Halifax Pride

Saturday was the Pride Parade in Halifax.  The forecast was quite ominous -- rain / thunderstorms -- so we were lucky that there were just a few sprinkles.

Though the parade started at 1 p.m. Wendy and I were positioned near the end of the route with many other folk staring intently at the empty road in anticipation, when at 1:45 something unexpected happened; a volunteer stood in the middle of the street with one finger on her lips and her other hand raised with a finger pointed upward.  It took a few seconds for us to catch on.  Slowly the hubbub died down, and more hands began pointed skyward.  It was amazing as the street became silent.  Not a word.  Not at peep.  Fingers pointing toward the heavens.  We stood united united in silence.

No one needed to tell us why we were standing quietly.  We knew.  And we stood one minute, two minutes, and then a couple of minutes more.  Each of us thinking our own thoughts.

And then we saw a mounted police officer coming and knew the parade had arrived.

There were a number of floats but mostly there were various groups, marching, sashaying, dancing, vamping and parading past us.

There were lawyers, teachers, doctors, and nurses.

There was the R.C.M.P. military representatives and local police.

There were banks, grocery stores, and churches.  I'm not sure about the motivation of the banks and grocery stores.

"Gay by God"

 This couple along with their children were part of the CBC group.

Wouldn't it be lovely if the couple in the image below could fearlessly walk hand-in-hand on the other 364 days of the year  ?  

 Pride parades are not about just supporting our gay brothers and sisters.  There are so many different sexual realities that we need to educate ourselves about and support.

It's more than just rainbow colours.
 

NDP (political party) float.

A few years back the Progressive Conservative Party of  Nova Scotia had a very minimal showing in the parade.  This year they had a much higher profile handing out rainbow coloured cards that read:

RESPECT

Treat all citizens equally, regardless of ability, race, gender, religion, language, First Nations status, marital status and/or sexual orientation.

We are moving forward but we still have a very long way to go.    

This link takes you to a page with helpful definitions of some LGBT+ terms.  For example, are you cisgender ?  Are you an ally ?  

Halifax Pride

Saturday was the Pride Parade in Halifax.  The forecast was quite ominous -- rain / thunderstorms -- so we were lucky that there were just a few sprinkles.

Though the parade started at 1 p.m. Wendy and I were positioned near the end of the route with many other folk staring intently at the empty road in anticipation, when at 1:45 something unexpected happened; a volunteer stood in the middle of the street with one finger on her lips and her other hand raised with a finger pointed upward.  It took a few seconds for us to catch on.  Slowly the hubbub died down, and more hands began pointed skyward.  It was amazing as the street became silent.  Not a word.  Not at peep.  Fingers pointing toward the heavens.  We stood united united in silence.

No one needed to tell us why we were standing quietly.  We knew.  And we stood one minute, two minutes, and then a couple of minutes more.  Each of us thinking our own thoughts.

And then we saw a mounted police officer coming and knew the parade had arrived.

There were a number of floats but mostly there were various groups, marching, sashaying, dancing, vamping and parading past us.

There were lawyers, teacher, doctors, and nurses.

There was the R.C.M.P. and local police.

There were banks, grocery stores, and churches.

"Gay by God"

 This couple along with their children were part of the CBC group.

Wouldn't it be lovely if the couple in the image below could fearlessly walk hand-in-hand on the other 364 days of the year  ?  

 Pride parades are not about just supporting our gay brothers and sisters.  There are so many different sexual realities that we need to educate ourselves about and support.

It's more than just rainbow colours.
 

NDP (political party) float.

A few years back the Progressive Conservative Party of  Nova Scotia had a very minimal showing in the parade.  This year they had a much higher profile handing out rainbow coloured cards that read:

RESPECT

Treat all citizens equally, regardless of ability, race, gender, religion, language, First Nations status, marital status and/or sexual orientation.

We are moving forward but we still have a very long way to go.   An acquaintance the day after the parade asked me "Did you see me at the parade?".  "No I didn't", I replied, "were you there?".   "No" he responded.  "Why would I go to THAT !?" his voice indicating his disapproval.  

As I said.  We still have a  long way to go.

This link takes you to a page with helpful definitions of some LGBT+ terms.  For example, are you cisgender ?  Are you an ally ?  

Wendy pride.

I took Wendy to the Halifax Pride parade two weeks ago.  I saw it as a good opportunity to see how she would behave in crowds.

And the parade certainly does attract big, happy, diverse crowds.

Wendy took everything in stride -- sitting where I put her -- and staying there.

When I plunked her in the middle of an empty intersection, and walked away to see what she'd do, the results were quite amusing.  People would walk by, and start looking all over to see where the owner was.  One lady, as she walked by Wendy, gently stroked the top of her head, and still Wendy didn't budge.   She made me really proud.

But I wasn't done with her yet.

I'd find different places to put her in a "sit, stay" and then keep an eye on her from a safe distance.

Meanwhile the wonderful, joyous Pride parade rolled on by.

I was pleased to see floats and marchers representing our major political parties, police forces, banks, and businesses.   The Parade definitely seems to have gone "mainstream".

The feeling of joy and inclusiveness was palpable.

And Wendy continued to make me proud.  

 I wonder what she made of the events of the day ?   

I certainly enjoyed myself.

Still, it's a pity that only on one day of the year, can a loving couple safely walk hand-in-hand down a public street, without fear of reprisal.

It seems that humans, unlike Wendy, still have some learning to do.