What started as a day to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Riots – a significant catalyst for the Gay Rights Movement – has expanded into a month of reflection, education and celebration. This Pride Month, we’re highlighting what pride means to three local leaders and what they are doing in the local LGBTQ+ community and beyond to spread inclusion, diversity and love.
Johnathan Rodriguez Baez
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer with Reading Pride
(He/Him)
The second night after Johnathan arrived in Berks from Puerto Rico, he attended an LGBT Center event and has been actively involved in the community since. Two years later, he is the Youth and Health Resource Center Coordinator for Berks Teens Matter, and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer for Reading Pride.
Education for All
Johnathan and the dedicated staff at Berks Teens Matter work with more than 32 partner organizations – including local educational institutions, healthcare providers and the City of Reading – to develop programs and practices to improve access to sexual health education and reduce teen pregnancy. But his efforts don’t stop with local youth. “Sexual health education is something that I try to bring to all things that I do. Not only because I’m passionate about it, but also because there’s a lot of stigma around it,” he explains. “Usually, when people put LGBTQ+ and sexual health together, it’s a conversation about STDs and promiscuity. That focus is too narrow; we need to be having a different conversation.”
That passion for education and open communication has impacted Johnathan’s role with Reading Pride, too. Reading Pride's mission is to celebrate diversity in the Greater Reading LGBTQ+ community, which it has done through an annual Pride Celebration since 2006. But this year, that mission is expanding. “We want to be more than just a party in the park,” Johnathan says. The executive board is expanding into educational workshops. To stay up-to-date on upcoming events, visit readingpridecelebration.org or follow @ReadingPride on Facebook.
What Does Pride Mean to You?
“I think pride is an ever-changing concept, but at the end of the day, what drives me, what comforts me when I hear hateful or negative things about my community, is being humble,” Johnathan shares.
“I’ve been a victim of homophobia, but that doesn’t mean I understand every single act of discrimination or that I’m able to put my myself in someone else’s shoes. But it does always remind me that I have pride, that I’m proud of the things that have happened in my life that made me stand up for myself, to love myself, to love the skin that I live in.”
As the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer for Reading Pride, Johnathan says that those concepts, to him, mean genuinely listening when others are sharing their experiences and trying to see them through their eyes, instead of thinking about diversity on your terms and through the lens of your own experiences.
“We need to hear more voices of females and femes; we need more voices of transmasculine and transfeminine people. Where are the intersex people when we talk about the community? We just need more presence and representation of all the letters in the LGBTQ+ alphabet. And we definitely need to stop putting together the conversation of LGBTQ+ people and STDs. We need to talk about positive sexual health education and lose the fear that I sometimes perceive of actually speaking about it in a positive way.”
Michelle Dech
Executive Director of the LGBT Center of Greater Reading
(She/Her)
The LGBT Center of Greater Reading's mission is to provide support services to the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. For Executive Director Michelle Dech, her board and their dedicated volunteer staff that means bringing the whole community together. “It’s all about inclusivity,” Michelle says of the center’s efforts. “Our LGBTQ+ community has never had an organization that provides actual support services, and we’re not the only group being underserved. When people recognize they need support, we’re here. It’s about all of us.”
Come as You Are
In 2020, the center provided programming, support and advocacy for more than 4,000 people, with its reach extending far beyond the LGBTQ+ population. In addition to personal and issue-based advocacy programs and support groups for all ages, the LGBT Center also partners with more than 50 different local organizations and businesses to offer free counseling services, a clothing and toiletry closet, and a food pantry to anyone in need throughout Berks and far beyond. The center also hosts a full calendar of events each year aimed at bringing the entire community together. Follow along on Facebook @theLGBTCenterofGreaterReading for the schedule and updates.
In only four years, the center has seen tremendous growth in size and programs offered. “We’re humbled by and grateful for all of the support we’ve received in the community. We could not do what we do without that support, and I’m not just talking about financial support. I’m talking about partnership, collaboration and acceptance,” says Dech.
Building a Support Structure
That support comes not only from local organizations and businesses but also from the city and state levels. Michelle sits on the City of Reading’s Diversity Board, where she is working closely with Mayor Eddie Moran and his administration to implement equality and equity initiatives across the county.
Her passion and her work at the city level also caught the attention of Governor Tom Wolf. Michelle was recently appointed to the Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs, the first of its kind in the country. “In order to effect change, if you’re invited to the table you need to go to the table,” Michelle says of her involvement. “It’s a joy to have an administration that we can collaborate and partner with.”
What Does Pride Mean to You?
“To me, pride is about living every day with integrity and honesty and to make a difference for others. I obviously couldn’t do what I do if I was in the closet, but even before taking on this role, for me, it was living my truth and trying to help others do the same.”
Michelle notes that Pride Month and the LGBTQ+ community’s other holidays are important for celebrating the past that brought them here and the future of intersectional equality, but “Pride isn’t just a month. It’s a 365-day-a-year state of mind. It’s living your life authentically and having the courage to speak up and live your truth. There are so many people out there who can’t do that, and I hope it gives them strength. The more people who are able to come out and live authentically, and with integrity, the better it will be for everybody.”
Eddie Moran
Mayor of Reading
(He/Him)
Mayor Eddie Moran and his administration are taking action to improve inclusivity and to celebrate diversity in the City of Reading. Since being elected in 2019, he has worked tirelessly to create a safer, more inclusive, and better city for everyone.
Leading by Example
One of Mayor Moran’s first acts in office was to reactivate the city’s Diversity Board, and although COVID-19 hindered the group’s progress in 2020, he is confident that its impacts will be felt soon. “My hope is that they will be making some significant recommendations for policies that will enhance the quality of life for the LGBTQ+ community and all the individuals in our city,” he says.
But Moran and his administration have not been sitting idle. “I am continuing to advocate for more inclusivity, diversity and acceptance. I work alongside many organizations like the LGBT Center, Reading Pride and The One Love Project and support different endeavors in public, from community clean-ups to pride festivals. I continue to unite every community member by becoming an ally and showing love and compassion. I too dream of the day where no person ever needs to come out again; they can just live.”
In addition to his community involvement, Mayor Moran implemented mandatory diversity training for the Reading Police Department in coordination with the NAACP of Reading, Abilities in Motion and the LGBT Center. He also actively advocated at the state level for the Equality Act. And his efforts are paying off. In December 2020, Reading received a score of 91/100 in the Annual Municipality Equality Index by the Human Rights Campaign – the only nationwide assessment of LGBTQ+ equality in municipal laws, policies and services. “To me, it’s an honor to lead by example and to be recognized for the inclusivity, unity and safety of the LGBTQ+ community members right here in our city,” he says.
What Does Pride Mean to You?
“As a straight man and a leader of this city, pride means many things to me. I have been exposed to the community through family members of my own who have had some challenges, who have not been comfortable, who have not felt welcome. There’s a long history of struggles and challenges for the LGBT community, and to me it’s a reminder that there’s so much more that needs to be done and that needs to change.”
The City of Reading already has ordinances in place extending protections to the LGBTQ+ community in business, credit and housing that prohibit discrimination and the dangerous practice of conversion therapy on LBGTQ+ minors. Mayor Moran and his administration are working to take these initiatives a step further by creating a safe place for voices to be heard. “My hope is that one day more people will speak up and be more open about their sexual preferences without being targeted. I hope more individuals will join those whose voices are already being heard and help them speak more loudly. I know I’m in it. I want to make sure we celebrate inclusivity, diversity and empowerment. I want to build a community where people love one another.”
