What the Owen Sound Pride Parade means to all citizens…
Evolution is one sweet nectar to sip on and Owen Sound’s economic upswing can no doubt be attributed (at least in credible part) to the city’s continued social evolution.
Case in point: Owen Sound having its own parade to celebrate the LGBTQ community.
See, it wasn’t all that long ago that being gay in Owen Sound and surrounding regions was very taboo.
Back in those days, even in the best case scenario, you kept your mouth shut and made a point of not giving off any signals about your sexual orientation.
I for one, happen to be straight, but my heart went out to the gay community here, what little of it was above ground, when I saw what they were up against.
In being straight, I got to see what the prevailing attitude was towards the LGBT community a couple of decades ago.
It was ugly.
I met guys who’d long to encounter gays on their days off, with the hope they could mess them up.
Did I mention I was a teenager at the time?
That’s where it gets worse – those people I encountered who were hoping to “rectify” gays were sometimes egged on by their parents.
In fact, when I was in my teens, there was one guy you’d see wandering around Owen Sound with a jacket that he had altered by hand that boldly stated on the back “Kill All Fa****s”.
The fact that he walked the streets so often without ever being arrested for inciting hatred or encouraging violence is beyond me.
Two decades later, that same idiot would be shamed right out of the community and right for it.
As a straight man, I walk the streets of Owen Sound and take great pride in seeing both our small businesses and big corporate flying the Pride flag and feeling proud that we are looking after another segment of our community.
Things have really changed in this town and that is cause for everyone to celebrate and that both the LGBTQ community and the straight community can celebrate the significance of the second gay pride Owen Sound will be celebrating this year.
To follow the festivities more closely, visit the organization on Facebook.
To submit any content related to the Owen Sound Pride Parade, send it over here.