Cultural shift felt throughout the Canadian Armed Forces with raising of Pride Flag

October 13, 2021 - Ginger Lamoureux

With a swell of supporters made up of community leaders, LGBTQ members, former and current Canadian Armed Force members and their families, CFB Edmonton performed a simple act common to the military that represented a cultural change in the Canadian Armed Forces and Canadian society as a whole.

CFB Edmonton, which is the most populous army base in Western Canada and is located in the heart of the country's conservative heartland, made history as the first Canadian Armed Forces base to raise the Pride Flag on June 7, 2013.

In the Canadian Armed Forces, much like throughout the world, symbols matter. Symbols help identify products we purchase such as shoes, clothes and even food. Symbols have been used as forms of visual communication throughout the millennia, represented by cave drawings, hieroglyphs and graffiti. In his address, Lieutenant-Colonel John Reiffenstein stated: “The flag that we raise this morning is a symbol of our support for the LGBT community as we celebrate Pride Week. Canadian Forces members are a cross section of our society, including the LGBT community, and they are integral and valuable parts of our community.”

According to an article published by CTV News in 2013, LCol Reiffenstein was approached by then-Master Warrant Officer John McDougall, who spearheaded this momentous event not knowing what the answer to his request would be. A few weeks later his request was granted. The significance of the event was not lost on the community at large as there was representation from both local and national print and television outlets who were there to cover the raising of the Pride Flag for the first time by any armed forces base in North America.