Moving forward there will no longer be police floats in future Toronto Pride parades (one of many demands made by the group who stopped the Pride parade until their bucket list was approved upon by Pride organizers).
I guess LGBT cops and their supporters don't matter as much as others. Yes, big mistakes were made in the past involving the police and the LGBT community but much has been done to improve that relationship. Banning police floats does nothing to continue building upon the progress that has been made.
One of the people involved in the disruptive "sit-in" said that although they can celebrate on parade day, they can't be that free and open in their day to day life.
Millions gather annually for the Toronto Pride parade because it's the one time all year that they can feel totally accepted and free to be themselves. It's not like that every day and many who attend the parade return to smaller towns and communities where being openly gay is not totally accepted. Is that right? Not really, but it is something many in the LGBT community can relate to, regardless of the colour of their skin.
Sadly, the diversity we celebrate has been severed thanks to one group. All lives matter, including those who, through no fault of their own, will no longer be a welcome part of the festivities.
That's nothing to be proud about.
There is a strong possibility that the police will be welcome to participate in future parades, after the rep from Pride who signed the "agreement" BLM penned said deciding who is allowed to participate in Toronto Pride parades is not a decision that would be made by him. He also said he signed BLM's document because he had to get the parade moving again. Pride Toronto officials will meet with Toronto police to discuss this matter further (a meeting that should not even be taking place but thanks to a few individuals at BLM, will be.)
