(June 17, 2026, BOSTON) Today, Representative Mike Connolly celebrated Central Square constituent Mal Malme with an inaugural Commonwealth Pride Award, a newly-founded annual event that celebrates the rich accomplishments and talents of Massachusetts’ LGBTQ+ community.
"Through decades of community service to LGBTQ+ folks, Mal has dedicated their life to bringing joy, compassion, and visibility to others while fearlessly advancing equality and justice. Their work has helped countless queer people see themselves reflected with pride, dignity, and hope," Representative Mike Connolly said. "It is a privilege to recognize Mal at the inaugural Commonwealth Pride Awards. I am deeply grateful for their extraordinary leadership, unwavering commitment to our community, and the countless ways they have made Cambridge, Somerville, and the Commonwealth, a more inclusive place."
Mal Malme (Mal; they/them) is a Cambridge-based queer, nonbinary theater artist, activist, writer, and professional healthcare clown. For more than twenty-five years, Mal has been an actor, writer, producer, and advocate in the Boston theater community.
Mal is a co-founder of Queer Soup Theater, a collaboration of queer artists who create original works that explore and celebrate LGBTQ+ lives. Their original works include the IRNE-nominated Home, Still Married, We All Will Be Received, and The Pineapple Project, which they have performed in schools and libraries for the past decade. Developed for elementary school-aged children, The Pineapple Project celebrates gender creativity and self-expression.
As an actor, Mal has performed with numerous Boston theater companies, including SpeakEasy Stage Company, Company One Theatre, Boston Playwrights' Theatre, Moonbox Productions, and The Theater Offensive. They are currently developing a solo performance piece about navigating the healthcare system as a nonbinary cancer survivor. By day, Mal performs as Dr. Mal Adjusted with The Laughter League at Boston Children's Hospital and Hasbro Children's Hospital. The Laughter League is a nonprofit arts organization whose professionally trained healthcare clowns work alongside medical teams to bring laughter, play, and connection to children and families as an integral part of patient care. Mal has had the privilege of serving as a professional healthcare clown for more than twenty-eight years.
As a writer, Mal creates original works for the stage, writes fiction for children, and publishes personal essays on Substack about healthcare clowning, grief and loss while caring for parents with Alzheimer's disease, their love of dogs, LGBTQ+ rights, and other topics. Mal's community service includes serving as a patient advocate on the Patient and Family Advisory Council at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a commissioner on the Cambridge LGBTQ+ Commission, and a board member of StageSource and the North Shore Alliance of LGBTQ+ Youth (NAGLY). Today, they are active with SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice) Boston's Indigenous Solidarity Committee, volunteer with LUCE's statewide ICE Watch program, and have served for more than twenty years as a canine companion volunteer with the Animal Rescue League of Boston.
Mal has been happily married to Meg Stone, Executive Director of IMPACT Boston, since 2004. The couple was #147 to apply for a marriage license at Cambridge City Hall in the early hours of May 17, 2004—the historic day marriage equality became a reality in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
"We are proud to recognize all of the incredible LGBTQ+ leaders who make Massachusetts stronger every day. Here in Massachusetts, we’ve been leading the nation in the fight for freedom over generations. It began 251 years ago when we started a revolution that spearheaded our nation’s democracy, and has continued as the state that led on abolition, women’s rights, Civil Rights, and LGBTQ+ rights," said Governor Maura Healey. "Today, we're proud to be the state at the forefront of our nation's freedoms and we will continue to ensure that Massachusetts remains a safe and welcoming place for all. We're grateful to the LGBTQ+ Caucus for recognizing the impact of our state's LGBTQ+ trailblazers, and offer a deep congratulations to the inaugural group of Commonwealth Pride awardees!"
"Among this year's inaugural honorees are leaders representing countless professions, backgrounds, and experiences, but who share a common commitment: making their communities more welcoming, more inclusive, and more vibrant," said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. "Together, they are the epitome of excellence and we’re thankful for what they contribute to our state. Congratulations to all of this year's honorees, and happy Pride!"
For the first time ever, the Caucus was proud to host the Commonwealth Pride Awards: Celebrating LGBTQ+ Excellence on the Hill. The event is slated to occur annually during Pride Month. The event honored 110+ community leaders, each nominated by their state legislators. The group spanned an enormous breadth of achievement and included public servants, advocates, doctors, authors, filmmakers, educators, historians, entrepreneurs, and religious leaders, highlighting the collective impact of the LGBTQ+ community.
“As co-chair of the Massachusetts Legislature's LGBTQ+ Caucus, I'm proud of the Commonwealth's nation-leading reputation on LGBTQ+ rights and social justice. Much of our legislative success is intertwined with the boundless talent, leadership, and hard work of the LGBTQ+ community - people who stood up, turned out, and led the way,” said Speaker Pro Tempore Kate Hogan. “These awards are a wonderful way to celebrate those efforts and achievements and to shine a light on the fight to advance equality, inclusion, and protections for all.”
“A few years ago, some colleagues and I began talking about creating a Pride Awards celebration. We imagined a day during Pride Month when our community could gather under the golden dome and celebrate one another,” expressed Representative Jack Patrick Lewis. “Today, we made that vision a reality. I am so honored to have helped establish this event, and I am forever grateful for the legislators, participants, and friends that made this possible.”
The Massachusetts LGBTQ+ Legislative Caucus, made up of the Commonwealth’s LGBTQ+ legislators, advocates for legislation relating to LGBTQ+ issues, provides networking and professional support for members, and commemorates the storied history of LGBTQ+ political advocacy in Massachusetts. Recent wins include expanding access to HIV-prevention services, protecting privacy in legal name changes, ensuring protections for LGBTQ+ students and seniors, and legislation safeguarding legal parentage for adoptive and other families under the Parentage Act.
Massachusetts has long served as a nationwide leader for LGBTQ+ rights and social justice. In 2004, it became the first state to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Massachusetts became the first state in the country to support transgender protections through popular vote in 2018. It consistently ranks highly among U.S. states and territories in LGBTQ+ rights and social acceptance. For an overview of Rep. Connolly's Pride legislative agenda, check out this blog post. For a recording of the ceremony, click here.
