BUFFALO, N.Y. — On Tuesday, city and county leaders along with members of the LGBTQ+ community gathered to witness as the Pride flag was raised above Niagara Square.
The flag-raising kicked off the start of Pride Week as it returns since the pandemic shut down all the festivals and parades two years ago.
“Buffalo Pride Week takes on special significance this year in the wake of the May 14 tragedy at the Jefferson Avenue Tops Market, when a hate-filled outsider came to our City and took the lives of 10 innocent people, for the premeditated purpose of eliminating those who were different from him,” Mayor Brown said.
In May 2018, Mayor Brown instituted a progressive set of City of Buffalo Workplace Gender Transition Guidelines for city employees, as part of his mission to make Buffalo a City of Opportunity for all.
“We celebrate Pride week as an act of liberation, both in celebration of and in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community. You are seen and you are loved!” City of Buffalo Chief Diversity Officer Chantele Thompson said.
Buffalo’s City Hall dome and BuffaloLIT sites will be lit in rainbow colors on May 31 and Wednesday, June 1, to mark Buffalo Pride Week 2022.