Pride soars to new heights in Montreal
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Montreal – August 15, 2016 – UFCW activists from across Quebec showed their solidarity and pride this past weekend by participating in the 10th Annual Montreal Pride Parade, the largest LGTBQ gathering in the French-speaking world.
This year’s theme was “Our Flag, Our Nature,” with the colour green symbolizing the rich and diverse nature of the LGBTQ community. United and strong, UFCW members, officers, and staff celebrated with parade-goers and onlookers at the event, spreading a message of openness, equality, inclusion, and diversity.
Prior to the parade, UFCW activists also participated in the Pride “Community Day,” engaging with people of all ages to inform them about the work that our union is doing to advance the rights of our brothers and sisters in the LGBTQ community.
Serving as the culmination of seven days of festivities, the parade saw UFCW members from various local unions joint over 300,000 marchers in the streets of Montreal, proudly sporting green sweaters as they made their way down René-Lévesque Boulevard, then east to Sanguinet Street. Participants also held a moment of silence in memory of the victims who were killed at Pulse nightclub in Orlando this past June.
“While we have made great strides in advancing LGTBQ rights, much work still needs to be done to eliminate homophobia,” said Antonio Filato, President of the UFCW Quebec Provincial Council and UFCW Canada Local 500. “That is why we are so proud to march with our LGBTQ brothers and sisters, and why we will never stop fighting for equality in the workplace and in the community,” he added.
With 150 organizations and over 5,000 participants marching in the parade, and tens of thousands of spectators watching the event, this year’s parade set a new record for attendance and brought Pride to new heights in Quebec’s largest city.