Governor Proclaims LGBTQ Pride Month 2023

WHEREAS, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) Pride Month is celebrated nationwide each year in the month of June; and

WHEREAS, this month was chosen to commemorate the riots that took place at the Stonewall Inn in New York City on the morning of June 28, 1969, often viewed as the birth of the modern LGBTQI+ rights movement; and

WHEREAS, the United States Supreme Court extended employment protections to LGBTQI+ workers in Bostock v. Clayton County by ruling on Monday, June 15, 2020, that the 1964 Civil Rights Act protects gay, lesbian, and transgender employees from discrimination based on sex; and

WHEREAS, LGBTQI+ young people in North Carolina frequently experience bias-based bullying and harassment, with 97 percent of LGBTQI+ students reporting that they’ve heard anti-LGBTQI+ remarks from fellow students, and 62 percent of students experiencing at least one form of anti-LGBTQI+ discrimination at school; and

WHEREAS, despite this extraordinary progress, LGBTQI+ Americans still face discrimination and barriers to full economic, civic, and health opportunities; so much so that 9 percent of LGBTQI+ people are unemployed, and 22 percent of LGBTQI+ adults live in poverty and more often suffer from anxiety and depression; and

WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 24, which was issued on October 18, 2017, established policies prohibiting discrimination, harassment, and retaliation on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity or expression in state employment, state services, and state contracts under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Governor; and

WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 24 directed the Secretary of the Department of Administration to create the Commission on Inclusion which identifies policies and measures that promote diversity and inclusion; and

WHEREAS, the LGBTQI+ adult population has risen to 4 percent of our state’s population, and the State of North Carolina will continue to advocate for and defend the rights of all LGBTQI+ individuals to make our state a place where all people — regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression — are treated with dignity and respect;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, ROY COOPER, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim June, 2023, as “LGBTQ PRIDE MONTH” in North Carolina, and commend its observance to all citizens.