelphia’s Office of LGBT Affairs added black and brown stripes to the Pride flag to recognise people of colour.
One year later, an artist called Daniel Quasar released a redesign of the Pride flag, called the Progress Pride flag, which was widely shared on social media.
It included black, brown, pink, pale blue and white stripes, to represent marginalised people of colour in the LGBTQ+ community, as well as the trans community, and those living with HIV/AIDS.
Pride resources
Love is Love – These moving, personal Ted talks share stories of love and commitment in the LGBTQ community.
Wellbeing – Advice and resources from the LGBT Foundation, telephone: 0345 3 30 30 30