Strengthening and celebrating Pride
Pride week activities back in person
— Mount Royal University | Posted: September 1, 2022
On Aug. 30, the Pride crosswalk, located in front of the Riddell Library and Learning Centre, was repainted and updated.
Mount Royal is proud to once again be partnering with Calgary Pride for the annual Calgary Pride Parade and Festival.
This will be Mount Royal’s 10th consecutive year of participation and second year as a gold sponsor. With inclusivity at the core of Mount Royal’s identity, taking part in Pride is an opportunity to highlight, support and continue efforts to provide a welcoming and diverse campus community.
Show your MRU Pride
The 2022 Calgary Pride Parade and Festival runs until Sept. 5. Our Mount Royal Cougars and SAMRU team are participating in the parade and all members of the MRU community are invited to join in. The parade takes place on Sunday, Sept. 4 at 11 a.m., and the following festival will feature a variety of performances, food trucks, family-friendly activities and more.
See all that is happening at mru.ca/Pride, and sign up to show your MRU Pride at this year’s parade. Get your Pride swag at the Cougars Campus Store.
Updating the Pride crosswalk
On Aug. 30, the Pride crosswalk, located in front of the Riddell Library and Learning Centre, was repainted to the updated Progress Pride Flag, developed in 2018 by non-binary American artist and designer Daniel Quasar to place a greater emphasis on inclusion and progression.
“Having the Pride crosswalk on our campus is a very meaningful symbol for the welcoming and inclusive environment we strive for here at MRU,” says Tim Rahilly, PhD, MRU’s president and vice-chancellor.
MRU's Pride crosswalk outside the @mrulibrary was repainted today by President @TimRahilly President of @SAMRUBuzz and MRU leadership updated with a more inclusive flag as we celebrate @CalgaryPride! Thanks to @ZoomPainting #calgarypride #yycpride https://t.co/EzExhR2A0y pic.twitter.com/o5uO3T6sor
— Mount Royal U (@mountroyal4u) August 30, 2022
“It is an important step to now update it to the Progress Pride flag because it aligns with our commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion that includes 2SLGBTQIA+ communities and how we expect our efforts to evolve and grow over time.”
Strengthening Mount Royal Pride
As much as Pride is a celebration of gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation, it’s also an ongoing fight to achieve equal justice and opportunity for 2SLGBTQIA+ people. In May 2022, Mount Royal welcomed Dr. Moussa Magassa, PhD, as the University’s first senior leader in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI). He will advise and make recommendations on the overall EDI structure at the University, which will include strategic change.
“We plan to embed the celebration of Pride year-round in our institutional culture, policies and programs,” Magassa says.
2SLGBTQIA+ supports at Mount Royal
On-campus supports include the Student’s Association of Mount Royal University’s (SAMRU) Pride Centre, a space dedicated to fostering a safe, inclusive and celebratory environment for people of all genders and sexual orientations. The Pride Centre offers a range of student services and hosts events and programs with a focus on education and awareness.
Gender-inclusive washrooms can be found in the Riddell Library and Learning Centre, B-Wing (Science), U-Wing (Recreation), Arts Building (EA) and the Roderick Mah Centre for Continuous Learning (EC). Thanks to the advocacy of the SAMRU Pride Centre, there are plans to convert one of the Main Street washrooms to be gender-neutral and to update Wyckham House washrooms with gender-neutral signage.
The new office of EDI has taken a leadership role in supporting the work being done so far by campus partners to celebrate Pride, not only during Pride week and month, but year-round. Their approach is meant to be collaborative and to centre the voices and experiences of community members.
Pride means …
Kit Turner, administrative assistant for the office of EDI, is one of the team members helping lead MRU Pride operations and shares what pride means to them.
It means a steadfast commitment to mental health. It means self-compassion and compassion for others. It means setting and respecting boundaries. It means inclusive sex education. It means deconstructing systems of medical discrimination. It means informed consent in every area of life.
It means intersectionality, amplifying underrepresented voices and advocating for the rights of fellow equity-deserving groups. It means anti-racism work within and beyond the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. It means decolonizing our minds and the strict frameworks of gender, sexuality, relationships, family and community we were taught through the lens of white supremacy. It means never turning a blind eye to the ugly parts of history. It means honouring our catalysts, the trans people of colour whose courage to stand and fight for themselves is the reason we have rights today. It means we refuse to be silenced by those who deign to continue oppressing us. It means feeling fear yet choosing to live, not just exist.
It means trans kids being embraced in sports and welcomed to play. It means gender creativity and freedom to explore in peace. It means disassembling harmful constructs of femininity and masculinity, and rebuilding something new in their place where all identities are expressed in ways that support mental, emotional, social and spiritual well-being.
Turner has previously attended the Pride Parade as an audience member and is looking forward to joining MRU for the first time on Sept. 4 with their 2SLGBTQIA+ friends, family and colleagues.
Keep up with #MRUPride on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
For those who are struggling or may simply need someone to talk to, counselling services are available through Wellness Services.