Barrhead's Pride crosswalk is about neutrality.
That is what Catlin Clarke said at the June 2 Pride crosswalk painting in response to the creation of the Barrhead Neutrality Coalition.
Caitlin Clarke, an ally of Barrhead's Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning (2SLGBTQ+) community, with the help of the Barrhead United Church OutProud group, spearheaded the initiative.
This is the third year there has been a Pride crosswalk in Barrhead. This year, the crosswalk is at the Main Street and 51st Avenue intersection between Tim Hortons and Canada Trust — more than 100 people attended during the three-hour event.
She said she doesn't know much about the coalition, but she understands it is patterned after one in Westlock, which successfully campaigned for a bylaw neutrality team prohibiting Pride and other crosswalks and flags deemed supporting "political, social, or religious movements or commercial entities in late February passing by a slim 663 to 639 margin.
"Right now, the world is not neutral if they are homosexual or non-cis gendered people," Clarke said. "People can still lose their jobs, are ridiculed and threatened for revealing their homosexuality. If the world were truly neutral, it wouldn't matter, but it does, so this crosswalk is a pathway to neutrality."
Clarke said it is important to note that it is not just about Pride. The Town of Barrhead has clarified that any group meeting the municipality's policy requirements can apply to paint a sidewalk.
On May 14, councillors unanimously approved the municipality's new decorative crosswalk policy.
Under the policy, applicants must submit all requests for a decorative crosswalk in writing to the town's CAO. The municipality has created a decorative crosswalk application form to simplify the process. Individuals, organizations or groups wishing to have a decorative crosswalk must be Barrhead residents or physically present in the community. Successful applicants will also be required to supply all materials and labour needed to paint the crosswalk, and all paints used must be non-slip and similar to that used to paint standard crosswalks. Approval of applications is the responsibility of the CAO.
Clarke also expressed her disappointment that Barrhead's provincial and federal elected officials did not attend the event, adding that invitations were extended to Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock UCP MLA Glenn van Dijken and Conservative Party of Canada Peace River - Westlock MP Arnold Viersen, something they have also done in previous years.
Although she understands and respects the decisions of many Pride organizations across the province to ban United Conservative Party (UCP) MLAs, Clarke said they are in a different position.
"Often politicians try to take credit for supporting and being friends of the 2SLGBTQ+ community when their policies clearly demonstrate they are not," she said. "Here, we are trying to get them to understand that it is not scary."
Former Barrhead resident and Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood NDP MLA Janis Irwin said pleased to be able to return home to support such an important project.
Irwin graduated from Barrhead Composite High School in 2002 and left the community in 2002 to pursue her education in education. In 2019, she was first elected to the provincial legislature. At the time, she was the only openly gay person in the legislature.
She said although she did not realize that she was gay until leaving the community, she knows the importance of such things as a Pride crosswalk for kids.
"I spent my teaching career in rural Alberta, and I know what it was like for kids who did not feel safe and included," she said. "[This crosswalk] is important because it is a visible sign of support."
Irwin said she was pleased that Clarke invited van Dijken but added she understands why some Pride groups have said UCP MLAs are not welcome.
"If you claim to be an ally, then you need to show it, and you do it by uplifting and supporting the community," not attacking it," she said. "As a former Barrheadian, it means the world to see how many people, here and in other rural communities, come together and show their love for the community. I am just so honoured to be here again."
As for whether Irwin was concerned about the neutrality groups such as the ones that formed in Westlock and now Barrhead, it will mean to other ally organizations' efforts to support the 2SLGBTQ+ community; she said she has faith in her fellow Albertans.
"[The formation of these groups] is disheartening," she said. "I truly believe most Albertans are loving, welcoming and kind. As the shirts from Barrhead United Church say, love is louder. If they start pushing back, we will respond with love."
