SWLAW Blog | Diversity
June 14, 2022
Pride Month Q&A with Professor Orly Ravid '14
At Southwestern, we take pride in our vibrant and diverse community of students, staff, and faculty from all walks of life. We strive to create a safe space for them to be their genuine selves and a community that celebrates who they are.
This Pride Month, we're celebrating with a short Q&A with Professor Orly Ravid '14 to learn more about what pride means to her.
What does Pride mean to you?
Pride to me means a time to recall what it was like to come out and the importance of being out and visible. While there is, of course, plenty of homophobia, hostile cultures, communities, and laws, in so many ways and in so many places, it’s easier to be out and live a good life than it used to be, even just a few decades ago. Being visible and out has been instrumental in influencing people to see us as worthy of the same respect and equal rights as anyone. Pride also allows us to see ourselves not as a single monolithic community but as many different people with different perspectives and politics. Yet, all proud (hopefully) and deserving of all the love and liberty life can offer anyone. I came out at a very young age, but it was not easy. I helped form an LGBT (at the time) youth group at my high school. My first Pride parade was exhilarating — it was in Manhattan, from the upper east side to the west village (the parade route back then). It’s a great thing to have Pride parades and to showcase and celebrate being out, and to remember how far we have come and also how much more progress can and should still be made.
How do you celebrate Pride?
I used to march, as I noted above. Now, I confess to being less oriented that way though even being asked this inspires me to reflect about doing parades again. But my friends and wife and I acknowledge the time, and we will also enjoy some queer cinema and other content that helps celebrate and be in the community.
How do you practice inclusivity at Southwestern?
I sincerely believe inclusivity as including every aspect of diversity, so to me, that means connecting to and being respectful of a full range of people and perspectives, without any limitations, and including politically (in addition to race, ethnicity, ability, nationality, religion, gender identification, sexual orientation, and identification). I think we forget to be politically and ideologically inclusive, and that is very important to me.
Share a fun fact about yourself:
I have two different colored eyes, which is known as heterochromia iridium. That’s the only hetero thing about me.
See more of our Pride Month Q&A series here: