The City of Calgary celebrated Pride Week with the 36th annual parade on Sunday September 6th.
The Students’ Union Vice President Academic, Zoe Zeritsch, told the Gauntlet that this was her first time being at the Calgary Pride Parade and she was excited to march with campus advocacy groups such as CJSW, the Graduate Students’ Association and the Students’ Union.
“I'm so glad that everyone feels so comfortable expressing themselves. I know that with the current state of the world, it's really hard to keep spirit and keep prideful. But I know that if we all work together and if we all stay together all the time, we can make this world a better place for everybody in the queer community, and I'm really happy and proud for that as well,” Zeristch said.
Despite the cold and rain, the event saw massive support with thousands of onlookers viewing the celebration on the sides of 9th Avenue SW.
The parade is set to start at 5th Street SW and end at 4th Street SE in Calgary’s east village community.
According to the CTV News report, there were 170 entrants in the 2026 parade.
Among those marching in the parade, the University of Calgary was denied to participate.
As previously reported by the Gauntlet, the university was denied entry as an institution this year by Calgary Pride due to the ongoing legal battle involving the removal of protesters on campus in 2024.
“The decision reflects community concerns about the University’s response to the pro-Palestinian encampment that was forcibly removed from campus in 2024, and the broader impact of these events on the community after a court case was filed in 2026. Calgary Pride considers the impact of any active court cases as well as other community concerns when reviewing institutional participation,” states the response.
“This decision applies only to the University of Calgary’s institutional participation and branding. Students, alumni, unions, faculty associations and campus advocacy groups may join independently, so long as they do not use official University logos or represent themselves as acting on behalf of the University of Calgary’s administration,” continues the statement from Calgary Pride.
Zeritsch said that the SU is here to support students through the denial to participate in the parade.
“We are definitely conscious of the fact that UCalgary was denied to walk in pride, but on the flip side of that, I've seen so many different queer students and even faculty alike that joined together, and I've seen so many pop-up events and pride events over the past week or so that would have never happened if this hadn't happened,” Zeritsch told the Gauntlet.
Zeritsch stated that the coming together of student groups to support pride was beautiful.
While being refused this year, Calgary Pride said in their statement that the university can reapply for next year's parade.
