Are you proud to be aromantic?

[Ikarus]

I have had this thought for a long time, why do people say they are PROUD to be aromantic/asexual/gay, etc. 

Obviously there is history behind pride month. The first pride which was a Stonewall protest in response to a police raid, the fact gay was labeled as a mental disorder, criminalized, discriminated against etc. Society at that time and in the modern day has bigots, and homophobes, and people trying to fix homosexuals. The response to this awful discrimination is, I am not ashamed to be who I am, I am proud to be gay / gays bi etc deserve equal rights etc. Also I don’t want to compare my experience to being gay etc. I am just talking about why people used the word pride as a response against societal discrimination, and we continue to use the term pride today. 

For me personally I don’t relate to pride and feeling proud of myself on a semantics level. I am not ashamed to be aromantic, on the contrary I am accepting of myself and love being aro. I just don’t feel proud to be who I am.  

Pride: 

1. A sense of one's own proper dignity or value; self-respect.

2. Pleasure or satisfaction taken in an achievement, possession, or association.

3. Arrogant or disdainful conduct or treatment; haughtiness.

definitions from Wordnik

I relate to the word pride in the sense that it’s the antonym of being ashamed but I stop there. What did I do to become aromantic? I was born aromantic, I never studied to get my aro diploma, nor did I unlock the aro achievement through deep meditation practice. Being aromantic alone doesn’t make me a respectable and virtuous person. I did nothing to become aro and being aro gives me no quality which is necessarily more virtuous than anyone else in society. Being aro isn’t a developable character trait, a faculty of the mind such as reason that can be developed through learning, a practice that can be challenging like meditation, it’s not a quality I can use to contribute to society on a significant level to better humanity. 

Being aro is just the way I was born, I am not ashamed of it and love being aro but I certainly don’t deserve any sense of achievement for simply existing as this orientation. Thats just what I think about the word pride I would love to see your thoughts. Do you feel a sense of pride being aromantic, and if so why? Do you feel unashamed and accepting of yourself and use those feeling to define your pride? Let me know what you think I am very curious to hear your thoughts. 

[AroAcedragon13]

I am accepting of the fact that I am aro.But people could have their own definition of being proud.To me being proud is being yourself and knowing that your feelings and experiences are just as valid as everyone elses and not letting anyone or anything change that.So yes in my own way I am proud to be aro.

[Sili]

27 minutes ago, Ikarus said:

Pride: 

1. A sense of one's own proper dignity or value; self-respect.

Am I proud of being Aro? No, being Aro is just a part of who I am. Its a very important part of who I am, which has shaped my life in ways I wouldnt have imagined, especially considering I didnt realise I was Aro until very recently. A lot of my relationships with others are influenced by my being Aro, and a lot of my actions have been influenced by my being Aro, again, without even realising I was Aro.

However, I do take pride in who I am. I think I am a reasonably good person. I have qualities that would generally be considered good, and and a lot of my actions have been influenced by these traits. They have influenced my life in ways I wouldnt have imagined, and a lot of my relationships with others are influenced by these traits. I have not worked to gain these traits, they are just a part of who I am.

I'm not proud to be Aro, but I am proud to be me. If I wasnt Aro, I wouldnt be me.

[AroAcedragon13]

7 minutes ago, Sili said:

I'm not proud to be Aro, but I am proud to be me. If I wasnt Aro, I wouldnt be me.

I 100% agree with this and could not have said it better

[Jot-Aro Kujo]

Damn right I’m proud to be aro. Defying social norms is metal as fuck

[nonmerci]

I don't relate to the concept of pride in this context because I take pride in the things I achieve, not in the things I simply am.

But I like being aro for sure and I wouldn't change it even if I could.

[Deltalorian]

Well, this is quite the loaded discussion. Do I take pride in things that I just am ie being aromantic, asexual, autistic etc? No. Do I try to celebrate those parts of myself? Absolutely, though I'm not good at it yet. Basically, I don't take pride in things that I just am because there's no achievement to be proud of, but that doesn't mean it's not something you can celebrate.

[roboticanary]

not so much about being aromantic itself but i am proud of how i think about love.

like someone who is proud of making a making a fine piece of art or building a beautiful piece of furnature I am proud of the work i have done moving from how i thought about love as a stupid teenager to now. That took a lot of work, I've learned a lot and I think I am better for it.