The York Region community was loud and proud as folks from all over came together in Newmarket today to celebrate love and show support for the LGBTQ+ community — including Premier Doug Ford and York Region Conservative MPPs.
The York Pride festival on June 18 in Newmarket was the first in-person event since 2019. Tents were set up throughout Riverwalk Commons with live entertainment and the Pride Parade made its way down Main Street in front of crowds of thousands.
The Pride parade kicked off at 3 p.m. making its way from Ontario Street down Main Street as packed crowds cheered and celebrated, with Ford repeating the surprise visit he made at the last Pride parade in Newmarket in 2019.
The town crier led the way with a fire truck, ambulance, GO Bus, snowplow all in the line up. Representatives from Southlake, York Regional Police, PFlag and other community groups marches along with the parade.
Newmarket Mayor John Taylor rode on a bike decorated with rainbows, joined by other members of council.
After a couple of years of virtual celebrations, I had a blast seeing everyone again in person at @yorkprideca’s parade. So many friendly faces enjoying the festivities.
— Doug Ford (@fordnation) June 18, 2022
Happy Pride, Ontario! 🏳️🌈 pic.twitter.com/XhpePjPJFj
Prior to the parade, people enjoyed the various booths and vendors set up at Riverwalk Commons, starting at noon.
For Violet Meadows, this was her first Pride event ever.
“I haven’t been to any Pride events, so I wanted to see what it all is because I want to go to the Toronto one, so I wanted to jump in a bit,” she said.
As her first event she said she was really enjoying it so far. For her Pride is about “enjoying everybody and yourself.”
Meadows was at the event with Lydia Stramaglia and Patrick Zhang, who said it was important to attend to show their support for her and other members of the community.
“Be yourself and be proud and respect everybody’s differences,” Zhang said before Stamaglia added, “Be happy!”
The group was dressed in fun rainbow clothes, as were many of the attendees at the festival. Holly Scott, a former Newmarket resident who came from Bradford, was wearing rainbow from head to toe with colourful shoes, a flowery headpiece, and t-shirt she decorated herself with messages of support. She carried a rainbow sign she made with her husband.
Scott said she has a family member who is gay and she likes both men and women.
“Having a family member that’s gay, I really support Pride. He knows that I swing both ways, so we support each other,” she said.
Scott said it’s all about having the freedom to be who you are.
Her favourite part about coming out to the festival is "just seeing the community all together.”
Organizations from all across York Region had booths set up to share resources and hand out some free swag to people stopping by. There were representatives from York Regional Police, York Region District School Board, CAYR, PFlag, 360 Kids, Bounce Back and more.
One of the vendors was Megan Granfield, a school teacher who is behind the organization Revolution Now.
“I started Revolution Now in response to homophobia that I experienced in school and that I saw my students experiencing,” she said.
The organization sells t-shirts and art from youth artists who are transgender, as well as Black, Muslim, and Indigenous artists. A portion of the proceeds from each sale goes to local charities in line with the cause.
Glanfield said there are two important parts of Pride for her.
“I’m so happy to see the party part of Pride and I’m still very much driven by needing to have progress,” she said. “We stand on the shoulders of the ancestors of the community. We recognize that it used to be a lot harder for those that came before us.”
She grew up in Newmarket and at a time before laws were changed to allow for same-sex marriages. She said when she was young, this kind of festival wasn’t feasible or even imaginable.
“To be here and to be advocating for my students and advocating for the youth in my community is an absolute privilege and I take great pride in that. It means so much to have this and the support of the community here for us,” Granfield said.
The Pride celebrations continue in downtown Newmarket until midnight tonight. Booths will be set up, with interactive activities, food trucks, a beer garden and live music.
