'We exist everywhere': West Nipissing to host its first-ever Pride parade in June
Three years after the Municipality of West Nipissing flew the Pride flag for the first time, it and the Pride committee are hosting the first-ever Pride parade later this month.
To kick off June as Pride month, the committee raised the Pride flag at Minnehaha Bay on Thursday afternoon with cheers coming from allies and supporters of the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
When Michael Rolling came out as pansexual and transgender, he said he found it hard growing up in a smaller community where there wasn't much representation at the time.
"It's just way harder to find someone like you. You can't find people who really know what you're feeling," Rolling said.
"Be loud, be visible, be queer."
That's why said he felt empowered to speak at West Nipissing’s Pride flag raising.
Michael Rolling, who identifies as pansexual and transgender, speaks at the West Nipissing Pride flag raising. June 1/23 (Eric Taschner/CTV Northern Ontario)
"To people that don't understand: This is just who people are. You just have to start accepting people,” he said.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The Pride flag was first raised in 2020 shortly after the West Nipissing Pride committee formed. That particular flag raising made West Nipissing one of the first smaller northern communities to do so.
"We exist everywhere and, unfortunately, we still need support, protection and allies to speak out with us against discrimination,” said the Pride committee’s president Michel Gervais.
Gervais said there are still many transgender people who continue to face hate, bias and discrimination for their decision to come out.
He said the hate continues to ramp up online on social media platforms.
"It’s unfortunate that there’s so much hate and so much refusal to understand our perspective,” Gervais said.
For the first time this year, the committee is hosting a parade in downtown Sturgeon Falls on June 10.
The committee is working with the municipality on all the details, floats and organizing the route.
"It’s been a goal of ours since 2020," said Gervais.
West Nipissing Mayor Kathleen Rochon spoke for a few minutes at the flag raising expressing council’s support for the 2SLGBTQ+ community and allies.
"We finally have the right place and right time that they can bring their dream of having a Pride parade right here in Sturgeon Falls,” she said.
"We have many citizens who identify as part of the 2SLGBTQS+ community."
For the people who have faced prejudice for being who they are, seeing the flag and knowing a parade is around the corner gives them hope for a brighter future of acceptance.
"There are people in the community that do support people like me," Rolling said smiling.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks claw out 5-4 comeback win over Oilers in Game 1
Dakota Joshua had a goal and two assists and the Vancouver Canucks scored three third-period goals to claw out a 5-4 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.