St. John's Pride goes online for 2020 celebration
Pride month has ended, but the St. John's Pride festival is yet to come — and this year, like many other gatherings, it will look a little bit different.
The annual festival celebrating the LGBTQ community is moving online amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, with public health restrictions cancelling similar festivals across the country for 2020.
"We didn't want to cancel this year's festivities, so we decided to take things as virtual and digital as possible," Greg Noseworthy, co-chair of St. John's Pride, told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show Tuesday.
While a parade is out of the question, the digital festival includes online concerts, a legal clinic, drag events, and even kid's events
Sticking to its mission statement of inclusivity, events are open to all.
"We always try to adapt everything so that anyone can attend, whether you're in the LGBTQ community, if you're not, if you're an ally, we try to keep everything as open to everybody," said Noseworthy.
"It's an opportunity for everybody to connect on some kind of a level, and get a little bit more personal and have a sense of understanding and a sense of community."
Changes brewing
With things moving online this year, Noseworthy said the festivities can now reach beyond the borders of St. John's, so people across the province, and the rest Canada can tune in to take part.
What's more, Quidi Vidi Brewing Co. in St. John's has signed on as a sponsor and is changing up the can of its Dayboil IPA for the cause, renaming it Gayboil.
"We had some discussions back in the fall with the possibility for Quidi Vidi to come on as one of our flagship sponsors, and a way to help us facilitate a number of our events. So it's been a huge financial assistance for us," Noseworthy said.
"I think the big thing with that, rather than it being a financial thing, is that there's community organizations out here, we're all in this together, we find ways to promote Pride, [and] promote and support the LGBTQ community."
This year's festival runs from July 10 to July 19.
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