OPINION
Is My Pride Showing? Standing on the sidelines taught me that Pride is a matter of perspective By Jumol Royes
We all have an image of what a Pride parade looks, sounds and feels like.
bodies’ in shape as we put pressure on ourselves, and each other, to live up to unrealistic standards of physical appearance that are nearly impossible to achieve or maintain.
Picture people proudly waving rainbow-coloured flags as a convoy of corporate-branded floats snakes its way through city streets, while passers-by move and shake their bodies to the joyful sounds of music filling the air.
When we turn our attention to how Pride is packaged and sold through targeted marketing campaigns, the story is pretty much the same. There seems to be an endless barrage of images featuring people who bear a striking resemblance to famous gay Canadians like actor Luke Macfarlane and Queer Eye’s Antoni Porowski, or Instafamous influencers like Sam Cushing and Kyle Krieger.
Personally, I’ve never been a big fan of parades, Pride or otherwise. The thought of being crammed into a confined space with a large crowd and no clear exit strategy has just never done it for me (and that was before COVID-19). However, participating in a Pride parade is a sort of rite of passage when one first comes out of the closet. So, when I first came out, I told myself to suck it up, buttercup. Be a good gay and get into the Pride state of mind. The Pride parades I attended on and off throughout my 20s are pretty much a blur (probably because there was a fair amount of boozing and partying involved). Sure, there were moments that were new and fun and exciting, but I always felt like the odd man out. As a skinny Black boy surrounded by a sea of mostly muscular white men, I often went unseen. There’s no denying that the LGBTQ2+ community has a complicated relationship with Pride and inclusivity. Need proof? Just look at some of the language we use around Pride. Before summer even arrives, we start talking about hitting the gym to get our ‘Pride
Starting to see a pattern emerging here? CBC arts reporter Kevin Sweet did an interview back in 2016 in which he talked about the challenges Pride and the gay community face when it comes to diversity and inclusion, and how racialized and marginalized groups oftentimes feel left out. “I think if you went into the lesbian community and asked them if they felt included by the gay community, you’d get an interesting answer,” said Sweet, who also happens to be gay. “If you approached… minorities like Asians, I think you would get some people expressing feelings of segregation.” Pride organizers appear to be listening, and are pivoting to ensure their events strike the right chord with the LGBTQ2+ community. The lineup for this year’s NYC virtual Pride celebration included a diverse cohort of performers like Janelle Monáe, Billy Porter, Deborah Cox, Wilson Cruz and Margaret Cho. Closer to home, Pride Toronto also made the decision to go digital this year, refusing to let COVID-19 rain on their parade. They announced that they would be “shining a concentrated spotlight on women and BIPOC [Black, Indigenous and People of Colour] artists.”
Photos by Brian Kyed
JULY / AUGUST 2020
I attended a Pride parade with some friends a few years ago, and instead of standing on the sidelines pressed up against the barricades,
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I think if you went into the lesbian community and asked them if they felt included by the gay community, you’d get an interesting answer.
