Westfield kicks off Pride Month with sixth flag raising

The pride flag risies in front of Westfield City Hall on June 1.
Reminder Publishing photo by Ryan Feyre

WESTFIELD — In the eyes of Kathi Bradford, the pride flag is more than a fabric; it’s a promise to not mistake small progress for permanent justice.

“This flag rises in celebration … but celebration without commitment is simply decoration,” said Bradford, the president of the Westfield Pride Alliance. “Pride without action is only performance, so tonight cannot only be about being seen, it cannot only be ceremonial flying, here at the seat of our community government for the next week; it has to be about being responsible for one another every day.”

Bradford’s call to action came during the ceremonial Pride flag raising outside Westfield City Hall on June 1, which kickstarted a bevy of weeklong events celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community.

The kickoff event attracted many dignitaries, including Mayor Michael McCabe, state Sen. John Veils, state Rep. Kelly Pease, At Large City Councilor Cindy Harris, Ward 6 City Councilor William Onyski, Ward 3 City Councilor Bridget Matthews-Kane and School Committee member Kathleen Hillman.

Velis, fresh off his recent Massachusetts National Guard deployment, used his time to laud Justice John Greaney, a Westfield-born resident who helped write the majority opinion for the Goodrich v. Department of Public Health case, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court case in 2003 that required the state to recognize same sex marriage. The landmark decision was the first by the U.S. state’s highest court to find that same sex couples had the right to marry.

“To say [the Goodrich opinion] was seminal, to say it was unprecedented, and to say it was courageous, is an understatement,” Velis said. “You look back, and you read that opinion and the amount of pride that I felt when I saw that name, Judge Greaney.”

The June 1 event marked the sixth time that the city of Westfield has recognized Pride Month with a flag raising. According to the Westfield Pride website, the first Pride flag displayed openly in a Westfield municipal building was at a “Leap” Out to Breakfast event in February 2020. The event was created by Dennis Atkins and Tina Gorman, then-director of the Westfield Senior Center, to gather the underserved senior LGBTQIA+ population.

Following that event, a Westfield Pride ad hoc committee consisting of Atkins, Bradford, Christopher Clark, At Large City Councilor Kristen Mello, and former Councilors Mary O’Connell and Agma Sweeney. Later that year, on June 26, the Pride flag soared in front of City Hall for the first time.

Since that time, the alliance has grown in both numbers and Pride events, according to organizers, and they now work with sponsors and partners that include local public and private businesses, local churches and private citizens.

For the first time ever, the Mass Cultural Council gave Westfield Pride a $5,000 grant to help spearhead the activities throughout the month and year. Atkins, in his remarks, also thanked Velis, Westfield Gas & Electric, bankESB, the 100 individuals in the community who wrote checks, and many others who helped make Pride Month in Westfield possible.

Like Velis, he also touted Greaney’s contributions to the legality of same sex marraige across the country, noting that the landmark decision allowed him to be with his “beautiful husband, who he ”adore[s] to the ends of the world.”

“It wasn’t long after [the Goodrich decision], the U.S. Supreme Court would read [Greaney’s] decision and help guide them to make the national decision for gay marriage,” Atkins said. “So, my love and support to you and to all the justices who made sure that I’m with the best man I have ever seen in my life.”

McCabe recognized Pride Month with a proclamation, and before the flag was raised with the help of Greaney, Bradford left the crowd with one final message.

“As this flag rises, let something rise with it, your willingness to engage, your willingness to protect, your willingness to lead, and your willingness to keep going long after the applause fades and this flag raising ends,” Bradford said. “Because the future is not built by symbols hanging in the air. It is built by people who decide relentlessly, publicly, courageously, that every human being deserves the freedom to live openly and fully without fear.”