Local Pride events facing increased security costs
The federal government is offering more money to pay for security costs at Pride events amid rising anti-LGBTQ2S+ hate.
It’s something organizers in Waterloo region have seen first hand.
“Unfortunately there are people who think that us spreading love and building community is problematic,” Grand River Pride co-founder Bryan Causarano said.
“We’ve had some hateful emails. We’ve had signs ripped down.”
Causarano is in the midst of preparing for Grand River Pride’s first-ever street party in downtown Galt on Saturday.
The inaugural celebration in Cambridge has been more than a year in the making and caps off a series of events, including comedy and film nights and drag performances.
“We wanted to make sure future generations of kids can see the happiness, see love, see support wherever they go,” Causarano said.
But the show of love comes at a time when LGBTQ2S+ people are being increasingly targeted by hate.
Grand River Pride is spending $1,500 to have a pair of officers patrol the street party.
Meanwhile Tri-Pride said it’s seen its security costs nearly double to due inflation and additional hires.
"An increase of security is due to a spike in increased incidents of hate directed toward the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. The increase is also to handle the anticipated increase in attendance to the festival," the festival said in an email.
LOCAL LGBTQ2S+ EVENTS TARGETED
In January, police added patrols outside of Elora Distilling due to threats against a drag show at the venue.
Around a month earlier, Guelph drag queen Crystal Quartz cancelled a show in Burlington due to online threats.
A transgender Pride flag crosswalk in Kitchener was also vandalized in April.
EMERGENCY FUNDING
Similar incidents across the country led to a request by the National Association of Canadian Pride Organizations for $1.5 million in emergency security funding in mid-May. On Monday, the government agreed to back that request.
But the timing of the government’s announcement means some events may miss out on paying for improved security.
Causarano said the situation is “a little bit stressful,” but ultimately, organizers are excited.
“I'm excited about all the stuff that's happening,” Causarano said. “I'm more excited just to see how happy people are that this is happening right where they live, right in the communities that they belong to.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Large numbers of New York City police officers begin entering Columbia University campus
Large numbers of New York City police officers began entering the Columbia University late Tuesday as dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters remained on the campus.
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Sword-wielding man attacks passersby in London, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring 4 others
A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a northeast London suburb Tuesday, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four other people, British authorities said.
Man dies after suffering cardiac arrest while waiting in ER, widow wants investigation
When an ambulance took David Lippert to the hospital in March of 2023, the 68-year-old Kitchener, Ont., executive was hoping to find out why he was feeling weak and unable to walk. Some 24 hours later, he was found unresponsive in the ER.
CSE says it shared information on Chinese hacking of parliamentarians in 2022
While several MPs and senators say they were only recently made aware of China-backed hackers targeting them, the Communications Security Establishment, one of Canada's intelligence agencies, says it shared information about the incident with parliamentary officials in June of 2022.
WATCH Arnold Schwarzenegger spotted filming in Elora, Ont.
The name of the project has not been officially released although it’s widely believed to be the Netflix series FUBAR.
Eviction for landlord's use was legitimate, despite owners' partial move, B.C. court rules
A B.C. judge has upheld the eviction of a family from their North Vancouver townhouse, finding that the landlords did not take an unreasonable amount of time to move into the home after the tenants vacated it.