Pride Winnipeg says Premier snubbed parade, not welcome back next year
CTV
Manitoba's Premier has apologized after Pride Winnipeg accused her of using the rally as a photo op and snubbing the parade. Despite the apology, Pride says the Premier won't be welcomed back.
Manitoba's Premier has apologized after Pride Winnipeg accused her of using the rally as a photo op and snubbing the parade. Despite the apology, Pride says the Premier won't be welcomed back.
Premier Heather Stefanson was among the leaders to speak at the 2022 Pride Rally outside the Manitoba Legislature on Sunday. However, Pride Winnipeg says after her speech the Premier left the event and did not walk in the parade.
Barry Karlenzig, the president of Pride Winnipeg, said the organization has a policy in place expecting all speakers at the rally to walk in the parade – something he said the Premier's office confirmed three times.
"Not only has she gone back on her word to our board, but also to our 2SLGBTQ+ community. We will not allow this to happen again," Karlenzig said in a news release.
Pride Winnipeg called for an apology from the Premier for what it called a, "gross lack of respect for our community."
"Pride Winnipeg will not allow the current government to utilize the annual Pride Rally as a photo op, or to take up space in our community events without walking alongside us to truly show full support for our community," the organization said in the release.
On Thursday morning in a statement, Stefanson apologized for not being at the march. She said this was due to a scheduling conflict and miscommunication between her staff and Pride organizers.
