UFCW Canada activists loud and proud at 2015 Toronto Pride Parade

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Toronto – June 29, 2015 – Summer is here and Pride parades are sweeping metropolitan areas and rural towns to celebrate and advance LGBTQ rights and equality in Canada. Toronto was no different to other Canadian cities as UFCW Canada Local Unions from around the GTA turned out to participate in the Toronto Pride Parade this past Sunday.

A beautifully vibrant cascade of colours lined Yonge Street for the event, one year after the city hosted the historic World Pride Festival. UFCW Canada's National Office, Local Unions, and member-activists welcomed Parade-goers at the union's street fair booth and were loud and proud at the Pride Parade, which attracted thousands of participants from across Canada and the world.

"Pride is political because it has to be, and UFCW Canada is proud to support our LGBTQ brothers and sisters by participating in Pride festivals throughout the country," says Paul Meinema, the National President of UFCW Canada. "There are systemic inequities in health care, social services, and many other sectors that affect the basic human rights of LGBTQ citizens, and that is why advocacy for LGBTQ equality within our workplaces and in Canadian society is essential to affecting change."

"UFCW Canada believes that systemic oppression – such as homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia – needs a systemic response, and the Toronto Pride Festival is an important part of that response," Meinema adds. "By supporting the festival, and marching with members from the LGBTQ community and allied organizations, UFCW Canada is sending a strong message of solidarity and love with our LGBTQ brothers and sisters."