Pride Month kicks off this June when the rainbow flags are hoisted and the proclamations are read out at both the District of Sechelt and the Town of Gibsons.
One of the most enduring events of the celebration of LGBTQ2 (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Two Spirit) is the evening spent in stories during Read Out Loud, a literary salon. This year it takes place on Saturday, June 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Sunshine Coast Arts Centre, organized as it has been in the past four years, by Andrea Routley and sponsored by a supportive Sunshine Coast Credit Union.
“When I’m thinking about which writers to invite,” said Routley, “it’s usually someone that I’ve liked to read.” She also considers bringing in a wide range of genres, from poets to speculative fiction writers, and of all ages. This year there will once again be original work from high school students – last year one writer was still in grade 12 – along with invited authors from off the Coast. It’s a move to try to integrate queer authors into learning, to bring their work into kids’ lives.
LGBTQ2 writing is not a genre, specifically, but it does have commonalities across the range of work available.
“We see ourselves in the literature,” said Laurie Lesk, organizer of Pride activities who also works with LGBTQ2 and allies groups for youth.
Hiromi Goto is one of the adult authors who will be at Read Out Loud. Her novels, Chorus of Mushrooms, The Kappa Child, and her first young adult novel, Half World, have been awarded national and international prizes. She is a mentor in the Writer’s Studio Program at Simon Fraser University, and for the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. She is currently at work trying to decolonize her relationship to writing, and to be a responsible guest on Turtle Island (www.hiromigoto.com).
Nicole Breit is a poet, essayist and writing mentor best known for her creative non-fiction abilities. In 2016, her essay, “An Atmospheric Pressure,” won Room magazine’s annual creative non-fiction contest and was selected as a notable essay in the 2017 edition of Best American Essays. Her lyric essay, “Spectrum,” won an award the same year and is reprinted in this year’s Pride Guide.
While at the Arts Centre for Read Out Loud, audience can take in the current art show in the gallery, This is Who I am: The Politics of the Queer Body. The artists, Sheryl McDougald and Noel Silver, will be holding an arts centre reception this weekend, June 3 from 2 to 4 p.m. and will be present for a Sunshine Coast Pride Reception on Friday, June 15 from 7 to 9 p.m. As with most events, allies of LGBTQ2 folks are always welcome.
Other events include a golf game on June 16 at Blue Ocean Golf Club and a film night on June 22 featuring a documentary at the Heritage Playhouse about Les Ballets Trockaderos, the all-male comic ballet troupe. An open mic night is at Gibsons Public Library on June 27 at 6 p.m. and, new for this year, My Big Gay Prom on June 30 is aimed at LGBTQ2 (and allies) youth up to age 24.
Sunday in the Park with Pride is a popular event that invites all friends of the community to come out for the parade and old-fashioned fun at Mission Point Park on June 24. It’s a lot of work to put together this all-encompassing event, so this year Lesk and the other organizers were happy that Community Services and the Ministry of Children and Family Development stepped up to help. If you’re getting dressed up to go in the parade or to the prom, then stop by Gibsons Library on Saturday, June 16 from noon to 3 p.m. to glitterize your costume with glue gun and jewels on tap. “You could decorate a shirt,” said Routley, “make a sign for the parade, etc. No bedazzling required to attend Pride events, of course. Totally optional!”
Pride Guide is available now at cafés, libraries and visitor centres on the Sunshine Coast for free (and at www.PrideGuide.ca) with a schedule of Pride month activities, community resources and articles of interest.
