LEBANON, Ohio — Lebanon held its third annual Pride Festival downtown last weekend, but the celebration drew controversy after a city council member attended — and not as a supporter.
Lebanon Pride Chairperson Leslie Nahigyan said the push to bring a Pride event to Lebanon made its way to Mulberry Plaza three years ago.
"Pride exists as a protest. It exists as a celebration, and there are people in the LGBTQ+ community in every geographic area of our country," Nahigyan said.
Nahigyan said the idea for Lebanon Pride was born from a vision of "one day seeing 100 drag queens parading down Broadway."
Watch: Lebanon Pride chairperson speaks out following pushback
City Council Member Mike Cope attended this year's festival after being welcomed in a social media post, but made clear he was not there in support. Cope responded in a post, saying that the event does not celebrate a lifestyle that represents the majority of Lebanon, though he acknowledged it reflects freedom of speech.
"We're very excited to see a councilman attend. I wish he had taken the time to spend in the festival, talk with some folks, because we've had feedback from festival goers from year one that they want to see their council members," Nahigyan said.
Cope went on to call for others to join him in monitoring the entertainment next year. He also urged the state Senate to pass legislation that would not allow drag performances in spaces where minors are present.
Festival organizers said the event was family-friendly and followed all of the city's decency standards.
"We had some folks ... handing out religious literature during our pride festival. They were polite. We were polite. There was no issue, but his call to action almost feels militant, so that is a worry," Nahigyan said.
Cope declined to comment for this story. He said he has been receiving harassment and threats since his posts on social media.
Mayor Mark Messer condemned the harassment directed at Cope, saying it crossed a line.
"What happened to Councilman Cope crossed the line. I support free expression and criticism of public officials. But photographing someone without his knowledge, fabricating his intentions to provoke a reaction, and then using AI to place him in drag so the public would believe he was part of the festival is not free expression or fair criticism, it's bullying, it's harassment, and it was designed to deceive. We can disagree strongly on issues in this city, and we do. But deliberately deceiving residents with fabricated images degrades trust. And now it has gone further with Councilman Cope receiving written death threats. That is a crime, and it is being taken seriously. This behavior should not and will not be tolerated or condoned," Messer said.
Nahigyan said threats and harassment are not what Lebanon Pride stands for.
"That is not the way Lebanon Pride operates. We operate as non-confrontational. Doesn't mean we're not going to push the envelope in a respectful, nonviolent way when we can. We will certainly do that, but yeah there doesn't need to be any threat of violence," Nahigyan said.
Pride organizers said the controversy will not stop them from returning for year four, and they hope to be treated as any other festival downtown.
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