Steinbach Pride marks five years

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This article was published 19/08/2022 (999 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When Scarlett Thomas was a little girl, she remembers coming across a Pride parade with her mother, who was quick to condemn it and label it as “terrible.”

Now, Thomas’ mother stands in solidarity with her.

Thomas came out to her parents two years ago, a once “ultra-conservative” family from Steinbach. These days, Thomas says her parents are her biggest supporters.

“They just love me and want me to be happy,” Thomas, 14, said while marching down Main Street Sunday afternoon, a pair of rainbow flags in her hands flapping in the wind.

Over 400 people gathered at K.R. Barkman Park that afternoon to celebrate Steinbach Pride’s fifth annual event and participate in a march that would through the downtown core. According to organizers, security issues prevented the march from taking place on the street as planned. Sidewalks were used instead.

The march returned to Steinbach after a two-year pandemic hiatus.

Alan Fehr, the MC for the event, welcomed the crowd with an impassioned speech about the meaning of Pride, his story of coming out weeks before COVID-19 arrived in Manitoba, and being isolated from community during an extremely isolating time, yet still finding and giving support to the LGBTQ+ community in the process.

“Who you are is perfectly acceptable and lovable,” Fehr told the crowd, which responded with thunderous applause.

Fehr invited local politicians to the stage to bring governmental greetings. The invitation was met with silence.

In a mock “conversation,” Fehr took a swipe at Provencher MP Ted Falk, asking the apparition to make his stance on conversion therapy clear. Fehr said Falk has gone on record playing both sides of the debate. The crowd answered for the absent Falk, booing after the question Fehr posed.

In an emailed statement to The Carillon, Falk disputed the claim, saying he has made his stance on conversion therapy clear.

“I do not support any type of coercive or abusive practice. However, Bill C-4 gave too broad a definition and did not carve out a clear exemption for conversations with a parent, counselor, or clergy,” the statement read.

“In other places it was too narrow, as it did not leave room for individuals who choose to seek counsel related to unwanted same-sex attraction, or those seeking (as some have) to de-transition back to their gender of birth.”

The absence of politicians at Pride events in Steinbach isn’t new. In 2016, during the first Pride event to be held in the province’s “Bible belt capital,” the event garnered national attention for the noticeable absences of Falk, Steinbach MLA Kelvin Goertzen, and then-Mayor Chris Goertzen.

Looking back on five marches, Steinbach Pride President Chris Plett said priorities for the event have shifted.

“We want to give back to the community as much as we can…at first it was about getting the government’s attention but now it’s about more than that,” he said.

Organizers say the City of Steinbach denied a request to fly a Pride flag at City Hall for the day. Instead, a group hoisted a pair of flags on their own poles in front of the municipal building, where they remained for the afternoon.

Mayor Earl Funk said in an interview the decision to not fly the Pride flag came from a neutrality policy the City has.

“We’ve just decided that to just be fair to everybody we don’t fly any flag, and that’s all it is. It’s not to single anybody out, we’re not against one group or another,” he said, adding the city gets multiple requests to fly flags from various organizations per month.

Funk did not attend Sunday’s event, saying he was at a family barbecue in Winnipeg. MLA Goertzen was at an event, too, according to posts on his social media page.

Back at K.R. Barkman Park, sidewalk chalk was scattered throughout the park during the afternoon event; “Pride is for everyone” and “hearts not parts” written in rainbow colours were etched on the bricks. During the march, participants held signs that read, “Homophobia is a sin” and “God loves queers.”

Walking with her grandmother during the Pride march, Thomas said support for the LGBTQ+ community in town is higher than most think. She said she feels the community has her back.

Plett said he feels the one-day event is not enough for the community. He’d like to see non-profit organizations and drop-in centres come to town to provide year-round support and advocacy.

He added while the no-show from local leaders is unsurprising, he hopes to build bridges between the LGBTQ+ community and politicians in future years. Meanwhile, Steinbach Pride’s focus remains on the people they represent.

“The LGBTQ community here in Steinbach will only continue to grow, and as long as we make people feel safe and loved when they’re here that’s what the ticket is going to be,” he said.

“People will move into the community and they will contribute to the community as well and make it a better place for everybody.”