In honor of Pride Month, we’re applauding the strength, talent, and unity of John Jay’s LGBTQ+ community by featuring some of their proudest members.
About Avii…
Pronouns: They/them
LGBTQ+ Identity: Nonbinary, pansexual
Hometown: Queens, New York
Major: CUNY B.A. Power, Sex, & the Gender Caste and Structural Violence & Critical Othering
Personal Achievement: As a McNair Scholar, I’m excited to research queer identity negotiation on TikTok with the guidance of my mentor, Professor Amy Adamczyk, Ph.D. I plan to explore all the ways heteronormative hegemony is reinforced through in-group identity policing.
Future Plans: I hope to work at a nonprofit organization advocating for the decriminalization of sex work.
What does Pride month mean to you?
I’ve had a complicated relationship with Pride. I used to go every year as an “ally” and stand on the sidelines. I think a part of me was afraid of rejection by the larger queer community. Now, I know that was just a projection of the rigid environment I was raised in. The queer community is made up of the most wonderful, open, and loving people. Pride is now a place to celebrate with the people I love. It’s a time to be loudly and openly myself as a nonbinary, pansexual person. I go to Pride events and make new queer friends. I’m healing the parts of me that struggled to be who I am. Pride is a celebration of me embracing my whole self.
“We need to fight for actionable items that give people actual protections.” —Avii Van Praagh ’24
What are some of the biggest challenges that the LGBTQ+ community faces today?
As strange as it sounds, I believe that the greatest threat to our community is the pseudo-acceptance that we receive. I’m very grateful to be living in New York City—especially knowing that there are folks living in areas that are rife with hatred and intolerance—but there’s this relatively new movement that capitalizes on queerness without offering any significant and legitimate protections. We have to watch out for selective acceptance. We are not free until we are all free. It’s important for us to keep pushing and not settle for stuff that reduces the queer struggle to a rainbow bandana. We need to fight for actionable items that give people actual protections.
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced as a member of the LGBTQ+ community?
Growing up was hard for me because I internalized the homophobia and transphobia around me. I didn’t have the vocabulary to describe how I identified or how I was feeling. I was lucky to find a partner and friends who accept me as I am.
Once, I was going through a particularly difficult time with my gender identity and I was preoccupied with how others perceived me. I felt as though I owed constant androgyny to others in the pursuit of being legitimately genderqueer. Then my partner said to me, “You’re just Avii. All the other pieces will fall into place, don’t sweat it.” That was incredibly helpful for me. Now, I’ve gotten a lot better at being authentically and unapologetically myself.
