A cheer went up Monday when a proclamation declaring June as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Month was read aloud during the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners meeting.
The proclamation was a historic event for Jefferson County, said Kellie Ragan, who had asked the commissioners to sign the document.
“This is a first for this county,” she said. “It’s really about increasing the visibility of our community and letting folks know it’s not just about having a proclamation but it’s about having a celebration.”
Ragan is a member of Peninsula Pride Alliance, a newly formed group that, according to its website, “is dedicated to nurturing and strengthening the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning community of the North Olympic Peninsula through education and celebration of our culture.”
The group is sponsoring Pride Month in June, with a daylong celebration on Saturday, June 17. While the county proclamation expresses endorsement, it can’t be used as a basis for county policies or to grant any legal rights.
Democratic Commissioners David Sullivan and Phil Johnson both signed the proclamation, but Republican Pat Rodgers did not.
Rodgers said he did not believe the proclamation was necessary.
“While I do agree we don’t want discrimination, I don’t believe it exists in the county,” he said, pausing as a handful of people present who opposed the proclamation applauded.
“I don’t believe government should be taking a position on any lifestyle,” Rodgers said.
Commissioner Sullivan said the proclamation is a way to show that Jefferson County is welcoming to everyone. “It’s about tolerance and acceptance,” he said.
The proclamation recognizes the contributions of “the North Olympic Peninsula’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning community” and asserts that Jefferson County believes in equal rights for all people and in speaking out against intolerance and discrimination.
The document encourages all county residents to take part in the Pride Month celebration.
Local residents riled
In the courthouse hallway after the proclamation was signed, Port Ludlow resident Don Cooper said he was angry that elected officials spent any time on such an issue.
“I’d like to know what the job description of a county commissioner is, and why they are dabbling in people’s sexual preferences,” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t understand why we’re paying you people to do this.”
Cape George resident Connie Rosenquist said she isn’t in favor of discrimination but believes the proclamation is a way to promote what she describes as deviant sexual behavior.
“I appreciate people as individuals,” she said. “But let’s talk about the contributions of individuals. What’s sexual preference got to do with it?”
Port Townsend resident Bonita Flagg, who was one of about a dozen people who attended to show their support for the proclamation, said fear of discrimination continues to be a problem in Jefferson County.
“For every one of us here today, there are 10 more who won’t show their faces,” she said. “I wonder why.”
Candidate views
The three men who have declared candidacy for the District 3 commissioner seat to be vacated by Rodgers later this year were in the audience as the proclamation was read. Afterward, during a public comment period during which people bring a wide range of issues to the attention of the commissioners, Republican candidate Ian McFall spoke up.
“I think we should have “Straight People Who Have Been Married for 45 Years Month,” he said with a laugh.
Neither of the other candidates spoke in public about the controversy, but Republican candidate Robert Pontius later told The Leader he thought the proclamation was unnecessary and “divisive.”
Under the U.S. Constitution, Pontius said, “we already have civil rights for everybody.”
Democrat John Austin said he is in favor of recognizing the contributions to the community made by local residents who happen to be gay.
“That group has been subject to some prejudice, and I see nothing wrong with celebrating the contributions made by them,” he said, adding that he didn’t see why the document had become a source of controversy.
“It seems to be a pretty benign proclamation, for heaven’s sakes.”
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