CHEVIOT, Ohio — A resolution to declare June as Pride Month in Cheviot moved forward on a 3-1 vote Tuesday after a contentious hearing.
It was standing room only at the city council meeting with a public comment section over an hour long. Community members both for and against the resolution spoke.
"People are here for this pride drama,” one Cheviot resident said. “Nobody comes to Cheviot city council meetings unless there's a reason to care about this town."
Only council member Brian Smyth voted against the resolution.
"A celebration for the way people have sex, I think, is inappropriate," Smyth said during the meeting.
Many members of the public spoke directly to Smith about comments he made during the meeting and social media posts he made online. Prior to Tuesday night’s meeting, Smyth made a post on Nextdoor saying in part, “I promise you if this goes forward, there will be half-naked debauchery led parades In the streets as well as replacing the American flag with the rainbow flag.”
Smyth concluded the post by stating, “This is part of the grooming process for our families and children it has to stop.”
“I don’t think people see me walking around with my wife, my kids, and see that as me flaunting our sex life,” one person said during the meeting.
Others that spoke during public comment agreed with Smyth.
"If these lifestyles are not healthy then maybe we should not be promoting a parade or celebration of lifestyles that are not healthy," one resident said.
Since the majority of committee members voted in support of the resolution tonight, it will move forward. The final vote will be at the next city council meeting on June 7.
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