June is Pride month where the LGBT community will celebrate their pride all over the U.S. June was chosen to commemorate the Stonewall riots which occurred in June 1969.
The Stonewall riots were a series of protests and demonstrations by members of the LGBT community that occurred after the NYPD targeted and raided LGBT bars in NYC.
Lexie Nobrega, 21, traveled to Washington D.G. from Norfolk, Virginia to celebrate in the city’s Pride events. She also saw it as an opportunity to spend time with her grandparents.
When Nobrega woke up on the morning of the Capital Pride Festival, she saw her grandmother doing the cutest most grandmothery thing ever.
Her grandmother, Hermina, spotted Nobrega’s bisexual Pride flag.
She saw it was wrinkled and immediately went into grandma-mode. She grabbed her iron and started to press out all the creases. The moment was truly touching to Nobrega.
I got up this morning to get ready for #DCPride. My grandma walked into my room, looked at my bi flag, and said, “Oh, this needs to be pressed out!” Such a simple gesture, but it holds so much love and meaning for me. pic.twitter.com/stiD3vg5vs
— Lexie 💖💜💙 (@lexie_galaxie) June 9, 2018
She snapped a photo of her grandmother in the act and posted it on social media for family and friends.
It wasn’t long before the photo went viral.
“I got up this morning to get ready for #DCPride. My grandma walked into my room, looked at my bi flag, and said, ‘Oh, this needs to be pressed out!’ Such a simple gesture, but it holds so much love and meaning for me,” she Tweeted.
Nobrega’s photo was shared more than 34,000 times.
Hermina also ironed the rest of the costume so that her granddaughter could look her best.
“As I was getting ready to go to Pride, my grandma came into my room and took it upon herself to iron out my flag. The gesture meant so much to me because I spent so many years worrying about how my grandparents would react to me being bisexual,” Nobrega said, according to the Shropshire Star.
“They immigrated to the US from Guyana in the late 1960s, and the Caribbean nations are known for being very homophobic. However, when I finally came out to my grandparents during my senior year of high school, they gave me a big hug and said, ‘That’s okay, we love you.’”
And because of Hermina, Nobrega had a great time at Pride.
“I will forever cherish her kindness, love, and acceptance for all people, and I am so happy that my story could resonate with so many people,” she said. “I had an amazing time with all of my wonderful friends. Being surrounded by hundreds of other proud LGBTQIA+ people and celebrating everything that makes us who we are is a powerful feeling.”
Many people were touched by Hermina’s gesture too and shared their own experiences with coming out to their families.
“So beautiful!! a lot of times ppl don’t realize the most validating things are the little gestures. not long after i came out to my grandpa, we met up for a family dinner and he pulled me aside to give me a mens polo shirt hed bought for me while he was on a trip,” said one person on Twitter. “It was way too big for me and very much not in style, but it meant he accepted me as a trans man and thats a memory that ill cherish forever.”
“I came out in a comment post as bi, I didn’t know it would show up on my Facebook, but my Nana texted immediately saying she loved me for who I was no matter my orientation. She’s the only family of mine to accept it and not dismiss it. Gma’s are wonderful,” said another.
Bottom line is that it’s the small gestures that make us feel loved and supportive.
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