Nanaimo Pride Society kicks off the celebration of Pride Month
Semple says that this year they will have consent-based photo booths and more education around hosting safe spaces with security providers. Jesse Woodward / CHLY 101.7fm
Once again the Nanaimo Pride Society is kicking off Pride Month with a week full of events and celebrations.
Lauren Semple, President of the Nanaimo Pride Society came down to CHLY to speak about the events before the kickoff.
This year’s Pride Week celebrating the 2SLGBTQIA+ (Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, plus) community will kicked off with a flag-rising ceremony at the Nanaimo City Hall on June 4. Semple said the raising of the pride flag is an amazing event and something they are continuing to grow.
“It's actually only been 15 years that the pride flag and the pride proclamation of that has happened here in Nanaimo,” Semple said. “It took a long time to get the City Council and the City on board with that. So we're still growing that event, and it's a really important start to the week.”
She said the flag-raising event will featured educational and advocacy booths from community members, as well as food trucks, music, dancing, face painting, and a drag storytime.
After the flag-raising ceremony, several events will take place leading up to the Pride parade and festival on Sunday, June 9 at Maffeo Sutton Park.
This is the second year the Nanaimo Pride Society is hosting a sober dance party, something Semple says is very important for the community. Photo: Jesse Woodward / CHLY 110.7fm
Semple said they are expecting 1,000s of spectators at this year's Pride festival. The festival will feature a beer garden, kids zone, over 70 vendors, food trucks, as well as entertainment from drag performers, dancing, and a DJ.
Some of the events throughout the week include a Pride Week comedy show on Wednesday, June 5, All that Glitter: A Sober Pride celebration for those 18 or older on Friday, June 7, as well as the 19 and older Get Your Groove On: Annual Pride Dance.
Semple said this is the second time they are hosting a sober dance party during Pride Week.
“It's an important investment for the Pride Society to make because there is an intersection of substance use issues and addiction with our community,” they said. “Anywhere you find a marginalized community that's dealt with depression and pain and trauma, substance use can become an issue”
She said particularly in Nanaimo, they have an important intersection with the recovery community.
“There's a lot of recovery resources and support and services here in Nanaimo and we know that a large part of that community is to 2SLGBTQIA+,” they said. “So making sure that we have an event that is free from alcohol, that doesn't include any intoxicating substances that can allow them to celebrate in a safe and sober way is really, really important and just helps to make our celebration more accessible to everyone.”
This year’s Pride comes following a difficult year for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Nanaimo. On September 20 of last year a group marched against Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) programs in public schools. During the protest, the anti-SOGI protestors were outnumbered by a counter-protest of pro-SOGI and pro-2SLGBTQIA+ activists. Former CHLY reporter Mick Sweetman reported over 100 anti-SOGI protestors and about 400 2SLGBTQIA+ supporters at the Nanaimo City Hall during the protest.
Semple said Pride has always been a protest since the start of the Stonewall riots that occurred as a demonstration against a police raid that happened on June 28, 1969, at the popular gay bar Stonewall Inn in New York City.
Semple said it is important at this year’s Pride for the community and allies to come together to stop the wave of hate.
“Pride is always a protest, first and foremost. Comes from the Stonewall Riots in memory and in honour of that uprising, and that is still something that's really important today,” she said. “I'm hoping that for the allies, that they can start to see that rising tide of homophobia and transphobia and hatred that is being levied at our community in a larger way. Oftentimes, people in the community can feel it, but it's not as prevalent to our allies.”
They pointed out the current legislation referred to by many as anti-transgender legislation that is in several different provinces. The legislation includes a proposed ban on inclusive health for transgender youth in Alberta and legislation having youth get parental consent before changing their name or pronouns in school in the provinces of New Brunswick and Saskatchewan
She also mentioned racism and anti-Indigenous attitudes within their own community and outside of it.
Semple said it is important at this year’s Pride for the community and allies to come together to stop the wave of hate. Photo: Jesse Woodward / CHLY 101.7fm
“There's a lot happening that I'm hoping will help to draw allies’ attention to the fact that there's still so much work to do,” she said. “Not just to finish gaining rights and recognition and respect for every letter of our acronym and in our community, but also to protect and hold ground on the rights that have already been hard fought and won over the decades and generations before me.”
Semple said following the anti-SOGI protests the Nanaimo Pride Society has continued taking safety precautions and working closely with security and safe space providers when hosting events. She said the Pride Society has been dealing with hate mail and threats on their social media pages. They said the Pride Society works hard on cleaning up the hate and protecting the community from it.
One way they have changed to help protect the community is by stopping the use of professional photographers at their ticketed events.
“We listened and heard that [transgender] and Black, Indigenous and People of Colour within our community were being targeted through our social media posts, by following our page, by having pictures posted of them while being at pride events, to the point where they didn't feel safe attending because they thought their picture may be taken and shared,” Semple said.
She said this year the dance and sober pride celebrations will not have photographers in the room capturing photos and putting them on Facebook without the consent of the individual or individuals in the image. They said that this year they will have consent-based photo booths and more education around hosting safe spaces with security providers.
They said many people might not realize it is more than just queer and transgender youth going through exploration in the development of their gender and queer identity.
“There's so many folks in our community that come out in their 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, and for trans folks in gender with gender expansive identities, they're often going through a gender expression change and to have that captured at each and every stage through photos and video and then displayed in a public way it can be really dysphoric, can be harmful for them,” she said.
For those who might be a part of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community but feel they are too shy or worried to take part in pride events, Semple said Pride is a welcoming event to all and to come and celebrate pride whenever it feels ready and safe.
“It's sad to me that there are people that don't have the privilege of taking up space and being as loud and proud as I can,” they said. “I acknowledge that I have privileges that other members of the queer and trans[gender] community don't, and I think it's really my responsibility as the President of the Board and as part of the Society to keep listening to those voices and trying to create better events where those folks can feel safe and represented.”
Semple said the celebration of Pride and advocacy for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community is more than just a week-long event but something that should happen 365 days a year.
“I mean, it takes allies action all the time, and so what I'd really encourage folks to do is connect with the local pride society in a bigger way. Connect with some of the service groups and organizations we have in Nanaimo, providing allyship and access to services such as the Nanaimo Family Life Association, Nanaimo Women Helping Women, PFLAG, Aids Vancouver Island and their amazing harm reduction work,” they said. “There are so many different intersections and channels to support the community year-round beyond the Pride Society and I really encourage folks to look for those opportunities to be vocal and take action beyond June.”
A calendar with Pride-related events taking place in June from the Nanaimo Pride Society and other Nanaimo organizations can be found on the Nanaimo Pride Society website.
Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.