June 9, 2022
On June 5, Winnipeg celebrated the power of love at their 34th annual Pride Day Parade.
“I was thinking about things, and what I wanted to share about Pride, and it was important to me to share the importance of THIS Pride,” said Bre Brown, Supervisor Leisure and Opportunities.
This year marks the first Pride season since the launch of St.Amant’s Virtual Safe Space and our organization’s intention to promote safe and inclusive spaces and a commitment to providing the highest quality of meaningful support to all members of the St.Amant community.
In October 2021, St.Amant’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee launched the LGBT2SQ+ Safe Space! This is a space for all lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, Two-Spirit, queer, folks of all gender and sexual identities and their allies to feel safe being authentically themselves.
Bre shared that she originally proposed the idea based on a serendipitous encounter on the bus. A stranger struck up a casual conversation, and when she learned that Bre worked for St.Amant, suggested that she create a safe space within the organization “and I thought, yeah, I should. People need a space where they are encouraged to be their authentic selves. To advocate and find themselves and be seen.”
The number of people accessing the online space continues to grow, “It’s an ongoing process, coming out and supporting people to flourish, so having a vocal safe space where people can go to find common language and a supportive community and where they can feel comfortable exploring their identity is incredibly valuable. Not only for staff who need to feel accepted and included at work but also for the people we support who are curious about themselves and how they might fit into the LGBT2SQ+ community. We are truly embracing St.Amant’s mission of Freeing the Spirit and providing a sense of belonging.”
Currently, staff can find the virtual safe space on St.Amant’s intranet. The Diversity and Inclusion Committee looks forward to when they’ll be able to offer a physical space for people to access resources and feel connected.
