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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-05-29 05/29/2024 Proclamation4:999MnM_:* PROCLAIMING JUNE AS PRIDE MONTH WHEREAS, Pride Month commemorates the Stonewall Riots of June 1969. The following year, June 28, 1970, people gathered just outside the Stonewall Inn in New York City for the Christopher Street Gay Liberation Day March, now recognized as the first Pride Parade; and WHEREAS, July 7th marks the 40th anniversary of the death of Charlie Howard, a 23-year-old gay man murdered for his sexuality in 1984, spurring citizens of the City of Bangor to hold vigils, memorials and protests in his memory; and WHEREAS, Pride Month is a celebration of survival and a call for equal justice and equal opportunity for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual Americans; and WHEREAS, The City of Bangor strives to be a community that is welcoming and supportive of all of its members regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, gender identity or sexual orientation; and WHEREAS, The City of Bangor upholds the legal non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Mainers passed in 2005, as one of only twenty-five states in the Nation to include protections for discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression in employment, housing, education, credit and public accommodations; and WHEREAS, The City of Bangor upholds the legal protections by the State of Maine, including the gender neutral mark on drivers licenses, the prohibition of discrimination against LGBTQ+ people by health insurance companies, and the prohibition of licensed health care providers from practicing conversion therapy on minors; and WHEREAS, Pride Month is an opportunity to celebrate and be supportive of the hard work of the thriving Bangor LGBTQ+ community in fighting for their rights and acceptance, and acknowledge the ongoing work of the citizens of Bangor to advocate for equal rights; and WHEREAS, On Saturday, June 22nd, Bangor Pride's main event is the Pride Parade and Festival; and WHEREAS, The City of Bangor thanks the Health Equity Alliance and all its volunteers and sponsors in the community for working hard to make Bangor Pride 2024 representative, engaging and affirming. NOW, THEREFORE, I, Cara Pelletier, Mayor of the City of Bangor, on behalf of the City Council and the citizens of Bangor, do hereby proclaim June as Pride Month in the City of Bangor, and urge all community members to be respectful and supportive of their fellow citizens regardless of race, gender, age, gender identity, or sexual orientation for this, the 54th year of Pride. Given this the 29th day of May, 2024. Cara Pelletier, Mayor