Sophie Sonnenfeld Photos
Jody Clouse (second from the right) with her daughters Mya (left) and Sylvia and town arts chief Alisha Martindale (right) at first-ever town Pride event.
Jody Clouse got “a little teary” as she helped raise a rainbow Pride flag for the first time in her hometown’s Center Park.
Clouse, Hamden’s first out lesbian Legislative Council member, was participating Saturday in the town’s first official Pride event.
Seventy people attended the event to stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community, speak with local action organizations, and watch the Square Foot Theater Company perform.
Clouse, a Hamden native, organized the event along with the Hamden Department of Arts and Culture. “When I was growing up in Hamden we didn’t have anything like this. If I did, I think my life would have possibly taken a different trajectory,” she said.
Clouse stressed the importance of engaging youth in events like this one. “We want people, especially young people, to be able to put words to who they are and to fight against bullying and harassment.”
Clouse said she feels that Hamden is as accepting towards open members of the LGBTQ+ community as larger cities like New Haven. Clouse said she moved back to Hamden as an adult because the laws where she lived in Georgia did not protect her family. “It’s so nice to raise my family here in Hamden knowing that my family and children will be supported.”
Hamden High School and Middle School Pride Club members ran a face painting booth at Saturday’s event. Eight members painted rainbow designs and flags throughout the afternoon. The high school Pride Club has 32 members while the middle school club has 18.
Morgan Tobio (second from the right) with fellow Hamden High School and Hamden Middle School students at their face painting booth.
Both high school and middle school members said they feel their schools are accepting of the LGBTQ+ community. “Lots of kids don’t think they have people there for them and they don’t feel safe, but events like this show that there are always people there for them” said Hamden High School student Morgan Tobio.
CT Gay Men’s Chorus singers Paul DiMauro (center) Matthew Brand (left) and AJ Ganaros
The CT Gay Men’s Chorus had a table set up at the event to promote their organization and upcoming concerts. About four of the 35 CT Gay Men’s Chorus members live in Hamden. “The event today is a validation of Hamden’s attitude towards the LGBTQ+ community,” said chorus member Paul DiMauro.
Mayor Curt Leng attended the event to proclaim Saturday, Oct. 12 as “Pride Day” in Hamden. Leng spoke in solidarity with the Hamden LGBTQ+ community and in support of two event organizers, Clouse and Valerie Horsley, who are running for Hamden Town Council seats in the Nov. 5 election.
“I think of Hamden as a more inclusive community, but through reflection and listening I know there’s a lot more we can do and having events like this are a great step in the right direction,” said Leng.
Cait Candles owner Angela Crow vends handmade candles at Pride events across Connecticut. Crow’s business is based in Middletown.
A band of actors from Square Foot Theater in Wallingford performed a number from their upcoming musical, Rocky Horror Picture Show, which runs Oct. 18- 26.
Square Foot Theater actors also performed “True Colors,” “Let it Go,” and a singalong to “Seasons of Love.”
Horsley is part of a group of activists who are planning to hold a Pride event in every town in Connecticut. “It is important we acknowledge that everyone belongs in town, and I think events like this stand as a testament to our young people to let them know whoever they are, they will always be welcome,” she said.
Valerie Horsley (right) with her daughter Avery Rodeheffer.
“We have to make sure that everyone is getting the support and resources they need,” she added.
“Hamden is broken up into smaller communities, but everyone coming together to support each other today is really powerful.”