EASTERN SUBURBS — Local communities held flag-raising events for Pride Month, with the Town of DeWitt hosting a full-on festival for the occasion.
The Town of Manlius had its fifth annual flag raising just before the month began, at 4 p.m. on May 31 outside the town hall on Brooklea Drive.
Brooke and Heidi Menikheim, who run the Seneca Street Brew Pub, were chosen as the raisers of the Pride Flag for the 2024 ceremony. The two also founded the Manlius Pride Festival, which has taken place at their East Seneca Street brewery these past three years.
Manlius Town Supervisor John Deer said during his speech to those gathered that late afternoon that Brooke and Heidi are “forces of nature” as a couple who run a “fantabulous establishment” and do plenty of good in the community. Deer said their Pride Fest at the pub has been well-received, becoming a day for visibility that makes it known Manlius is a safe place to live for everybody.
Brooke, who is transgender, in turn spoke highly of the municipality’s yearly flag raising, saying it’s “just so wonderful to see.”
“When I grew up here, I was scared to transition,” she said. “It’s really important that young people are listened to today, and it’s great they feel more comfortable…there’s a lot going against them.”
Town Councilor William Nicholson said during his comments that he can attest to the noteworthy changes that have been made since his earlier days growing up in the town to make LGBTQ individuals feel more welcome.
“When I got into this local government role here, my No. 1 thing was that this town needs to show the world what a welcoming and diverse community looks like, how change can happen, and how change can happen in a way that’s beneficial to everyone, not just a select few and not just a select subset of people, but to everybody,” Nicholson said.
Brooke also thanked everyone for coming to the ceremony and the town for recognizing her and her wife that day.
The Town of Manlius also announced at the flag-raising ceremony that toiletry and personal item donations were being accepted at the town hall throughout the month of June in support of the Syracuse shelter called the Alejandro Garcia Runaway and Homeless Youth House that will be accommodating young people who identify as LGBTQ+.
The Village of Fayetteville raised its Pride Flag onto the village hall located at 425 E Genesee Street the morning of Saturday, June 1 to kick off Pride Month. That Philadelphia Design Pride Flag was put up to fly for the remainder of the month of June.
During the 9 a.m. ceremony, Mayor Mike Small and Deputy Mayor Mark Matt assisted village resident and Creative Environment Day School director Ashley Karkowski with the raising of the flag, and separate proclamations were read by Small and Tracy Driscoll DiGenova, a regional representative for New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office.
The village proclamation began by mentioning the June 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City as a rallying point for equality, and its words went on to recognize June as a time for remembering those who have paved the way for the LGBTQIA community and acknowledging those who continue to do so.
“The Village of Fayetteville supports the rights, freedoms, and equality of persons who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and/or asexual,” read Small.
The governor’s proclamation stated that New York State “will always stand with LGBTQ+ communities” through its advocacy for a “fair and equitable society, free from institutional injustice, prejudice, bigotry, and bias” and its work to “foster environments that allow individuals to freely display their personal expression and identity.”
The Town of DeWitt’s Pride Month event took place on Sunday, June 2 outside the town hall and in close-by Ryder Park on Butternut Drive in East Syracuse.
The free-to-enter event featured a DJ, performances by drag kings and queens, face painters, henna, and vendors with 3D-printed figures, clothing, candy and more, many of them representing the LGBTQ community.
In coordination with the town, the event was set up by the 11-member junior Girl Scout Troop 60377 for their Bronze Award project, the highest award they can earn. For their project, the fifth graders from Jamesville-DeWitt Middle School and Syracuse city schools had to identify a need in the community and follow through on that need while making the solution sustainable for years to come.
The Scouts decided to turn what was previously a brief ceremony into something bigger, specifically a two-hour festival. They proceeded to contact Town Councilor Sarah Klee Hood and town event coordinator Brie Hall to “get the ball rolling,” figure out the details and reach out to community organizations.
Klee Hood, whose resolution recognizing Pride Month and introducing the flag raising was the first piece of legislation she ever wrote and got passed as councilor, said the occasion is to show that the town of DeWitt is a community that’s friendly and inclusive of LGBTQ individuals.
Klee Hood’s official proclamation adopted by the town board in May 2022 mentions that United States President Barack Obama declared June LGBTQ Pride Month in 2010 and that New York’s Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act passed in 2002 prohibited discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, credit and the exercise of civil rights, with the state’s Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act passed in 2019 covering the same categories based on gender identity and expression.
“The lack of awareness and understanding of issues facing LGBTQ individuals has contributed to higher rates of school dropout, harassment and increased mental health challenges,” Klee Hood read. “Education regarding LGBTQ issues increases understanding and cultivates respect.”
Klee Hood said that outside of the town’s Trunk-or-Treat around Halloween time, the Pride Month fest this month was the best-attended public-facing event the municipality has helped to organize in a “very long time.”
