Members of Muskoka Pride, the LGBTQ2+ community, friends and allies gathered at Town Hall today for the raising of the Muskoka Pride flag, one of seven flag-raisings happening across Muskoka today. (The others were in Dwight, Bracebridge, Gravenhurst, Port Severn, Port Carling and Wahta First Nation.)
Muskoka Pride President, Merv Taylor-Morin, says it’s exciting that the flag is being raised in all of Muskoka’s municipalities, and that there is still need for the awareness that it brings.
“There’s an awful lot of backlash lately about gay pride stuff, people saying ‘why do you need to do that’ and ‘why don’t we have straight pride?'” he says. “That’s exactly why. It’s the same arguments that were used when women were trying to get rights, when blacks were trying to get rights…the best way to deny rights to people is to define them as other.”
Taylor-Morin hopes that the flag will remind people that Huntsville is an inclusive community. “Certainly for our community. They love to see the flag up. They love to see the various stores like The Topiary and Up North Games, who are sponsors of ours,” he says. “It spreads the word that these are positive spaces.”
Mayor Scott Aitchison agrees. “Huntsville has always been an inclusive community, I think, and to me this is just one more way we celebrate how it’s an engaging and involved and inclusive place,” he says. “This is an important way to remind us all that we are all important people and we all matter and this is what makes our community great. It’s a great way to celebrate and show the world that we are inclusive and we care about everybody.”
Huntsville OPP Detachment Commander John-Paul Graham (centre) with Muskoka Pride President Merv Taylor-Morin (left) and his husband John Taylor-Morin at the Muskoka Pride flag-raising at Town Hall
The flag-raising was part of Muskoka Pride Festival activities. The festival kicked off in Huntsville on July 19 with a party in River Mill Park and runs until July 28. Events still to come this week include a performance by the Queer Songbook Orchestra at the Algonquin Theatre on July 25 (presented by the Huntsville Festival of the Arts in partnership with Muskoka Pride), a drag show in Gravenhurst on July 27 and the Muskoka Pride Parade and Picnic in Bracebridge on July 28. See the full list of events at muskokapride.com.
The organization is always looking to extend its board, says Taylor-Morin. “We currently do not have anyone from Huntsville and we would love to have somebody from Huntsville,” he says. The board meets about every two months. Contact Merv Taylor-Morin at [email protected] if you’re interested. Also watch muskokapride.com for details about a conference in Gravenhurst in November where you can also be nominated to the board.
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