(MASSLIVE) 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.”