Pride Flag To Be Raised to Honor LGBTQ+ Pride Month

New Britain Pride is encouraging residents to attend the upcoming Pride Flag Raising Ceremony, as New Britain begins its celebration of “Pride in the City” month.

The Pride Flag Raising Ceremony is to be on June 7, 2021 at 9:30am in Central Park.

John Board, Chair of New Britain Pride, is to serve as the event’s emcee. Speaking at the event is to be United States Congresswoman Jahana Hayes (D-5), Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz (D), Mayor Erin Stewart (R), City Council members and former Rep. Themis Klarides (R-114), who was the Republican leader in the state House of Representatives.

Board praised the bipartisan representation of leaders who are to mark the third raising of the Pride Flag in New Britain.

“These leaders, collectively, have a diverse background and have all shown their commitment to the LGBTQ+ community over the years,” said Board. “The pandemic gave everyone time to reflect. As we come out of lockdown and head towards the end of this pandemic we are going to be forward-looking and highlight what pride month truly means.”

New Britain Pride has also announced that United States Senator Richard Blumenthal and state Attorney General William Tong will be speaking at that event.

In May, the City Council approved a resolution declaring June as “Pride in the City” month in New Britain as part of the nationwide celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride Month. The flag raising ceremony was also announced as part of that resolution.

GLAAD has said that,

The majority of Pride events are held in June to commemorate the anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion in New York City on June 28, 1969, which most historians consider to be the birth of the modern LGBT movement. At the time, police raids on bars catering to LGBT patrons were common, but that night, the patrons of the Stonewall Inn fought back. While historical accounts of the night vary, the violent response ignited a national firestorm of activism that brought new visibility to the struggle for LGBT equality.

New Britain Pride says that it, “is a nonpartisan organization whose goal is to spread understanding and advocate for the LGBT community through pride celebrations, advocacy, and education.”

Editor’s note (6/6/2021): The article was updated to include the announcement of United States Senator Richard Blumenthal and state Attorney General William Tong speaking.