My name is Liv Niles and I am an incoming senior at Marblehead High School.
I want to begin by thanking each and every one of you for being here today. Your presence is powerful. Standing together in this space, we are not just raising a flag — we are raising a message. A message that says: We belong. We are seen. We are loved.
Today, we raise the Pride flag — not just as a symbol of celebration, but as a testament to resilience, to identity, to love in all its forms. And as that flag rises into the sky, full of color and life, we’re reminded of what it truly represents: a tapestry of courage, diversity, and hope.
Pride is a beautiful thing. Not because it has always been joyful — but because it has always been true.
Pride is beautiful because it rises from struggle. Because it was born from the fires of resistance. It is beautiful not because it has been easy, but because it has been necessary. Because time and time again, people have chosen to live authentically, even when the world told them not to. That is beauty. That is courage. That is Pride.
Pride remembers the lives lost during the AIDS crisis. Pride remembers the marches when no cameras showed up, when crowds were small but the voices were mighty. Pride remembers the closets that once felt like cages and the long road it took to unlock the door.
Pride is beautiful because it turns that pain into purpose. Because where there was silence, we created song. Where there was shame, we grew strength. Where there was fear, we chose love. Again and again.
Every color on that flag carries the heartbeat of a community that has never stopped showing up—for each other, for justice, for the right to simply exist.
And existence — joyful, unapologetic existence—is revolutionary.
To the LGBTQ+ community: Your existence is not a question that needs answering. It is a truth that needs celebrating. You are not here to be tolerated — you are here to be celebrated, protected, and uplifted.
To our trans, nonbinary, and gender-expansive siblings: You are sacred. You are whole. The world is richer and more expansive because of you. Your stories, your truths, your lives matter — today and every day.
To our youth: We see you. Whether you are out or still on your journey, know this: there is nothing wrong with you. You are not alone. You are not too much, and you are not too little. You are enough. You deserve a world where you can be exactly who you are without fear — and we will not stop fighting for that world.
To our queer elders: Thank you. You were the first ones through the fire. You lived in times when just holding hands in public could cost you everything. You carried this movement when it was dangerous, when it was thankless, and you did it with courage and grace. We owe so much to your sacrifices — and we honor you today with gratitude and love.
And to our allies: Pride is not a spectator sport. Thank you for standing beside us, but remember — true allyship means using your voice when it’s uncomfortable, educating yourself without placing that burden on others, and standing up when it counts the most. You don’t get to cheer for the rainbow if you’re silent in the storm. Show up. Speak up. Stay in it.
Let’s be honest: it’s not easy to be queer in this world. Not yet. Even now, in 2025, we face rising hate, targeted legislation, disinformation, and violence. There are places where being openly LGBTQ+ is still criminalized, where affirming healthcare is under attack, where kids are taught to be afraid of who they are before they even understand who they are.
But here’s the truth:
We are not going anywhere.
We will not be legislated out of existence.
We will not be erased.
And we will not stop loving each other or ourselves.
Because Pride is not passive — it is a force.
It is political. It is joyful. It is resistance.
It is protest and party. It is grief and celebration.
It is remembering how far we’ve come—and knowing how far we still have to go.
Pride is beautiful because it is love made visible.
It is a queer couple dancing in a kitchen, years after hiding that love from the world.
It is a teenager walking into their first GSA (Gay Straight Alliance club) meeting and realizing they’re not alone.
It is drag queens telling stories, and trans kids finding their reflection in a book.
It is families, both chosen and born, learning to love better, deeper, and more freely.
It is color in a world that tried to paint us gray.
It is music in the quiet.
It is light in the dark.
So as we raise this flag, let us do so with the full weight of what it means.
Let us raise it for those we have lost.
Let us raise it for those still coming out.
Let us raise it for those who cannot. Let us raise it for those whose names we don’t even know.
Let us raise it for our joy, our pain, our beauty, and our future.
Let it fly high. Let it fly proud.
And let it remind every person who sees it:
There is space for you here. There is love for you here.
Happy Pride.
Keep living. Keep loving. Keep shining.
Liv Niles delivered this message during Marblehead’s Progressive Pride flag raising on Saturday, June 20.
