Organizers of Moncton’s Pride parade and Pride Week note events marking Pride continue to grow year after year.
Hundreds lined Main Street on Saturday for the annual Pride parade as it made its way through downtown.
River of Pride media and public relations coordinator Charles MacDougall said local Pride attendance has grown steadily since it began in 2000.
“It’s important to see it grow… and it’s nice to see more public sector and private sector support, but also just more support from the community,” MacDougall said.
Parade attendee Clifford Poirier said he watches the parade every year and felt this year’s event was well organized.
“It was nice to see a lot of young people,” Poirier said.
Kathy Guillemette attended the parade for a second time this year. She said she came out as bisexual fairly recently and never would have imagined being able to publicly attend Pride events in the past.
“It’s amazing that we’re able to celebrate all of this with everybody, and everybody being so accepting,” Guillemette said.
Guillemette said she also noticed a lot of younger children watching and taking part in the parade this year, as well as seniors.
Corey Tobin recently moved home to New Brunswick after spending several years in Korea. He said it was his first time attending the Pride parade in Moncton, where he was joined by his partner, family and friends.
“It was just really great. The reception of the people — everyone was really supportive. People that were standing on the side with the Pride flag with the word ‘ally’ on it, it was really nice to see that,” Tobin said.
MacDougall said there is still work to be done to move even more towards a fully accepting and inclusive society.
“We do have challenges ahead of us as organizers, and we have challenges ahead of us as a community, especially when it comes to gender-diverse people who are transgender or non-binary or bi-gender. We have to help those people up and let them have their voice and educate,” MacDougall said.
Guillemette agrees the wider Moncton community needs to work towards further acceptance and support of LGBTQ rights and issues.
“We still have a long way to go,” she noted.
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