LYNN — Nothing was going to stop Lynn Disability Network from raising a pride flag in celebration of the 36th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act; not even the monstrous rainstorm that rang thunder and lightning around City Hall.
Originally planned to be outside before the rain came pouring down, the celebration took place inside City Hall’s foyer on Tuesday evening.
The founder of Lynn Disability Network (LDN), Louise Dominique, shared that no matter what the weather turned out to be, there would be absolutely no cancellation.
Many city and state officials joined the celebration to share how large LDN’s impact is on community members, altering their lives in the most positive way possible. This makes those who often get overlooked seen, heard, and understood.
Lynn School Committee member Tristan Smith expressed how influential Dominique has been in creating opportunities for children and adults with disabilities.
“She deserves everyone’s praise for all her work across the city, not limited to her work to put tonight together,” Smith said.
Dominique’s motivation for everything she does has been her son Nathan, a 13-year-old teenager with autism.
“When I see my son, I see everything,” Dominique said.
Mayor Jared C. Nicholson expressed his immense gratitude to Dominique and her efforts in creating more inclusiveness for people with disabilities in the community, congratulating her leadership in making Lynn a more accessible space for all people.
Massachusetts Sen. Brendan Crighton echoed Nicholson’s gratitude, sharing that LDN represents exactly what the City of Lynn does.
“They continue by our nature,” Crighton said. “Community, accessible, ethical, and beauty.”
Lynn Disability Commission (LDC) Chair Richelle Waterman-Williams shared how this level of awareness is not just a day of celebration. It is a day, a week, a month, a year, a lifetime of keeping awareness on the forefront of their minds.
“If you don’t have anybody to work with, we have the voices, the passion, and the dedication to keep up the awareness for this work,” Waterman-Williams said.
The chairperson for the Swampscott Disability Commission, Lauren Shrestha, was also in attendance for the celebration, sharing that all people deserve accessibility, especially people with disabilities.
“Accessibility isn’t something you can build in a day,” Shrestha said. “We have to continue to work towards it every single day… Whether we’re talking about accessible parks or transportation for communities, every effort sends the same message; we belong here.”
Former State Rep. Jamie Belsito, who is also running for Congress, shared how thankful she is to be speaking as a mother and how encouraging it is to see a mother like Dominique do so much for the community.
“It’s about being here for each other, and I’m just grateful to be here in this way,” Belsito said.
Considering the weather outside, the flag was drawn open with all of its colors inside the City Hall foyer by Dominique, friends, and even City Councilor Cardeliz Paez.
Smith shared that the flag’s colors hold significance: the red stripe represents physical disabilities, the gold stripe represents neurodivergence and cognitive disabilities, white represents invisible and undiagnosed disabilities, blue represents psychiatric and mental health disabilities, green represents sensory disabilities like blindness, deafness and sensory processing, and the black background represents all of the grief and rage for those lost to ableism, institutional neglect and violence.
The colors are not the only symbolism, however. The stripes of colors on the flag are jagged and diagonal, symbolizing breaking free of societal barriers that have segregated disabled people in the past.
With divine intervention after the flag was displayed in the foyer, the rain and thunderstorm let up with only a drizzle, keeping all dangers of electrocution away, allowing all city officials and Dominique to raise the flag on the City Hall flag pole.
After the flag stood tall, attendees joined together in conversation and feasted on pizza and a 36-year Americans with Disabilities Act birthday cake.
For more information about the Lynn Disability Network, navigate to their Facebook page, and for more information about the Lynn Disability Commission, navigate to the City of Lynn website.
