Bowen Island is a small community with neighbourliness, opinions galore, heart, and increasingly, Pride.
The Island’s independent schools have been holding much-loved Pride events for their students, and here at the Library we held a Mini Pride Parade last June. With so many BC communities large and small establishing their own events to celebrate those who are LGBTQ2S+, can Bowen Island do more to show support and inclusiveness? An upcoming program at the Bowen Island Library aims to spark discussion around this topic.
On Saturday, March 23, at 1 pm, we’ll be showing the film “Small Town Pride,” co-written and directed by Riley Sparks, (who grew up on Bowen Island!), and Chelle Turingan. This 60-minute documentary is an intimate look at the joys and challenges of being queer in small towns, following LGBTQ2S+ people and allies as they prepare for their local Pride celebrations.
We are honoured to have Bowen Island local Leah Gregg lead a discussion after the film. Leah is a self-described “enthusiasm enthusiast, champion of positivity, and purveyor of silliness”. You may have seen her in her hot dog costume emcee Bowfest last summer, or at the rally at Bowen Island Community School for trans-inclusiveness. Leah is passionate about positive social change and inclusive communities, and volunteers with several organizations on Bowen.
“I’m honoured to be a part of this community and this event,” says Leah. “Our family moved here in summer 2020, and we’ve felt very welcomed by Bowen. With so many wildly creative folks based on the island, I really look forward to brainstorming what a future community pride event could look like here!”
At the discussion, members of the LGBTQ2S+ community, their families, friends, allies, and all interested community members are encouraged to share thoughts and listen to others’. Leah will lead us in discussing the film and exploring how Bowen Island can better support members of the LGBTQ2S+ community.
Members of the Bowen Island Literacy Task Group will also be in attendance to listen and to share information about possible funding available to support Pride on Bowen, whether through a Pride event or other activities or programs.
If you’re interested in seeing all-ages Pride events happen on Bowen, and especially if you’d like to be involved in their creation, this is a great opportunity to explore what those might look like and to meet other community members who want the same and make connections.
We look forward to having a wide variety of community members at this event, and encourage people to come for the film at 1 pm, the discussion at 2 pm, or just one or the other — whatever works for you. All ages are welcome, but please note that this film is unrated (folks can find trailers online if they’d like to get a sense of the film). We hope to see you there!
You can find out more at bipl.ca/movies
