June Celebrations

Pride Month

In June, we commemorate Pride Month as we strive to make our region a more diverse and equitable place, where all people are seen, heard and valued. Pride Month is about teaching tolerance, understanding Pride history, advocating for collective visibility and supporting legislation that promotes fair practices.

In 1999, President Bill Clinton proclaimed June to be “Gay and Lesbian Pride Month”. Since then, it’s been renamed twice to “LGBT Pride Month'' by President Barack Obama, and most recently “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) Pride Month'' by President Joe Biden.

This month, we reflect on the legislation that seeks to protect the LGBTQ+ community and the efforts that have led us toward progress.

In 1972, Title IX went into effect to end discriminatory practices in schools based on an individual's sex. Michigan's 1976 Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act and the subsequent law signed into effect on March 31, 1977 prohibited discrimination in Michigan only on the basis of "religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status, or marital status" in employment, housing, education and access to public accommodations. A ruling in 2022 further expanded the scope of the law explicitly to include LGBT+ people. 

Michigan has made progress in recent years toward greater equality thanks in part to Equality Michigan, a statewide LGBTQ+ advocacy network, and community-based groups like Up North Pride.

Juneteenth

It was June 19, 1865, nearly nine decades after the founding of the United States and more than two years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, when federal troops finally took control of Galveston, Texas to ensure the freeing of all 250,000 enslaved people. 

On Dec. 6, 1865, the 13th Amendment was adopted, and slavery in America was formally abolished. 

Juneteenth was officially proclaimed a federal holiday on June 17, 2021 by President Joe Biden to celebrate the freedom of Black Americans. On this day, we honor the progress that has been made in our country since that time, and acknowledge the work that still needs to be done. 

For several years, a local anti-racism task force, E3 (Educate, Elevate, Engage), has joined Northwestern Michigan College to present their annual Juneteenth event.