It’s Pride Month, the annual celebration of our culture, our struggles, our triumphs. For those of us who are authors, it’s a time to celebrate our freedom to write our LGBTQ stories without censorship, without fear of having our books and articles confiscated, even the fear of our arrest and imprisonment for writing our truths.

by Sondra N. Arkin . . . and the team: Murray Archibald, Natalie Moss, Chris Beagle, Cathin Bishop, Pat Catanzariti, Rob Dick, Bob Dobbs, Ward Ellinger, Michael Fetchko, Allen Jarmon, Adam Linder, Mickie McManamon, Jim Mease, Joe Mirabella, Jack Morrison, Monica Parr, Keith Petrack, Mark Pipkin, Glen Pruitt, Mark Purpura, Mary Beth Ramsey, Sal Seeley, Laura Simon, Sandra Skidmore, and Karl Zoric

On display in a Rehoboth Beach front yard, this sign reads, “We Believe: Black Lives Matter; No Human is Illegal; Love is Love; Women’s Rights are Human Rights; Science is Real; Water is Life; Injustice Anywhere is a Threat to Justice Everywhere.” Quite a bit of territory is covered with one sign.

This should be a straightforward column about the typical joys—and risks—of summer: cook-outs with a chance of food poisoning; beach basking with a chance of sunburn; water sports with a chance of rip tides; sparklers and fireworks…. 

But nothing is straightforward about summer 2020. Despite the arrival of those lazy, hazy days we know and love, we can’t escape the ever-present risk of COVID-19.