Shocking Arrest Torpedoes Pride Festival

A rainbow flag waving against a blue sky

A small-town New York pride group just shut itself down after its drag-queen founder and school board vice president was arrested for allegedly sexting a child under 12.

Story Snapshot

New York State Police say Cazenovia school board vice president Travis Longo sent sexually explicit messages to a young child.
Longo, a drag performer and founder of Cazenovia Pride, faces four counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
Cazenovia Pride cancelled its festival and announced it is dissolving after the charges became public.
Police believe there may be more victims and are urging parents and witnesses to come forward.

Child Sexting Arrest Rocks Small-Town Pride Organization

New York State Police report that 46-year-old Travis J. Longo of Cazenovia was arrested on June 18 and charged with four counts of endangering the welfare of a child after a joint child exploitation investigation.^[8] Troopers say investigators concluded Longo engaged in a “pattern of sexually explicit communications” with a child under the age of 12, and they believe there may be other victims who were contacted by him.^[8] Longo was taken to Madison County for centralized arraignment following his arrest.^[8]

Local and national outlets note that Longo is not just any private citizen; he served as vice president of the Cazenovia Central School District Board of Education and is known in the community as a drag queen and LGBTQ+ activist.^[10]^[1] Reports state that the charges stem from sexually explicit messages, though police have not released screenshots or detailed content so far.^[10] Authorities have asked anyone with information to call State Police and reference the active case number tied to the investigation.^[8]

Pride Founder’s Arrest Triggers Group’s Sudden Shutdown

After the arrest became public, Cazenovia Pride Inc., the local LGBTQ+ advocacy group Longo founded, announced on Facebook that it was cancelling this year’s pride festival and “all associated events,” and that it is “dissolving as an organization.”^[10]^[1] The group wrote that the decision followed the “serious criminal charges” against Longo and stressed that he has “no further affiliation” with Cazenovia Pride.^[10] News reports say the original post was later deleted, but the message was widely quoted.^[1]

Conservative readers see a familiar pattern here: a highly promoted local pride leader, welcomed into positions of influence around children, now facing allegations of predatory behavior involving a very young child. At the same time, the organization he created is quickly folding rather than remaining in the public eye and answering hard questions from parents.^[10]^[1] For many families, that fast retreat confirms deeper fears about who is being allowed near kids in the name of “inclusion.”

School Role, Child-Safety Laws, And What Parents Deserve To Know

State Police say the investigation began with a law-enforcement referral and involved the State Police Computer Crime Unit and the Madison County Child Advocacy Center, suggesting that digital evidence and child-welfare professionals are part of the case.^[8] Under New York’s child endangerment law, a person can be charged if they knowingly act in a way likely to injure the physical, mental, or moral welfare of a child under 17, even if there is no physical contact.^[19] That is why sexually explicit messaging alone can trigger criminal charges.

Because Longo held a leadership role on the local school board, the arrest intersects with strict reporting rules for alleged abuse in educational settings. New York law requires school officials who receive an allegation of child abuse by an employee or volunteer to forward it to law enforcement and the state education office when they have reasonable suspicion the act occurred.^[15] The law also bars administrators from keeping abuse allegations quiet in exchange for a resignation, a response to past cover-ups in schools.^[15] Parents in Cazenovia will likely demand records on who knew what, and when.

Presumption Of Innocence, But Real Questions For The ‘Woke’ Agenda

So far, no outlet has published a statement from Longo or his lawyer, and no defense filings or alternative explanations appear in the public record provided.^[10] That means the public mainly sees the State Police narrative and the pride group’s reaction. In America, every person is innocent until proven guilty in court. At the same time, parents do not need to wait for a jury to insist on strict boundaries around their children, especially when activists push sexually themed performances and messaging into family spaces.

For many conservatives, this case underscores why they oppose efforts to blur lines between adult sexual expression and events marketed as “family friendly.” When a drag performer and pride organizer also sits on a school board and is later accused of explicit communication with a child, trust in local institutions takes a major hit.^[10]^[1] Going forward, concerned citizens in Cazenovia and across the country will likely press for tighter vetting of school officials, full transparency when accusations surface, and a firm return to child-first standards instead of ideology-driven agendas.