For the first time, the Canadian Media Guild has a presence at the country’s biggest Pride event, Toronto’s Gay Pride Week, which runs from June 15 to 24. The theme for the week is “Unstoppable.”
The Guild will have a contingent in the Dyke March on June 23, and will also be on hand during the signature Gay Pride Parade, which typically brings a million people into the downtown core. The union will have a table at the Community Fair, which takes place on the parade route, to hand out T-shirts, prizes and information.
“This is a chance for LGBT members of the Guild– Torontonians and members from other cities visiting for the event– to celebrate together and make connections with each other outside of work,” says Nathalie Bourque, an intern with the Guild who is organizing the union’s involvement in Toronto Pride Week. “And making those connections should make us feel stronger when we’re back at work.”
Pride began in 1969 with a march in New York City to protest discrimination against LGBT people, known as Stonewall. As the event spread to cities around the world, it has also evolved into massive street parties that attract thousands of supporters and onlookers.
“Even as we’re celebrating, we need to remember that there is still work to do to stop discrimination– in our workplaces and our communities– and to guarantee equal rights for LGBT people,” Nathalie says.
Nathalie, who is in the Guild’s national office full time until the first week of September, is working to create a national Queer Network for Guild members, so that they can keep in touch and support each other throughout the year.
For more information on the Queer Network or to get help in organizing a Guild presence at the Pride event in your community, get in touch with Nathalie ([email protected]) at 416-591-5333 or 1-800-465-4149.