Creating a safe space for all is a common struggle

LGBTQI+ community should stand against all forms of discrimination, Michael Arnaud says.

Facing criticism from members of the LGBTQI+ community, Équipe Montréal, a coalition of LGBTQI+ sport clubs, announced Sunday that Michelle Blanc — a prominent figure in the LGBTQI+ community and candidate for the Parti Québécois in Mercier — had decided to step down as honorary president for their annual gala, a celebration of diversity and inclusion.

“Équipe Montréal’s representatives shared their members’ concerns over its independence from political parties,” she wrote.

But Équipe Montréal chose the easy way out, leaving the decision to her alone, and remaining silent on the real problem: racism. They simply didn’t get the message: Protesters expected Équipe Montréal, an important organization in the community’s landscape, to dissociate itself from Blanc and her racist comments.

Équipe Montréal’s failure to distance itself more strongly from Blanc is, sadly, symptomatic of a bigger problem.

Équipe Montréal presents itself as a “strong, engaged, unifying, inclusive and recognized gathering for sports and leisure.” Blanc doesn’t fit in this picture. Her use of the N-word, a derogatory term for black people, with a charged history of discrimination and violence, isn’t a harmless mistake, considering the serious impacts of racism still suffered by them. And her wish for Hasidic people to “disappear from her sight” while joking about celebrating Hitler’s birthday should remind us of very dark times, when Jews — and LGBTQI+ people — were actually made to disappear.

LGBTQI+ people have been and still are the butt of many offensive “jokes” and we rightfully express our indignation to those expressing homophobia and transphobia, because we know that these aren’t just words. We know that they cost the lives of many of us, and what it feels

Équipe Montréal’s failure to distance itself more strongly from Michelle Blanc is, sadly, symptomatic of a bigger problem.

like to be excluded, discriminated against and killed for being who we are. And yet some of us can remain oblivious to the troubling similarities with homophobia. Like homophobia and transphobia, racism is deadly, no matter how innocuous we may think her “jokes” are.

That’s why we cannot fight homophobia and transphobia without understanding racism and other sources of oppression. People of colour experience life differently in the LGBTQI+ community, from casual racism to blatant slurs, to the weight of their own cultural communities’ social norms that often keep them “in the closet” and prevent them from seeking the support and services they need. Migrant transgender people still fight for the right to change their gender and their name on their IDs in Quebec, while transgender women of colour are disproportionately affected by lethal violence. Blanc certainly contributed positively to the advancement of LGBTQI+ rights and the visibility of transgender people, but we cannot ignore her views given the real impact of racism on our people.

Équipe Montréal presumably was hoping to bring the debate to a close and silence protesters. But Blanc being out of the picture is only a small, bittersweet victory. It’s only the beginning of the conversation. We need to move forward as a community by building alliances with organizations that have been working for diversity in the community for many years already, maintaining a continuous dialogue with members of the community from different backgrounds to understand their concerns, promoting diversity at the decision-making level by proactively reaching out to minority groups, and increasing the visibility of diverse people in communication and representation.

In 2018, we pride ourselves on being more open and inclusive than ever. Yet, racism is alive and kicking in the LGBTQI+ community, as it is in society as a whole. We must stand against all forms of discrimination if we are to succeed in creating a safe space for all.

Michael Arnaud is an international development and humanitarian worker and has been living in Montreal for 11 years. He identifies as a gay man of colour and is actively involved in the LGBTQI+ community in Montreal through volunteer work.