I have spent a lot of time thinking about allyship over the years. I believe it matters. Every movement for justice depends, in part, on people deciding that an injustice affecting someone else is also their concern. At its best, allyship interrupts indifference. It reminds us that we are responsible to one another.

At the same time, I have become increasingly aware of how easy it is to remain at a safe distance from the people we claim to support. I see that temptation in myself. It is possible to learn, advocate, speak up, and even take meaningful action while still keeping someone else’s struggle at arm’s length. It is possible to care deeply without allowing that care to fundamentally rearrange your own life.

That is where Pride continues to challenge me. As a bisexual man, I know something about exclusion and marginalization. I also know there are many experiences within the 2SLGBTQIA+ community that are not mine. The question is not whether I can understand them perfectly. The question is what responsibility I carry toward people whose lives intersect with mine but whose burdens may be very different.

The longer I sit with that question, the less satisfied I become with allyship as a destination. Allyship matters, but I find myself drawn toward something deeper. Relationships that create mutual accountability. Communities where another person’s dignity, safety, and belonging matter to me because our lives have become connected. I am still learning what that looks like. Pride keeps reminding me that the work is not finished.