Red States are Rebranding Pride Month as “Marriage and Family Month”

Nebraska, Indiana, and Tennessee are among several states rebranding Pride month around religious conservative values. Conservative anti-LGBTQIA+ Governors are leading the erasure of queer celebrations by replacing them with their own religious bias. 

In Nebraska, June is now “Marriage and Family Month.” In Indiana and Tennessee, June is now “Nuclear Family Month.” In Alabama, June is “Strong Families Month.” In Utah and Arkansas, June is “Fidelity Month.” Notice a pattern? These bright red states are attempting to rebrand Pride under a moral high ground related to family unity and traditional Christian values. 

What Advocates Are Saying

LGBTQIA+ communities in these states are rightfully not enthusiastic about these changes. 

“The governor has been very clear that he’s got one particular view on what an acceptable family is. And families with two moms and two dads don’t fit that picture,” said Sam Petto, communications director for the ACLU of Nebraska in an interview with Nebraska Public Radio. “I’d say none of this comes as a surprise to queer Nebraskans and their loved ones.”

“Resolutions like this do more to reveal the cluelessness of elected officials whose own families and those of their constituents have various family dynamics and structures,” a spokesperson for GLAAD said in a statement to The Advocate in reference to Tennessee’s proclamation. “The strongest families are grounded by love. Lawmakers trying to exclude and intentionally harm some families should be recognized as actively harming all by not focusing their time working for an inclusive Tennessee where all are welcome and can succeed.”

Pride Will Power On

There are tens of thousands of LGBTQIA+ people who live in these states. Communities that are being erased just because it makes a few far-right Christians more comfortable. 

These proclamations follow new polling indicating that support for LGBTQIA+ people is falling across the country, most significantly with Republicans. Just 35% of Republicans believe same sex relationships are moral, and just 5% believe transitioning one’s gender is moral. 

“It’s not lost upon LGBTQ people when elected leaders don’t recognize or value the visibility of the community,” Josh Coleman, president of Central Alabama Pride said in an interview with The Guardian. “That’s why Pride started in the first place – to make sure the community had a community.”

Pride celebrations will still continue in communities across these red states, however, they need support now more than ever. If you are in or around any of these states with new June designations, attending, supporting, and volunteering for Pride organizations will be critical for these events to continue in the years to come.

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