Western Kentucky town of Henderson celebrates first-ever Pride 25 years after Fairness Ordinance overturned
photo by Lauren Smith-Reed (they/she) Young people sit in front of a crowd looking towards the stage at Henderson, Kentucky’s first-ever Pride on June 30, 2024.
In 1999, the western Kentucky town of Henderson passed the fairness ordinance to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. Henderson was originally the third city in Kentucky to have LGBTQIA+ protections, alongside Louisville and Lexington.
Eighteen months later, the ordinance was repealed after the then Commissioner Robby Mills asked the city attorney to draft a measure that would repeal the ordinance and lead to a vote under a different slate of commissioners.
Then, 20 years later, the fairness ordinance was reintroduced when the former mayor, Joan Hoffman, brought the issue back up to the city commission.
Mayor Pro Tem Brad Staton, Commissioner X.R. Royster, and Commissioner Austin P. Vowels all voted in favor of the ordinance. With over a hundred Hendersonians there in support of the ordinance, the fairness ordinance passed again in 2019.
Now, five years later, Henderson held its first Pride event on June 30, 2024 at The Chloe Randolph Foundation. The event was led and organized by a born and bred Hendersonian, 19-year-old rising sophomore at Bellarmine, Cooper Beck.
Growing up LGBTQIA+ in Henderson, Beck spoke at the event of being the only queer person he knew for a long time. In an interview with Queer Kentucky, he shares that he has “always wanted to see a pride event in Henderson.”
With his hard work and the support of other organizers, that he did.
To make it even more special, Mayor Pro Tem Brad Staton and Commissioner Austin P. Vowels came out to support. In their speech, the pair declared June 2024 as “National Pride Month” for Henderson, Kentucky. In their speeches, they align this proclamation with inviting “all citizens to actively promote the principles of equality and liberty for all, irrespective of sexual orientation of gender identity.”
Chris Hartman, executive director of the Fairness Campaign which supported Henderson in passing the Fairness Ordinance, gave his statement on Henderson Pride:
It’s so exciting to see Henderson host its first Pride Festival this year. Henderson was a pioneer for LGBTQIA+ rights in Kentucky when they became the third community in our commonwealth to protect LGBTQIA people from discrimination. Despite the Henderson Fairness Ordinance repeal in 2001, the resilience of LGBTQIA+ people in Henderson persisted. That resilience led to the second passage of Fairness in 2019 and now the first Pride celebration. With so few Western Kentucky communities stepping up to celebrate and protect LGBTQIA+ people, Henderson’s leadership and visibility could not be more important today.
That resilience, leadership, and visibility of Henderson’s LGBTQIA+ community was at the forefront of Henderson’s first-ever Pride. While there was so much joy in the celebration, there were whispers around the crowd that they never thought they’d live to see the day that Henderson would hold a Pride event.
Among those folks was Phyllis Ward, a retired guidance counselor whose husband was on the commission that originally passed the fairness ordinance in 1999. Ward shares that her husband, Sonny Ward, pushed the efforts alongside Joan Hoffman and Michelle Deep.
In an interview with Queer Kentucky, she recalled the multiple hearings that drew over 800 people and lasted as late as 2 a.m. some nights. She saw how difficult it was to get the initial passage, and she supported Hoffman in pushing for the Fairness Ordinance again in 2019.
When Ward walked up to Henderson’s first-ever Pride, she thought the group of about 10 people in front of the lot was the event. Turns out, it was the 300 people under rainbow tents behind them.
She says, “This event makes me want to cry. It does. We all fought for this for decades, and here it is. It makes me have cold chills: to know that Sonny died this past year and that he would be so proud too.”
Swan De’Leone is the PrEp Navigator at Matthew 25, which strives to reduce new HIV infections and improve quality of life through holistic care, support, services, and education.
In an interview with Queer Kentucky, De’Leone shared that he was sometimes uncomfortable growing up queer in Henderson. While he went through bullying and discrimination, he has been lucky to have family and friends behind him.
On how he feels to see Henderson having its first Pride, he shares that it “literally brings him tears of joy.” He also noted the hope in seeing Cooper Beck, who is such a young and talented organizer, pull this off.
For De’Leone, Henderson Pride was a reminder that, “We have to fight for what’s right, even if it’s uncomfortable. It’s all for the next generation.”
Among the many vendors were Matthew 25, Fairness Campaign, Henderson Tourist Commission, Henderson County Public Library, local businesses, and churches.
Reverend Lauren McDuffie (she/her) is a pastor at Community Baptist Church, who had a table at the event. As many folks in the LGBTQIA+ community have experienced harm from the church, Reverend McDuffie wants to “particularly” welcome those who have been harmed. She shares that she and the church “want to be part of this event and support this message that everyone is welcomed and loved.”
Although she only moved to Henderson about a year ago, Reverend McDuffie was not shocked to see Henderson’s Pride event put on. She says, “Among the people I’ve gotten to know in Henderson, this is not surprising. In fact, this is exactly the community I have gotten to know. But, it is exciting.”
Sharing her excitement for Henderson’s first-ever Pride were the owners of Corkscrew Curiosities, Jasmine Elzy and Kyla Ford. The locally owned Antique and Oddities shop was designed as a downtown space where folks can shop, hangout, and be welcomed as themselves.
Elzy shares that she grew up in a religious household where she was not exposed to the LGBTQIA+ community. Now, she and Ford have created a local business that is an inclusive and embracing space for everyone, with special care for the LGBTQIA+ community.
“It’s not enough to be tolerated and accepted. The LGBTQIA+ community deserves to be celebrated,” Elzy says.
The event had a drag showcase featuring: Summer Malone, Paris Starz, Lady Jasmine Michaels, Vivika Darko, Kitt St. Clair, Griffin, and Sofia Starz. Following them was a live performance from Manii the Gem ft. Slippery When Wet and Rush Slocum.
And for 4 hours, in the blistering heat, the performers, organizers, speakers, vendors, and community members ensured that the LGBTQIA+ community of Henderson was celebrated.