Worcester city councilors on Tuesday approved a resolution declaring the city a sanctuary for people who are transgender and gender diverse.
The 9-2 vote followed over three hours of public testimony, during which dozens of LGBTQ+ advocates demanded Worcester be more welcoming of gender-diverse people after City Councilor Thu Nguyen accused fellow councilors of transphobia last month. Although the resolution is mainly symbolic, supporters added that it’s especially important right now as the Trump administration cuts rights for transgender people .
“I’m demanding, no longer asking, for my humanity to be recognized,” Cayden Davis told councilors. “You work for us, not for your own self-interest.”
The resolution states that the trans, nonbinary and LGBTQ+ community in Worcester and nationally is being attacked by President Donald Trump’s executive actions. It promises that Worcester won’t expend resources on detaining people for “solely seeking or providing gender-affirming care,” and that the city won’t cooperate with the federal government on “policies aimed to harm” transgender and gender-diverse people.
Councilors Donna Colorio and Morris Bergman voted against the measure, arguing that it could jeopardize funds the city receives from the federal government. As audience members jeered, Bergman said federal funding is critical for local education, housing development and social services.
“I can’t say with 100% confidence that the unintended consequences of doing something — that doesn’t add any more protection than already exists — isn’t going to cause harm to the other 200,000-plus people in the city of Worcester,” Bergman said
Other councilors and Mayor Joseph Petty said they were willing to take that risk.
Petty, who’s faced complaints that he hasn’t done enough to support the LGBTQ+ community, said the city and its leaders need to unite in support of people most vulnerable under the Trump administration. He argued the resolution simply says, “Hey. We got your back.”
“And that’s what people are looking for. So they can go home and sleep safe at night here in the city of Worcester,” he said.
The meeting marked the fourth consecutive week that councilors have focused on LGBTQ+ matters since Nguyen announced they were taking a monthlong hiatus from their role.
Nguyen returned to the council Tuesday, and the meeting became especially contentious as they continued to accuse fellow councilors, including Candy Mero-Carlson, of transphobic comments.
Mero-Carlson denied she’s done anything wrong, and said Nguyen was trying to bully her. In response, Councilor Jenny Pacillo pleaded with colleagues to stop being so divisive.
“We sit here week after week, and I wish we can just find a way — and I don’t know how that can happen — to kind of work together,” she said.
