There were mixed feelings for the Somerville family after the quiet unveiling of Guelph’s rainbow crosswalk on Thursday.
The family had been campaigning for a rainbow crosswalk since 2016, but gained widespread attention when their 11-year-old daughter Mattea Somerville launched a petition of her own, which to date has garnered 1,939 signatures.
Mattea died suddenly and unexpectedly in 2022. Her parents continued to campaign for a crosswalk on her behalf.
Yet, they weren’t invited to the unveiling of the crosswalk, or involved in the planning process whatsoever.
“They didn’t reach out to really anyone in the community. That was really not what we had wanted for it,” Jake Somerville said.
“It was pretty shocking,” said Michelle Somerville. “We found out about it through online videos that councillors and police were posting to social media.”
While both are excited to see Guelph finally get a rainbow crosswalk downtown, they’re still upset and disappointed they weren’t included.
Michelle said it stung even more given that they’re coming up on the year anniversary of Mattea’s death.
“Everything is obviously still very raw. The petition that she started was such a push for the city, and just not to be included was incredibly hurtful.”
Mattea would have been upset, too, her mom said.
“Mattea would be really thrilled that the crosswalk was here, because that’s what she wanted for herself and the LGBT community. But knowing how kind and empathetic and socially aware she is, she would be hurt if she was in our position,” Michelle said.
“It wasn’t about her,” Jake said. “So when they did the unveiling and didn’t invite us or anyone else in the community … that would have been something that bothered her.”
Jake said they understand the city had concerns about the hate they were receiving on Twitter, and wanted to avoid protests. But for Michelle, this move symbolized backing down to the hate rather than boldly standing up against it.
She said other municipalities have made their unveilings public events: “they stand by their commitment to support and protect the LGBT community.”
Since the unveiling was done quietly, she said it makes it seem like their messaging “about being an ally to the LGBTQ community is just very hollow. So there's a lot of work that has to be done.”
However, Tammy Adkin, manager of museums and culture for the city who spearheaded the project, said Thursday's unveiling was intended as an "informal event to provide a first look for the community partners and city staff who have worked on the planning, design and installation of the rainbow crosswalk."
"Because the installation was weather-dependent, we could not confirm the installation date until just a couple days before, making it impossible to hold a public event to coincide," she said. "We still have work to complete on the site, including the installation of interpretive signage, and will be holding a more formal community celebration of the crosswalk when that work is complete."
She added that they intend to reach out to the Somerville family in advance of the official celebration, and that they have been "sensitive about not wanting to intrude on their grief, while also trying to find a way to respectfully honour Mattea."
In the meantime, the family is glad the crosswalk is there, and are planning their own celebration for the public with the help of city councillor Erin Caton.
Now, they’re in the process of organizing a community-based celebration open to everyone, set to take place June 17. An event page with more details will be posted on Facebook soon.
Jake said they expect to see more rainbow crosswalks to appear throughout the city, and will continue pushing to see that happen.
