Hy Local Guides, 
Happy Pride Month to all my fellow Local Guides. In this Pride Month & as part of Pride with Local Guides, I am incredibly proud to shine spotlight on local guides who go beyond & contribute to make Google Maps & Connect inclusive for LGBTQ+ community.
Let’s meet Adrian.
Adrian at The Stonewall Inn, a gay bar & historic landmark.
Meet @AdrianLunsong a level 9 Local Guide & Connect Moderator from Malaysia, now currently splitting his time between Malaysia & UK. Apart from his inclusive contributions, he has a wonderful YouTube channel called Go Local Guides, where he shared his experience of visiting Food Markets, attending Pride March, interviewing inspiring women local guides on women’s day, virtual meetups, updates on Connect community & more.
He has done his inclusive participation & contributions in TRAC 
, International Women’s Day 
, Local Guides Clean The World 
, One Accessibility 
, etc (initiatives by other Local Guides).
Let’s hear what Adrian has to share on this Pride Month.
- What made you celebrate Global Pride Day on Connect?
Answer : It’s important that everyone gets a chance to have their story told regardless of their sexuality, gender identity, faith, cultural background etc. On this Pride Month & coming Global Pride Day, Adrian felt extra to put up spotlights on Connect to support the community & to support LGBTQ+ friendly businesses by participating in various initiatives.
In Manchester, PRIDE is celebrated in August and in weeks leading up to the celebrations, local businesses would put up signs/decorations in support of the LGBTQ+ community usually with positive and affirmative messages which made Adrian happy and blessed.
He also added the “PRIDE flag ” is a beautiful spectrum representing all the various smaller groups that make up the community so there’s just so much more vibrant colours in all the shop fronts! His favorite slogan is “Love is Love” and it’s such a universal message that transcends beyond the LGBTQ+ community; it is a message that humanity should adopt !
- As a Connect Moderator and a local guide, how you contribute to LGBTQ+ Friendliness on Google Maps and promote about awareness and it’s inclusivity on Connect?
Answer : Adrian’s approach had always been for people to discover him as Adrian: someone who loved funny cat/animal videos, chased the next sugar/caffeine rush at a cafe, thrived on structured data in spreadsheets and problem-solved to the max. He also added that he was a nerd first which made curiosity to travel & explore places.
He wanted people to know him as a person with many dimensions, so that when they eventually learned he was gay, they could hopefully look past any preconceived notions about what it meant to be a gay person.
When moments like Pride Month came along, he tried his best not to shy away. Instead, he actively participated in discussions and posts on Connect that celebrated diversity and inclusivity. To mark that special month, he made a pledge: (just as he had adopted accessibility information into his reviews, thanks to all the accessibility champions!) He looked into extra attention to identifying venues that were LGBTQ+ friendly & contributing inclusive attributes & information on Google Maps.
- We can see you love to attend pride march. Is there any particular moment you loved as a local guide when attending?
Adrian attending various Pride parade at different countries on each year.
Answer : He loves parades of all kinds but the PRIDE parade/march is of another level! In Manchester, the marches are more celebratory than one of a protest, so the atmosphere is very festive! It is also an eye-opener because of constant reminders of immense diversity that the community embraces and to see people of all shapes, sizes, colours, costumes, backgrounds etc come together. In Pride Marches, he added that he saw validation too that he can be him, be gay, be nerdy & still be happy to be his authentic self.
For him, being a Local Guide is more than just the sum of his contributions. The Local Guides community is global and diverse & there are parallels to the LGBTQ+ community so when he’s watching the PRIDE parade, just as he’s on Connect, he’s there to celebrate with humanity & be part of the crowd.
- What’s your favourite LGBTQ+ friendly cafe or coffee shop or any business you visit often & is there any reason behind it like Pride ambience or inclusive welcome for all customers?
Answer : Manchester is very friendly toward the LGBTQ+ community so a lot of Adrian’s favourite cafes where he visits are very inclusive. Rather than pointing out specific business, He would like to highlight the amazing Manchester Gay Village which is a neighbourhood in the center of Manchester that has been, for many years, the heart of the LGBTQ+ community. You can read this short BBC article that talks about the brief history of the area. It is definitely a safe space with lots of businesses (bars, pubs, restaurants & hotels) and during Manchester Pride, the whole area becomes like a mini theme park with stages for shows/performances/recitals/candlelight vigils etc, streets full of food/drink vendors, an area for charity stalls and in some years, fairground style games and rides.
He truly believes that above safe space has contributed significantly to making Manchester more inclusive over the years so much so that for the younger generations ae they actually don’t feel the need to go to the Village to socialise since they are welcomed throughout the city itself!
I thank Adrian for giving such wonderful interview & insights into Pride March and your inclusive approach as a local guide and a Connect Moderator. I surely can say you are one of the inspiring local guides for me and more out there.
Want to share any message on this Pride Month to Adrian & to the community? Share in the comments & celebrate Inclusivity on our community.
If you like to be in the next featuring series of Pride with Local Guides, please fill this form. Can’t wait to see you all.
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