New Pride collective to unite groups across province By: Eva Wasney Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Friday, May. 26, 2023

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/05/2023 (878 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Pride season kicked off in Winnipeg this week with a slate of community events, a flag raising at city hall and a funding announcement that supporters hope will help create a more cohesive platform for LGBTTQ+ advocacy across the province.

“There needs to be a stronger voice,” Pride Winnipeg president Barry Karlenzig says of the $250,000 provincial grant received by the organization to spearhead a new Manitoba Pride Collective. “We have the most Prides per capita than any other province in Canada — that’s something to be proud about.”

The collective will provide core funding and operational resources for the 20 Pride organizations that operate throughout Manitoba. It will also offer the groups a chance to address shared issues as a united front.

“When something like this happens, there’s a collective of twenty Prides that can come together and make a statement and show support and solidarity,” Karlenzig says, referring to a recently rejected call to ban books with LGBTTQ+ themes in Brandon schools.

While the book-banning rhetoric — as well as a recent case of homophobic vandalism at a local elementary school — are top of mind heading into this year’s celebrations, Pride Winnipeg is preparing for next weekend’s festival, rally and parade as usual.

The organization hires private security for the festival site at The Forks and advises parade participants to avoid engaging with protesters who might attend the event.

“We are monitoring it. Our number one priority is safety for everyone,” Karlenzig says.

The annual Pride Winnipeg festival takes place June 3 and 4, with programming on three stages beginning at noon daily.

Last year, Winnipeg played host to Fierté Canada Pride (a national gathering of Pride organizations) and saw festival attendance double to more than 80,000 people.

Numbers are expected to return to normal this year, but the event has inspired some permanent changes to the grounds.

A new fixture is the community stage located east of the main CN Stage and Field. The space is programmed entirely by community groups, such as Pride Winnipeg’s Indigenous partners and QPOC (Queer People of Colour) Winnipeg.

An opening ceremony will take place Saturday at noon and weekend events include beading and jigging workshops as well as a “no talent” show.

The festival’s community zone has also been expanded and this year’s PrideMart will feature a job fair.

Separate substance-free zones have been added to both onsite beverage tents, where attendees can access seating and non-alcoholic refreshments.

“Some of our community partners felt that in order to sit close to the stage, you had to be in the beer tent, and for some that is a trigger. We took down those barriers to expand programming and make it a safe space for more (people),” Karlenzig says.

In an effort to improve accessibility, Pride Winnipeg has also partnered with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights to create a quiet zone where festival-goers can take a break from the crowds while taking in a live performance feed.

The festival’s main stage lineup includes performances by local drag queens, dancers and musicians, such as Mama Cutsworth, Al Simmons and Ami Cheon.

Out-of-province headliners include Zaki Ibrahim, a South African-Canadian singer-songwriter; Rae Spoon, a non-binary performer from Calgary; Tinge, a Two-Spirit Anishinaabe artist from Lake of the Woods; and the Sean Irvine Quintet out of Toronto.

The kid’s stage will feature concerts, a drag story hour, and workshops by Art City and Manitoba Theatre for Young People.

Pride Winnipeg’s annual rally takes place Sunday at 10 a.m. in front of the Manitoba Legislative Building and will be followed by the Pride Parade at 11 a.m. The parade route begins on Memorial Boulevard and ends on Israel Asper Way.

All of the weekend’s events are free.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com
Twitter: @evawasney

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