In lieu of a picnic, Downey will proclaim June as LGBTQ Month

In lieu of a picnic, the Downey City Council agreed to proclaim June as LGBTQ Month in Downey. (Photo by Quinn Dombrowski, Creative Commons License)

DOWNEY — A proposed LGBTQ picnic failed to gain approval on Tuesday but inspired a separate decision to declare June as LGBTQ month.

The initial call for a June picnic celebration to coordinate with Pride month came from Councilwoman Catherine Alvarez, who identifies herself as bisexual.

“I know that last year, the Downey youth organized a Pride march outside of City Hall,” said Alvarez. “The youth did that because they wanted the LGBT people to feel welcome in our community; they wanted to express themselves, that there are LGBT people in this city.”

The picnic itself garnered concern from Alvarez’s council colleagues, who objected to its cost and public health concerns during the pandemic.

Mayor Claudia M. Frometa said she worried that the city using its funds and resources for such an event would set a precedent for other groups.

“Historically this community has supported the Relay for Life, which is cancer awareness and cancer survivors. We’ve supported the TLC 5K for families and the Downey Unified School District. We’ve supported of course the Downey Street Fair, the Downey Christmas Parade. I could go on and on,” said Frometa. “The city doesn’t, we don’t pay for those events. These are nonprofit organizations that come forward and raise those funds to have those events.

“If we approve an event like this, whether it’s for LGBTQ or the leaders against human trafficking, we are setting a precedent and we are opening our city for every group that wants to host something is going to come knocking on our door so that we pay for it. Any group is welcome to host whatever event they want to host; our city’s parks are available. They have to go through the process, they have to set up their own sponsorship. It shouldn’t be a city sponsored anything.”

However, this comparison was met with heavy critique, as both Alvarez and Councilman Mario Trujillo – who is openly gay – pointed to events such as Havana Nights and Dia De Los Muertos, which are city funded.

Trujillo said that “we already have the precedent.”

“I look forward every year to the Greek Festival, and they are not funded by the city; they do it all on their own. It’s always a great event,” said Trujillo. “Havana Nights, now that’s a good time, and that costs us $80,000.

“We already have the precedent Madame Mayor…The gays are here, they’re part of the community.”

As of Tuesday’s meeting, there were no details concerning how much an LGBTQ picnic would cost.

Councilmember Sean Ashton said he supported a picnic but not during a time of COVID-19.

“My one concern above all of this is the reason why I’m here [remotely] and not there with you, is the pandemic,” said Ashton. “Not that I don’t think that this could be done in a safe way, but it’s still not 100% safe to be going out…

“To me, I think it needs to happen, I’m concerned about having it in June, just because of the pandemic.”

Ultimately, it was Trujillo who offered a compromise: while no picnic or event would be scheduled, Downey would issue a proclamation recognizing June as LGBTQ month within the city.

Trujillo’s suggestion was approved unanimously.