“In my world, Pride is not cancelled,” says Puelo Deir.
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The cancellation of the Montreal Pride parade on Sunday was “absolutely outrageous,” says Puelo Deir, co-founder of Divers/Cité, a precursor to Pride, which organized LGBTQ+ festivities in Montreal, including the annual parade, from 1993 until Montreal Pride took over in 2007.
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“I wouldn’t believe it if I saw it in a movie. I thought it was a joke,” Deir said of the cancellation of the annual celebration of sexual and gender diversity just hours before it was to start on Sunday morning.
“First of all, in my world, Pride is not cancelled. It would take an act of the universe or real security threats to cancel Pride. And canceling it like you’re canceling a night out at a dance party just seemed outrageous to me.”
Organizers did a good job with all the other Pride events last week, Deir noted, including a party at the Olympic Stadium on Sunday afternoon; but they seemed to have forgotten the most important part.
“Those events are the side show to the main event, which is the parade,” he explained. “And the parade is not an event, it is political. It is the whole raison d’être of Pride week.”
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Montreal Pride organizers initially said the cancellation was due to a lack of about 80 of the 200 volunteers needed to secure the parade route. Then on Sunday night, Pride editor Simon Gamache admitted to La Presse columnist Mario Girard that someone in the organization had forgotten to hire some 100 paid “agents d’accueil,” or security agents. welcome, who worked with 100 volunteers to secure the route.
Mayor Valérie Plante expressed her dismay at the cancellation on Sunday, saying that had she known about the situation earlier, the city would have done what was necessary to ensure the parade took place.
Montreal Pride organizers declined an interview request from the Gazette on Monday, but responded with the following statement:
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“The Montreal Pride board of directors has created an internal autopsy committee to shed light on the events that led to the cancellation of the parade yesterday in Montreal. Montreal Pride will release a statement regarding the 2022 festival later this week.”
A meeting is scheduled for Monday afternoon between representatives of Plante’s administration and Montreal Pride, to whom the city has awarded $600,000 in funds this year for the week’s festivities.
Quebec’s tourism minister has also “requested a meeting with the organizers to discuss the situation,” said Meghan Houle, a spokeswoman for the ministry, which has allocated $1.1 million to Montreal Pride for its programming this year.
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If there is a silver lining to the whole thing, it is found in the two impromptu marches that took place on Sunday afternoon, after the parade was cancelled. One was led by Afro Montreal, an advocacy group for the Caribbean LGBTQ+ community, which had a float on site for the original parade.
“We said, ‘We can’t (not have a parade). We put too much effort, time and money into what was supposed to be an important event for our community,’” said Afro Montreal coordinator Sonja Matschuck.
Afro Montreal representatives spoke to the police, who said they were there to help and would accompany a spontaneous march. The float ended up carrying revelers from Dorchester Square to the Olympic Stadium. Matschuck and some Afro Pride volunteers stayed behind the truck, keeping people from getting too close to the float to make sure no one was hurt.
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“It was a relief for me to be able to offer some kind of celebration,” Matschuck said. “I think the important part is to remind us that Pride started with a riot. Pride is for the rights of minority groups.
“For me it was magical, the whole parade. We didn’t have everyone that was supposed to be there, but when I looked at the sea of people following us and enjoying it, it was truly magical.”
Deir was “delighted” to see that Afro Pride saved the day, but thinks Montreal Pride needs to do some serious soul searching in the days ahead.
“I don’t want to see heads roll,” he said. “But if they haven’t learned from this monumental failure, then they should resign.”
As for talk of a possible makeup show in the coming weeks, he’s equally skeptical.
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“You missed the moment,” he said. “The moment was on Sunday, August 7. That’s when we were all here.”
Montreal Pride sponsors backed the event, despite the controversy.
“The health and safety of all participants, volunteers and attendees is paramount to TD,” a spokesperson for the bank, which is the official presenter of Montreal Pride, said in a statement. “While we are saddened that the parade has been cancelled, we support the organizers’ decision and look forward to continuing to find ways to celebrate 2SLGBTQ+ communities in the future.”
Loto-Québec-owned Casino de Montreal was equally sympathetic.
“Loto-Québec has supported Montreal Pride for several years,” spokesman Renaud Dugas said. “Last week, many activities were held at the Loto-Québec Stage and at the Montreal Casino, to the delight of all. Loto-Québec will continue to support events related to the Montreal Pride festival and stands in solidarity with diversity and inclusion.”
The STM said it was “disappointed by the turn of events” but would continue to work with Montreal Pride.
“We have partnered with Montreal Pride since 2016. It is an important event for us,” said Amélie Régis, public relations advisor for STM. “Our association is based on a visibility exchange (and it is not monetary), for which we will not ask for any compensation.”
With archives of La Presse Canadienne
