CRANFORD, NJ — The Cranford community gathered on Monday, June 10, as the Pride Flag was raised on the flagpole at the Municipal Building to celebrate Pride Month and support the LGBTQ+ community.
This year’s event had the largest turnout the township had seen, in a year when the community came together to support a Downtown Cranford store after it was threatened in an anonymous letter for displaying a Pride Flag in its storefront window. “We are defined by how we as a community responded,” Mayor Brian Andrews said at the Pride Flag raising ceremony.
“My heart is full seeing everyone here today,” Andrews began during the Pride Flag ceremony. “The Pride Flag shows our values and recognizes the discrimination the LGBTQ+ community has faced and continues to face. It is to honor members of the community and their allies who fought for dignity and equal protection. And show everyone in this town they are welcome.”
One role the mayor of Cranford takes part in is as a wedding officiant. Commissioner Kathleen Miller Prunty recalled the time she officiated the marriage between John McGovern and Abe Sandel, who are now the proud fathers of a son and daughter. “I’m thrilled we live in a community where it doesn’t matter if it’s two dads, two moms, a dad, a mom; you are a family, you are all part of the Cranford family,” Miller Prunty said.
McGovern, who was born and raised in Cranford, signaled how important it is to raise a pride flag in the township. Ally-ship is an important part of Pride Month, McGovern said.
“We are grateful for your support, which is vital to our continued struggles in reaching full equality,” he said.
Continued education about the LGBTQ+ community and their struggles will help to ensure the younger generation can be their true authentic selves, McGovern concluded.
Photo Courtesy of Christina Miskewitz