Happy Pride Month from Reviewsnap!
We are celebrating Pride Month here at Reviewsnap by sharing what Pride means to some of our employees. Kicking off with our CEO Julie Rieken, read below to see how Pride positively impacts our company and employees.
Happy Pride from everyone at Reviewsnap!
What does Pride mean to you?
To me, Pride is a time for each of us, as individuals and as employers, to stand in unity with our friends, families and employees and support each other. It’s an opportunity to be deliberately outspoken about human rights. As an employer, Pride reminds me that the work around human rights isn’t done. There’s always more learning and leading to be done.
How does ATSI support you in bringing your full self to work?
We find and hire the very best people, and we’re lucky to have each and every one of our employees. It’s important for us to welcome diversity, and if we say we value it, our workforce should (actually) be a collection of all types of people. I hope that as we grow as a company, we show our values by choosing to make diversity a specific strength, not an accidental one.
What do you want others to know about Pride?
At a recent gathering of CEO’s that I attended, one of the leaders spoke up and said he needed help to better understand gender identity in the workplace. His courage reminded me that no matter where we think we are or our organizations are, learning is never complete.
-Julie
What do you want others to know about pride? / What does Pride mean to you?
Sometimes, folks can reduce Pride to simply a weekend of festivities, parades, and bar hops. As an introvert, I found it difficult in these spaces, and for a long time thought I could not participate. But Pride is so much more than that. Pride is taking your trans kid out for ice cream; it’s sitting with the lonely student struggling with their identity; it’s deciding to raise a family, to hold hands with your partner, to sit in church praying for inclusion. Pride is a quiet act of defiance, rooted in love & hope of a better world.
-Gianluca
How does ATSI support you in bringing your full self to work?
It’s rare to work in such an inclusive environment as ATSI that doesn’t just accept or tolerate the varied human experiences within our team, but goes to far as to celebrate each person in their truth. I’ve been so impressed by the folks on the team who have volunteered to clean up after pride. This simple act of empowerment and kindness is the type of community I want to be a part of. I want to be an advocate and a champion for my peers. ATSI creates a space for that, because ATSI isn’t a thing, it’s a group of people that continuously choose one another.
-Andy
What does Pride mean to you?
To me, Pride is a time to stand together – with family, friends, colleagues and even people we don’t personally know – to remind ourselves that we ought to take Pride in who we are and what we bring to this world. Nobody should have to be someone else because being themselves is a fight everyday for equal rights, fairness and the right to lead their life by choice. Pride is a reminder that the fight around human rights for each of us is an ongoing journey and requires a collective stand.
What do you want others to know about Pride?
Pride is not just a time to be more than you are. It is a time for you to show the world that you can be yourself and be fabulous at the same time. It is important to learn acceptance and respect and celebrate all kinds of love. The LGBTQ community has made tremendous progress but its rich history is a reminder that the struggle was real and though it still is, it is easier to some extent now compared to earlier. It is imperative to remember the effort put into getting this acceptance, which should come just as easily to everyone, and celebrate love in all its forms.
What are you most proud of?
I am so proud of my friends from the LGBTQ community for all that they have done for themselves and each other so far. They are a reminder that the fight is far from over even as they celebrate every small win. They have taught me that grit, courage and determination are critical to leading the lives that so many of us take for granted.
-Nivedita
What does Pride mean to you?
I’m always getting choked up every June when the city lights up with rainbow flags. I’ve tried to put my finger on the feeling behind this response, and I think it’s simply: pride. Pride itself doesn’t make me cry, but the emotion comes from the fact that pride has taken the spot where Shame so often sat. Heteronormative (and cisnormative) culture can often lead LGBTQ+ folks to feel shame for important pieces of our identity. But Pride Month, to me, is about drowning out the noise of Shame. Each rainbow flag in each shop window says to me, “I see you; You are Welcome; You are Good.” Shame can take a hike.
What do you want others to know about Pride?
As I celebrate this month, I want to remember that LGBTQ+ People of Color are fighting daily for rights and equity beyond their gender & sexual identities. Viewing oppression through a lens of intersectionality is vital.
-Elise
What does Pride mean to you?
Pride is my personal reminder of the family that I have built. Like many, my biological family finds it difficult to support who I am and what makes me happy. Pride is an upfront reminder that although my given family has trouble; my new, chosen family loves me unconditionally. This is the true nature of a loving community and of a family. While waving a rainbow flag, marching in a parade, or enjoying a summer party on the patio my Pride festivities are always surrounded by people I am proud to call family.
How does ATSI Support you in bringing your full self to work?
ATSI continues to be a place where I can simply be myself. Whether I am discussing work topics, weekend plans, reacting to a joke, or learning about my coworkers and their interests I have always felt comfortable. I have never felt the need to change my actions, behaviors, or ideas to fit an idea others deem to be appropriate to my identity. I have never felt judgement or criticism for falling outside typical norms or behaviors. I am exactly who I want to be with my coworkers and friends.
What do you want others to know about Pride?
Pride has a rich history. Today it is a symbol of love and acceptance but the LGBTQ story has not always been filled with rainbows. I am humbled by the struggle that past generations have endured to make my life easier. Ignoring those past struggles would be a mistake and a disservice to my LGBTQ friends. I want others to remember these struggles, appreciate the growth and strength our community has developed, and then celebrate love in all its forms.
-Robin
How does ATSI Support you in bringing your full self to work?
At many places I’ve worked, our community has had to hide. We find each other in secret and can’t tell an ally from someone who isn’t. At ATSI, I can come to work and find my community. They’re my co-workers, they’re my superiors; They are celebrated and supported and encouraged to be only themselves. They display their significant others proudly. And are able to support other LGBT persons in the office without shame or fear.
What do you want others to know about Pride?
That a black trans* woman, Marsha P. Johnson, is responsible for our revolution. That our freedom stands on the bones of those who have died from hate and neglect and fear. And that while Pride is a time to celebrate and share our stories and lives with each other, it’s also a time to reflect; A time to remember those who paid the price so we can be full of Pride.
What’s your favorite memory about Pride?
It was a stark memory, leaving the Pride celebrations my first year. Seeing everyone on the bus removing their rainbow stickers and smooshing their flamboyant hair down flat. Ready to hide once again. I see it every year; The day of jubilation and carefree wonder, stifled by the fear and anxiety of being found. There’s something heart-rendingly beautiful that, for three heat filled days in June, anyone can be who they truly are – even if it’s only for a glimmer of a moment.
-Ashley
What does Pride mean to you?
Pride is a time for me to look inward and ask myself what I’ve done to help others feel loved and accepted. How can I be a better supporter and friend? What can I do to promote and fight for inclusion? Pride to me is helping otherwise feel heard and seen. It’s listening and encouraging and empowering those who have felt (or maybe still feel) like their voice and feelings and opinions don’t matter. Pride is encouraging people to be proud of who they are and what they bring to our world.
-Annette
What does Pride mean to you?
Pride, to me, is a time for me to reflect on my community, celebrate our successes, and understand where we need to come together to build a future that ensures that we are all safe and accounted for. Our community intersects with so many different identities, but Pride is the one time of year that we can all come together and celebrate our differences in the likeness that we share. There are so many times throughout the year, and throughout our day-to-day life, that LGBTQIA+ people feel as though we don’t belong, or silently doubt that we do belong, but Pride gives us that moment to believe in ourselves. We get to push the doubt aside and celebrate who we are and find happiness and joy in what sets us apart. The sense of community that exists during Pride is transformative whether we are celebrating things like marriage equality, mourning the loss of our peers at Pulse, or simply walking down the street with our heads held high and with smiles on our faces. Pride gives us that moment as a community to be present in life exactly how we are supposed to be and know that we are not alone.
-Tyler DeHart-Krahn
What does Pride mean to you?
It means being comfortable in your own skin. Even if it makes other people uncomfortable sometimes. Regardless of what others tell you to be. Regardless of whether you are part of the QUILTBAGS community. Regardless of whether you are part of any community. Pride is the opposite of shame.
How does ATSI support you in bringing your full self to work?
ATSI’s radically progressive policies and culture puts people first, and it shows. We dispense with the superficial ping-pong tables, beer kegs, massage chairs. We build real community with office dogs, fresh pots, and open PTO.
What do you want others to know about Pride?
If you feel shame or discomfort due to the way other people choose to live or conduct themselves, you are part of the problem. If you love, help, support, celebrate other people in whichever way they choose to live or conduct themselves, you are part of the solution.
What does Pride mean to you?
Pride has a new meaning for me this year because I will be celebrating my 1 year anniversary with my husband. We initially chose another week, but, fate intervened and we ended up getting married during Seattle’s pride weekend. Pride has always been a time to celebrate inclusiveness and understanding, but this year pride has come to mean commitment and future possibilities for me and my new family.
-Charlie
What does Pride mean to you?
To me, Pride is about people getting to be their real self – the person that makes them the most happy, the most productive, and the most joyful – whatever that is for them. When I see companies, organizations and individuals celebrating pride, displaying their support, and being open about who they are, it makes me want to cheer – to say YES! GO! BE YOU! Everyone deserves the to know that it’s okay to be who they are, and to be celebrated for it.
-Chelsea