Colourful parade marks start of 36th annual Edmonton Pride
Emily Fitzpatrick | CBC News | Posted: June 4, 2016 7:41 PM | Last Updated: June 5, 2016
The parade kicked off the 10-day festival on Whyte Avenue
It was sunshine and rainbows — literally — at the kickoff to the 36th annual Edmonton Pride Festival on Saturday.
The parade ran down Whyte Avenue, kicking off the 10-day festival celebrating the diversity and unity of Edmonton`s LGBTQ community.
Around 3,000 people participated in the parade, and hundreds of supporters lined the streets to watch.
Almost 100 floats snaked their way down Whyte Avenue under a hot sun on Saturday morning, including a float from Alberta's NDP party, steered by Premier Rachel Notley.
Some of the floats were decked out with water cannons, bubble blowers, DJs, and even some stripper poles.
Beads, stickers, freezies and flags were handed out to the thousands of kids, adults and even dogs lining the streets of Whyte Avenue.
One of the key elements of the pride parade is the fashion, and the outfits varied from scantily clad to rainbow from head-to-toe.
Dressed up or not, it was a hot afternoon with temperatures reaching 24C.
Sunscreen bottles were shared by attendees, making sure no one, including this reporter, went home with red shoulders.
The Edmonton Pride Festival runs until June 12, with events happening daily.
Still a long way to go
Dressed in his clerical shirt and collar Mickey Wilson first walked in the parade about 25 years ago.
He didn't feel nervous. Just an overwhelming send of pride.
Now, Wilson, the executive director at Pride Centre of Edmonton, takes pleasure in seeing other trans people take that first step like he did all those years ago.
"One of our walkers today, it was their first time out dressed as a trans person in a public environment and they were nervous and they were over the moon," said Wilson.
"They felt so incredibly empowered."
Wilson said 25 years ago the lived experience for any member of the LGBTQ community was full of discrimination but there has been a marked changed in how some in the community are treated.
"Now the lived experience for the urban gay or lesbian individual is not so hard, things have changed," Wilson said.
"But to say that gay and lesbian people don't experience discrimination, sometimes profound discrimination, would be foolish."
He said the experience of people of colour, indigenous people and gender diverse people, can be very different.
"Although equality is in the law books and in human rights act, it's not what they experience everyday," he said.
"Although equality is in the law books and in human rights act, it's not what they experience everyday," he said.
To Wilson, there is still a long way to go before the rest of the year has the same feeling of inclusivity as the festival.
"When we step forward, we need to remember the people who still stand in the margins."