Power in numbers

Hudson Pride is Hudson County's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center

It is curious to me that in a city as politically engaged as Hoboken,  our LGBT community doesn't have it's own organization to lobby local, state and national  government on issues from civil rights to health. 

That's not a criticism, but an observation.  

Now that we have another truly progressive mayor in the area of civil rights and human equality, there couldn't be a better time for Hoboken's LGBT peeps to ponder it. 

Look at our neighbor, Jersey City. 

Last year, the Editorial Board of The Advocate ranked Jersey City #1 "Queerest" City in America- part tongue-in-cheek, part serious.   

One reason may be that in 2015, Mayor Steve Fulop expanded health care benefits to City workers to include coverage for transgender medical care and related procedures, including gender reassignment.   Fulop stated, "Government has a responsibility to be a legitimizing force, to pull people in the direction of what is right, especially on LGBT issues ...We're making sure that our transgender neighbors get the care they need."

The same year (2015) Councilman Ravi Bhalla sponsored a resolution to revise a 1959 Hoboken ordinance that banned cross-dressing, in the  "Peace and Good Order" chapter of our municipal code.

Yes, until Bhalla's resolution, cross-dressing was illegal in Hoboken. "This ordinance does not reflect today's Hoboken," Councilman Ravinder Bhalla told NJ Advance Media on Tuesday. "I see a lot of momentum moving toward ensuring equality, not just for marriage equality, but also for the LGBT community generally."

And both Bhalla and Mayor Zimmer lobbied for marriage equality before it became legal in NJ. These pics were taken at a marriage equality rally in Pier A Park on July 24, 2011.

And in 2013, Mayor Dawn Zimmer presided over the first gay marriage for Hoboken residents Peter Auperrle and Stewart Fishbein.   But the first gay couple to apply for a marriage were Hoboken residents Allen Kratz and Paul Somerville,  who have been together since 1985.

Anyway, point being we are a multi-cultural city of 50,000 or so, next door to a city with a vibrant LGBT community with it's own place to organize and congregate:  Hudson County's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center, Hudson Pride. 

Hudson Pride's Mission Statement:

Hudson Pride Connections Center is a home and voice for the diverse LGBTQ community and our allies that advocates for our physical, mental, social and political well-being. We create safe and vibrant spaces to gather and celebrate our lives.

I don't see a Hoboken Chapter of Hudson Pride anywhere on the Google. Why not a Hoboken Chapter?  

Power in numbers, LGBT people.  

What got me thinking about this was a "Meet the Mayors" event sponsored by Hudson Pride last night. Maybe Hoboken can host the next one. 

Mayors Fulop and Bhalla with Hudson Pride Executive Director Micheal Billy.