The Worcester County LGBTQ+ nonprofit Rural Justice Network is suing North Brookfield, Mass. for denying an application to host Pride in the town if drag entertainers are to perform for the public—just as the town tried to do last year before reversing their decision after the ACLU of Massachusetts threatened a similar lawsuit.
Reports MassLive.com:
The denial is the second time that the town has tried to stop the Rural Justice Network from holding the Small Town Pride event, after it revoked its approval of the 2023 event earlier this year due to the plans for a drag show.
The 2023 event eventually went forward after the ACLU of Massachusetts threatened to sue. The ACLU is representing the organization again in the new lawsuit.
>“This is discrimination based on the viewpoint our clients seek to express: that all members of the community deserve to live and participate fully, openly, freely, and joyously,” ACLU of Massachusetts Executive Director Carol Rose said in a statement.“Let’s be clear: The government has no right to censor LGBTQ+ people or their right to assemble and express themselves.”
Earlier this year, after the Board of Selectmen approved RJN’s application to use the town common for the event, they rescinded their approval, saying the drag performance was inappropriate.
Chairman Jason Petraitis said during the April 11 meeting that he had not had enough information about the performance when it was approved, but that he was now concerned about “sexual innuendo and behavior” that could be present, calling it “adult entertainment.”
After the ACLU threatened litigation if the event was not allowed to continue, the Board of Selectmen voted to reverse its previous decision on April 25. However, Petraitis said this vote did not mean the event was approved, although RJN was “free to show up” on the day of the event. Eventually, after the ACLU once again contacted the town, the event went forward on June 24.
According to the lawsuit, because of the delays caused by the board’s back-and-forth, RJN was unable to secure as many vendors and performers for the event as it wanted. To avoid the same issue occurring again, the organization filed an application in October to hold Small Town Pride on June 29, 2024.
At the board’s Nov. 7 meeting, Petraitis asked RJN representatives if they again planned to host a drag show and if they planned to have it in a tent or “out in the open again like last time,” according to the lawsuit. RJN confirmed that there would be a drag performance and that it would not be in a tent.
“You can get the approvals from the other people, but the same thing is going to happen this year that happened last year. I’m not voting for it,” Petraitis said, as quoted in the complaint. “If you’re not going to have that stuff hidden from kids, I’m not voting for it.”
When Selectwoman Elizabeth Brooke Canada said that Petraitis’ statements did not go along with the town’s written criteria for events on the town common, he said he “could care less.” Although Canada moved to approve the application, both Petraitis and Selectman John Tripp, the other two members of the body, refused to second it, meaning the approval did not go forward.
“Historically, people identifying as LGBTQIA+ have been barred from being who they truly are,” the Rural Justice Network said in a statement Monday. ”We simply want to host a community, family-friendly event that provides a safe and fun space to celebrate people of all gender identities, orientations and expressions.”
Read the complete MassLive.com story here.
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