'This is why we still need Pride,' says non-binary Winnipegger after rainbow flag torn from West End home
Video surveillance footage turned over to Winnipeg police shows person make off with flag
Tanya St. Jacques and their partner are trying to comprehend why someone — who they caught on a porch surveillance camera — would tear down a 2SLGBTQ rainbow flag from their West End home during Pride month.
"A lot of people say we don't need Pride [month], they got rights now, they don't need that," said Tanya, who is non-binary and bisexual. "There's still some hate going. This is why we still need Pride."
Tanya said they and their daughter were home Thursday at about 11:30 a.m. when someone walked up the front steps of their home.
They heard a loud sound. By the time Tanya made it to the door and looked outside, the flag was gone and there was no sign of anyone in the area.
Then, they checked their home surveillance camera that faces out onto the front steps. Video shows what appears to be a man in light pants, dark T-shirt, sunglasses and a baseball cap tearing the flag down and taking it away.
"It was quick, but the violence in action was like, wow, that guy has issues," said Tanya, who is a civilian employed by the Department of National Defence. "I was in disbelief, like, this didn't happen right now. I was pissed."
WATCH | Security camera shows Pride flag being torn down:
They said on top of being angry they were also sad for their 13-year-old daughter.
"She started being uncomfortable and scared because she's also part of the LGBTQ community," said Tanya.
"We had an amazing time at the [Pride] parade and she was commenting on how everyone looks so happy and everyone was so accepting, and now this happens."
Tanya's husband Jeremie St. Jacques raced home from work when he heard the news.
"There's no good reason for someone to do that," he said. "There's no good reason."
Jeremie said he reported the incident to the Winnipeg Police Service non-emergency department, which instructed him to send in the surveillance footage.
A spokesperson for the Winnipeg police confirmed they received a report matching what happened to the St. Jacques.
West End resident and pastor Jamie Arpin-Ricci says what happened to the St. Jacques is similar to what happened to him during Pride month last year.
On the afternoon of June 18, he says the rainbow flag he and his wife had on their front porch was stolen.
"Those who saw it happen informed me that the man was screaming slurs at our house as he violently tore it down," Arpin-Ricci, father of two, said via email. "He did so in a space where our children often play. Our neighbour also had their flag torn down the night before."
He was left feeling unsettled after the 2021 incident but resolved not to let it go unanswered.
"In the end, we decided to resist the hate and the fear with a more permanent solution: We painted our front gate in the Pride rainbow colours," he said.
Arpin-Ricci leads an Anabaptist- and Franciscan-inspired West End church called Little Flowers Community.
A former CBC Manitoba Future 40 award winner, Arpin-Ricci is bisexual and offers pastoral support to 2SLGBTQ Christians.
He faced criticism from some in the Christian community when he began speaking openly about his identity a few years ago.
He's also an acquaintance of Tanya's. The pair met in online queer spaces when Tanya was considering moving to the neighbourhood and have remained in contact since.
"That this happened again in the West End is discouraging, as there is so much support from the majority of the community," he said. "Yet, it seems that those who would do this generally get away with it, so they are emboldened."
Tanya says they think the answer to hate is more education for the general public, though they too feel supported.
When Tanya posted about the incident on social media Thursday, they say several supporters responded with plans to send a number of new rainbow flags for them to hang on their property.
"So, I'm going to Pride-bomb the house," they said.
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