Pride

Last Saturday Amsterdam saw its thirteenth Gay Pride Parade through the canals. There were the extravagantly dressed people, but even more so, there were boats whose passengers wanted to convey a message. Most notable were the gays with roots in the Netherlands Antilles and the gay Christians. This being the first time Christians occupied their own boat in the parade, it was very remarkable that a day before the event, the Dutch Minister of Defence Eimert van Middelkoop made some notable statements about the participation of four colleagues.

The Minister of Defence represents the Christian Democrat Party (CDA), while the four participating colleagues represent the Dutch Labour Party (PVDA). With the third coalition partner being the small Christian Union, Van Middelkoop stated he found the participation of the PVDA politicians “even a little provocative” with regards to the coalition partners. When the CDA signed the coalition accord, they supported the initiatives to increase the social acceptance of homosexuality. Also the PVDA responded that with their participation they represented the entire coalition accordingly.

Now it seems that for Van Middelkoop there is a difference between theory and practice and he is having more difficulties with the issue than he might have expected. The question is why. Why does he feel provoked by something his party agreed to? Because it is something he does not personally approve of? Does he feel himself a less good Christian when he would not have protested against the PVDA delegation?

People are wondering why The Netherlands’ once famous tolerance is decreasing. Well, Van Middelkoop’s attitude is a perfect example. He is not stating he is outright against the Gay Pride, but is questioning political participation. This concealed criticism only has mistrust and awkwardness as consequences. What happened to letting other people be who they are? Can someone explain why this critique is necessary? Whose pride are we talking about here anyway?