Pride event will be held in North Brookfield after settlement reached with town, ACLU says
An upcoming Pride event and drag show will be held in North Brookfield in June after the town reached a settlement with the ACLU and the Rural Justice Network to allow the event, the civil rights group said.
According to the settlement, the North Brookfield Planning Board has approved a permit for Small Town Pride on June 29, after two Board of Selectmen members had initially blocked a permit for the event, which includes plans for a drag show, according to a statement from the ACLU released Monday.
As part of the settlement, the town agrees not to interfere with Small Town Pride in the future and will pay damages and attorneys’ fees, according to the ACLU.
“We are pleased for the assurance that this settlement affords our clients, as well as compensation for harms caused by the unlawful interference by two Select Board members,” Ruth Bourquin, senior managing attorney at the ACLU of Massachusetts, said in a statement. “North Brookfield has now taken steps we hope will ensure that groups like the Rural Justice Network can exercise their right to express themselves equally and openly in public spaces. We look forward to celebrating Small Town Pride this year and for many years to come.”
In October, the Rural Justice Network requested permission to host its fourth annual Small Town Pride celebration on the North Brookfield Town Common in June.
During a Board of Selectmen meeting in November, after event organizers confirmed the celebration would include a drag performance that would not be hidden from public view in a tent, the Board of Selectmen chairman and then-vice chairman “refused to approve the Rural Justice Network’s request and explained that the decision meant that the application for the event permit ‘doesn’t go forward,’” according to the ACLU.
“This prompted an ACLU lawsuit in December, alleging a pattern of discriminatory treatment, violations of free expression and assembly rights, and unlawful discrimination on the basis of gender,” the ACLU statement said. The lawsuit was filed in Worcester County Superior Court.
Boston 25 has reached out to the town for comment on the matter.
According to the ACLU, last April, the Board of Selectmen chairman and vice chairman tried to block a drag performance in its 2023 Small Town Pride celebration. The event ultimately went forward as planned after the ACLU and North Brookfield’s legal counsel became involved.
North Brookfield is a small town located west of Worcester. The town’s population was 4,735 at the 2020 census.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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