Weird Pride Day: Why Be Normal When You Can Be You?
Every day can be a Weird Pride day if you are weird, but we also hold an annual event on 4th March.
Weird Pride Day is a day for “people to embrace their weirdness, and reject the stigma associated with being weird.
To publicly express pride in the things that make us weird, and to
celebrate the diversity of humankind”.
Embracing weirdness makes you question what even is normal? Robert Chapman has a great book, The Empire of Normality (2023), which helps to explain that the concept of ‘normal’ is socially constructed. What is often perceived as normal is a set of habits, opinions, and behaviours that the majority of people have agreed on at some point. Normality changes across cultures, generations, and even friend groups. What’s considered “normal” today might have been weird a hundred years ago, and what is weird for you may be perfectly normal for someone else – that is the beauty of neurodiversity! And yet, society still pressures us to try and fit into the dominant neuronormative ideals and ways of being —to dress a certain way, communicate in a certain way, even pick the “right” interests to be passionate about! The impact of this is perhaps felt more acutely if you are Autistic or otherwise neurodivergent.
However, weirdness is where creativity, innovation, and the magic of being human have the potential for growth. Many artists, scientists, musicians, writers, and thinkers throughout history were likely all thought of as a bit weird, different and unique. The things that make you “not normal” may also be the things that make you interesting! Find out more on Weird Pride’s website Weird Vs. Normal.
If you are weird, every day can be a weird pride day
The idea of pride as a way to push back against shame and racism, sexism, cis-hetronormativity and neuronormative domination isn’t new. Back in the 1960s, during the fight against racism, the Black Liberation movement introduced pride as a way to reclaim identity. The LGBTQ+ community later embraced this with Gay Pride, inspiring other movements like Disability Pride and Autistic Pride and so on. Many people and communities on the fringes of society are seen as different, and having a day to celebrate those differences, whatever they are, can be empowering, helping people feel less alone and can create a sense of belonging.
The concept of Weird Pride has been discussed independently multiple times, often within the Autistic and neurodivergent community. In 2008, Wired published an article about Mel Baggs, featuring the phrase, “We’re here. We’re weird. Get used to it.“ A decade later, in 2019, Fergus Murray wrote a piece with the same title. Their mother, Dinah Murray— (who also developed the theory of monotropism) —took the idea even further, creating a Weird Pride badge she proudly wore at formal Autism events. More info about the history of Weird Pride can be found on Fergus Murray’s website – Weird Pride – History.
In 2021, the idea of a dedicated Weird Pride Day took shape. March 4th was chosen because when you say it out loud—“March Fourth!”—it sounds like a call to move forward, to embrace who you are without apology. That same year, Autistamatic released a promo video, and together with Fergus Murray, designed the Weird Pride flag and logo. Over the past few years, Weird Pride has grown. We have a busy Facebook Group, and organisations such as AMASE and Stimpunks are hosting their own international Weird Pride community events.
Life can be so much more interesting when we stop trying to fit in and find communities of other weird people – join us!
Find out more and check out the links below!
“If you are always trying to be normal,
you will never know how
amazing you can be”
Maya Angelou
Find out more about Weird Pride 2025:
Weird Pride Day Events
Stimpunks Events
Educational Weird Pride Info
Happy Weird Pride Day! 🎉
