Toronto/CMEDIA: Halted reportedly by a local pro-Palestinian advocacy group, Ottawa’s annual Pride parade got cancelled on Sunday.
“With the permission” of the grand marshal, the group Queers for Palestine (Q4P) halted the parade, the organization said in a press release issued Sunday afternoon just as the parade was stopped.
Referencing the “We are a village” theme that Capital Pride was using for 2025, protesters chanted “This is what a village looks like!” from Parliament Hill.
Calling on them to “stand with us and all oppressed peoples”, including Palestinians, they also demanded apology from Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and other elected officials for the 2024 boycott of Capital Pride.
“We are in the parade today to affirm very clearly that our Pride is not for sale, and that 2SLGBTQIA+ communities will not accept sponsors and elected officials dictating what we stand for, how we celebrate ourselves, and how we claim our space,” the press release said.
Capital Pride announced just before 3 p.m. on Instagram that the parade had been cancelled.
Capital Pride also said that they did not have time for an interview and posted a statement on Instagram shortly after 6 p.m.
Q4P was marching as a guest invited by the parade grand marshal, Capital Pride said, adding that they met with festival organizers throughout the summer.
But on the day of the parade, Q4P “refused to have a meaningful discussion about how to move forward,” Capital Pride said, adding that street closures were only permitted until 4 p.m.
“After over an hour of attempting to resolve the stoppage, it became clear that Q4P was unwilling to engage in a good faith conversation and was insistent on misrepresenting our discussions,” the statement read.
“The decision to cancel was not taken lightly, and we understand and appreciate the impact it had on our community — including over 7,000 people from more than 175 groups who showed up to march today.”
2024 controversy
Capital Pride issued a letter in 2024 condemning both “the acts of terrorism” committed on Oct. 7 and Israel’s “endless and brutal campaign in Gaza,” which it said had caused the deaths of “innocent Palestinians.”
Calling the statement “antisemitic,” the Jewish Federation of Ottawa said it would boycott the Pride parade in response.
Other groups and individuals withdrew their support and sponsorship from some Pride Month events, including Sutcliffe.
The parade went ahead regardless, but this year the statement was removed from Capital Pride’s website.
This year’s parade route was slated to head up Elgin Street, past Parliament Hill on Wellington Street, before ending on Kent Street, not far from the street festival on Bank Street.
