DIVERSTIY
PRIDE SHOULD CELEBRATE THE RAINBOW Let’s not forget that Pride is inherently political, and so is race. If we say we celebrate diversity, let’s mean what we say By Fraser Abe
Pride season for many Canadians, is a time – to borrow the parlance from a song about another season – to be merry and bright. So, when Black Lives Matter blocked the Toronto Pride Parade in 2016, they were supported by some, but seen as party-poopers by others who were simply out for a good time. Ditto for the protestors from Queers Against Israeli Apartheid a few years before that.
JULY / AUGUST 2020
There’s a common refrain from the white cis spectrum of the LGB rainbow – “I understand their point, but it’s not the right time or place.” “Why can’t they protest some other way?” “They should block their own parade!”
The book Marvellous Grounds: Queer of Colour Histories of Toronto has a chapter about arts-based organizing by Aemilius “Milo” Ramirez, a drag king/gender performance artist, that details their time in the early 2000s as a performer at clubs on Church Street. They say that “more often than not,” shows at early 2000s Church Street mainstays like Crews & Tangos, Zelda’s and George’s Play “represented white narratives, along with messages of misogyny, transphobia, transmisogyny, ableism, classism, and of course racism for good measure.”
“But that was so long ago!” That’s another plaint white cis LGB people exclaim when people of colour explain the history of racism What these people forget is that Pride is inherently political in the queer community. If the past decade counts as ancient history, (Stonewall wasn’t exactly a tea party, after all), and so is race. As woe to the aged twink who remembers nights at 5ive. Remember in political activist and academic Angela Davis pointed out, “In a 2013, when one Toronto queen was fired after their performance in racist society, it is not good enough to be non-racist, we must be blackface? She dressed as Miss Cleo, the telephone psychic from anti-racist.” It’s a narrow distinction, but an important one, made the ’90s, with full blackface. Or in 2012, when another queen by seemingly every other news story across the globe these days. performed in a burka, bindi and a set of bombs attached to her What Davis means is that it is not enough to simply not make racist stomach? The 2010s weren’t exactly the Mad Men era. jokes or harbour racist thoughts – a person must actively seek to be anti-racist by calling out others’ (and their own) racist behaviour. Ramirez’s chapter goes on to say, “As a trans person of colour, Church Street has always felt devastating to me in big ways.” They The Ontario Human Rights Commission defines a person who is discuss how management at Crews & Tangos, in 2005, didn’t want anti-racist as someone who a) identifies, isolates and challenges a DJ friend of theirs playing hip-hop, reggaetón, soca or reggae, racism; b) challenges beliefs that foster racism; c) uses direct action as that style of music had been bringing in “the wrong clientele.” at personal and institutional levels; and d) creates and implements actions to fight racism for individuals and within an organization Pride Toronto, in 2016, apologized for its historic role in contributing or workforce. to racism in the queer community. “Pride Toronto wants to begin by apologizing emphatically and unreservedly for its role in deepening At the time of writing this, there are riots happening in the United the divisions in our community, for a history of anti-blackness and States in reaction to George Floyd’s death at the hands of a police repeated marginalization of the marginalized within our community officer as well as the countless deaths of Black people thanks to that our organization has continued,” the organization said, in police officers. As Canadians, it’s very easy to look at the blatant part. It also vowed to disallow uniformed police (a group that has and very overt shows of racism south of the border and think, been antagonistic to queers and especially queers of colour) from “We’re not like that here!” But that is a mistake – just to give one marching in the parade, although it reversed this decision in 2018 example, concurrent with the protests in the States, Torontonians (the motion was later reversed again, after a vote from members). were marching in droves to protest the death of Regis Korchinski- What’s more, Pride Toronto had to issue another apology last Paquet, who fell from her High Park highrise during an interaction Pride when its land acknowledgement was called out for erasing with Toronto Police. Indigenous people and failing to properly acknowledge their traditional territory. Indeed, racism is alive and well here in Canada as well, even in the queer community, and even during Pride season, a time many Kim Chi, from Season 8 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, famously brought white cis LGB people view as the ultimate in queer togetherness. a heinous Grindr saying to the public zeitgeist: “No fats, no femmes, Think of 2016’s Toronto Pride slogan: “You Can Sit With Us.” no Asians.” It’s a variation of other equally hideous sayings that 46
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