Pride month celebrations have kicked off across Newfoundland and Labrador.

From children to seniors, people filled the lobby of Confederation Building for a flag-raising ceremony to officially mark the beginning of pride month.

Women and gender equity minister Lela Evans, who says she is “openly queer,” received loud cheers throughout her speech and as she raised the flag to the top of the pole.

Evans says pride “is about love (and) celebration” but it is also about people’s rights, “hope for the future,” and “making sure that people feel free to be who they are without fear or shame.”

Evans says during this month it is important to build on the idea of inclusion, noting that there is still lots of work to be done “especially in some regions of our province where it’s still not acceptable to walk down the road holding the hand of the person you love.”

Craig Murphy, events lead with St. John’s Pride, acknowledges that the LGBTQ+ community sees a lot of hate, particularly online, but over the next month he is most looking forward to “letting the love around us sink in.”

He is looking forward to seeing the love from their allies, and says if someone isn’t queer, but loves someone who is, then they should come out to their events.