Liberty Hill pride proclamation met with boos

LIBERTY HILL, Texas (KXAN) – On Wednesday, the mayor of Liberty Hill officially declared June Pride Month.

Amanda Crossland, who lost her son Jaycee to suicide shortly after he came out as gay, said she’s been speaking closely with the mayor about this.

“I promised him after he died I would do everything I can to make sure this doesn’t happen to someone else,” she said. “To make sure people like him know they have support.”

The proclamation reads as follows:

Whereas, Liberty Hill is a Loving, Wholesome and Family-centered community; and Whereas, Liberty Hill is an inclusive and supportive community; and Whereas, We value all of our citizens because of the unique and precious nature of all of God’s children; and Whereas, We oppose hate, abuse, discrimination or bullying of any person, Now Therefore, I, Liz Branigan, as Mayor, do proclaim the month of June as Pride Month in Liberty Hill, in harmony with the larger community of the United States.

The meeting room was packed with people participating in public comment to oppose the proclamation.

As the mayor read it, many residents booed while others clapped.

"This is a slap in the face," said one man during public comment.

Another person called this a "divisive and irrelevant proclamation [that] is now sadly in the official record."

Crossland stood in front of the crowd with two others as the mayor read the proclamation.

"This was supposed to be a day of acceptance but it's not even a celebration because it's a fight," she said. "I didn't expect when I showed up today that there would be a huge amount of hatred."

Liberty Hill Mayor Pro Tem Crystal Mancilla said no action item accompanies the proclamation.

"It's just a proclamation, it's not a policy," she said.

In Liberty Hill, the mayor did not need approval from city council members to issue the proclamation. However, one member, Angela Jones, spoke at the beginning of the meeting in opposition to it.