Submitted by Sierra Lopez, Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce.
(Middletown, CT)– The City of Middletown, the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, and Wesleyan University have announced that Middletown Pride 2020 will be canceled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Middletown Pride is a celebration of the history, lives and contributions of Middletown’s LGBTQIA residents.
This year’s event was expected to once again include a parade, entertainment, vendors, and an uplifting celebration of a vibrant and inclusive community. However, the safety of everyone involved is paramount, and the difficult decision has been made to cancel this year’s event.
Middletown Pride looks forward to coming back stronger than ever on June 19, 2021.
Middletown Mayor Ben Florsheim noted, “This was both a hard and an easy decision for us—hard in the sense that we hate to cancel an event that so many people have been looking forward to and working on, but easy in the sense that it was clearly the right call from a public health standpoint—and the Pride committee never wavered in their commitment to put our community’s safety first. Even though we can’t gather in person this year, Middletown is still a city that is proud of our diversity and of the unique contributions of our LGBTQIA residents past and present. We will still celebrate and uplift them all the same this June, and look forward to an even bigger, better Pride event in the summer of 2021.”
Chamber President Larry McHugh noted, “The day of the inaugural Middletown Pride event held last June was a fabulous day in Middletown. We were so looking forward to building on that success, but we have collectively made the responsible decision to cancel this year’s event. The chamber looks forward to working with the City of Middletown, Wesleyan University, and other local stakeholders to make sure Pride comes back better than ever next year.”
“While disappointing, canceling the 2020 Middletown Pride event is the right decision for the health and safety of our city,” said Wesleyan President Michael S. Roth. “We’ll look forward to next year’s event, and in the meantime will continue to celebrate the rich diversity of the Middletown community every day.”
The City of Middletown’s LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee and the Middletown Pride Planning Committee will be celebrating Pride Month this June through virtual means. For more information, please visit www.middletownpride.org, and follow Middletown Pride on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
Any questions or concerns can be directed to Haley Stafford at the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce at 860-347-6924 or Info@MiddletownPride.org.
