First Calgary Pride Parade since 2019 brings thousands to downtown Calgary
'(This) really marks the occasion of what Pride is all about, which is a community coming together'
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Tens of thousands of Calgarians lined 9th Avenue on Sunday morning for the return of the Calgary Pride Parade and Festival, celebrating the city’s LGBTQ2S+ community in person for the first time since 2019.
The parade marks the end of Calgary’s first full-tilt Pride Week in three years after both the 2020 and 2021 events were scaled back and largely held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“(This) really marks the occasion of what Pride is all about, which is a community coming together,” said Calgary Pride communications coordinator Zac Remple. “We haven’t really been able to really do that for two years, so now, it’s an opportunity, it’s a return and it’s something really worth celebrating.”
The parade saw more than 160 entries traverse downtown Calgary’s 9th Avenue between 6th Street S.W. and 4th Street S.E. — on par with pre-pandemic numbers, according to organizers — with thousands gathered along the sidewalks, most dressed up in bright colours and donning rainbow-laden Pride flags to celebrate the occasion.
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Many attendees said they were glad to be back to take in Pride in person, noting the event’s growth and evolution over its decades in Calgary.
“I’ve been coming down for 20 years, and to watch it grow over the years and all the different locations, it’s expanded so much and become so family orientated. It’s fantastic,” said Richard Winikrcyk, attending the parade with his soon-to-be husband, Robert St. Jean.
“(Twenty years ago) there were only a couple thousand people there … Over the years, it grew and we’ve been heard and here we are at 100,000 people.”
Police and other emergency personnel were present at each intersection along the parade route, including bolstered security personnel hired by Calgary Pride itself. Last month, organizers cancelled Montreal’s Pride Parade due to security concerns stemming from a lack of volunteers.
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“As a community, we’re used to it; there are always protesters at the parade and we’re fully expecting there to be protesters this year,” said Brit Nickerson, manager of communications for Calgary Pride. “There’s always going to be hate and our hope today is that all the folks celebrating outweighs any hate that might be present here.”
Marshalling the parade this year was a group of LGBTQ2S+ refugees, representing multiple countries including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria and Ukraine. Organizers it was important to include community members from all walks of life in the festivities and to draw attention to the ongoing fight for human rights around the world.
“For us, they really represent the courage and resiliency of the Pride movement,” said Nickerson.
Multiple politicians could be seen taking part in the parade after disallowing political parties from taking part in the event altogether in 2019. This year, organizers opened applications for political parties that wanted to participate, with the decision lying in the hands of a jury of LGBTQ2S+ community members.
NDP leader Rachel Notley and women and LGBTQ2S+ issues critic Janis Irwin participated alongside a handful of other local NDP MLAs. The city’s lone Liberal MP, George Chahal, and Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek were also in attendance. The UCP was barred from participating in the parade this year, having its application denied by organizers.
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The parade route terminated at Fort Calgary, where the Pride Festival featured several performances, food trucks and family-friendly activities throughout the afternoon and evening.
Twitter: @michaelrdrguez
Here's how thousands of Calgarians celebrated the return of the in-person Pride parade
It was the first in-person parade since 2019
Rainbow flags, dancers, drag queens and trailblazers filled the streets of downtown Calgary on Sunday as the annual Pride parade made its much anticipated in-person return.
Thousands of people — both allies and community members — gathered to celebrate the movement, the achievements, and mark the end of a two-year absence from in-person gatherings.
"It means a lot. I mean, we've seen people walk by and it's nice to see their faces, and that's what this is all about. We get to sort of experience each other's humanity together in person," said Zac Rempel, the communications coordinator with Calgary Pride.
"That's something that we didn't have the past few years. And just seeing people's faces, seeing the kids, it puts a smile on my face."
Even though events were held virtually throughout the last couple of years, Rempel said that it didn't capture the spirit of the community.
Celebrating freely
Sunday's events were the first since the pandemic for some. For others, it was the first time they were able to freely celebrate their sexuality.
The marshals for this year's event were refugees and newcomers from several countries including, among others, Nigeria and Afghanistan.
Ken is one of the marshals. He identifies himself as a queer person; he came to Canada from Nigeria just over a month ago.
CBC News is not using his real name due to fear of repercussions in his home country.
"Nigeria is a country that has zero tolerance for LGBTQ persons," he told the Calgary Eyeopener on Sept. 1.
"We have policies that are against LGBTQ persons, like same-sex marriage prohibition law."
Ken noted that if a queer or a gay person is caught, they can be imprisoned for up to 14 years.
He said it's unthinkable that a parade could be even be held in that country.
From protest to pride
Pride started as a protest when a group of queer people rioted against police harassment at the bar in New York City's Greenwich Village.
Every year since then, celebrations take place to commemorate the uprising.
But in the North American context, pride has shifted more toward the celebration than the protest, according to Brit Nickerson with Calgary Pride.
For her, having refugees and newcomers at the forefront of this year's event is a nod to both the historical origins and the present-day diversity of the movement.
"Having our community out and being so visible, celebrating and creating an affirming space is really important," Nickerson said. "They really represent the courage and resiliency of the pride movement.
"We're really thrilled to be welcoming the refugees as our parade marshals."
LISTEN | Two of Calgary's Pride Parade marshals, who have made Canada their home after facing persecution where they're from originally, spoke with the Calgary Eyeopener about their experience:
