West Lindsey District Council today raised the rainbow flag outside Guildhall to celebrate the beginning of Pride Month.
Newly appointed Chairman of the Council, Cllr Stephen Bunney, raised the flag just after 10am, accompanied by member of the Gainsborough LGBT+ group, Psy Tesla; Director of Planning, Regeneration and Communities at West Lindsey District Council, Sally Grindrod-Smith; and Customer Services Officer, Brad Bishell.
Chairman Cllr Bunney said: “People who haven’t fitted into sexual or gender norms, throughout history, have been sidelined, and even persecuted.
“LGBT+ Pride Month gives us an opportunity to acknowledge their contribution to society and to remind us that LGBT+ people, whether they identified that way or not, have always existed. With one in five LGBT+ people in the UK experiencing a hate crime every year, we should take a moment to find comfort in the work of those who spoke up and who lived with love and joy, despite difficult circumstances in which they lived.”
Also speaking at the ceremony, Psy Tesla, said: “I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in making this flag raising happen. As a community we are looked upon as non-members of society because of our life choices, but we are still part of this community and always will be.”