REGINA — On Saturday, thousands of people will line Regina's streets waving rainbow flags, cheering from sidewalks and celebrating love, identity and belonging.
But behind the music, colour and celebration of Queen City Pride is a story that began with courage.
Long before Pride became one of Regina's most visible and vibrant community events, people marched because they felt they had no other choice.
Some wore masks to hide their faces. Some risked losing jobs, relationships and personal safety simply by being seen.
Today, Queen City Pride has grown into one of Regina's largest and most recognizable community celebrations, with more than 4,000 participants expected to take part in events throughout Pride Week and thousands more expected to watch the annual Pride Parade on June 13.
For Queen City Pride co-chair Riviera Bonneau, the celebration is both joyful and deeply meaningful.
"Pride is a protest," Bonneau said.
"There have always been people that want us to hide away who we are. They want us to hide away our love. And we deserve the same rights as every other person."
The roots of Pride stretch back decades.
Modern Pride celebrations grew from the LGBTQ+ rights movement that emerged after the 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City. In Canada, some of the country's first demonstrations for gay rights took place in Ottawa and Vancouver in 1971, helping launch a movement that would eventually spread from coast to coast.
Regina's own Pride history began in 1989.
Bonneau said many of the people who participated in that first march are still active in the community today, bit the experience was dramatically different from today.
"A lot of them wore masks and a lot of them were harassed or even physically attacked when they were trying to march for their rights," she said.
"We are incredibly lucky that those people helped pave the way in Regina and Saskatchewan for us to be able to march freely and with support of large amounts of the community nowadays."
Historical records show Regina became Saskatchewan's first city to officially proclaim a Pride Weekend in 1989, although organizers continued facing significant opposition and backlash in the years that followed.
Those struggles remain an important reminder of why Pride still exists.
"There is still a lot of hate and ignorance out there," Bonneau said.
"We are just trying to have our equal rights and be who we are and express ourselves and love who we are. And there are people that want to shut that down."
That message of visibility and acceptance will be front and centre during Saturday's Pride Parade.
This year's route begins near the Conexus Arts Centre at 12:00 p.m. before travelling along 23rd Avenue, Albert Street, Legislative Drive and through Wascana Park. More than 100 organizations and community groups are expected to participate.
"It is an incredible event with well over a thousand people marching in this parade," Bonneau said.
"We have over a hundred entrants this year. The energy is amazing. It's so inclusive and loving and exciting, and it is just such an incredible time to celebrate."
For many participants, one of the most meaningful moments isn't in the parade itself. It's what happens when it ends.
The parade concludes at Wascana Park at approximately 2 p.m., where OUT in the Park will transform the lakeside area into a free community festival featuring live entertainment, food trucks, a vendor market, family activities, local organizations and a beer garden until 5 p.m. when it wraps up. Organizers describe it as a celebration of authenticity, diversity and the freedom to be yourself.
"We have a main stage with lots of local talents performing," Bonneau said. "We have a vendor market that has a ton of local queer vendors and some nonprofits. We have a whole activity area with a bouncy castle, face painting and games. It's such a great time."
The celebrations continue into Saturday night with Pride After Dark from 8 p.m. until 12:30 a.m., featuring performers from across Saskatchewan alongside special guest Melinda Verga, known for appearances on Canada's Drag Race and RuPaul's Drag Race UK versus the World. A late-night Pride After Party at Q Nightclub & Lounge will keep the festivities going well into the early morning hours.
Yet while Pride is often associated with celebration, organizers say its deeper purpose is creating spaces where people feel safe, seen and accepted.
"There are a lot of people, especially in Saskatchewan, that maybe don't feel like they can be themselves," Bonneau said.
"Maybe they're the only queer person in their small town. Hosting events like this reminds people all throughout Saskatchewan that there is a community here."
"There are multiple communities in Saskatchewan. You will be accepted and you will be loved. You can find your people and we will help keep you safe."
That feeling of acceptance is something Bonneau says becomes visible every year when thousands of spectators line Regina's streets.
"It's absolutely incredible," she exclaimed.
"We love seeing everybody line the streets. It's a very welcoming feeling. It really makes us feel welcomed and seen and loved and it is so important."
As Pride Month continues across Canada, organizers hope people from every background will come out to celebrate, learn and support one another.
Because while laws have changed and progress has been made, Pride's central message remains remarkably simple. That everyone deserves dignity. Everyone deserves respect. And everyone deserves the freedom to be themselves.
"Queer people are here and we are just people," Bonneau said.
"We just want to be loved and accepted and treated equally and kindly. We will give that same love and acceptance in response."
"We are just people that just want to be who we are."
