'Leave the uniform at home': Police welcome in Regina Pride parade, as long as they're in plain clothes

Queen City Pride is telling police and RCMP that they are welcome at the annual Pride parade, but not in uniform.

Regina Police Service Chief Evan Bray said he supports that decision and officerswill be participating in Regina Police Service T-shirts.

"To me this is their celebration and we're happy to be a part of it. It's a community celebration, it's not about the Regina Police Service," Bray said. Conversations about police involvement in the parade began in 2017 between Bray and Queen City Pride.

"It's really more about just participating in the event, so I just don't want it to be a divisive issue.I don't think it is and it's more important we participate."

Queen City Pride co-chair Dan Shier said that the organization recognizes that many people have different experiences with police. He said some see police in uniform as providing a sense of security, "but we also know that [for] some other people, the uniform can cause fear and bring back negative experiences and memories."

Shier said that'sespecially true for people from marginalized parts of the LGBTQ community, such as people of colour or transgender persons.

"I really hope that anybody who feels negatively about that choice can find it in them to take a moment and try and put themselves in someone else's shoes, and see how that person might feel about the presence of a police officer in uniform," he said.

Shiersaid he understands there are people whoidentify on the LGBTQ spectrum and want to attend in uniform. He said police are welcome to wear T-shirts with logos and hold banners to show their support.

"We see the Pride parade and the festival as something that is, you know, for the LGBTQ community first, and so ensuring that the most number of people from our community can participate in the activities is kind of our priority," he said. "We ask them to help us out with this and leave the uniform at home."

Shier said this decision may not be permanent. "We're willing to continue to look at it and reconsider but I think there's still definitely some work to be done community-wise before we have some sort of change."

'Pride is supposed to be about inclusiveness'

Andrew Matheson works in emergency services and said he's always looked at police as part of his "emergency services family."

"I've attended Pride parades or Pride events in other communities in uniform myself," he said.

It's a lot of work to come out, especially in emergency services.- Andrew Matheson

"To me Pride is supposed to be about inclusiveness no matter which minority you're part of or how you identify," Mathesonsaid.

"We help people or we try to help people come out and be who they are," Mathesonsaid. "Those officers deserve to be proud to walk in a Pride parade in uniform and be proud of their job."

Matheson says he knows police officers, firefighters, paramedics and dispatchers who are out.

"It's a lot of work to come out, especially in emergency services. We're trained to be tough or not show a lot of emotions. And I feel as though that part doesn't get known when they tell people to leave their uniforms in the closet," he said.

"I don't just look at Pride as waving a rainbow flag. To me, Pride is a bigger statement."

'A fair compromise'

Everett RaymondOsicki, whoidentifies as a gay man, said he is in favour of police participating justnot in uniform.

He said inclusion is about the person on the inside.

"To say that somebody has to be able to wear a uniform to be included, in my personal opinion, [is] a little bit ridiculous. The profession you choosedoesn't make you who you arewho you are as a human is what makes you who you are," he said.

He thinks the ban on uniforms is "a fair compromise."

"Historically speaking, I mean, the gender and sexually diverse community especially the gender and sexually diverse community of colour has had problems with police brutality in the past. This compromise works really well because it takes away the threat for those people who have been victimized by uniformed officials but still allows them to participate," Osicki said.

"Police do have a little bit of ignorance towards people of the gender and sexually diverse community," he said. "And a lot of it's just misinformation.I don't think it's intentional on their end."

He said he would like police to take inclusivity training before marching in the parade in uniform.

Across the country

The debate about whether or not to let policeparticipate in Pride marches in uniform has been happening around Canada.

For 2018, Pride parade organizers in Toronto, London, Ont.,Edmonton and Vancouver have either asked police to participate in plain clothesor have banned uniforms.

In 2017, Calgary and Winnipeg both asked police to participate in plain clothes as well.

An outlier in the debate is St. John's. Pride organizers thereremoved a ban on police uniforms for their 2018 parade.

Queen City parade history

The first Pride parade in Regina was held in 1990. It washeld illegally, as the police chief at the time refused to sign off on the street closure.

Many marchers were afraid of losing their jobs, retaliation from their families or violence against them, so some participants wore masks.

Police first marched in the Queen City Pride Parade in uniform in 2014.

This year's parade will be held on Saturday, June 16, starting at noon.