Published June 5, 2019
By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — Several dozen people were on hand Monday afternoon as the Wakefield Human Rights Commission raised the pride flag in front of the Americal Civic Center to kick off LGBTQ Pride Month. The flag will fly until June 30, in conjunction with a Taste of Pride event that the Wakefield Human Rights Commission will host at the Americal Civic Center on June 12.
“We are proud to raise the pride flag in Wakefield today,” Rich Greif, chair of the Wakefield Human Rights Commission, said. “More than ever, it is important that we honor the courageous LGBTQ community while lifting up their voices.”
THE PRIDE FLAG flies just below the Stars and Stripes on the flagpole in front of the Americal Civic Center. The flag was raised during ceremonies on Monday and will fly until June 30 in recognition of June as “Pride Month.” (Mark Sardella Photo)
“We aren’t just celebrating Pride Month,” added Town Councilor Mehreen Butt. “We’re celebrating that Wakefield is an inclusive and welcoming community. The flag is a symbol that promotes tolerance and diversity to everyone who visits our town.”
The Town Council unanimously approved the Commission’s request to fly the flag at the Civic Center at its May 30 meeting.
After some welcoming remarks from Wakefield Human Rights Commissioner Frankie Lawton, Town Council Chairman Edward Dombroski spoke at the flag-raising event.
“A community is about coming together for a common purpose,” Dombroski said, “supporting our neighbors and friends in the pursuits of greater civility; encouraging the distinctions that make each of us unique as individuals; celebrating diversity in all of its forms: race, religion, gender, thought, opinion, and here today, sexual orientation and gender identity.
“And this afternoon we embark upon the next opportunity to show our Wakefield pride in support of our LGBTQ community,” Dombroski said. “We celebrate and take pride in the strength to be found through our diversity and individualism. Yet, equally important, we come together to recognize our collective, shared identity as Wakefieldians.
“And, while this flag will proudly fly for the month of June, let the message it sends not be extinguished when the month comes to a close and the flag drawn down. Rather, let this serve as the starting point of an ever-present reminder of the diversity and inclusiveness that serve as the bedrocks of our community,” Dombroski said.
The Human Rights Commission’s Taste of Pride event on June 12 will feature beer and wine tastings, live music, food, LGBTQ speakers, and more. Proceeds will be donated to the North Shore Alliance of GLBTQ Youth. For more information email the Commission at WHRC@wakefield.ma.us.
