Lawrence Township’s first community-wide celebration of its LGBTQ+ community has been set for June 15 at the Lawrence Shopping Center.
PRIDEfest will be held from 8 a.m.to 1 p.m. It is being sponsored by Lawrence Neighbors Together, which is made up of township organizations and residents.
The celebration kicks off at 8 a.m., with a warm-up prior to a three-mile-long run/walk/roll event at the Lawrence Shopping Center.
Participants in the PRIDEfest Walk, Run and Roll event will follow a designated route through surrounding neighborhoods – all at their own pace. It will start and end on the Texas Avenue side of the shopping center.
The rest of the PRIDEfest activities will take place in the parking lot adjacent to the Burlington store, on the Princeton Pike side of the shopping center.
Music is also on the bill. Gabe Parsons, who is a folk-rock singer-songwriter from the Hopewell Valley, will play. The School of Rock house band and others will play, too.
There will be food and refreshments provided by local businesses. Family-friendly activities are being planned, ensuring a welcoming and inclusive environment for all, event organizers said.
Lawrence Neighbors Together sees the event as an opportunity to support two Lawrence communities – the LGBTQ+ residents and their families, and local businesses, said event organizer Martha Friend.
“The vision of Lawrence Neighbors Together is to be a model of how diverse populations can live together in a community with mutual respect, compassion and justice,” Friend said.
In a letter sent to event organizers, Gov. Phil Murphy wrote that the celebration is an opportune time to recognize the impact that the LGBTQ+ community has had on Lawrence Township and on the state itself.
“I applaud the township for its dedication to celebrating the diversity and unity within the community and commend everyone in attendance for honoring the achievements and contributions of the LGBTQIA+ community,” Murphy wrote.
PRIDEfest has been timed to coincide with PRIDE Month, which is celebrated in June. It is an acknowledgment of the LGBTQ+ members in the community – people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning.
PRIDE Month grew out of the Stonewall Inn riots in New York City in 1969. The Stonewall Inn was popular with gay men. It did not have a liquor license, which led to raids by the New York Police Department, according to www.history.com.
The week-long riots did not directly lead to the gay liberation movement, but it was a galvanizing force for LGBTQ political activism, according to www.history.com.
President Bill Clinton declared June as Gay and Lesbian Pride month in 1999, and President Barack Obama expanded it to include bisexual, transgender and questioning members of the community.
