Councillor calls for Pride grant to be axed
Group must return to its ‘core principals’ of equity
Amid mounting controversy over police participation in pride events across the country, a Toronto city councillor is calling for a municipal donation to Canada’s largest Pride parade to be cut after the event banned police floats from future festivities.
Coun. John Campbell said about half a dozen councillors so far agree that Pride Toronto’s annual grant request, expected in April, should be voted down until the city’s Pride parade returns to its “core principals of equity and inclusivity.”
“It doesn’t sit right with me and with other councillors that we issue this grant in view of the position that they’ve taken with respect to the police force,” he said Tuesday.
“We need a certain level of equity and inclusivity attached to the issuance of grants for organizations.”
In a surprise move at its annual general meeting in January, Pride Toronto adopted a list of demands issued by the Toronto chapter of Black Lives Matter, including banning police floats from the parade.
“Black Lives Matter bullied Pride into making a decision that I don’t think was in the best interests of the city,” Campbell said.
Janaya Khan, co-founder of the group’s Toronto chapter, said the councillor did not understand race relations.
“What is missing is a real understanding of what it means to be a racialized person in this city and the fear that exists in your body when you are around a police officer,” Khan said.
“The institution of policing discriminates people based on race. We actually wouldn’t need to exist if city councillors were doing their job.”
The group’s goal, Khan said, is to create a broader discourse about public safety while creating a safe space for the black community involved in the parade.
Still, Pride’s decision to comply with Black Lives Matter’s demands was panned by some as a significant setback for police and LGBTQ relations.