Unfortunately, we had to cancel our booth and low sensory  space at the Kamloops Pride because of the travel  restrictions to wildfire zones in the central BC Interior. We  hope to make it next year.

LET’S had a table with information about our organization  and our projects. Behind our booth, on a grassy and partially  shaded area, we also had a low sensory tent for event  attendees. The low sensory space was busy throughout the  day. People enjoyed colouring, hugging stuffies, having quiet  time, and relaxing in the shaded tent or on the blankets  provided for the grassy area.

We had a memorable experience with an autistic child and  their parents. The parents were new to autism and  neurodivergence and were working to create an environment  that suited their child’s needs. Unfortunately, they were up  against a family who didn’t believe in autism and felt that  discipline and “not giving in” to the child was what would move the family forward. Although they didn’t have a lot of  resources, they were already instinctually doing things that  centered their child and who he was. They were fascinated to  watch their son play with the variety of stim toys LET’S provides in our low sensory spaces. They quickly realized  which textures, sounds, and repetitive play their child  enjoyed or did not care for. They phoned another family to  come and have their child play with the stim toys too. It was  great to see how important low sensory spaces can be to this  who are trying to better understand how to support their  neurodivergent family (friends, etc.).

LET’S did the low sensory booth for Vancouver Pride Society at East Side Pride. It was such a hit that LET’S was  asked to do it both days of the Vancouver Pride Festival,  at Burnaby Pride, the Vancouver Dyke March, and at Victoria Pride. We were very proud of how well received my  low sensory tent has been.

In an 8 hour day, we only had 15 minutes where it was  empty. We had 6 people colouring at 1 point and a child who  happily lay on the blanket and played with stuffies and balls  for 90 minutes while their mum enjoyed the event (popping  back every 15 minutes to check on them). LET’S had  volunteers, all neurodivergent, in the tent.

Our Executive director was particularly happy to offer a low  sensory tent because it was what they needed when I was  younger. Heather said “It’s nice to be able to offer others  what I didn’t have available to me.”

The low sensory tent was placed next to LET’S informational  booth. It was a great day and we were able to share our  work with quite a few people.

Live Educate Transform Society (formerly Creating Accessible Neighbourhoods) went on a tour, with Vancouver Pride Society, of the new parade route and festival location. We worked with them on imagining how the new festival space could be designed.

It was great to walk the new parade route and see all the great changes and access opportunities. We are excited by the new festival location and the increased space for attendees.

We continue to consult with VPS as they get closer to Pride season. We will be attending the events and offering feedback on what was accessible and where they have work to do. VPS is very much aware that this is an ongoing process and their staff are committed to doing the necessary work. We are proud to continue to work with Vancouver Pride Society and hope that other Pride organizations take notice and evaluate their own accessibility.

CAN (LET’S) and Vancouver Pride Society have been working together since CAN (LET’S) was hired in 2019 to do accessibility audits of their events.

In February, we met with Joseph, their Community Engagement Manager. We talked about plans for this summer’s Pride events and CAN’s (LET’S) roles and responsibilities.

We look forward to continue working on accessibility at Pride events. Pride should be available and equitable for all 2SLGBTQIA+ folks and our allies. We will have updates over the next few months. Stay tuned!

CAN was proud to be asked to attend a virtual 2SLGBTQIA+ roundtable with Premier John Horgan on Wednesday, July 27th. Premier Horgan was joined by Spencer Chandra Herbert, Deputy Speaker of the House, Mable Elmore, Parliamentary Secretary for Senior Services and Long Term Care, Niki Sharma, Parliamentary Secretary for Community Development and Non-Profits, and Grace Lore, Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity.

CAN (LET’S) and other organizations brought up the issues most impacting our members. It was great to be part of the discussion and see all the wonderful people doing this work. Organizations present include JQT Vancouver, Vancouver Queer Film Festival, Four Feathers Society, Rainbow Refugee, MOSAIC, among others.

CAN (LET’S) is proud to have participated in Realize’s Real Talk: Including People with Disabilities in Pride Organizing.

CAN’s (LET’S) Executive Director Heather McCain and researcher/facilitator Harmony Bongat spoke with host Melissa Egan, National Lead, Episodic Disabilities at Realize and moderator Nkem Ogbonna, Manager, Programs and Strategic Partnerships at ASE (pronounced Ah-Shay) Community Foundation for Black Canadians with Disabilities.

We chose the title “Including People with Disabilities in Pride Organizing” because though we know that people with disabilities have been central to 2SLGBTQIA+ organizing over the decades but our queer/trans identities and disability is still often seen separate. This has led to accessibility often remaining as an afterthought when it comes to Pride organizing.

During the panel, we had a great, lively discussion as we spoke on the following questions:

• Why is an intersectional approach is critical when it comes to pride organizing and what role it plays in current conversations about inclusion?
• 2022 was the first time since the pandemic started that we saw large scale, in person Pride events happening and we have heard a lot about the notion of “Getting back to normal” during COVID-19. What does this mean for us? What does this mean for 2SLGBTQIA+ people with disabilities?
• In our opinion, how can we center the lived experiences of queer volunteers and community organizers with disabilities from the A-Z planning of Pride initiatives and move away from a “checklist” accessibility model that often solely considers spectators and attendees?
• Doing advocacy work is no small feat, especially as people with intersecting identities ourselves. It often falls solely on the back of other Queer persons with disabilities to ensure accessibility for Pride attendees and organizers, which can lead to burnout. To tie together our entire conversation from today, what collective responsibility do we all have to better center the experiences of queer people with disabilities? What are some tangible things you want to see moving forward to address this and other gaps that have been raised today?

Queer Arts Festival partnered with Cross Cultural Walking Tours in celebration of Pride Month for 2 Cross Cultural Queer & Trans Walking Tours!

CAN (LET’S) was proud and excited to participate in these events. CAN (LET’S) provided information for the tours. One of facilitators, Harmony Bongat, provided research material and taught a portion of the walking tour.

Cross Cultural Walking Tours queered their 2.5 hour multi-guided tours to build awareness of the contributions of Indigenous and early immigrants in the past, bridging communities and cultures around the city now, all through a diverse 2SLGBTQIA+ lens. The tour started with a walkthrough of Queer Arts Festival (QAF) headquarters at Sun Wah Centre, led by QAF Artistic Director Mark Takeshi McGregor, right in the midst of QAF 2022: Hauntings.

Vancouver Pride Society offered CAN (LET’S) a grant to research, create, and teach 2 new workshops: Queer + Trans History BC and Queer + Trans History Canada.

We delivered the workshop to a great audience as part of Pride season.

To mark PrideMonth, Realize hosted ‘Queer and Trans Conversations about Disability Leadership‘. This session, part of the Real Talk with Realize series, was hosted by Melissa Egan, National Lead, Episodic Disabilities at Realize and moderated by Heather McCain (they/them), Executive Director of Creating Accessible Neighbourhoods (Live Educate Transform Society) in Vancouver BC.

Heather and Melissa were joined by special guests Carmel Tanaka, Founder and Executive Director of JQT (Jewish Queer Trans) Vancouver and Saltina Shaker, Drag Performer and Disability Activist.

Realize is the leading national, charitable, organization in Canada working to improve the health and well-being of people living with HIV and other episodic disabilities, across the lifespan, through integrated research, education, policy, and practice.

Formed in 1998, Realize (formerly the Canadian Working Group on HIV and Rehabilitation) promotes innovation and excellence in rehabilitation in the context of HIV and other chronic and potentially episodic conditions. We bridge the traditionally separate worlds of HIV, disability and rehabilitation through research, education and cross-sector partnerships.