A youth is facing charges after allegedly making threats of violence connected to an upcoming 2SLGBTQIA+ community event in the Halifax area.
According to RCMP, investigators learned on Friday, July 10, that the youth had made threats related to a specific Pride event. Officers also allege the youth made comments on another occasion that promoted hatred toward a different identifiable group.
RCMP would not identify the event due to the suspects age, but say it falls within the jurisdiction of Halifax Regional Police (HRP), adding that they have been in contact with event organizers to discuss safety concerns and have also shared relevant information with HRP to support event planning and public safety efforts.
After learning about the threats, officers launched an immediate investigation and arrested the youth on Saturday, July 11. The youth is expected to face charges related to making threats and hate propaganda.
The youth was later released on conditions pending a future court appearance. As part of those conditions, the youth is prohibited from entering the community where the event is taking place and from attending organized public gatherings exceeding a specified number of people.
Officers are reminding Nova Scotians to report incidents that appear to be motivated by bias, prejudice or hostility to their local police service or nearest RCMP detachment.
A non-profit organization has launched a new website to make New Brunswick’s 2SLGBTQ+ history more accessible.
Queer Heritage Initiative NB developed the platform to centralize parts of its archival collection and other resources as part of its ongoing efforts to preserve 2SLGBTQ+ history and educate communities.
The website was made live on June 30.
Co-founder and archivist Meredith Batt said preserving and sharing this history is especially important in the current political climate in North America.
“In Canada, our neighbours to the south are dealing with queer, but especially trans history being actively erased,” they said. “It’s a very scary time for queer people in North America right now, I would say. So, it’s all the more important to share this history and try to educate people.”
“We’ve been here for a long time, and we’re not going away.”
The organization was founded in 2015 by Dusty Green, who was later joined by Batt in 2019. Its mandate is to address the absence of 2SLGBTQ+ records in New Brunswick’s public institutions.
The project collects and preserves archival records, oral histories, and ephemera from 2SLGBTQ+ groups and individuals across the province.
Through a partnership with the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick, the initiative preserves a collection that, according to Batt, includes posters, newsletters, and objects dating from the 1970s gay liberation movement to “almost” the present day.
Batt said people interested in viewing records, obtaining copies, or examining objects from the collection must still access them through the Provincial Archives’ online database or contact the initiative to arrange a viewing.
However, they said that with the website, the organization was able to include direct links to the archives and contact information people can use to directly get access to the collection, in addition to educational toolkits containing historical materials that document the experiences and struggles of 2SLGBTQ+ communities in New Brunswick from the 1980s through the 2000s.
“The unfortunate reality that we deal with is that we can’t put everything online; we can’t make it all available, so we kind of had to choose what we’ve been able to put online,” they explained.
But for Batt, the most exciting part of the platform is an interactive timeline featuring significant 2SLGBTQ+ milestones in both Canadian and New Brunswick history.
Batt said the timeline was developed with the help of summer students and includes historical information that, according to them, can’t be found anywhere else.
Part of Queer Heritage Initiative interactive timeline. PHOTO: QUEER HERITAGE INITIATIVE WEBSITE.
“I hope people will get interested and hopefully down the road, get invested in helping to preserve the history,” they said. “I’m also hoping that people will take the time with the timeline, scroll through, and hopefully come away learning something new.”
The timeline begins as early as 1806 and extends through 2025. However, Batt said it is only the beginning, with plans to continue adding new milestones and historical details over time.
Batt said the organization started working on the website in 2025 after receiving a $5,000 grant from the Department of Tourism and Heritage to support its development.
The website was built with the help of marketing agency Duke Creative Collective, Batt added.
Batt said they are proud to launch the website during Pride Month and look forward to making more material available in the future. They also hope to share more information about deceased members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community whom they consider “queer community heroes,” highlighting the lasting impact those individuals had on their community.
“We’re really excited about the upcoming future growth of the website,” they said.
