Montreal’s West Island welcomes its first 2SLGBTQIA+ Pride event

Edgewater Park in Pointe-Claire was buzzing with activity this Saturday as people came together for the very first West Island Pride Celebration.

The community fair was bustling with local vendors and artisans, offering plenty of opportunities to shop and connect with local organizations.

On the main stage, there was something for everyone: story time for children, live music, and engaging discussions about life in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

What a beautiful crowd, all kinds of different people, all kinds of different ages. It seems like the community is really out to support today. It’s amazing,” said drag queen Bambi Dextrous, a few minutes before going on stage for story time.

“As an organization we are the only specifically 2SLGBTQIA service provider in the whole West Island and so this event is not just about having a fun day out in the park. It’s also about being a very intentional and explicit show of support and solidarity and love from our community,” said the executive director of the West Island LGBTQ2+ Centre, David Hawkins.

Hawkins emphasized that the tough social and political climate facing queer individuals today underscores the importance of such celebrations.

“We live in a time where right now it feels like there’s a lot of things It’s almost like backtracking or backstepping you look at what’s happening legally and politically both here in Quebec and across Canada at large. You look at what’s happening in the States, and what’s happening around the world and there’s a lot of anti-trans backlash. There’s a lot of anti gay backlash. There’s a lot of like anti drag backlash. So for us as a community, there are moments where it’s scary. That is why it’s so important that we do this is to remind people that even if there are those detractors out there, even if there are people pushing back against our existence. We are still then we’re still making space and we’re still standing by one another,” added Hawkins.

“People still see the distance between the West Island and the downtown core as a distance. And now I think the community has decided to come out here and celebrate out here too because we’d love to have them and we’d rather not drive downtown so it’s great,” said Pointe Claire Mayor Tim Thomas.

“I’m actually bi and it’s really important because I’ve never really had a good connection with the community, especially living in the West Island. There wasn’t really much of one until recently. So having an event like this kind of gives everybody the opportunity to be part of the community and to find resources and get like whatever connections and, you know, just sense of love and acceptance that they need. And I think it’s, it’s really wonderful and beautiful to see”, said a West Island resident.

“As a very proud ally, [this type of space] is very much needed. Love is love. It’s also 2024, it’s long overdue and it’s really important that this is here for everybody and I’m very happy to be here to support. It’s awesome,” said another West Island resident.