Pride Month 2023: From David to Cal, 6 queer characters to watch onscreen

Global television and the growth of the OTT entertainment sphere has fostered a space that is moving away from cliched representations of the LGBTQIA community to creating content that nurtures queer characters and their narratives with dignity and empathyIt is imperative that inclusivity and diversity of content be encouraged throughout the year ndash but Pride Month which is celebrated globally in June is a good place to foray into queer content Here are 6 characters from shows around the world that are nuanced realistic and who traverse their complex journeys in gloriously queer waysDavid Rose in Schittrsquos CreekIn a heteronormatively saturated world David Rose who identifies as pansexual is a breath of fresh air Schittrsquos Creek revolves around an uberrich business family who moves from New York into a small town Schittrsquos Creek they bought as a joke after they lose all their assets Even amongst these smalltown ways David owns his queerness and he does so with styleFrom opening his own boutique store sourced with products from local artisans to stepping out everyday in fashionable avantgarde ensembles to even helping his futurehusband Patrick come to terms with his sexuality David is a joy to watch onscreenAs he explains to his good friend Stevie on what his romantic and sexual preferences are ndash ldquoI like the wine and not the labelrdquo ToucheacuteRosa Diaz in Brooklyn 99There are few places you can think of that are more hypermasculinized than a police precinct In a manrsquos world furtive and ruthless Rosa Diaz holds her cards close to her chest and is determined to make a markBut for all her thick skin Rosa is soft and warm on the inside Her bisexual comingout arc will move anyone to tears ndash from trying to convince her parents that fellow detective and friend Jake Peralta is her pretend boyfriend to standing up for herself in a family game of Pictionary where she depicts lsquoloversquo as two women as newlyweds Rosa is truly one of a kindAs Captain Holt who is the first gay police captain in the history of NYC Police in the show tells her ldquoEvery time someone steps up and says who they are the world becomes a better more interesting placerdquoSophia Burset in Orange is the New BlackOITNB was a trailblazing show that introduced queer people and especially queer womenand of colour onscreen and behind the camera Burset is one of the many inmates in the show To finance her gender transition Burset commits fraud jeopardizing her relationship with her wife and son which lands her in jailHowever she does her best to thrive in prison ndash from working as a hairdresser to lobbying for receiving her necessary hormone dosages even against an adamant prison administration Burset is kind and fierce ndash it is a story of trans representation powerfully portrayed by real life transactivist Laverne CoxCal Bowman in Sex EducationSex Education was pathbreaking in terms of representing the many forms of queerness on the spectrum Cal is a new student and identifies as nonbinary They have an artistic spirit and are vocal about using theythem pronouns Cal believes in standing up for their rights and beliefs and are often seen locking horns with conservative Principal Hope who ndash ranging on everything from justifying their decision to dress in shirts and pants even though they present feminine to protesting the outofdate sexed curriculum in school and even helping their fellow nonbinary peersSex Education also has several other queer characters such as Eric who is unabashedly gay and Ola who is bisexual The show truly is a celebration of the queer experienceKitty Song Kovey in XO KittyAt first glance the lsquoTo All The Boys Irsquove Loved Beforersquo spinoff seems like a classic heterosexual romcom The premise as revealed in the trailer implies that Kitty is going to travel to South Korea to meet her longdistance boyfriend Dae But as the show progresses Kitty finds herself increasingly torn between her feelings for her boyfriend and his new girlfriend Yuri ndash and the subsequent bi panic and confusion is something so many queer teenagers can relate to when they find themselves attracted to person from a different gender for the first timeKitty beautifully portrays all the chaotic rush of emotion that comes with figuring out your sexuality when in high school In a pivotal moment of the series Kitty breaks down to telling him that she might be ldquobi or pan or fluidrdquo after her feelings for Yuri intensify What is refreshing about the show is that it does not try to box characters into labels or portray queerness as one big coming out Instead Kitty takes time to process the changes inside herself and she makes it easy for the audience to empathize with and root for herElle Argent in HeartstopperHeartstopper is the Netflix adaption of Alice Osemanrsquos eponymous graphic novel series While the story centres around the highschool burgeoning romance between protagonists Charlie and Nick Elle shines even as one of the side characters in the first seasonPortrayed by Yasmin Finney a British transwoman Elle is a multiethnic transgirl She goes to Truham Grammar School for Boys where her entire friend group continues studying before she comes out and transfers to Harvey Greene Grammar School for Girls following her transition and bullying from her peers Elle is shown to be kindhearted and wise beyond her years ndash although fellow girls at her new school do not take to her immediately and she is deemed school lsquooutcastrsquo Ellersquos patience with herself is truly beautiful to watch Not to mention how deeply her friends support her throughout this trying timeTowards the end a relationship is hinted between Elle and her straight best friend Tao Xu ndash we canrsquot wait to see Elle blossom further in Season 2