Theo Wouters was pleased to see simply how a lot factors had truly altered in Pointe-Claire, Que., as locals collected for the city’s very first Pride event Saturday.
“In the past, my husband and I, we had about 10 years of harassment in Pointe-Claire and this is an absolutely wonderful initiative to make people aware that we exist,” he claimed.
People of each ages collected at Edgewater Park to seek the advice of with craftsmens, neighborhood corporations and revel in varied packages and panels discussing the 2SLGBTQ+ expertise within the suburban space on Montreal’s West Island.
“The West Island has never really had many public 2SLGBTQIA+ events,” states David Hawkins, the manager supervisor of the West Island LGBTQ2+ Centre and the corporate behind the event.
David Hawkins is the manager supervisor of the West Island LGBTQ2+Centre (John Ngala/ CBC)
The final time there was a celebration of this type within the city remained in 2001, he states, when lots of of people required to the roads to maintain Wouters and his at the moment late hubby Roger Thibault that had truly been experiencing harassment from neighbors and previous.
“Young people came from all over the Pointe-Claire area. They threw fire on our house, breaking the windows of the car, we had all kinds of things done to us and we said, ‘No, this is not what we accept,’ and we started to fight back,” Wouters remembers.
The set befell to finish up being the preliminary same-sex pair to turn out to be a part of a civil union in Quebec the record beneath yr. Thibault died in August 2023.
“I continue, in memory of Roger,” states Wouters.
Pride past the massive metropolis
Hawkins states the target of Saturday’s event was to speak the message that Pointe-Claire is a united neighborhood.
“We support each other, we’re here to uplift each other, we’re here to bring visibility to each other and we’re here to stand side by side,” he claimed.
For him, the aim was to produce a room extra detailed to house for the West Island’s 2SLGBTQ+ neighborhood than what Fiert é Montr éal’s reveals may use.
“Anyone who’s ever used the public transit system knows that it’s not necessarily an efficient way to get around,” he claimed. “There are a lot of people who don’t necessarily get to access Pride in Montreal every year.”
The West Island Pride is deliberate to reinforce Montreal Pride, subsequently its September day, he states.
Sarah McGarr, proper, states it was mandatory for her and her boy, that has 2 moms, to actually really feel stood for insideMontreal’s West Island (John Ngala/ CBC)
Nathalie Djandji introduced her 2 children to the event Saturday.
“In the West Island, we’re not as much in contact with other realities so I think it’s important to bring them to these kinds of events,” she claimed. “It’s important just to be used to the fact that people are different. There are all kinds of families.”
Shannon McGarr states that actually feeling stood for in her neighborhood is extraordinarily essential. She and her companion are mothers to their boy Winston, whom they supplied the event.
“Even though my son is very proud to have the family he has, I think it’s really important and nice for him to be able to experience families that look like ours,” claimed McGarr.
Hawkins is actually hoping Saturday’s Pride event finally ends up being the preliminary of quite a few. He states the corporate intends to make it a yearly event or on the very least maintain it frequently.
