By Dana Fialkowski
Correspondent
A Coming Out Day celebration was outside town hall last week. The event featured speakers and a flag-raising ceremony.
MAPLEWOOD — A National Coming Out Day event was held Friday, Oct. 11, outside town hall.
The event included speeches about the difficulties members of the the LGBTQIA+ community can face and the importance of being able to “come out.” There was a flag raising ceremony and free ice cream and other giveaways.
National Coming Out Day is an annual LGBTQ awareness day that supports people “coming out of the closet.” The event was first held Oct. 11, 1988 and is now recognized in all 50 states and internationally. The founders of the event believed that homophobia “thrives in an atmosphere of silence and ignorance” and once family and friends know they have loved ones who are LGBTQ, their perspective can change.
Deputy Mayor Jamaine Cripe started the event off by thanking those in attendance for being there.
“When our LGBTQ+ friends and family publicly identify as LGBTQ+, they are actually inviting us in to be a part of their lives,” Cripe said. “A life that should be protected and celebrated. They are not coming out to us; they’re inviting us in. So, from this day forward don’t you dare ask permission to be who you are.”
Family Connections Pride+ Program Coordinator J.P. Pedoto shared some insightful words about his experience. He has been socially, medically and legally transitioning since 2018 and now he is an “openly out and proud trans man.”
Former Board of Education member Shannon Cuttle spoke about the importance of this type of event and of creating safe spaces for all.
Cuttle asked the audience if there was anyone willing to speak about their truth or say some words for the community. A gay transgender man named Kaden spoke up, talking about his experience when he first came out at 14 years old and how he didn’t know if he was gay or just a tomboy. Kaden said his words were dedicated to his siblings who are also transgender. He said to anyone who was thinking about coming out that they were not alone.
At the end of the event, a Pride+ flag was raised on the pole outside town hall.
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