With a focus on inclusion, Sudbury sees a new ‘little free library’ in time for Pride month
Filled with very specific books, a new little library on Boland Avenue is aimed at making everyone in the community feel included.
“I figured June is such a good month to launch this library because it’s a good month to speak about diversity inclusion,” said Taryn Green, who put up what's known as Little Free Libraries.
“It’s a month for Pride. It’s also National Indigenous Awareness History month and it’s also Juneteenth month in June and then also in July it is actually disability pride month. So a great opportunity to discuss beauty and diversity and uniqueness that disability brings to our communities.”
Anyone walking by can pick up a book for free.
“I think that sharing these diverse voices -- and including LGBTQ community voices -- is really important to show the community that they are an important member of society," Green said.
"Their voices deserve to be heard. We should be making a place for all voices and I think books are a great way to really start that conversation.”
There are several Little Free Libraries available throughout the City of Greater Sudbury area. Green said many of them are celebrating pride and inclusion for the month of June. However, she plans to keep the selection on her property diverse for as long as she can.
“I’m a member of the disability community and in the last year I’ve been passionate about learning more about diversity inclusion," Green said.
"As I’m learning more and reading these really empowering powerful stories and books by others in the disability community, I thought I’ve been wanting to do a little library for a long time and I was originally just going to focus on children’s books, but then after doing this kind of self discovering, I wanted ... to be able to support diverse voices and support these authors.”
With so many events disrupted to the COVID-19 pandemic and many people feeling isolated, Green said she hopes this little library of resources can serve as an outlet for the neighbourhood.
“Bring them home and have these very rich and powerful conversation within their homes. With their children, with their partners, with others in the family and friends,” she said.
Although a great way to help celebrate inclusion and pride month in a COVID safe way, it isn’t the only option in the city. Sudbury Pride is making sure that no one misses out this year.
“Especially here in northern Ontario, it’s really difficult for members of the community to feel that they are accepted,” said Katlyn Kotila the communications lead for Sudbury Pride.
“We don’t have a lot of really openly public LGBTQ+ representatives, role models for youth to look up to, and oftentimes it can feel really isolating. And so it’s important that we celebrate this and spend this time to really build that community and make sure people know that they are loved, that they are supported, and that there is a community who is there for them.”
There are several online workshops starting this week and officials are looking for ways to hold a pride march in some way, shape or form, in July.
“The theme this year is ‘not this again,’ but we’re trying to find creative solutions to continue to offer opportunities for the community to get together and really celebrate and build a vibrant community here in Sudbury while still maintaining health and public health guidelines,” said Kotila.
Although youth in the community might miss some in-person events, she said they will still be recognized and celebrated.
“What we’re doing is were putting together care packages for them that will be safely delivered to their homes with pride goodies, merch, flags and then letters of support from people in the community, sharing their stories and showing love and support so that youth can feel that they are a part of the community still and to show them that they are loved and accepted just the way that they are,” she said.
Although it’s not ideal to hold celebrations on a virtual platform for the second year in a row, officials said it’s still important in the community.
“I think that any way that we can try to do this is important. Nothing is ever going to be perfect and there are always ways that were going to be able to continue to improve ourselves,” said Kotila.
A full list of events for Sudbury Pride can be found on its website or Facebook page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Trudeau promises $1B in loans for child-care providers to expand care centres
The federal government is launching a new loan program to help child-care providers in Canada expand their spaces, and will be extending further student loan forgiveness and training options for early childhood educators, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
Spring allergy season has begun. Where is it worse in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.