Statement on the Pride Parade and Community Day: Refuting False Narratives and demanding the resignation of Simon Gamache
Tio’tia:ke/Mooniyang/Montreal, this August 20th, 2024 – This press release seeks to correct the misleading narrative propagated by Fierté Montréal, the SPVM, and mainstream media regarding the events leading up to and during Community Day and the pride parade. This is a unified statement from Helem, Mubaadarat, IJV, and the Faction Against Genocide, in Solidarity (F.A.G.S.), affirming our position as Queers of Conscience. We reject the influence of Zionist, imperialist, colonialist, and corporate entities that have attempted to co-opt our struggles through pinkwashing and corporatization. Their corporate zionist parade, going against the true spirit of pride as a protest, will not be done in our name. We firmly oppose the ongoing genocide in Palestine and the exploitation of our identities to justify it. Not in our name.
Setting the record straight;
Events leading up to Pride
Helem, IJV, and Mubaadarat engaged in months of negotiations with Fierté Montréal, urging them to denounce and sever ties with Zionist sponsors and parade participants. Fierté was presented with a list of 4 demands, along with evidence supporting each demand.
Despite refusing all four demands, Fierté expressed that they were “trying” to find legal pathways to exclude the zionist groups from the march due to the fact that they had breached Fierté Montréal’s rules and regulations regarding harassment and discrimination. This was clearly a tactic to silence our movement, and was repeated to us up until the start of the festival.
Fierté’s concerns have only been to protect their image and sponsorships, and not to, as their website clearly states, “amplif[y] the voices of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities to assure their representation, their inclusion and the recognition of their rights in society.” Although their website presents a clear “mission, vision, and values” statement, Fierté missed the chance to show any willingness to put these values to the test.
Community Day
Fierté had committed to ensuring the safety of Helem and Mubaadarat during festival activities. At community day, these groups were confronted by racist and Islamaphobic instigators. There were more than 10 incidents of harassment, one of which was witnessed by Fierté Montreal’s team. Helem and Mubaadarat rallied to provide security and solidarity to one another.
Parade day
Fierté allowed zionist groups, sponsors, and the display of Israeli flags in the march, betraying the trust of the community and endangering marginalized people.
Two independent actions with a shared goal: denounce the ongoing genocide
Helem and Mubaadarat decided to participate in the parade, giving visibility to the existence of LGBTQ+ SWANA and Arab communities, while bringing attention to the ongoing genocide. Independent Jewish Voices collaborated with these two groups to denounce pinkwashing and demonstrate the solidarity between Jewish and Arab communities. This group interrupted the annual moment-of-silence by staging a die-in. The die-in included a soundtrack of fighter jets and various voices crying, all the while select members covered themselves in red paint.
The F.A.G.S. disrupted the parade with one clear message: no pride in genocide. The group aimed to expose Fierté’s bad-faith attempts to silence criticism and prevent disruption. The F.A.G.S. was in solidarity with the die-in organizers and community groups such as AGIR and AfroPride, allowing them to march. The action specifically targeted Zionist and corporate contingents in the parade.
The longest blockade lasted nearly an hour, stopping the Fierté Montréal float and others. Reclaiming the spirit of Pride as a radical act of protest, demonstrators held their ground in the face of verbal and physical abuse from both police and zionist bystanders.
These joint actions emphasize the interconnectedness of various forms of oppression and movements. We wholeheartedly believe that Queer liberation can only be achieved with a free Palestine. None of us are free until all of us are free.
While the Helem, Mubaadarat, and IJV contingent faced harassment, attempts to stop their action, and security that was there to protect Fierté’s image, the F.A.G.S. faced severe police brutality. The SPVM physically assaulted demonstrators, destroyed banners, and issued threats. In response, autonomous members of the first group joined the F.A.G.S. demonstration, solidifying the unity between the two actions. We keep us safe.
The F.A.G.S. : So-called Negotiations and Police Brutality
During the disruption, two members of Fierté Montréal’s board of directors came, promising that a pride representative would come talk to the demonstrators shortly, but no representative arrived. Meanwhile, police presence intensified. After months of being ignored, gaslit, and dehumanized, it became clear that Fierté cared more about its image than what “pride” should mean; protecting the lives and safety of marginalized and minority communities.
As we felt increasingly unsafe, we realized that Fierté’s “negotiation” was a stalling effort to deploy more violence against us as they rerouted the parade. For the safety of demonstrators, we dispersed our efforts. The police followed us in the streets and into the metro, long after our action was over, further proving Fierté’s security efforts were against us and not to protect us.
Fierté and the SPVM’s claims of a peaceful resolution are blatant lies. Their actions demonstrate a prioritization of corporate interests over the safety and well-being of Queer individuals.
Our Updated Demands
We demand a public apology from Fierté Montréal for deploying violent police against us, dehumanizing our community, and endangering both protesters and parade attendees.
We demand a retraction of statements made by Simon Gamache on Sunday, August 11th, stating that Fierté had successfully negotiated with protesters and that the situation was resolved peacefully.
We call for Fierté Montréal to implement a BDS plan. Dissociating from the Zionist apartheid is achievable as demonstrated by other prides such as CapitalPride.
We demand the resignation of Simon Gamache and all those complicit in the violence perpetrated against the F.A.G.S., Helem, Mubaadarat, and IJV contingents.
If future editions of Fierté Montréal happen, we demand that they implement the demands previously submitted by Helem, Mubaadarat and IJV.
Fierté’s website states their goal to “call attention to [the community’s] fights and realities in the wider public and the institutions”, stating they intend to “buil[d] lasting bridges with the communities and [to adapt their] actions and approaches to better support [the community’s] demands and aspirations.” We call on them to put these words into action.
In Conclusion
The events of the past weeks have starkly highlighted the urgent need to reaffirm the true essence of Pride; a celebration rooted in resistance, solidarity, and justice. Fierté Montréal’s actions have not only betrayed the spirit of Pride but have also endangered marginalized communities by prioritizing corporate interests over genuine advocacy and safety.
Our collective stand, encompassing Helem, Mubaadarat, Independent Jewish Voices, and the F.A.G.S., demonstrates our unwavering commitment to intersectional justice and the liberation of all oppressed peoples. We call on the broader community to support our demands and hold Fierté Montréal accountable for its failures.
As Queers of Conscience, we stand united in our resolve: From Turtle Island to Palestine, no pride in genocide, and no compromise on justice. Our movement will continue to challenge pinkwashing and the exploitation of our identities for political gain.
Nova Scotia RCMP say their investigation into two suspicious deaths earlier this month has concluded that one man died by homicide and the other by suicide.
The bodies of two men, aged 40 and 73, were found in a home in Windsor, N.S., on Sept. 3.
Police say the province’s medical examiner determined the 40-year-old man was killed and the 73-year-old man killed himself.
They say the two men were members of the same family.
No arrests or charges are anticipated, and the names of the deceased will not be released.
RCMP say they will not be releasing any further details out of respect for the family.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
For the first time in their history, members of the Cree community of Nemaska received a visit from a sitting Quebec premier on Sunday and were able to share first-hand the story of how they were displaced by a hydroelectric project in the 1970s.
François Legault was greeted in Nemaska by men and women who arrived by canoe to re-enact the founding of their new village in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region, in northern Quebec, 47 years ago. The community was forced in the early 1970s to move from its original location because members were told it would be flooded as part of the Nottaway-Broadback-Rupert hydro project.
The reservoir was ultimately constructed elsewhere, but by then the members of the village had already left for other places, abandoning their homes and many of their belongings in the process.
George Wapachee, co-author of the book “Going Home,” said community members were “relocated for nothing.”
“We didn’t know what the rights were, or who to turn to,” he said in an interview. “That turned us into refugees and we were forced to abandon the life we knew.”
Nemaska’s story illustrates the challenges Legault’s government faces as it looks to build new dams to meet the province’s power needs, which are anticipated to double by 2050. Legault has promised that any new projects will be developed in partnership with Indigenous people and have “social acceptability,” but experts say that’s easier said than done.
François Bouffard, an associate professor of electrical engineering at McGill University, said the earlier era of hydro projects were developed without any consideration for the Indigenous inhabitants living nearby.
“We live in a much different world now,” he said. “Any kind of hydro development, no matter where in Quebec, will require true consent and partnership from Indigenous communities.” Those groups likely want to be treated as stakeholders, he added.
Securing wider social acceptability for projects that significantly change the landscape — as hydro dams often do — is also “a big ask,” he said. The government, Bouchard added, will likely focus on boosting capacity in its existing dams, or building installations that run off river flow and don’t require flooding large swaths of land to create reservoirs.
Louis Beaumier, executive director of the Trottier Energy Institute at Polytechnique Montreal, said Legault’s visit to Nemaska represents a desire for reconciliation with Indigenous people who were traumatized by the way earlier projects were carried about.
Any new projects will need the consent of local First Nations, Beaumier said, adding that its easier to get their blessing for wind power projects compared to dams, because they’re less destructive to the environment and easier around which to structure a partnership agreement.
Beaumier added that he believes it will be nearly impossible to get the public — Indigenous or not — to agree to “the destruction of a river” for a new dam, noting that in recent decades people have come to recognize rivers as the “unique, irreplaceable riches” that they are.
Legault’s visit to northern Quebec came on Sept. 15, when the community gathers every year to remember the founding of the “New Nemaska,” on the shores of Lake Champion in the heart of the boreal forest, some 1,500 kilometres from Montreal. Nemaska Chief Clarence Jolly said the community invited Legault to a traditional feast on Sunday, and planned to present him with Wapachee’s book and tell him their stories.
The book, published in 2022 along with Susan Marshall, is filled with stories of Nemaska community members. Leaving behind sewing machines and hunting dogs, they were initially sent to two different villages, Wapachee said.
In their new homes, several of them were forced to live in “deplorable conditions,” and some were physically and verbally abused, he said. The new village of Nemaska was only built a few years later, in 1977.
“At this time, families were losing their children to prison-schools,” he said, in reference to the residential school system. “Imagine the burden of losing your community as well.”
Thomas Jolly, a former chief, said he was 15 years old when he was forced to leave his village with all his belongings in a single bag.
Meeting Legault was important “because have to recognize what happened and we have to talk about the repercussions that the relocation had on people,” he said, adding that those effects are still felt today.
Earlier Sunday, Legault was in the Cree community of Eastmain, where he participated in the official renaming of a hydro complex in honour of former premier Bernard Landry. At the event, Legault said he would follow the example of his late predecessor, who oversaw the signing of the historic “Paix des Braves” agreement between the Quebec government and the Cree in 2002.
He said there is “significant potential” in Eeyou Istchee James Bay, both in increasing the capacity of its large dams and in developing wind power projects.
“Obviously, we will do that with the Cree,” he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
NEMASKA – For the first time in their history, members of the Cree community of Nemaska received a visit from a sitting Quebec premier on Sunday and were able to share first-hand the story of how they were displaced by a hydroelectric project in the 1970s.
François Legault was greeted in Nemaska by men and women who arrived by canoe to re-enact the founding of their new village in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region, in northern Quebec, 47 years ago. The community was forced in the early 1970s to move from their original location because they were told it would be flooded as part of the Nottaway-Broadback-Rupert hydro project.
The reservoir was ultimately constructed elsewhere, but by then the members of the village had already left for other places, abandoning their homes and many of their belongings in the process.
George Wapachee, co-author of the book “Going Home,” said community members were “relocated for nothing.”
“We didn’t know what the rights were, or who to turn to,” he said in an interview. “That turned us into refugees and we were forced to abandon the life we knew.”
The book, published in 2022 by Wapachee and Susan Marshall, is filled with stories of Cree community members. Leaving behind sewing machines and hunting dogs, they were initially sent to two different villages, 100 and 300 kilometres away, Wapachee said.
In their new homes, several of them were forced to live in “deplorable conditions,” and some were physically and verbally abused, he said. The new village of Nemaska was only built a few years later, in 1977.
“At this time, families were losing their children to prison-schools,” he said, in reference to the residential school system. “Imagine the burden of losing your community as well.”
Legault’s visit came on Sept. 15, when the community gathers every year to remember the founding of the “New Nemaska,” on the shores of Lake Champion in the heart of the boreal forest, some 1,500 kilometres from Montreal. Nemaska Chief Clarence Jolly said the community invited Legault to a traditional feast on Sunday, and planned to present him with Wapachee’s book and tell him their stories.
Thomas Jolly, a former chief, said he was 15 years old when he was forced to leave his village with all his belongings in a single bag.
Meeting Legault was important “because have to recognize what happened and we have to talk about the repercussions that the relocation had on people,” he said, adding that those effects are still felt today.
Earlier Sunday, Legault had been in the Cree community of Eastmain, where he participated in the official renaming of a hydro dam in honour of former premier Bernard Landry.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
