SACKVILLE, N.B. — It was a celebration of diversity and acceptance in Sackville on Thursday afternoon as the town and the university communities came together once again to host a Pride Parade and raise the rainbow flag to help mark Pride Week.
The event attracted well over 300 people who came out dressed in their rainbow colors to celebrate, raise awareness and show support for the 2SLGBTQA+ community.
It also shone a light on how far society has come in the fight against homophobia; but also served as a reminder that there is still a lot of work to be done on that front.
Ada Clevinger, a transgender woman and president of Catalyst, Mount Allison’s LGBTQ+ group, said while Pride Parades are certainly a time for celebration, they must also continue to serve as an ongoing form of activism.
“I think we forget, or are never even aware, that Pride has a violent history,” said Clevinger.
She pointed out that 2019 is the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York, riots that started in response to police raiding the Stonewall Inn to arrest its patrons for the crime of being gay. She said these riots served as a catalyst for the gay rights movement and sparked the first Pride March the following year.
“That spirit of rebellion is crucial because it reminds us that we have power as a community,” said Clevinger. “We are reminded that we are not alone and when we see injustice we can and should do something.”
Pride, she said, should celebrate this history and “our endurance as a community.”
“It has not been an easy path to get her from those first riots. There have been setbacks and, if we look around today, we can see there is a lot of regression threatening what security we have come to rely on. But we are still here. Despite the many efforts to make that not be the case, we are still here and we are getting louder.”
Melody Petlock, Mount Allison’s SHARE (Sexual Harassment and Assault Response and Education Service) advisor, said she is proud to be part of a university and a town that welcomes all members of the rainbow community.
“Who people are, who they love, is their human right.”
She said events like these are shining examples of the work that has been done to bring sexuality issues out into the light. But she cautioned that people must remain vigilant in those efforts.
Petlock said we still live in a world where people sometimes feel it’s a risk to reveal their true selves. So she urged everyone to be allies – to stand up for others against discrimination, to show respect, and to continue to ask questions and educate ourselves.
The Pride Parade kicked off on the Mount Allison University campus with a flag raising. Then participants paraded down York Street and Main Street to town hall, where another rainbow flag was raised. This was followed up by live music and refreshments at Bill Johnstone Memorial Park.
This is the eighth year the town of Sackville has hosted a rainbow flag raising ceremony in conjunction with Pride Week, and the fifth year for the Pride Parade.
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