The 519 Community Centre condemns Pride Toronto’s censorship

The 519 Community Centre added its voice to the chorus of queer leaders and organizations urging Pride Toronto to reverse its decision to censor the term “Israeli apartheid” from the parade. It also chastises the City of Toronto for applying political pressure on Pride Toronto to have Queers Against Israeli Apartheid yanked from this year’s Parade.

The 519 “calls on Pride Toronto to reverse its decision to ban the term ‘Israeli
apartheid’ and urges Pride and the City of Toronto to undertake a
constructive dialogue with the broader communities on the issue,” says a note on the community centre’s website.

The 519 is located smack dab in the middle of Pride festivities. The Centre has already lent its space to two groups organizing protests against Pride Toronto.

Meanwhile, at least two more Pride Toronto-related events have been canned. Crave, a women’s dance scheduled for June 25, abruptly cancelled its event notice earlier this week with no explanation. And lemonTree, a youth-led theatre troupe, has cancelled its Pride-affiliated run of Still Life at The 519, June 18-20, but plans to reschedule.

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Marcus McCann

Marcus McCann is an employment and human rights lawyer, member of Queers Crash the Beat, and a part owner of Glad Day Bookshop. Before becoming a lawyer, he was the managing editor of Xtra in Toronto and Ottawa.

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