Hundreds celebrate LGBTQ2 community at Saint John Pride parade – New Brunswick

Vivian Myers Jones would say it hasn’t been easy in New Brunswick the past several months, but as she leads the way for the Saint John Pride parade, it feels special.

“This is a really huge honour that I’ve been asked to do this today,” she said. “I’m very thankful.”

She is a member of the LGBTQ2 community and fears the rhetoric being used to speak negatively about her community.

“Hearing some of that in contrast to some of the progress we’ve made, it’s scary.”

In recent months, the queer community has been rallying against a change to Policy 713 for students that requires parental consent to use a different name or pronoun.

Several advocates have said it will force teachers and school administrators to misgender students and potentially expose some to home environments that are not supportive.

It’s something that made Saint John Pride organizations feel this year carried a bit more than just a celebration.

“I think this year, more than a lot of recent years, queer joy is so important and showing that queer joy,” SJ Pride board president Mariah Darling said. “Especially over the last few months, there has been such a focus on some of the more negative aspects of having to live in and be in the community.”

This year the organizers required political party leaders, members and elected officials to participate in an education session in order to participate.

“We wanted to make sure that folks, especially folks from elected provincial parties, were not just kind of doing the walking in the parade, which is something I considered performative allyship,” Darling said.

She said all political parties were represented in the session.

Progressive Conservative Saint John Lancaster MLA Dorothy Shephard walked in the parade and attended the session. She resigned from cabinet following the changes to 713 and concerns over Premier Blaine Higgs’ leadership.

New Brunswick Liberal Leader Susan Holt, Green Party Leader David Coon and NDP Leader Alex White also participated in the parade.

Holt said she felt it was important to take the education session to show that political leaders and MLAs are learning about lived experience and creating safer spaces.

“You are welcome in my New Brunswick,” she said. “Your rights will be respected and defended to the end and thank you for continuing to be strong and resilient and for standing up and staying here in this fight we need to do today.”

For those in the community, Pride is so much more than a series of events.

“Listen to us, listen to our experiences; these are some absolutely amazing people, and I’m honoured to call them family as well,” Myers Jones said. “I’m just absolutely thankful to be alive and to be here and just to be a part of an amazing family.”

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