***PRESS RELEASE*** State Representative Raghib Allie-Brennan Responds to Anti-LGBTQ Rhetoric During Pride Month

[Bailey, Samantha]

For IMMEDIATE Release                                                                                       Contact: Samantha Bailey

Wednesday, June 3, 2026                                                        samanth...@cga.ct.gov, 860-240-8565

 

State Representative Raghib Allie-Brennan Responds to

Anti-LGBTQ Rhetoric During Pride Month

 

BETHEL, CT — State Representative Raghib Allie-Brennan, Co-Chair of the Connecticut General Assembly’s LGBTQ Caucus, released the following statement in response to recent anti-LGBTQ comments made by Republican candidate Jadon MacCormack during Pride Month:

 

“The existence of LGBTQ people continues to be a very difficult experience for some folks. It’s always fascinating to see who turns Pride Month into a personal crisis and campaign issue.

 

At a time when Connecticut families are focused on affordability, housing costs, healthcare, and making ends meet, it is remarkable that some candidates still believe the existence of LGBTQ people is a political issue worth campaigning on.

 

Pride Month is a celebration of community, visibility, and the simple idea that every person deserves the freedom to live openly and authentically. It is not an attack on anyone, nor is it a threat to anyone.

 

While I believe the overwhelming majority of Connecticut residents reject this kind of divisive rhetoric, we should not pretend it does not exist. We see it in attacks on Pride celebrations, in hostile comments directed at LGBTQ people, and in political campaigns that seek to score points by portraying an entire community as something to fear.

 

What is most troubling about comments like these is not simply that they are offensive. It is that they encourage people to view their neighbors, coworkers, classmates, and family members as political problems rather than human beings deserving of dignity and respect.

 

As an openly gay legislator, I know firsthand that Connecticut has made tremendous progress. I also know that progress should never be taken for granted. Pride Month exists because visibility matters. Representation matters. And every person deserves to know they belong in their community exactly as they are.

 

Connecticut is strongest when we choose inclusion over division and when we focus on bringing people together rather than turning our neighbors into political targets for campaign purposes.”

 

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Samantha Bailey (She/Her/Hers)

Press Aide | Connecticut House Democrats

Cell: (860) 559-4540

Office: (860) 240-8565

 

Contact for: Rep. Raghib Allie-Brennan | Rep. Andre Baker | Rep. Patrick Boyd | Rep. Eilish Collins Main | Rep. Dave DeFronzo | Rep. Hubert Delany | Rep. Geoff Luxenberg | Rep. Kara Rochelle |Rep. Iris Sanchez | Rep. Kaitlyn Shake

 

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