WESTLOCK – Citing their role to foster “community spirit” and “that no one should feel afraid or threatened”, with the mayor making it crystal clear that they “welcome inclusivity”, Town of Westlock councillors unanimously re-affirmed their support of the community’s first Rainbow crosswalk to be painted across 106th Street on June 27.
Town council chambers were packed to its 32-seat capacity June 12, while the hallway outside was full of not only supporters of the crosswalk, which is to be painted by R.F. Staples School’s Thunder Alliance and Family and Community Support Services (FCSS), but its detractors, many of which had also set up outside the building prior to the meeting and then livestreamed parts of the event via social media. The crosswalk request came to council May 8 where it was approved unanimously with the date initially June 17, but moved to the following day due to a bevy of other events on Saturday. On June 16, FCSS and the Thunder Alliance announced the date had been moved to June 27 as the forecast for Sunday called for rain and "acrylic paint won’t stick to wet pavement.”
Following pro-crosswalk submissions from Edmonton Centre MP Randy Boissonnault, who appeared via Zoom and talked about growing up in Morinville and his experience of being a gay man in a rural community, then reps from the Thunder Alliance, along with two community members vehemently against, each councillor spoke — more on the presentations from both sides is here.
Mayor Ralph Leriger was the last to speak and called the Rainbow crosswalk in support of the region’s LGBTQIA2S+ community a “way to bridge an existing division within our society” before making the motion, which passed 7-0, to accept all the presentations as information and reaffirm their support to paint the crosswalk. He went on to say that every generation “challenges society’s norms” highlighting the suffrage movement as just one and noted that, “ … this generation is challenging the constructs of racism, sexism and the patriarchy and that’s critical, not criminal … as every generation needs to challenge and contribute to positive change.”
“From many of the horrible comments that I’ve received by e-mail, it tells me the division is already here … it’s already here. We aren’t all the same, we all have different backgrounds, beliefs and experiences and those differences should be one of our strengths instead of pushing us apart,” said Leriger. “We all have a role to play in our community. It’s good for us all to face each day with empathy and patience. Everything else is just noise.”
Why it’s needed
All councillors spoke in support, with Coun. Jon Kramer, a Christian and former pastor in the community for 10 years, admitting he was “a bit disappointed this past week about the turn things have taken regarding the initiative” but added “my mind has shifted in that now I find myself thankful for the opportunity it’s afforded council to communicate even more clearly to the public as to why this crosswalk is so needed.”
Addressing criticism that the crosswalk will only fracture the community, Kramer said they’re simply “bringing into the light the real divisions that already exist.”
“The power imbalance that exists for LGBTQ folks within their communities is massive. What Pride crosswalks do is they effectively bring that struggle to our collective awareness which I believe is incredibly uncomfortable and inconvenient for some in the community,” said Kramer. “The end result is that we’re all given the gift of seeing things now as they are. And for us in leadership, the opportunity exists for us to move the needle in the right direction for our community as a whole.”
Brushes in hand
Kramer, who said he and his family will be at the event “with brushes in hand”, went on to note that Westlock is “far from the first municipality to do this” and that according to the Municipal Government Act, their role isn’t just to provide good governance or infrastructure, but to “development and maintain safe and viable communities for all our residents.”
“For LGBTQIA2S+ youth, rural Alberta hasn’t always often felt like or been a safe place to call home. Currently our kids have found compartmentalized safe spaces within the walls of R.F. Staples, Youth Unlimited and a couple of other agencies, but they also deserve to be safe and seen out in the wider community,” said Kramer. “This crosswalk is about visibility and about an event where they can see the wider support that exists for them within the community at large. The push behind this initiative isn’t from a small fringe group of individuals, it’s an alliance of citizens both gay and straight, young and old who want to see our town become a safer, more welcoming place for everyone.”
Kramer said that Westlock shouldn’t be a place where LGBTQIA2S+ youth only “survive and get out of” but a community where they can “live safely and put down roots.” He went on to address the Thunder Alliance directly and said, “ … it’s no secret that much of the opposition to Pride comes from folks within the religious community” as well as “bad actors trying to leverage the influence of the religious community.” He said he hopes that the people who stand in opposition, “ … largely in part because of the sensationalist messages they’ve been fed about some gay and trans agenda” will find a way to “disconnect from that stream of that disinformation” and get to personally know some LGBTQIA2S+ people and learn that “their true agenda is a right to safety, a desire for acceptance and an opportunity to flourish.”
“The religious community does not speak against this crosswalk with a unanimous voice,” said Kramer. “I and many others from the faith community stand behind this initiative not in spite of our faith, but because of it. My faith compels me to advocate for those in our community who are vulnerable, at-risk, and marginalized. And whenever I can show compassion and stand in the gap, I believe I’m fully living out the tenets of my faith.”
A bridge of understanding and tolerance
Coun. Abby Keyes, who said she respected those “who have voiced their concerns from a religious perspective” as she was raised in and continues to practice in a “fairly strict, conservative religion”, wept while recalling a gay friend who attempted suicide as her religious family wouldn’t accept her and another who was terrified to tell her father they were gay as he had refused to walk across the Rainbow crosswalk in Edmonton.
“I value the family unit, but also understand that it changes and evolves. My concern has progressed to make room for tolerance and love towards the LGBTQIA2S+ community as statistics show, especially youth, are at higher risk of depression, anxiety, and suicide,” said Keyes. “Although I do not identify as member of this community, I am a friend and an ally. Like all things in life, we need to approach this not out of fear, but with love. This crosswalk represents a bridge of understanding and tolerance.”
No one should feel afraid or threatened
Coun. Murtaza Jamaly said that no one in Westlock “should feel afraid, threatened or worried about their safety or their next day at school or work” and the “reason we’re having this discussion today, is that because that isn’t true today.”
Jamaly said while some of the correspondence he’s received was respectful, much of it wasn’t showing there’s “much work to be done to make (this) a safe community.” He also countered the argument that infrastructure needs to remain neutral and pointed to things like wheelchair-accessible washrooms and ramps that “support a minority group.”
“Our infrastructure needs to be adapted in so many places to ensure that all people in our community feel welcome, feel included and feel safe,” said Jamaly. “It’s important to note that what’s equal isn’t always fair and what’s fair isn’t always equal.”
Jamaly, who as a visible minority of a different religious faith from both Keyes and Kramer, said he “couldn’t be more proud” to have grown up in Westlock “and to raise my children here” but implored the citizenry to “be good neighbours, be respectful of others’ beliefs and other walks of life.”
“And this is often hardest when someone is different. But just because someone walks a different path doesn’t mean they are lost,” he said. “I think this is a start. For those on the other side of this issue, I think it’s important that you know this: I still love you and you’re still my neighbours, my friends, and my family.”
Change is hard
Coun. Randy Wold said point blank that “change is hard” and things that were acceptable “years ago are not tolerated today” and pointed to how disabled people “have struggled for acceptance and equality for centuries” and have been “discriminated against, mistreated and misunderstood, oppressed, persecuted and sometimes killed due to prejudge, intolerance and indifference.”
Coun. Laura Morie said, “ … this is about a feeling of belonging and to be validated” and community is not about geography “but where you feel safe and belong” and that she was “all for this crosswalk” noting that where “ignorance lies, hate organizes, and I don’t want that in this town that I so value.”
Finally, Coun. Curtis Snell said looking across the table at members of the alliance, “I see kids and it gets me right there.” He recalled losing three friends to suicide while growing up and “I think all of them felt like that weren’t accepted or heard.”
“I think I speak for council in that we strive to create a safe, inclusive community for everybody. And we want to keep our youth in town for the long haul,” said Snell.
