After Great Falls mayor declines Pride proclamation, advocates see missed opportunity for support

April 14 kicked off Animal Control Officer Appreciation Week. National Deaf Youth Day was on March 6. May was Jewish American Heritage Month.

The city of Great Falls memorialized these dates with official proclamations, routine recognitions that are read aloud at the beginning of city commission meetings. 

But on June 3, a day before a city commission meeting, Great Falls Mayor Cory Reeves took an unusual step. He announced in a Facebook post that he would not be issuing a proclamation to recognize June as Pride Month.

“While I firmly believe in equality for all individuals, I also believe that the government should not be involved in matters concerning personal and private relationships, whether they involve straight individuals or members of the LGBTQ+ community,” his post said in part.

The decision sparked a strong reaction from members of the LGBTQ+ community in Great Falls, some of which came during public comment at the commission meeting on June 4. Speakers shared emotional testimony about their experiences as LGBTQ+ residents or supporters of the community. Many of the same speakers lobbied in support of the failed non-discrimination ordinance of 2020. And it was a reversal from the city’s first Pride Month proclamation a year ago under former Mayor Bob Kelly.

“By not proclaiming June as Pride Month, which everywhere is, it has done some harm, some hurt,” said Mathew Pipinich, owner of Luna Coffee Bar and president of the Great Falls LGBTQ+ Center. “[Mayor Reeves] has a chance to rectify this. The whole commission has the chance to rectify.”

Days after the commission meeting, Reeves doubled down. In another Facebook post, he said he was considering ending all proclamations on behalf of the city. More than 100 comments followed.

Reeves told Montana Free Press that he knew his first post would stir up emotions.

“At the time, I was trying to be transparent with the community,” he said.

Reeves said he didn’t want to appear to be sweeping his decision under the rug, so he decided to try and explain his reasoning ahead of the meeting. He reiterated his view that a small government shouldn’t weigh in on a matter like Pride Month.

“I firmly believe government should stay out of people’s lives when it comes to love and relationships,” Reeves said.

At the June 4 meeting, Commissioner Susan Wolff said the decision not to issue a proclamation was upsetting. Commissioner Shannon Wilson also disagreed with the mayor, saying that the LGBTQ+ community deserves recognition in the face of discrimination.

Reeves received a strong message of support from Commissioner Rick Tryon, who said it was “reprehensible” that public commenters had stressed that discrimination leads to higher rates of suicide among LGBTQ+ people. 

“Implying that anybody on this city commission or the mayor was doing something out of some homophobic or bigoted motivation is wrong,” Tryon said at the end of the commission meeting. “And I take great exception to it.”

It was a local pastor, the Rev. Lynne Spencer-Smith, who cited information from The Trevor Project that young LGBTQ+ people are more likely to attempt suicide, not because of their sexual orientation but from the marginalization they face from their communities. She works at First Congregational United Church of Christ, which welcomes LGBTQ+ members.

A few days after that meeting, Spencer-Smith said a proclamation is meant to uplift groups and recognize their impact in Great Falls. She said skipping the proclamation sends the opposite message.

“Unfortunately, I think it’s a reflection of a broader movement in society,” she said. “They devalue a significant demographic in the community. I think it’s hurtful. I think it’s hateful. I think it puts a number of people at risk.”

One speaker on June 4 mentioned the John P. Carr case as an example of violence that can be directed toward LGBTQ+ people. In February 2023, Great Falls police arrested Carr after he allegedly rammed his pickup into a person, pinning them against a building and causing life-threatening injuries. It wasn’t clear in charging documents how the victim identified or expressed their gender, but police said Carr yelled at the victim about being transgender before the attack.

Prosecutors charged Carr with failure to remain at the scene and with criminal endangerment. He pleaded not guilty in March of 2023. The case remains active but unresolved, and Carr is out of custody after posting bond.

Being an LGBTQ+ person in Great Falls reflects a range of experiences, Pipinich said. He sees the decision not to issue a Pride Month proclamation as a denial of recognition that can be hard-won for members of that community.

“It’s not as represented. It’s not as openly discussed,” he said. “And when I mean openly discussed, I’m approaching this whole situation as a lack of education.”

He said the Great Falls LGBTQ+ Center will expand its outreach, both to the public and to public officials. That includes some events for Pride Month, which will be scattered throughout June. Pipinich said he wants to avoid an “us-versus-them” mentality over this issue.

Reeves said on Tuesday that he will consider proclamation requests on a case-by-case basis going forward. For example, he said that he recently rejected a request to recognize the merits of breastfeeding, which he sees as a personal topic outside of the city’s purview.

For Pipinich, the non-proclamation speaks to larger historical challenges for LGBTQ+ residents in Great Falls. But looking at this case in a vacuum, he wondered why the mayor took what seemed like the tougher road.

“It doesn’t change anything for you to proclaim it,” he said. “It changes everything to not proclaim it.”

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