Drag queen Kenadie St James and fans at last year's Halton Pride Fest.

Despite the rainy start, Halton Pride Fest 2023 was a hit this Saturday, with crowds converging all day long for the first-ever Halton Pride celebration.

From a bouncy castle to button-making, dignitaries to drag queens, the joyful crowd had plenty to smile about while walking around the booths at Country Heritage Park in Milton. Festival-goers young and old enjoyed music by the House of Adam and Steve and the Bourbon Brown Trio, and performances by Alexander Gonsalves, and drag queens Karma Kameleon, Jessie James, and Kenadie St. James. If you didn’t get there this year, stay tuned in to Pflag Halton to see if there will be another Pride festival in 2024.

Left: MPs Pam Damoff, Karina Gould, and Adam van Koeverden spoke at Halton Pride Festival, as did Milton’s Mayor Gordon Krantz. Right: Pride colours were everywhere, including at the entrance to the festival.
Long Feather spoke on the power of queer and trans people, and the range of gender identities recognized by Indigenous people.
Karma Kameleon entertains the crowd.
Milton Public Library’s table (left) and the crowd perusing the booths (right).
Left: Kenadie St James and a young fan. Right: Jessie James dances through the rainbow.