Kelowna’s 12th annual Pride March and Festival is taking place at City Park today.
It's been 50 years since the first pride parade took place in New York and 50 years since homosexuality was decriminalized in Canada.
Councillor Loyal Wooldridge will be in attendance. He has lived in Kelowna since 1993 and claims Kelowna has come a long way since he came out as gay in 2001.
“It’s an open conversation now in the community and there's still a long way to go. Just reading online forums you can see that, but Kelowna has come a long way. We have a mayor that is marching in the pride march and we’re embracing it with festivals in our city, so it’s great to see,” said Wooldridge.
The event will be honouring individuals who played a major role in the revolution of Pride in Kelowna
“It’s inclusive of everyone from families, to all walks of life and it’s an opportunity for us all to come together and celebrate our differences and give a voice to the most marginalized and oppressed communities. That doesn’t necessarily just mean the LGBT community but also the indigenous partners.”
He believes coming from a marginalized background himself had a hand shaping his character but it doesn’t define who he is today.
“To overcome that and to stand proud and be who I truly am and have the faith of the community to be elected was a true feat and I’m still so very grateful.”
The event runs from 11a.m. to 4p.m.