The upcoming Edmonton Pride Festival is facing backlash for its relationship with police ahead of Friday’s Pride Parade and Trans March. Organizers of the parade, which returned to downtown streets only last year after a seven-year hiatus, cited safety concerns for the choice to include Edmonton Police Service (EPS) officers to oversee the festivities. “The increased security presence does not signal a policy position, endorsement or support. It is part of the required public safety planning for a large public gathering,” a social media post from the group said. During a Wednesday press conference, festival producer Trevor Watson confirmed police would not be marching in the parade but were part of a larger safety plan that involved sweeps, road closures and private security. “Our safety sweeps are about identifying potential hazards. They are not about removing people,” he told media. “We are not expecting an increased number of police officers compared with the return of the Edmonton Pride Parade last year. What is increasing is their presence within our overall safety plan.” Several individuals and LGBTQ2S+ groups have denounced the choice online, however, sparking further discourse about the role of police in Pride events. RaricaNow, a non-profit for LGBTQ2S+ refugees and newcomers in Canada, was one of the groups to cut ties with the parade. “The decision is not an easy decision, but it is rooted in community safety, transparency, dignity and accountability of our communities,” founder Adebayo Chris Katiiti told CTV News Edmonton on Wednesday. “We’re not going to be dragging our communities into spaces that are going to cause harm to them. Inviting a massive deployment of police at a Pride event is not safe for our communities.” He said the communities represented at Pride events are historically systemically oppressed, with some who have experience first or secondhand with “anti-Black racism, police violence and police brutality.” “These issues are ongoing, and unfortunately, we don’t have the privilege of not facing those gaps … We do not need cops at Pride. We need voices of Black, brown, Indigenous, two spirit, refugees, undocumented immigrants, queer folks to be at the centre of any Pride organizing, just as it has been.” ‘Different kinds of safety’ In June 2018, protests successfully barred EPS, RCMP and the military from participating in future Edmonton Pride parades after plainclothed officers participated in that year’s march. The police chief at that time apologized to Edmonton’s LGBTQ2S+ community. Criminologist Dan Jones, who wore an EPS badge for 25 years, said there were a few legal considerations that may have necessitated a police presence this weekend – most blatantly the Traffic Safety Act. “It’s pretty tough to block streets off, if you’re doing a parade downtown, without having the support of somebody to block those streets off,” he told CTV News Edmonton. “There are different types of safety. You’re talking traffic safety, making sure people don’t get hit by cars, that’s different than the feeling of psychological safety.” He also pointed to EPS officers who may identify as a member of the LGBTQ2S+ community. “I think that we’re going backwards when it comes to inclusivity, and I think one of the concerns of a Pride parade or people that are anti-LGBTQ2S+ coming down and creating a problem, and there could be violence there,” he added. “I think that’s one of the roles of police, is to prevent those negative influences from creating harm.” Watson said the festival could not “knowingly remove” a “reasonable safety measure because it may be unpopular.” “Criticism of these decisions is fair. Questions are fair. Disagreement is fair. Harassment of your fellow community members is not.” A spokesperson for EPS said the officers were working to “support a safe and welcoming festival” with traffic management, road closure maintenance and emergency preparedness. They encouraged any hate crimes to be reported to police or anonymously through Crime Stoppers. There will be no police presence at the Indigenous Pride programming on Sunday. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Curtis Goodrum
