Gov. Spencer Cox issues Pride statement — minus LGBTQ+ references
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Utah Gov. Spencer Cox in 2024. Photo: Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Gov. Spencer Cox issued a statement Sunday acknowledging Pride Month — but again eschewed mention of LGBTQ+ communities in favor of a celebration of "building bridges."
The big picture: Pride Month proclamations have become an annual point of controversy for Cox, drawing complaints from across the political spectrum.
Conservatives complain the statements are "woke," while progressives decry wording that falls short of full-throated support for queer Utahns.
The intrigue: In Sunday's post on X, Cox did not call on Utahns to celebrate Pride — nor did it indicate whether he planned to celebrate Pride Month himself.
- Instead, he said he would spend the month "reflecting on the values that bring us together here in Utah — service, respect, and love for our neighbor."
- "To those celebrating Pride and to all Utahns: may we keep building bridges of understanding and strive always to see the humanity in one another," he would.
Cox's office did not respond to Axios' request for comment.
Catch up quick: For years, Cox was elevated as an LGBTQ+ ally.
- He won national attention in 2022 for vetoing a statewide ban on trans students in high school sports.
- He also joined teenagers on the state Capitol floor as they staged a sit-in to protest conversion therapy, and he wept in viral footage at a vigil following the 2016 shooting at Orlando's Pulse nightclub.
Yes, but: Last year, Cox signed a statewide ban on gender-affirming health care for trans minors, one day after the Utah Legislature passed it.
- He also described gender-affirming health care as "genital mutilation" and shared social media posts that falsely claimed during the 2024 Olympics that Algerian boxer Imane Khelif was not a woman.
The latest: Cox did not sign or veto the state's new ban on pride flags in government buildings, so it took effect last month.
Between the lines: In previous years, Cox has issued an official gubernatorial declaration of Pride Month rather than a personal statement.
- This year, his office has not posted any declarations honoring events.