As we celebrate Pride in our communities this month, the City of Oshawa has installed a Rainbow Crosswalk at the main entrance to Oshawa City Hall adjacent to The Robert McLaughlin Art Gallery.

The City obtained community feedback on three proposed locations for a Rainbow Crosswalk in Oshawa. Based on the feedback received, the most preferred location was the pedestrian crosswalk located adjacent to the main entrance to Oshawa City Hall (50 Centre St. S.), and The Robert McLaughlin Art Gallery. The installation of the Rainbow Crosswalk aligns with the City’s Diversity and Inclusion Plan. Approved in 2017, the plan contains actions and strategies for the City to take in identifying and removing barriers and promoting inclusion.

“The City of Oshawa has a clearly-stated Diversity and Inclusion policy. Simply put: if you are going to ‘talk the talk’ you should be prepared to ‘walk the walk’ – quite literally in this case. This beautiful, colourful Rainbow Crosswalk, in its chosen location at the main entrance to City Hall where over 360,000 visitors of all ‘walks’ of life will see it every year, is a clear statement to those visitors and to the people of Oshawa inclusively that we do, indeed, ‘walk the walk’,” said Councillor Rick Kerr, Chair of the Community Services Committee.

“This crosswalk is a symbol of our aspiration to be an inclusive City. We know that there are LGBTQ+ individuals in our community who still face discrimination and isolation, but it is important that we as a municipality let them know that they are heard, they are supported, they belong, and they matter,” said Councillor Derek Giberson, Vice-Chair of the Community Services Committee.

The new crosswalk, a symbol of support for the LGBTQ+ community, is located adjacent to Oshawa City Hall, 50 Centre St. S., and the Robert McLaughlin Gallery.

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