Wichita issued proclamation for Transgender Day of Visibility; the mayor didn’t present it
Wichita Mayor Lily Wu did not read a proclamation recognizing Transgender Day of Visibility at the City Council’s first evening meeting of the year.
Traditionally, the mayor reads proclamations for the city. At the meeting, Wu did read proclamations for Developmental Disability Awareness Month and Into the Light Day. The mayor’s signature line was missing from the Transgender Day of Visibility proclamation but the other proclamations contained it.
“I respect the will of this council and my four colleagues who voted in favor of the first proclamation; council member (Becky) Tuttle, (Brandson) Johnson, (Maggie) Ballard and (Mike) Hoheisel,” Wu said. “Since this is a first for the city of Wichita, and I know each of you is passionate about this, I’m going to yield the floor to any of you who would like to have the honor of reading the first proclamation.”
Council member Maggie Ballard read and signed the proclamation instead.
“You ran on ‘All for Wichita’, and it’s disappointing you’re not showing unity today,” Ballard said before reading the proclamation.
Abi Boatman, a transgender military veteran, gave an impassioned speech while accepting the proclamation.
“Time will tell your story, and in fact, it already has,” Boatman said while holding up a picture of a Nazi book burning.
Dozens of people came to Tuesday’s council meeting in support of the proclamation.
Some also showed up in opposition. “Leave our children alone,” a spectator said as Boatman spoke.
Boatman was met with a standing ovation in the council chambers.
“Get to know someone before you hate them,” Boatman said in an interview with The Eagle. “And even then, I don’t think we have the right to hate people that aren’t hurting or imposing harm on someone.”
Proclamations are requested by residents and then issued during council meetings if approved by the council. Council members vote by email on whether to issue proclamations and only need a simple majority to go forward. Council members Tuttle, Johnson, Ballard, and Hoheisel all voted in favor of the proclamation via email, so it moved forward.
Speaking with an Eagle reporter after Tuesday night’s meeting, the mayor said she’d like to have votes on proclamations be more public, but said she wouldn’t have voted in favor of reading the Day of Visibility proclamation.
“Singling out one specific group, I do not believe I would have voted in favor,” Wu said.
Transgender Day of Visibility is an annual event on March 31 that celebrates transgender people and raises awareness about transgender discrimination.
The Kansas Legislature recently passed a ban for gender-affirming care for minors in Kansas.
Upon re-entering the White House this year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that banned transgender people from serving in the military.
This story was originally published March 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that Mayor Wu did not refuse to read the proclamation at the March 18 City Council meeting, rather she yielded the floor to the members who voted in favor of the proclamation. It has also been updated to reflect that her signature was not placed on the other two proclamations during the meeting. The mayor said her signature line was not included in the proclamation about the transgender day because of a clerical error.