Ottawa’s 30th annual Pride parade will march in the streets on Sunday, Aug 23.
The new Capital Pride organization announced the parade date and unveiled their new logo in a May 11 press release.
Gilbert Baker, a San Francisco artist, is credited with designing the first rainbow flag in 1978. Since then, other groups within the LGBT community have designed their own flags, which inspired Glenn Crawford’s design for Capital Pride.
“Taking a total of 30 colors from these community flags, the new logo, a kind of ‘super rainbow’ flag, reflects the inclusiveness of Ottawa’s LGBTTQ community,” Crawford says in the release.
Crawford, who is also a member of Capital Pride’s community advisory committee, spoke to Daily Xtra last month about putting on a festival in a compressed time frame and the need for the community to move past the bankruptcy of the former Capital Pride organization.
Sarah James, communications coordinator for Capital Pride, declined a request for an interview. In addition to the parade, slated for Aug 23 at 1 pm, the press release notes that the dates and times for other Pride events have not yet been determined and will be announced over the upcoming months.
“Capital Pride will also see the return of a number of its most popular and cherished traditions throughout the week, including the flag raising ceremony, the human rights vigil and the family picnic,” the release says.
Mauricio Olivares, Pride’s festival producer, first addressed his operations team on April 17 during an informal reception at Ottawa City Hall. He spoke to Daily Xtra on the same day, emphasizing that unity will be the key to Pride’s success. Olivares said he also plans to highlight human rights during the festival and hopes to bring the festival back to the Village.
As a community partner, Capital Pride committee members will attend the Swirl and Twirl fundraiser at Lansdowne Park on May 28. Community members will have a chance to talk to Capital Pride members at that time, the press release says.
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