Cory Soller, co-chair of Michigan City Pride, isn’t letting any statements by Indiana’s leaders stop him from celebrating Pride month.
To him, it’s not significant.
“You can call it by any other name, but to the people who celebrate Pride month, it does not matter,” Soller said. “Part of the difference in what we do versus what the governor has done is we are building bridges. We’re inviting. … He’s building up walls.”
On Monday, Gov. Mike Braun declared June as “nuclear family month” in Indiana, which LGBTQ+ activists and leaders statewide have claimed felt like an attack.
Others have claimed it’s a political charade to distract from issues statewide, including the rising cost of living.
“As a father of four and grandfather of seven, I have seen firsthand the impact that loving, committed families can have across multiple generations,” Braun said in a Monday Twitter/X post, which included a photo of the proclamation. “As we approach America’s 250th anniversary, this proclamation recognizes the important role families play in shaping the future of our state and our country.
“Indiana will continue supporting policies that strengthen families and help the next generation thrive.”
Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith doubled down on social media, posting on his official Twitter/X account that “Nuclear Families are less likely to be in poor health, less likely to live in poverty, less likely to become victims of abuse, and more likely to succeed academically.”
On his personal Twitter/X account, he posted a graphic saying, “Take back the rainbow!” He also included a Bible verse Genesis 9:12-13, adding, “Thank you Governor Braun for defending Heaven’s Truth!”
In a Tuesday news conference, Braun said the proclamation wasn’t targeted at LGBTQ+ groups statewide.
“This isn’t about any other statement other than that the nuclear family is important,” Braun said. “You’re going to have others that might say otherwise, but that’s not the case.”
According to U.S. Census data, about 18% of Indiana families are married couples with children, also known as nuclear families. Because of this, Soller said Braun’s proclamation disparages more than 80% of Hoosiers, including the LGBTQ+ community, single parents, grandparents raising children and foster families.
Although he feels Braun is building up a wall with “the vast majority” of Indiana residents, Soller said, he said Michigan City Pride Fest won’t do the same.
“We invite all kinds of families to join us,” Soller said. “Like I said, we’re going to build a bridge. We’re going to make sure that nuclear families are invited. It’s a family-friendly event, and we’re going to make sure that all types of families are included.”
Michigan City Pride Fest will be from 1 to 8 p.m. June 13 at the Guy Foreman Amphitheatre, 115 Lake Shore Drive.
Indiana Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Tallian said anyone who sees the proclamation has to question Braun’s motives for issuing it during Pride month. She believes it’s a distraction from other issues Hoosiers face daily.
“This whole proclamation is pretty much a foolish response to what’s really going on in Indiana,” said Tallian, who’s also a former state senator. “I mean, if he wants to talk about the factors that negatively affect children, then he ought to be talking about poverty. We know we have hundreds of thousands of people living here who — although they may not meet the federal poverty definition — they still can’t meet their basic needs.”
Tallian also called the proclamation meaningless and part of a nationwide “culture war” that President Donald Trump started.
“We’ve got serious problems here,” she added. “We need to be talking about workers, wages and wallets. We need to be talking about public education, childcare, health care, the fact that our gas prices are high, and the fact that we’ve got a war going on in Iran that nobody wants.”
Leah Peksenak, the president of Northwest Indiana Pridefest, said it “was deeply unsurprising” that Braun issued a proclamation calling June nuclear family month at the start of Pride month given his politics and the way conservatives address Pride month.
The proclamation is similar to the calls from some groups that there should be months or celebrations to honor dominant culture, like straight pride month, Peksenak said. But those celebrations aren’t needed because the dominant culture is celebrated everyday as people in those groups don’t have to fear their rights being taken away, she said.
“It can only hit so hard when you have been playing the same hits for years now. Like, ‘Okay, cool, great. You don’t like us? Wow,’” Peksenak said.
People in the LGBTQ+ community have a thick skin because they have to, Peksenak said. But, every moment of exclusion hurts, she said, and it’s a reminder that there is a part of society that doesn’t want them to exist.
Pride month is about joy and resistance and the joy of resistance, Peksenak said, and it’s a time to be “out, proud, loud” and having fun while acknowledging that there’s a lot of fighting left to do.
“The world may want us in closets and quiet and Pride month is the big moment of the year where it’s like, ‘No, we’re going to make you uncomfortable and we’re going to have as much fun as we can and be who we are,’” Peksenak said.
Northwest Indiana Pridefest will be held on from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on June 6 and 7 at Sunset Hill Farm County Park, located at 775 Meridian Road in Valparaiso.
Research has found a two-parent household is most beneficial for children, Peksenak said, and that gay men have the lowest divorce rate in the country.
“So if you’re saying that it’s better for there to be two parents around, straight couples have a much worse record of actually following through on that than gay couples do,” Peksenak said.
Peksenak, who is also involved in interfaith social justice-minded groups, said she’s talked with members of those groups about drafting a proclamation of their own to address Beckwith’s comments about Islam, which he called a “demonic death cult,” and Braun’s nuclear family proclamation.
The goal of the counter proclamation, and Pride month celebrations, is to “outshine” the comments made by Indiana government officials, Peksenak said.
“So that people know that Indiana’s leadership has its problems but there are plenty of people here who love you, who you are safe around and who want you to be who you are,” Peksenak said. “We do deserve better from our leaders and we don’t have to keep settling for people who openly hate us.”
Zoe O’Haillen-Berne, senior director of engagement and advocacy for IYG — formerly Indiana Youth Group — said it’s “very upsetting” that Braun’s population is going to reach the state’s youth, especially those who are members of the LGBTQ+ community, those who aren’t yet out or those raised by LGBTQ+ parents.
“To tell these young people that their family is not as valid as another is heartbreaking,” O’Haillen-Berne said. “It seems so unnecessary to uplift one family structure while intentionally making another feel less than.”
Through her work, O’Haillen-Berne said she’s seen kids who are “clearly upset” but believe it’s a common occurrence to feel attacked by their leaders. She thinks that makes IYG’s work more important because the group is dedicated to creating a safe space for all Hoosiers to feel welcome and validated.
O’Haillen-Berne said Braun’s proclamation is “another attempt at erasure,” but it’s upsetting to come during the one month to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community.
“It almost seems to mock (the community),” she added. “It seems almost like he’s thumbing his nose at the LGBTQ+ community, which is just heartbreaking, and it’s so unnecessary.”
LGBTQ+ Outreach of Porter County’s board of directors issued a statement sharing the organization’s disappointment in the governor’s proclamation.
“The timing of this proclamation, issued during Pride Month, is intentionally hurtful for many LGBTQ+ Hoosiers. At a time when LGBTQ+ individuals and families continue to seek equal treatment, safety and belonging, this proclamation risks reinforcing exclusion and stigma. It sends a message that LGBTQ+ families are somehow outside the state’s preferred vision of family life, despite the fact that we are your neighbors, coworkers, taxpayers, parents, children and community leaders,” according to the statement.
Indiana is home to diverse families including married and unmarried couples, single parents, grandparents raising grandchildren, blended families, adoptive families and LGBTQ+ parents and children. Each family contributes to the strength, stability and prosperity in the communities they live in, according to the statement.
“Government proclamations should acknowledge and celebrate that diversity rather than imply that some families are more legitimate or worthy of recognition than others,” according to the statement.
Research has shown that children benefit from living in an environment where they are loved, supported and provided with stability — regardless of their parents’ gender, sexual orientation or marital status, according to the statement.
“Public policy and public leadership should be grounded in these realities rather than in rhetoric that divides communities,” according to the statement.
Kim Eldridge, president of Indivisible NWI, also said she wasn’t surprised to see Braun’s proclamation, but the fact that it was done during June “speaks volumes.”
“It seems like he was making a big statement,” Eldridge said.
Although the proclamation might not seem major, she’s worried about what it means for the future of LGBTQ+ rights and acceptance in Indiana and nationwide.
Eldridge also said she feels the proclamation makes women “feel less than,” saying it adds onto comments from Trump and Vice President JD Vance encouraging women to have as many babies as they can. However, Eldridge said she believes the majority of Indiana residents don’t agree with state and federal leaders’ attempts to make LGBTQ+ and female populations feel inferior.
“I think there are plenty of people across the country who are close-minded, but I don’t think they’re in the majority any more,” she said. “But, (Braun’s proclamation) is still a horrible thing.”
