Recent events demonstrate the divide here. Sabatino said people think New York is immune to an anti-LGBTQ wave. "It's really frightening and getting out of control." "It's really concerning for us who have been in the movement and fought so hard for our rights," said Sabatino, a former Yonkers city councilman and vice president of Hudson Valley Stonewall Democrats.
Now 72, he and his husband, Robert Voorheis, were among the first to register for a domestic partnership in 2002 in Westchester County and fight for marriage equality in New York. Michael Sabatino of Yonkers has been working on LGBTQ rights for decades. Also witnessed: A woman and man, one from either side, having a 15-minute discussion that ended with a hug. There were some tense words tossed back and forth, but no reported physical run-ins. Protesters on Saturday came from around the Hudson Valley some counter-protesters identified themselves as patrons of MBE Children's Chapter while others were from nearby towns. The couple has lived in Orange County their whole lives and raised five kids in the community − "These are people who don't know us," Noorlander-Pahucki added. They thought the drag queen story hour would promote literacy, family and fun. "The level of hatred and vitriol and comments was shocking," said Walt Pahucki, who co-owns MBE Children’s Chapter, the children's bookstore in Montgomery, with his wife, Claire Noorlander-Pahucki. It is ranked among the most habitable states for LGBTQ people. Some expressed surprise at such pushback in the Empire State, where the Stonewall riots ushering in the LGBTQ rights movement more than a half-century ago and where marriage equality has been the law for a dozen years. Police agencies readied a response as the Orange County village with a population of 3,800 served as the backdrop on one recent Saturday afternoon for a growing divide over LGBTQ rights across the U.S., even in places like New York.
And the protests drew calls for counter-protests. The attention also drew threats of protests.
DRAG QUEEN STORY HOUR FREE
MONTGOMERY – When a local children’s bookstore booked a drag queen story hour late last month, it drew so much attention that the owners added a second session for the free event. Watch Video: See two different opinions about the Drag Queen Story Hour held in Montgomery, New York
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