Just another checklist

They remember the checklist because it haunts them

Those showers of love and recognition

Feel so vein

Because we know the streets will go cold again

The hashtags, the slogans, and splash of colors

Belonging to flags and communities who are like no other

Are flaunted on our screens and pushed in algorithms

Then, suddenly

Disappear

I am sure that those with the heart I share

Would think the same when I say,

"We are more than parades

Far and few are we

To the privilegde, the flair, and flamboyance

As how influencers and celebrities

Are privileged to such ambience

We are more than 'the gay kids', a song, or a pronoun

We are people who should feel loved and recognized

And not hyped or sexualized

In your trailers or reels

Do you understand how we feel?

What you do should be unconditional

So,

Save your checklists

And remember to check on us

More often than those 'plug-in' months."

Sometimes,

It feels like they only want all to see

How they remember we