NUGGET #82
FIRST ‘PRIDE’ DAY: “A Celebration of Community: Straight, Gay and Lesbian“ took place in 1998, on the Community Center lawn. About 60 people attended the event, which was organized by ROUND (Ridgefielders Organized for Understanding & Diversity), led by Mark Robinson, and was supported by clergy, representatives of PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbian and Gay), then-Congressman Jim Maloney, the Inside-Out Players led by Ruth Leibowitz, and Harvey Fierstein. Just a year later, a Rainbow Flag was flown for the first time in the nation over a state capitol, Hartford, on March 21, 1999.
From reporter Julian Knox’s account in The Ridgefield Press of Ridgefield’s celebration in 1998: “The featured speaker was acclaimed actor, playwright and longtime Ridgefielder Harvey Fierstein, who emphasized the significance of holding the event: ‘It’s much too easy to ignore gays and lesbians in the community — most are invisible and it’s easy to forget they’re part of the community.’ “
The celebration included music and a prayer by the Rev. Richard Gilchrist of St. Stephen’s Church and a reading by Rabbi Jon Haddon, as well as presentations by the Ridgefield High School Diversity Club and the Inside-Out Players and music by Dave Goldenberg.
