Tennessee Pride celebrations continue despite Nuclear Family Month designation
- Published on June 22, 2026 at 23:18
- 2 min read
- By Stevie ROSENFELD, AFP USA
The governor of the US state of Tennessee signed a resolution designating June 2026 Nuclear Family Month, but this action does not formally replace Pride Month as implied in posts across social media. No top official in Nashville has ever formally recognized LGBTQ celebrations in June, and lawmakers and local activists said that the bill does not restrict organizations from celebrating Pride Month.
"June is no longer Pride Month. June is now Nuclear Family Month," reads text in an image shared June 5, 2026 on Instagram and X by religious podcaster Dan Cohen.
The graphic, originally posted by the Ruth Institute, a non-profit that says it is dedicated to upholding "Christian teachings about marriage, family, and human sexuality," spread widely alongside posts from both liberal and conservative accounts claiming the governor had "replaced" or "cancelled" Pride Month.
LGBTQ Pride Month is celebrated annually in the United States in June to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising -- protests that followed police raids of a prominent gay bar in Manhattan (archived here and here).
In 1999, Bill Clinton, then president of the United States, was the first to issue a proclamation recognizing Pride Month and encouraging Americans to observe (archived here). President Donald Trump issued a similar proclamation in 2019, but has not made one since (archived here).
State governors can also issue proclamations as those in New York and North Carolina did for Pride Month 2026, but no Tennessee governor has ever done so (archived here and here).
In contrast, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a bill on April 9 designating June 2026 as "Nuclear Family Month" (archived here).
While backlash to LGBTQ celebrations -- which intensified in 2023 -- led state leaders in Arkansas, Utah and Alabama to also introduce alternatives to Pride in 2026, the action in Tennessee does not supersede Pride Month as implied in the posts.
Celebrations ongoing
"June is still Pride Month, and we're living with that and we're celebrating," said Robert McNamara, board member for Franklin Pride, a festival that took place on June 5 (archived here and here).
McNamara said on June 17 there were more than 5,000 visitors to his organization's event.
Unlike prior legislation that limited drag performances and caused a loss of corporate sponsors, McNamara said the 2026 resolution had not had a tangible impact on events (archived here).
"We still exist, whether they acknowledge it or not," he said.
Memphis Pride Fest -- was similarly held on June 6, with local media reporting tens of thousands in attendance.
The Nashville Pride Parade and Fesitval are scheduled for June 27 (archived here and here).
Nuclear Family Month
AFP contacted the co-sponsors of the legislation creating Nuclear Family Month including Republican Michele Carringer (archived here) who said she did not consider June's relation to Pride Month when deciding to support the measure.
"I sponsored the HJR [House Joint Resolution] creating Nuclear Family Month because I believe that we as a state should be supporting traditional family values," she said in a June 18 email.
Representative John Crawford said: "Nuclear Family Month recognizes the God-ordained family structure and its incredible impact on the founding and success of our state and nation," (archived here). His June 18 email did not comment on June's correlation with Pride Month.
Representative Monty Fritts (archived here) declined to comment on the bill's intentions, while responses from Bud Hulsey (archived here) and the governor's office were not forthcoming.
More of AFP's reporting on misinformation targeting the LGBTQ community can be found here.
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