On January 25, three men protested on a street corner in St Albert. Their faces covered, they held signs and symbols proclaiming words of hate.
The Sunday after, Pride Corner on Whyte organized a counter-demonstration to show just how much love there is in Alberta.
The day of, it was a frigid and windy -30 degrees.
Still, over one hundred people showed up.
People came by to donate donuts and coffee. People held signs with slogans such as, “Love. Kindness. Respect for all” or “Everyone’s welcome here. Love wins!” The sky was grey, but people brought light to the street corner with their rainbow flags and bright jackets.
“The turnout for our demonstration was wonderful, especially given how cold it was that day,” Tess Chappell, a member of Pride Corner on Whyte, told TheRockies.Life in an interview.
Tess, who goes by “they” and “them,” has been involved with the group since 2022. They’ve seen the group grow and change. Even they were surprised by how many people showed up to the St. Albert demonstration, though.
“It speaks volumes to people’s desire to counter this very active hate movement that’s growing,” Tess said.
Hate wants to make itself look like it’s strong, but it’s actually very weak. The majority of Albertans don’t support hate.
An Elder’s Kindness
Near the end of the demonstration, Emma, another member of Pride Corner on Whyte, noticed an elderly woman in a little red car stop in the middle of the road in front of the group. She recounted the story in an interview with TheRockies.Life.
“Ma’am, you’re blocking traffic,” Emma told the woman. “It isn’t safe to stop here.”
So the woman pulled into the parking lot next to the demonstrators and got out of her car.
“She has this cute little tuque on, and her jacket is done up,” Emma said. “All I can see is her round, smiley face.”
With the help of a hiking pole, the woman picked her way across the snow towards the group. She introduced herself as Helen. She told Emma that she was a retired nurse, and that she was a part of the nurses’ union in the 70s and 80s.
Helen spent 45 minutes going around to each one of the 100 or so demonstrators and shaking their hands. She thanked them all individually for their work.
With tears in her eyes, Helen told the group, “The world needs more good people like you.’
“Young people are keeping the world moving.”
Four Years of Joyful Protest
Every Friday night for nearly ten years, a man stood on a box on the corner of Whyte Ave and 104th in Edmonton and proclaimed messages of hate. He used Bible verses to tell people that they were going to go to hell. His words made people feel rotten at best.
Pride Corner on Whyte first started organizing together in response to this man. In 2021, the group’s founders decided to join him on the opposite corner, and to proclaim messages of love and acceptance to passers by.
Even in the depths of winter, ten to twenty people show up every Friday night on the corner of Whyte and 104th Street to play music, give out high fives and hugs, and show love.
“The message of religion is to love your neighbour and that no one is supposed to judge,” Tess said.
The man on his soap box is there opposite them every week. “A lot of people come up to us and ask, ‘How do we get him to stop?’” Tess said.
The only way to go up against hate is by showing people that there’s another way, a way that makes people feel good about themselves and the world, Tess said. “We can’t stop him, but we can drown him out.”
The group now runs a variety of events. They’ve hosted movie nights, storytelling events, and of course the February 2 protest.
How to Respond to Hate
For those who participated, the Sunday demonstration was an afternoon of celebration. People who drove by the demonstration, however, had mixed responses.
“Lots of folks gave a really strong thumbs up and danced along with us to the music, which was cute,” Emma said. “Or people would give a really strong thumbs down or flip us off.”
The really intense reactions, though, were from people driving by in trucks.
One truck swerved into the group and tried to drive them off the sidewalk. Many others revved their engines as they drove by to burn oil in front of the group.
“The hate incidents felt impulsive, they felt fast,” Emma said. The biggest of the hate incidents happened in a burst of energy and then disappeared.
Helen, however, stayed for 45 minutes, shaking people’s hands and thanking them for their work.
Hate is fast and flashy. Love is slower and more gentle. Love takes time.
The predominant tone from people at the stoplight was one of support – smiles, hearts and peace signs. There were “a lot of hippy-esque gestures, which I live for,” Emma said.
She has compassion for those who showed hate in the face of the love the group was spreading. “These are people who for whatever reason are hurting,” she said.
“I used to be upset by these interactions.”
She said that now, she just finds that “it’s really sad that people can’t see the goodness in community and in people showing up.”
Seeing angry people as humans who are hurting is one way that Emma thinks we can bring more love into our communities.
The other is simply to meet and spend time with other people in our communities. Alone, we’re individuals. We’re not that strong. Together, we become a force to be reckoned with.
If an angry person approached the crowd at the protest, they would have faced 75 very joyful, very gay people. A group of that size has power.
Pride Corner on Whyte shows us how to react to hate. “Queer people in Alberta, we’re not unfamiliar with people having big reactions to us. That’s not anything new,” she said.
Get to know the people around you. Hang out with them. Show them love.
Hate can seem really big and flashy, but it doesn’t stand a chance against the power of community. “Love will always be louder,” Emma said.
