“Pride Month” returns! The month of pride of LGBTQIAN+ is held amid joy in the progress of Equal Marriage Act that is reaching its positive finalization. Many provinces in Thailand see the importance of this event, while Khon Kaen University is again organizing the ISAAN PRIDE activities, which have been KKU’s regular for many years. Khon Kaen University is ready to celebrate the rights of equality at the 2024 ISAAN PRIDE on June 20. This year, the event comes in the concept: “Proud to be Pride”.
Dr. Cheera Thongkrajai, Director of the Gender Studies Center, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Khon Kaen University, said that the Pride Month Festival partly emerges from the government’s policy to have Pride Month as a soft power and to move forward towards being the World Pride host, the big event that celebrates sex equality of the world. The policy has been decentralized to the locality, and Thailand may be among the first countries where Pride Month festival is held in the highest number of places.
“Khon Kaen University is an academic institution that sees the importance of mutual respects and equality. With the time period when the University is welcoming new students to the campus on June 8-28, 2024, the target is not only organizing events as usual, but ISAAN PRIDE 2024 will be another freshmen welcoming activity that impresses and provides safe zone for everyone.”
The next step of LGBTQIAN+ when the Equal Marriage Act is effective:
ISAAN PRIDE 2004 is organized by the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. It featured a forum on the topic related to impact from the Equal Marriage Law on the future of Thailand. Speakers include Assoc. Prof. Chatkaneh Praekhao, Ph.D., Vice Dean for Administration and Strategy, Faculty of Nursing, Khon Kaen University; Ajarn Nada Chaijit, from Department of Law, Mae Fa Luang University; and Khon Kaen University student representatives. The forum will offer overview of the future in order to prepare for and build understanding of the rights of sex equality. Life broadcast is available on the Center for Gender Studies Page.
“This forum will offer multiple points of view from speakers who will relate their experiences related to LGBTQIAN+, as they are the elder ones who had faced difficulties from the former society; as well as the experiences of the new generation when the society begins to accept the multiplicity of sex. This will lead to the conclusion whether there is true equality in the society at present. Then the Equal Marriage Law, expected to be effective within this year, will be discussed for better understanding.”
Dr. Cheera also sees the trend in the topic of gender after the Equal Marriage Law is effective, that it can be the great changing point, not only concerning the rights but also the mindset of fathers, mothers, parents, or the elderly in the family. Until now, there have been concerns about the future of the children that led to banning of cross-sexuality. When the law becomes effective, parents will be more relieved that their children will receive the rights as well as others in the society. They will accept, change their attitudes and be friendlier with LGBTQIAN+ children, leading to the mental dimension of the children who will grow in the loving and understanding surrounding until they can demonstrate their potentiality in the society. In the next 10 years, it is expected that LGBTQIAN+ will have more important roles in the circle or organizations not until now possible.
Highlight of ISAAN PRIDE 2024:
Besides the academic activities, this year activities include PRIDE Parade, Rainbow Catwalk, KKU PRIDE ICON 2024 Contest to find the icon of pride, Mo Lam – San Lao Banthoensilpa Band, performance by artists from Tokyo Music. The event is held at the former Degree Conferral Pavilion, Khon Kaen University, on June 20, 2024 from 13:30 p.m. on.
After ISAAN PRIDE 2024, the Center for Gender Studies is preparing to move forward towards organizing an academic conference on LGBTQ+ at Khon Kaen University, which is collaborated by the network and a forum on academic service. A gender study course and the sociology course on gender styles have been designed with different techniques such as workshops or talks by experts in different dimensions so that the new generation will see the theoretical and profound pictures of LGBTQIAN+ through social and cultural phenomena. This also answers the 5th sustainable development goal of Khon Kaen University. i.e., Gender Equality.
News: Phanit Khatnak