Charlie Belle shows off her true colours with pride in this art unboxing.
In honour of Pride Month, Charlie used this month’s Scrawlrbox unboxing video as an opportunity to discuss her sexuality and her LGBTQ+ pride. As she explains in the video, June was chosen as LGBTQ+ Pride Month to honour the Stonewall Riots of June 1969 in the East Village in Manhattan. These riots are a cornerstone of LGBTQ+ history and kickstarted the gay rights movement in the USA and around the world.
keep on beeeeelievin'! As a bi woman myself I'm sorry you've had to go through this! 😩💕
— Charlie-Belle (@magicianbelle) February 23, 2017
Charlie explains for the first time on her channel that she is bisexual. This isn’t exactly a ‘coming out’ video as she has mentioned her sexuality online before, just not in a video. However, she does talk a little about her coming out experience and how lucky she was to grow up in an accepting household.
She says, “I’d heard horror stories… that coming out or talking about something that you might be or you’d like to explore can turn quite awful quite quickly” – and she’s right. Coming out isn’t always the safest option for some people as many people can still react extremely negatively in 2018.
Charlie emphasises that her channel is a nice, friendly and accepting community for everyone so if you need somewhere to go then maybe head on over! We find watching Charlie draw can be wonderfully calming.
Charlie raises the issue of information, saying, “I hope that nowadays there’s more education out there for young people because I had to find everything I knew via the internet.” LGBTQ+ education is getting better across the UK but it still has a way to go. Luckily there’s even more information available online, especially on YouTube if you ever want to learn more!
She also talks about misconceptions around bisexuality, and how people say that she “must be straight now” due to her long term relationship with Tom Ridgewell. But that’s just not how it works! If you identify as bisexual, that stays the same no matter what kind of relationship you’re in!
Now it wouldn’t be a Charlie Belle video without some stunning artwork! In this video she reviews the products in this month’s Scrawlrbox – some alcohol based markers, a fine liner and a white gel pen – and uses them to create two beautiful pride pieces. Love really is a form of art!
Once again to those celebrating Pride month this June we just want to say enjoy, stay safe, and be proud of who you are!
Want more?
Learn some facts about bisexuality from Melanie Murphy! Alternatively, check out Emma Popcorn‘s comic book recommendations which feature some badass women!
For updates follow @TenEightyUK on Twitter or like TenEighty UK on Facebook.