Even after hearing pleas from residents, a Troy city councilor voted against recognizing June as Pride Month in the city.
For the second year in a row, Republican Councilor Bill Keal voted “no” on recognizing June as Pride Month in the city.
The vote came after Troy residents, including several in Keal’s district, said the measure is symbolic and that a “no” vote could further hurt members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Speaking with WAMC after the meeting, the District 1 councilor says his vote isn’t intended to hurt anyone.
“I looked at so many of their cases, one saying ‘I used to get beat up,’ I’m the kind of guy who would want to protect that guy,” Keal said. “I wanna protect any and everybody who is being bullied and who is being done wrong. So, it’s got nothing to do… I don’t hate the people that were there tonight even though they were overwhelmingly against how I feel about this particular issue.”
District 1 resident and advocate Mark Speedy, who prefers to use the name Speedy, says they struggle to view Troy as a welcoming city when they feel the need to mask who they are to speak at city council meetings.
“I often find myself taking efforts to dress “more straight” before a council meeting,” Speedy said. “I do this because while I want to be proud of who I am, there's a part of me that is afraid of how it will impact your perception of me.”
Democratic Councilor Katie Spain-McLaren says she’s embarrassed and ashamed that residents don’t feel welcome in council chambers. Spain-McLaren, of District 3, says she’s taking action to be an ally.
“I don't see an agenda. I see a group of human beings who are trying to live authentically, many who are trying to improve their community, our community, and it shouldn’t be an us and them. It's a we,” Spain-McLaren said.
At a meeting last month introducing the measure, Keal also voted “no.” He said he cast that vote for the same reason he voted against supporting pride last year— he doesn’t “believe in the whole agenda.”
Jess Bennett, also of District 1, mentioned the recent fatal shooting of voice actor Jonathan Joss, a Native American gay man best known for his work on “King of the Hill.” Joss was shot this week while the gunman yelled homophobic slurs at Joss and his husband. Police are investigating whether Joss’ sexuality played a role in his killing. Bennett says Keal should be more openminded.
“I know you're elected on the Republican line, but you were gonna represent all of us, and we want you to represent all of us. And if you can't represent every single person, then maybe you should be representing us at all,” Bennett said.
Thursday’s vote came as the city faces criticism from a local nonprofit and other city residents for a social media post made by the city’s deputy mayor Seamus Donnelly in support of President Trump’s return to office. Donnelly, a gay man, said he is entitled to free speech and will not apologize for supporting the president. Mayor Carmella Mantello, a first-term Republican, says we’re all entitled to our opinions.
“I'm very, very open, very pro-LGBTQ, plus I can't criticize Bill [Keal]. It's obviously his prerogative,” Mantello said.
Residents from other parts of the city spoke up, too. Ailise Schendorf is resident of the city’s downtown and an organizer of Collar City Clean Up, a group that Schendorf says has picked up thousands of pounds of litter over the past five years. Schendorf says many participants are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, and their so called “agenda” doesn’t come with any malice.
“My ‘gay agenda’ is to improve the city that I live in, and I would hope that you would agree that an agenda that increases accessibility to substance use treatment and keeps our city streets clean is something that we can all support,” Schendorf said.
This week, the city held its own pride flag-raising ceremony.
