Mansfield is Proud

Text "Mansfield is Proud" written over an intersex-inclusive progress pride flag
Town of Mansfield Charter Oak Logo in the colors of the Pride flag


June is LGBTQIA2S+ Pride Month in Mansfield


Join the Town of Mansfield in celebrating and supporting our LGBTQIA2S+ friends and neighbors this June!

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PRIDE FLAG RAISING CEREMONY

  • Thursday, June 1 at 4:00 PM
  • at the Audrey P. Beck Municipal Building (Town Hall)
  • Free and open to everyone

Mayor Moran and members of the Town Council will raise the Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride flag over the Town Hall to kick off Pride month in Mansfield.

Come celebrate, receive your own Pride flag to take home, and honor our Pride!

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Decorative text describing Celebrate Pride event details with silhouette of a rockstar

CELEBRATE PRIDE!

  • Friday, June 9 starting at 7:00 PM
  • Free and open to everyone

LOCATION CHANGE: Due to the forecasted weather, this event will be held indoors at the Mansfield Community Center (10 S. Eagleville Road) - Updated June 7, 2023 | 11:10 AM

All towns, ages, and allies are invited to join the Town of Mansfield in a celebration of Pride on Friday, June 9 on Betsy Paterson Square in Downtown Storrs!

This fun, free event begins at 7:00 PM.

Everyone is welcome to:

  • Meet members of local LGBTQIA2S+ organizations and learn about local supports
  • Enjoy music and selfie stations
  • Enter the Freddie Mercury DIY Mustache & Pose Contest
  • Pick up free flags and pronoun pins
  • Stop by the UConn Dairy Bar Ice Cream Truck to purchase a frozen treat
  • Customize and Tie-Dye-Your-PRIDE Shirts (suggested shirt donation: $10)

And, don't miss:

  • Drag Queen Story Time - 8:00 PM
  • Bohemian Rhapsody screening - starts at dark

Share your Pride with us by using #MansfieldIsProud when posting your pics on Facebook and Instagram!

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Share Your Pride & Allyship


Mansfield residents and business owners are invited to pick up a free Progress Pride flag to display at their homes and businesses.

Flags will be available starting June 1 at

  • Town Hall (4 S. Eagleville Road, flags will be at the entrance on Storrs Road, near the Little Lending Library)
  • Community Center (10 S. Eagleville Road, Storrs)
  • Senior Center (303 Maple Road, Storrs)
  • Public Library (54 Warrenville Road, Mansfield Center)

Flags will also be available at the Pride Flag Raising on Thursday, June 1 at the Town Hall and at Celebrate Pride! on Friday, June 9 on Betsy Paterson Square (2 Dog Lane, Storrs).

Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride Flag with the words "Mansfield is Proud"
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Check back soon - more to come!

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Add some LGBTQIA2S+ inclusive books to your summer reading list with these suggestions available at the Mansfield Public Library and the Mansfield Youth Services office:

Youth

  • Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle by Nina LaCour (Library) 
  • Adventures with My Daddies by Gareth Peter (Library) 
  • Prince & Knight and Maiden & Princess by Daniel Haack (Library)
  • Calvin by JR and Vanessa Ford (Library)
  • My Rainbow by Trinity and DeShanna Neal (Library)
  • Grandad's Camper and Grandad's Pride by Harry Woodgate (Library)
  • The Family Book by Todd Parr (Library & Youth Services)
  • Neither by Airlie Anderson (Library & Youth Services)
  • My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis (Library & Youth Services)
  • And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson (Library & Youth Services)
  • I am Jazz! by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings (Library & Youth Services)
  • Pride: the Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag by Rob Sanders (Library)
  • Stonewall: A Building, An Uprising, A Revolution by Rob Sanders (Library)
  • Who Are You? The Kid's Guide to Gender Identity by Brook Pessin-Whedbee (Youth Services)
  • "Pink is a Girl Color" and Other Silly Things People Say by Stacy Drageset (Library & Youth Services)
  • Queer Heroes by Arabelle Sicardi (Library)
  • A Child's Introduction to Pride: The Inspirational History and Culture of the LGBTQIA+ Community by Sarah Prager (Library)
  • If You're a Kid Like Gavin by Gavin Grimm & Kyle Lukoff (Library)
  • It Feels Good to be Yourself : A Book About Gender Identity by Theresa Thorn (Library)
  • This is Our Rainbow: 16 Stories of Her, Him, Them, and Us edited by Katherine Locke and Nicole Melleby (Library)
  • Melissa, Rick, and Alice Austen Lived Here by Alex Gino (Library)
  • King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender (Library) 

Teen/Young Adult

  • The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen (Library)
  • Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender (Library)
  • She Gets the Girl by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick (Library) 
  • The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag 
  • Heartstopper series by Alice Oseman (Library)
  • Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People who Changed the World by Sarah Prager (Youth Services)
  • The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester by Maya MacGregor (Library)
  • Other Ever Afters: New Queer Fairy Tales by Melanie Gillman (Library) 
  • Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo (Library) 
  • The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer (Library)
  • Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian (Library)
  • Flamer by Mike Curato (Library)
  • Pet by Akwaeke Emezi (Library) 

Adult Fiction

  • This is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel (Library)
  • Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman (Library)
  • Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe (Library)
  • Marry Me a Little: A Graphic Memoir by Rob Kirby (Library)
  • In the Dream House: A Memoir by Carmen Maria Machado (Library)
  • People of Pride: 25 Great LGBTQ Americans by Chase Clemesha (Library) 
  • When We Rise: My Life in the Movement by Cleve Jones (Library)
  • Eleanor and Hick: The Love Affair that Shaped a First Lady by Susan Quinn (Library)
  • Stuck in the Middle with You: A Memoir of Parenting in Three Genders by Jennifer Finney Boylan (Library)
  • One Life by Megan Rapinoe (Library)
  • How We Fight for Our Lives: A Memoir by Saeed Jones (Library)
  • Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington by James Kirchick (Library)
  • They/ Them/ Their: A Guide to Nonbinary & Genderqueer Identities by Eris Young (Library)
  • Raising LGBTQ Allies: A Parent's Guide to Changing the Messages from the Playground by Chris Tompkins (Library) 

Follow the Mansfield Public Library on Facebook and Instagram for more reading suggestions all month long.

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Resources Available for our LGTBQIA2S+ Residents & Allies

  1. Mansfield Resources
  2. Connecticut Resources
  3. National & International Resources


MY Pride:

Mansfield Youth Pride (MY Pride) group is open to Mansfield residents in grades 5-8 who are part of the LGBTQIA+ rainbow (and allies are welcome too). 

MY Pride emphasizes self-empowerment, positive youth development, and building strong peer and community connections to validate and celebrate our diverse identities.

Please contact the Youth Services Department for more information about MY Pride.

E.O. Smith GSA

Please contact Amy Nocton & Liza Escott for information about this group for high school students.

Mansfield Human Rights Commission  

Read more about the Mansfield Human Rights Commission here.

Tolland-Mansfield PFLAG

PFLAG Tolland-Mansfield is a chapter of PFLAG, Inc. located in and serving towns in Northeastern Connecticut. PFLAG is an organization of LGBTQ+ people, parents, families, and allies who work together to create an equitable and inclusive world. There are hundreds of thousands of people and hundreds of chapters from coast to coast who are leading with love to support families, educate allies, and advocate for just, equitable, and inclusive legislation and policies. Learn more here.

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Learn more

Continue learning about the history of Pride and the LGBTQIA2S+ experience in the United States with these resources:


Stonewall Forever: Interactive online, history of the original Stonewall Riots and ongoing stories from LGBTQ folx. People can learn and add their own LGBTQ stories and history

Gilbert Baker Foundation: History of the rainbow flag and its creator. Oral history projects.  Stories of Gilbert Baker

GLBT Historical Society: Curated content of LBTQ history

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