Speakers pull out of Pride Toronto human rights event

All speakers at Pride Toronto’s June 28 human rights event have pulled out, citing Pride’s censorship of “Israeli apartheid.”

Participants in the 2009 Toronto Pride parade. Jenna Wakani photo.

Read their very brief letter to the Pride Toronto board, dated June 10:

***

Dear Pride Board,

With their voices go ours.

– All speakers at the day and evening program of Sex Inter/National: A Global Fight for Rights?, originally scheduled for June 28 at the Isabel Bader Theatre, including

Andil Gosine: Program Curator, and Coordinator of Sexuality Studies & Associate Professor, York University

Amy Lind: Author/Editor, Development, Sexual Rights and Global Governance and Associate Professor, Women’s Studies, University of Cincinnati

Colin Robinson: Founder, Coalition Advocating for the Inclusion of Sexual Orientation (CAISO), Trinidad and Tobago

Miriam Smith: Author, Lesbian and Gay Rights in Canada: Social Movements and Equality-Seeking, 1971-1995, and Professor, York University

Alison Burns, Isis Portillo and Lauren Pragg: PhD candidates, York University

P.S. “Israeli apartheid”

***

The June 28 human rights event was to be part of Pride Toronto’s “Global Human Rights for Queers” program. Earlier this week, Pride’s 2010 international grand marshals resigned their honours, in protest of Pride Toronto’s decision to limit free expression.

Read more:

• Pride Toronto censorship flap: All of Xtra’s coverage in one place