(Progressive Pride Flag photo by Tomas Diniz Santos)
ORLANDO | In a decision made by the Orange County Commission in a 4-3 vote on May 22, an LGBTQ+ Pride Month proclamation was eliminated for June 2024. Orange County Public Schools students and parents have argued that the district proclaimed Pride month in June for the last two years — so why not this year?
OCPS first proclaimed June as LGBTQ+ Pride and Pulse Remembrance Month in 2021.
Parent Jen Cousins, who has four children in OCPS schools and is also the chair of GLSEN Central Florida, said in an interview with WFTV 9, “They sent queer and trans kids out into the world to become future leaders, now they’re saying, ‘you’re not worthy.”
The county will still recognize June as Pulse Remembrance Month.
When asked about the change and what brought it on, an OCPS spokesperson replied, “a review of the proclamations for Pulse Remembrance and LGBTQ+ Awareness and History Month found repetitive language, so they were separated.”
Cousins added in the interview, “If they’ve never proclaimed it before, it wouldn’t be such a big deal. But they have, and now they’re taking it away.”
One of the founding members of Orlando for Gender Equality, Jacob Muldoon commented on the response of OCPS, where commissioners tried to amend some of the language on the bill.
“When we got the amended language of the bill, it still wasn’t recognizing it as Pride Month. It was just saying like, oh, June is an important month for LGBTQ+ people, and it’s like they’re trying to like wiggle around it,” said Muldoon.
The district announced that a proclamation naming October LGBTQ+ Awareness and History Month will be on the board’s agenda this fall.
