Galt Museum celebrates Pride

By Lethbridge Herald on June 16, 2023.

Herald Photo by Justin Sibbet Glenice Nyanjoh (left) and Savannah Reid (right) create bracelets during a pride event on Wednesday at the Galt Museum.

Justin Sibbet
LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER

June is widely recognized as Pride month, so the Galt Museum and Archives has lined up several events throughout the month.

One such event was a history lesson and bracelet making activity, hosted on Thursday by Galt community program coordinator, Kristin Krein. 

This was the third time she ran this event over the past two weeks, with the first being dedicated to children, the second for newcomers in Canada and the one Wednesday for disabled people.

Krein says the history of pride as it is known today dates to New York City and the Stonewall Inn riots of 1969.

However, she says the history of pride dates centuries before the Stonewall Inn riots.

“Those events of Stonewall and the liberation movements that followed were a direct result of prior decades of (pride) activism,” said Krein.

She says the Pride movement has come a long way since its roots in 1969, with workplaces, such as the Galt Museum, becoming more enjoyable to work at for members of the community.

“This is a really accepting place to work,” said Krein.

However, she says there is still a long way to go before the Pride movement is complete.

“That’s what Pride is to me, that movement in celebration of those folks who have passed on, you know, who have gotten us here,” said Krein.

She also says living in Alberta as a member of the Pride community is difficult, especially in the region around Lethbridge.

As a result, she says people in the community need to have each others backs.

“It’s really important that if you are a queer person, if you are a person of colour, especially in southern Alberta, that we just look out for each other,” said Krein.

She says Pride is a celebration of people, but it should not be limited to one month.

“I always want to have programming where queer people feel fun and accepted,” said Krein. “I want to, not just as a queer person, but as a person in these programming roles to have activities outside of the months that these events belong to.”

She noted how Indigenous people’s month and pride are both grouped into June, something she would like to see expanded.

“I want to have queer events outside of June, I want to have celebrations of First Nations, Metis and Inuit culture outside of June,” said Krein.

She says the history of Pride is “painful and difficult”, so seeing more about the community is important.

“People have faced discrimination and outright hatred,” said Krein. “Unfortunately, those problems still persist.”

However, she says this has undeterred the pride community.

“The queer community is resilient and beautiful and fun,” said Krein. “We get to honour those who have fought for our human rights we enjoy today.”

She says the Pride month also enables people in that community be happy with themselves.

“Celebrate ourselves and our communities together this month,” said Krein.

The Galt Museum still has several Pride events scheduled for later this month.

To find out more about the upcoming events, go to galtmuseum.com.