Pride Month takes place every June and celebrates the lives and achievements of members of the LGBTQIA+ community. It is marked by parades, rallies and marches. It also commemorates the Stonewall Uprising that took place on June 28, 1969 in New York City. The riots occurred as a response to police raids in gay establishments, including a bar called the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village in lower Manhattan. The members of the LGBTQIA+ community decided to fight back and ultimately launched protests that would later be transformed into the celebration we know today as Pride Month.
Last year, events were mainly virtual, with parades and marches cancelled owing to the pandemic. This year, the iHeart radio channel is hosting their second annual “Can’t Cancel Pride” virtual benefit which will include appearances and performances by Demi Lovato, Lil Nas X, Ricky Martin, Busy Philipps, Pink and other big names who have been influential voices in this community.
In Washington DC, Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband also put their support of Pride Month on display at the Capital Pride Walk and Rally. She wore a pink t-shirt with the words, ‘Love is Love’, and walked about a block in the parade. “We need to make sure that our transgender community and our youth are all protected. We need, still, protections around employment and housing,” Harris stated in her public remarks.
San Francisco is believed to hold the country’s largest Pride celebration. This year’s event includes a Pride-themed movie night in SF’s Oracle Park.
Winged swarms
Last year, in the throes of the pandemic, something else that stung the news cycle briefly was the intrusion of ‘murder hornets’ in the United States of America, but the phenomenon was mostly overlooked as people were talking about the novel coronavirus. The year 2020 may be over, but the fear and prevalence of an insect still remains — this year, however, it is the cicada.
Cicadas are bugs that stay dormant underground for some 17 straight years — and this summer they are emerging after a hiatus. This cycle is expected to repeat itself: they will emerge for a few weeks, then go back underground and not emerge until 2038. This particular group is named “Brood X”.
Starting last month, millions of cicadas are expected to emerge in 15 states in the US. Cicadas don’t harm people or pets, but generally people dread them because of how they look and smell. Moreover, they exist in groups and make a buzzing noise as they fly around. In other words, they are perceived to be pesky and creepy.
Recently, when President Joe Biden was about to board Air Force One on his way to the G7 Summit in England, he was seen swatting away an insect and told reporters, “Watch out for the cicadas. I just got one. It got me”. The insects had filled up the plane’s engines, causing it to be grounded and delaying the president’s trip by several hours.
Winner winner, chicken dinner
Of all the things to be sold on the online auction marketplace, eBay, a chicken nugget may not be your first guess. But around two weeks ago, a single McDonald’s chicken nugget sold on the site for almost $1,00,000. This particular nugget was special because it resembled a character from a video game called ‘Among Us’ that garnered popularity during the Covid-19 lockdown. It sold for exactly $99,997. It went on eBay first on May 28 for 99 cents. According to eBay listings, after a two-day lull the bid rose, first in the $20,000 range, then in the $30,000 range and gradually rose until it was sold on June 3. There was a total of 184 bids placed.
The nugget was a part of an exclusive, limited-time meal launched by the fast food giant in collaboration with the international K-pop sensation, BTS, which had already gained popularity among fans. After the sale, social media erupted, with many justifiably flummoxed at the purchase. In the middle of the bidding war, the ‘Among Us’ Twitter account tweeted, “There’s a $34,443.43 among us chicken nugget on sale and i don’t know how to feel about it??? but also?? i want it. [sic]”
United at last
Covid-19 put many planned events on pause all over the world, including weddings. Now, with half the adult population of the US vaccinated, there is a wedding boom. Vendors and venues are in high demand and struggling to meet needs. Around 47 per cent of people postponed their wedding receptions owing to Covid. Until a few months ago, large gatherings were forbidden. So couples conducted small wedding ceremonies with few guests. Now, those couples are having second events with a larger guest list.
Justin Warshaw, the CEO of a bridal design and manufacturing house, told New York Post that wedding dress bookings have increased by 593 per cent compared to last year. Walmart sales indicate that shoppers are snapping up bridal decor, jewellery and flowers. Glamorous Event Planners, an Indian wedding planning organization based in New York, has also been experiencing the uptick in weddings this season: “[This is] mostly people feeling safe and truly looking forward to celebrating life once again.”
Footnote
The original plaster model of the Statue of Liberty will soon be arriving in NYC from France. The nine-feet-tall bronze statue will be located on Ellis Island across from the actual Statue of Liberty. This trip across the Atlantic Ocean is meant to celebrate the relationship between the US and France. The replica is famously referred to as the ‘Little Sister’. France gifted the Statue of Liberty, designed by Gustave Eiffel, who is also responsible for the Eiffel Tower, to the US in 1884.
