Large crowds pack Toronto streets as Canada’s largest Pride parade begins – Toronto | 24CA News
TORONTO — Massive crowds thronged the streets of Toronto underneath sunny skies on Sunday to participate in Canada’s largest Pride parade.
Colourfully-clad attendees cheered, danced, fluttered rainbow followers to beat the warmth and blew bubbles in a present of assist and celebration for Canada’s LGBTQ neighborhood, which has confronted a rising variety of threats and witnessed assaults on long-sought rights in current months.
The contentious local weather prompted Pride occasion planners in Toronto and past to considerably step up safety efforts. Pride Toronto, organizer of Sunday’s parade that includes a minimum of 250 taking part teams, mentioned it spent twice as a lot cash on policing for this 12 months’s occasion than it did in 2022.
But some attendees mentioned the setting that makes additional safety crucial additionally makes it all of the extra essential to have fun Pride and present solidarity with the neighborhood.
Georgie Sountos and Sarah Rice sat collectively ready for the parade to start, having met earlier within the day. Rice traveled from London, Ont., to hitch their queer neighborhood.
They mentioned it feels extra essential than ever this 12 months to point out up and be seen, noting LGTBQ individuals are seeing their rights taken away in a number of nations.
“Pride is a celebration but it’s also a protest,” Rice mentioned.
That spirit was additionally in proof alongside Toronto’s Yonge Street, the place marchers carried banners with slogans akin to “protect trans youth” and “protect trans kids.”
For Sountos, Sunday’s parade marked the newest of many years of Pride. The 65-year-old Torontonian mentioned she has been coming to Pride since attendance numbered within the tens and a whole lot.
“We’re here, we’re loud, we’re proud, we count,” she mentioned.
The march additionally drew some outstanding politicians, together with federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and a handful of candidates hoping to be elected as the town’s mayor in a byelection set for Monday.
Perceived front-runner Olivia Chow was anticipated to be readily available together with different mayoral hopefuls Ana Bailao, Brad Bradford and Josh Matlow.
© 2023 The Canadian Press
