Artigenda
Pansexuality Pride Day
Wanneer: jaarlijks, 8 december.
Pansexuality Pride Day takes place annually on 8 December. On this day, pansexual persons are spotlighted worldwide. The day is for raising awareness and dispelling prejudices about pansexuality.
Not the same as bisexuality
Let’s start with the most persistent myth there is: pansexuality is not the same as bisexuality. It has everything to do with who the person in question feels an attraction to. No, that does not always have something to do with sex. After all, romance is also important! In the case of bisexuality, it is about an attraction to more than one gender. Pansexuality does not make that distinction. There, it is about attraction to people regardless of gender. No, this does not imply a licentious life. Nor does it apply to bisexual people, for that matter. There does not have to be alternating contacts at all. Nor any kind of supposed “exciting stuff. Now just let go of that thought. Put that out of your mind.
Prejudice
Realise, when you think things like that you are doing the very thing it is not about: following prejudice. How common is it to think that bisexual people or pansexual people must lead a very exciting life then? Or maybe even lead a confusing life. This can even lead to curious questions. Whether one cannot make choices. It has nothing to do with that at all.
Pansexuality varies from person to person. There is no standard procedure or pattern. Some people deal with it in a different way than others. Even the way you define pansexuality can differ. So the way it is described here may differ from the way the person in question sees or considers it themselves. Indeed, in some cases, it is only about a relationship, in others only about the physical. In other cases, it is about both things. Whatever it is, as an outsider you don’t have anything to say about it. This is something the person in question should decide for themselves. Nevertheless, many people have an opinion about it. They do not hide them.
Misunderstanding, hatred and discrimination
Pansexual people, like many other members of the LGBT+ community, face misunderstanding, hatred and discrimination. For some, this is even a daily struggle. Today, on this Day of Pansexuality (, or if you prefer the English-language name,) is a good time for outsiders to voice their support. To show that individuals are not ‘queer’ or ‘confused’. To indicate that all hate must be stopped. Only, of course, this need not be limited to just today. Tomorrow or the days after are good times too.
If you have an idea yourself that you might be pansexual, this may lead to questions. You may be stuck with it and not know exactly what to do. There are times when you might feel like you don’t know exactly what it is: is it bisexuality or pansexuality? The only question is whether you want to put a label on it or not. It doesn’t have to be. You can, you may.
Um, wait a moment...
This is not the only day when it comes to pansexuality. There is another day that is important. That is Pan Visibility Day. Only that day is not just about pansexuality. This day is also about the romantic experience, namely the panromantic orientation. In English, you then speak of panromantic attraction. So we know this day as the Pan Visibility Day and it takes place on 24 May. In some cases, it is also referred to as Pan Awareness Day.
