Owatonna mayor faces pressure to resign or meet LGBTQ+ group’s demands after his comments on Pride
July 18, 2023 10:40AM CDT
FILE – An attendee holds up flags during the New York City Pride Parade, June 24, 2018, in New York. Members of an LGBTQ+ group are calling on the mayor of a southern Minnesota city to meet their demands — or resign — after he asked pastors at a church holding a Pride event if there would be stripper poles in the sanctuary and posted a public prayer alluding to “sin and brokenness” at the event. (AP Photo/Steve Luciano, File)
OWATONNA, Minn. (AP) — Members of an LGBTQ+ advocacy group are calling on the mayor of a southern Minnesota city to either meet their demands or resign.
That comes after Mayor Tom Kuntz, of Owatonna, asked pastors at a church that held a Pride event on July 8 if there would be stripper poles in the sanctuary. He also posted a public prayer alluding to “sin and brokenness” at the event.
Rainbowatonna, the LGBTQ+ group, says the mayor should issue an apology that “acknowledges the impact of his actions,” and appoint a member of their board to the city’s human rights commission. The group met with the mayor on Monday.
