The head of Canada’s largest Pride festival said major corporate sponsors, which also do business in the U.S., have withdrawn support to avoid being seen as favourable to LGBTQ initiatives.
Kojo Modeste, the executive director of Toronto Pride, declined to name the companies that have severed ties with the festival since U.S. President Donald Trump was elected.
But Modeste said the trend was “100 per cent” related to Trump’s assault on programs related to diversity, equity and inclusion [DEI].
“We have seen major corporations withdraw their support from Pride,” Modeste said. “Organizations are fearful of being marginalized, fearful of being targeted for supporting DEI, supporting [LGBTQ], supporting antisemitic initiatives.”
Modeste said there is a “common thread” to the types of explanations offered by companies, citing “shifting mandates” and financial strain as reasons for ending their partnerships with Pride.
The funding cuts “may have an impact in terms of how much we’re able to offer to the community but we will survive this,” Modeste added.
The executive director of Fierte Montreal, Simon Gamache, voiced concern about the withdrawal of support for the Toronto festival but said Montreal’s Pride event had not lost sponsors since Trump took office.
Toronto Pride and Fierte Montreal are both major annual events celebrating a variety of groups, including members of the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) community.
Trump has critiqued any recognition of gender diversity, targeting transgender people — notably transgender women in sports and gender-affirming care for children — in both his rhetoric and in executive orders.
