Queen City Pride Parade takes over Regina on Saturday

Regina will be a sea of rainbows on Saturday during the annual Queen City Pride Parade.

“The Queen City Pride Parade has grown to become one of Regina’s most colourful and recognized parades with over 4,000 participants marching through Regina’s streets,” Queen City Pride stated on its website.

The parade kicks off at noon along 12th Avenue between Broad Street and Montreal Street. It then turns south on Broad to College Avenue where it turns west to Albert Street. Upon reaching Albert the parade will turn south to Legislative Drive, then head east into the Legislative Grounds.

The Regina Police Service said some traffic restrictions will be in place to accommodate the event, and asked drivers to keep safety in mind.

“The Regina Police Service would like to remind motorists to be aware of this event and to choose an alternate route, if possible,” the police service said in a statement.

“Motorists who are travelling on these streets, between the hours of 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m., are asked to please be patient and keep in mind the safety of all users of the roadway. This parade typically draws a good crowd of spectators, including children, who may not be focused on vehicle traffic in the area.”

Spectators were advised to find a viewing spot along the route and enjoy the fun, but organizers asked everyone taking in the parade to stay on the sidewalks and curbs.

Following the parade, the OUT in the Park event will begin in Wascana park, offering a full afternoon and evening of celebrations.

Queen City Pride made headlines last month after banning Sask. Party MLAs from joining the event due to a law passed last year which requires schools to notify parents when a child under 16 wishes to change the name or pronouns used by their school. That move was later followed by Saskatoon’s pride organization.

Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill said he was disappointed by the ban, but added that the law is important to ensure parents and caregivers have a voice in important decisions involving their children.

“I feel quite comfortable with the fact that we’ve legislated the ability for parents to involved in important conversations and decisions in a child’s life,” Cockrill said last month. “I’m comfortable with where we landed on that.”