Second Alberta town votes to ban Pride flags, rainbow crosswalks

A second small Alberta town just voted to ban rainbow crosswalks and Pride flags on town property.

This week, residents of Barrhead—a small town of just over 4,000 people north of Edmonton—voted in a plebiscite in favour of a so-called “neutrality bylaw” that would ban decorative and non-governmental crosswalks and flags from public property. 

Barrhead follows Westlock, Alberta, which made national headlines when its residents voted in a similar bylaw back in February.

Such votes are possible thanks to a pair of laws introduced in 2022 by then premier Jason Kenney’s United Conservative government. Senior editor Mel Woods breaks down why you might expect to see even more towns across Alberta following suit.