OPINION: Pride isn't a zero-sum game — it's a shared victory.
At the April 14 Select Board meeting, the Board voted to approve flying the Pride Progress Flag on every fourth flagpole — with all other poles flying the American flag — during the month of June to celebrate Pride Month.
Since then, a debate has broken out in our town, largely on social media. The dissent has taken two main forms: first, that the town wasn’t given enough notice that the Select Board would be voting on this issue; and second, that flying the Pride Progress Flag alongside the American flag diminishes our town’s tradition of honoring veterans from Memorial Day to Veterans Day.
This debate has deeply disheartened me.
On the first point: I agree. We started this website because we, too, felt it was often hard to know when important decisions were happening. I understand that it’s easier to embrace change when you feel you’ve had a voice in it. If this is your concern, I invite you to join us — reach out, follow our updates, and come to meetings. Together, we can make Williamstown’s civic life more accessible to everyone.
But it is the second point — the idea that the Pride Flag somehow disrespects veterans — that truly breaks my heart.
I come from the Heartland. Every male member of my family has served in the military for as long as we can trace our roots. Growing up in Indiana in the 1990s and 2000s, more of my classmates enlisted the military than attended four-year colleges. I honor and understand the sacrifices our service members make for this country.
Five years ago, I chose to make Williamstown my home. I feel grateful every day to live in a place that values community, history, and care for one another. It’s because I love this town — and believe in its spirit — that this debate pains me so deeply.
To pit military families against LGBTQ+ members of our community misunderstands the truth: many LGBTQ+ people have long been, and continue to be, dedicated service members themselves.
That is why I know in my heart that the Pride Flag honors our veterans.
I have watched loved ones suffer under "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell," risking their lives for a country that demanded they hide who they were. To oppose the Pride Flag in the name of honoring veterans erases the reality that many who have worn the uniform are LGBTQ+ themselves.
Flying the Pride Flag is not an act of division. It is an act of recognition, of dignity, and of love — the very values that every veteran I have ever known fought to protect.
We are a community. We will not always agree on everything, but we must come together, listen to one another, and understand that uplifting one group does not diminish another.
Issues like this are not a zero-sum game.
Pride in our LGBTQ+ veterans is pride in all our veterans.
When we raise the Pride Progress Flag during the month of June, we honor many members of our town — without taking anything away from anyone else.
Pride in our LGBTQ+ veterans is pride in all our veterans.
When we raise the Pride Progress Flag during the month of June, we honor many members of our town — without taking anything away from anyone else.
When we meet one another with openness and compassion, we create a better Williamstown for all of us. Together.
Published: April 27, 2025
Written by: Ky
