Protesters fail to disrupt library story hour

Roger Varley

While a half-dozen noisy protesters gathered across the street from the Uxbridge Public Library on Saturday, a room full of around 25 toddlers, young people and their parents snacked on popcorn and blue cotton candy inside as they listened to stories read by a pair of drag queens.

The protesters set up two large signs and a mini-stage and blocked the sidewalk as they yelled passages from the Bible at a few onlookers, including two Durham Region Police officers, who stood in front of the library's main entrance. During the protest, two men carrying PRIDE flags positioned themselves in front of the protesters.

None of those attending the story hour saw the demonstrators. After the session was finished, parents and children exited the library through the rear entrance, with some taking time to be given a tour through an ambulance by paramedics.