On Wednesday, Gov. Spencer Cox issued a proclamation marking June as the official Pride Month for the LGBTQ community. Cox urged Utahns to be more welcome and accepting of members of the community within the same proclamation.
The governor had issued a similar proclamation last year and is the first Utah governor to officially acknowledge June as Pride Month. Cox doesn’t believe that his decision should be controversial, as there shouldn’t be anything controversial about supporting a community of people who have felt marginalized throughout history.
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall and other members of the city council hosted a ceremony on Wednesday where they raised the LGBTQ Pride Flag at the Salt Lake City & County Building. The ceremony was just one of many Pride events that will take place throughout the month with this year’s Utah Pride Festival set to take place this weekend, returning for a fully in-person experience for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
When asked about the type of message he wants to send to the LGBTQ community, Gov. Cox told them “we love you, we care about you.” and reminded everybody that Utah is an “awesome place for everyone.”
Earlier this year, Cox vetoed a bill passed by the legislature banning transgender students from participating in school sports that align with their gender identity.
