Petawawa, Ont. to fly Pride flag, support other causes after overturning resolution
The town of Petawawa, Ont. is set to fly the Pride flag for the first time ever this summer.
The decision was made Monday night when council overturned Resolution 11, a rule established in 1998 that stopped the town from making any public proclamations.
"It's a great day for Petawawa and our community," said mayor Gary Serviss.
"This lets it be known that Petawawa is a welcoming, respectful, caring community."
Serviss has previously tried and failed to eliminate the rule in his eight years on council.
"I've heard it characterized as the do-nothing approach," said Lisa Coutu, town councillor and chair of Petawawa's equity, inclusion, and diversity committee.
"It's not neutral to do nothing in a situation where that symbol is so important."
The change now opens the door for the town to fly flags in support of other groups and organizations.
"'Every child matters' flags or for May 5, the Day of Action for Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women; I can imagine those sorts of actions," Coutu tells CTV News.
Any flags will fly at a designated ceremonial flagpole located at the Petawawa Civic Centre.
The pole will only be used to fly such flags to ensure no one flag comes down for another.
For Petawawa resident and local high school teacher Jennifer Neville, it is a sweet success, as she has been lobbying the town's council to drop the resolution for two years.
"It's very frustrating, especially when you see other communities fly the flag. Pembroke flies the flag, Deep River flies the flag, everywhere around us has been flying the Pride flag, Indigenous flags."
She says her school has been flying the Pride flag for some time already, making the contingent of students at the school who are part of the LGBTQ2S+ community feel welcome.
"They can feel comfortable and safe and accepted. And so it's very nice to see."
Petawawa will hoist the Pride flag June 16, which will be the official start of the town's inaugural Pride event.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.