Dr. King said, "An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concern to the broader concern of all humanity.”

I am proud to live in a community that has moved beyond the selfish “I” and “Me” mentality to the collective “We” and “Us” mindset as we strive to build Aurora together. As I have been saying for more than a dozen years and certainly since I became mayor: We are one Aurora – and that includes all of us.

Within weeks of my election last spring, I was approached by community members regarding the possibility of Aurora having its first Pride Parade. Without hesitation, I expressed my total support then, and ten months later, my support and sentiments remain the same. We are one Aurora – and that includes all of us.

Tomorrow, the three members of the Aurora City Council’s Government Operations Committee will vote on the request to approve the inaugural Aurora Pride Parade. Although community pressure can be daunting at times, I am encouraging my colleagues to move beyond individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of our community by voting yes. It is not only the right thing to do, it is also the right of the organizers to stage the parade. 

Dr. King also said that a right delayed is a right denied. I hope my colleagues will not delay this matter and allow it to continue to move through its due process just as we have any other parade in Aurora.

We are one Aurora. Let’s live like it.