Moorestown Makes History With Pride Month Proclamation

MOORESTOWN, NJ — Moorestown made history Monday night when it acknowledged June as Pride Month for the first time in the township's history, according to officials.

Moorestown Mayor Nicole Gillespie read the proclamation during Monday night’s council meeting at town hall. Kadja Manuel, of Garden State Equality, was in attendance to accept the proclamation.

There were more than 30 people in attendance at Monday's meeting, as council resumed its hybrid format of holding in-person and virtual meetings. Everyone stood and applauded when Gillespie concluded the proclamation.

“Thank you, Mayor Nicole Gillespie, for allowing Garden State Equality to speak and receive a proclamation declaring June as Pride Month in Moorestown,” the organization said in a social media post. “We are grateful for your leadership and humbled to be part of this historic moment.”

“I am honored to be on a Council that is dedicated to building a community where there’s true equality for all,” Councilman Quinton Law said. “Thank you to Garden State Equality for accepting our proclamation.”

Garden State Equality is New Jersey’s largest LGBTQ advocacy and education organization with over 150,000 members, according to its Facebook page. It was founded in 2004. Its mission is to provide quality, innovative community programs and services to meet the needs of LGBTQ individuals in New Jersey. It also aims to help pass pro-equality policies. The Associated Press has said, “Garden State Equality could be a model for the rest of the country.”

Originally, Pride Month began as a “Gay Pride Day” on the last Sunday in June to memorialize the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, which served as a huge momentum shift for the gay rights' movement. Now a month-long event, Pride Month reminds us of the importance of everyone’s right to freely express their gender identity and sexuality.