The first official Pride Parade in Nova Scotia’s South Shore will march through Bridgewater this summer. The Bridgewater Pride Parade is organized by Lunenburg PRIDE, a non-profit organization.
“We’re making history,” says Steve Ellis, Chair of Lunenburg PRIDE.
On July 9 at 2 p.m. the parade will kick off at the NSCC parking lot in Bridgewater. The parade will continue down Empire Street, then take a right turn onto King Street, which will be closed for the duration of the parade. The parade finishes at King and Dufferin. There will be two afterparties following the parade: one all ages event, and one 19+ event.
The first pride parade in Nova Scotia took place in Halifax in 1988. Around 75 people walked through the North End.
Today, Halifax’s pride parade draws more than 100,000 people each year, and there are pride parades in Annapolis Royal and Sydney.
Many Nova Scotian communities don’t have annual parades but have pride groups that host a variety of events throughout the year.
Last year, Lunenburg PRIDE organized a week of events to celebrate Pride month.
“All of our events were extremely popular, very well attended,” says Ellis. “That’s when we said, okay, we’re definitely doing a parade next year!”
Along with the parade, Lunenburg PRIDE is also hosting a week of events once more this year, including a seniors’ social, flag-raising events, a drag storytime event at the library, a dog show, and a drag show. Details on all these events can be found on our events calendar at thebarnacle.ca.
For those interested in participating in the parade with their organization or business, forms and payments are due by the end of June. It is completely free to watch the parade. You can visit Lunenburg PRIDE’s Facebook page or email them for more info.
Readers who are interested in participating in the parade or who have questions about these events can email: lunenburgpride@gmail.com
