On Friday, July 18, 2025 the City of White Rock hosted the annual Pride flag-raising ceremony to kick off White Rock Pride Week hosted by the White Rock Pride Society.
During the ceremony, Johnny D Trinh a community-engaged artist shared a powerful poem he wrote. The poem was a reflection on place and what resistance and liberation looks like today. Trinh grew up in a city much like White Rock in size and culture, and reflected on the journey so many folks take to leave for the “big city” because home never felt safe, and what it means when folks return to visit, rest, build a family.
The first line is taken from Joy Kogawa’s “Obasan,” a novel that detailed stories of the Japanese-Canadians Internment that she and her family experienced. “A Silence That Can Not Speak” acknowledges the silencing and erasure that many people experienced, with parallels to all oppressed and marginalized communities.
With permission from Johnny we are sharing his powerful words here for those who may have missed the ceremony or were incredibly touched by his words.
“For White Rock”
There is a silence that can not speak
I have spent decades in quiet
Taught the stuck safety of a whisper
Dreaming of junctions
Straining to hear the music from the big metropolis
Because home was a danger for the different
I was raised in a White city
Framed by closed doors
Steam tables, cubicles,
And a kaleidoscope ceiling
fractured glass cascading broken rainbows
I would hide away the glitter
I would dampen the hues
Dress male dress plaid dress plane dress monochrome
I was a walking
waved white banner of surrender
to avoid the violence
And it still came
Everytime I tasted the iron on my tongue
Everytime reminded that we danced til sunrise to make sure we saw the sun rise
Even though it’s safer in the dark
Until the day I could not hide or bide my time
Waiting for the truth to set me free
Angry at the True North Strong and Free
That we were promised
That we dreamed about
That we prayed for
So then came the nights of wild abandon
Runaway drives to the big city after class
Dreaming of celebrities and the chance to dance
I never thought it was possible to cultivate this joy
In my hometown
Where first steps and expectations
Could become first steps and expectations
Where I didn’t think I could show out my final form
Against all the memories that defined me
As immobile as the Rocks around me.
So
I found necessary distance
Refuge in a rainbow pin and a volunteer’s welcome hand
I found peace in a crowd marching in solidarity side by side with past and future lovers
I found family at the table of chosen allies
Until I was ready to return to family and homeland
And I do return
The back-to-the-seaside someday
Like re-meeting old friends discovering how we both have changed
And rediscover the spectrum in the rain as I wander to the pier and sit by the water
And I see my people
And I feel my people
And I witness my dreams as people roam in an age
When a family is a family is a family is a family
And unconditional looks like undeniable truth
And it looks a lot like us here now
Where holding hands is not defiance
but love
with thanks for all the raised fists from before
Where sharing vows is not resistance
but love
with thanks for the shared learning of what love can be
Where books about us for us by us is not indoctrination
but love
with intention of changing the future
Where walking outside is not a thrown brick
but liberation
for all the elders who marched to reclaim these streets, schools, hospitals, homes brick by brick
And living is not just surviving.
Where living, just living, is a flown flag of pride.
About Johnny D Trinh
Johnny D Trinh is a community-engaged artist who also holds the positions of: Executive Artistic Director, Vancouver Poetry House, and Interim Executive Director, Historic Joy Kogawa House. More information can be found about Johnny at johnnydavidtrinh.com
