Montreal Pride Parade | Excess color and emotions

Lee Carrier
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“I’m proud of my city, I’m proud of my community that came together. I never thought there would be so many people!”

The annual meeting and weekly festivities of people of sexual and gender diversity came to an end, taking a break last year – for the first time in 30 years of existence. Drums, Drag Queens and the Brazilian Samba Troupe: He’s back this summer, we know him with a festive and shattering spirit. Starting with its colorful partners.

“There’s a little more time Extra with his style. It’s a way to express your identity, ”testified Callisto Fortin, who wore a star skirt and a non-binary flag. Fierce Montreal’s loyal partner *, he missed the event. “I’m looking forward to it, summer!” It is important to meet people like you. Especially for people who are still in the room or alone. «We are a family! “, Surpass her friend Roosevelt Toussaint.

The kick-off was given at 1 pm at Jean-Mans Park, and ended at 3 pm in the village, St. Catherine’s.

New political demands

“I feel like I’m part of the renaissance and at the same time, going to the start of the Pride Parade. After a year and a half of not seeing each other, we can finally feel the power of the people, see where they are. [dans leur cheminement]. We’re really going back to the basics, the human relationship, ”said Sandy Duperwall, Fierte Montreal spokeswoman.

But the parade was not only good humor and celebration: it was also a claimant. In the wake of the discovery of the graves of hundreds of children close to former residential schools, Montreal Pride called for a “greater mass awareness of the atrocities against indigenous peoples” and condemned any racism against blacks and natives. Arabic speaking, Asian and Latin people.

Sandy Duperwal recalled the importance of organizing these struggles in parallel to the struggles for sexual and gender diversity. “The people we represent are part of many denials. We owe ourselves to claiming their rights. For example, I’m a lesbian and a black woman. When I leave home, I walk away with that identity. If I face discrimination, it may be in one sense or all angles.”

The struggle led by Camille Painchod-Lavalle in March was to better recognize the rights of trans people. “Right now, we’re very poorly respected in the public sphere. It needs to change,” she said. The man who was fasting with Action Trans Quebec on fell.

Restriction is not easy for LGBTQ2 + communities that are thriving with a cohesive spirit. At the Social Research and Intervention Group (GRIS-Montreal), which works to eliminate issues affecting sexual identity and sexual orientation in schools, one must be creative to stay in the field over the past year.

“During adolescence, getting support is very important. Often, we feel lonely to feel something, to feel that way. We need a support team,” explained Steve Franకోois, administrator at GRIS-Montreal.

The election campaign in this context

Just two hours before the start of March, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is on his way to Rydo Hall in Ottawa, urging the Governor-General to dissolve the government and begin the election campaign. He has never missed a Montreal Pride parade since he was elected in 2015. Melanie Jolie, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages, was there on Sunday afternoon to represent the Liberal Party and show “solidarity with the LGBTQ2 + community”.

Black leader Yves-Franois Blanchett and New Democratic Party deputy leader Alexander Bouleris were also present. Both declared support for gender and gender diversity groups and reiterated that it was not appropriate to hold a federal election at this time. Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole did not attend the march.

* Callisto Fortin is non-binary and uses the pronoun “iel”.