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Durham proclaims June 2026 National Pride Month; LGBTQ leaders urge sustained partnership and say more funding is needed
Summary
Durham County commissioners proclaimed June 2026 National Pride Month. Leaders from the LGBTQ Center of Durham thanked the board, outlined Pride events and urged ongoing county partnership; public speakers and community members said funding and restored programs are necessary beyond symbolic proclamations.
Vice Chair Lum read a proclamation on June 8 that declared June 2026 as National Pride Month in Durham County, citing Stonewall as the genesis of the LGBTQ+ rights movement, Durham's own history of LGBTQ activism and the county's non‑discrimination ordinance.
Jesse Huddleston, director of development and community engagement at the LGBTQ Center of Durham, thanked the board and described Pride programming and history in Durham. He urged county leaders to treat the work as ongoing civic stewardship and partnership: "We come in peace, but we mean business," Huddleston said, reiterating that the center views Pride as both celebration and protest. Ray Douly, co‑executive director, added that Pride links present work to the struggles of elders and ancestors and invited the county to remain in relationship with organizers.
Speakers from the center also listed events and resources for the public: a youth and family Pride event on June 13, an African dance event on June 20 at Bennett Place, and the Our Day Out Remembrance March and Resource Fair on June 27 beginning at CCB Plaza and ending at 114 Hunt Street; organizers said more details are online.
During public comment later in the meeting, several residents asked the board to translate words of support into budgetary action. Jack Turnwald told commissioners that budgets are "moral documents" and urged restoration of Pride funding, library programs and the county's LGBTQ committee. "What we actually need is as an apology, as repair is pride funding to be restored," Turnwald said. Laura Phoenix echoed that call.
Commissioners responded with public affirmations of support. Commissioner Jacobs, who said she attended Durham's first march in 1981, thanked the center for its leadership and said she looked forward to continued partnership. Several commissioners framed the county's role as one of accountability and committed to working with organizers to advance protections and programs.
The meeting did not include a formal vote tied directly to Pride funding; budget decisions were discussed later in the agenda and remain subject to the board’s deliberations and fiscal constraints.
The board next moved on to other ceremonial items and the regular agenda, and municipal staff said budget deliberations will continue as commissioners balance competing demands and limited revenue.
