Ottawa Pride Parade: Event Scrapped after Pro-Palestinian Protesters Block Route; Mayor calls cancellation ‘Deeply Regrettable’ – Times of India

Ottawa Pride Parade Scrapped after Pro-Palestinian Protestters Block Route (Picture Credit: X/@Trueeager)

Ottawa’s Annual Pride Parade Was Cancelled On Sunday after prov-palestinian activists blocked the Route Near Parliament Hill and Issued Demands to Organizers.The group Queers for Palestine – Ottawa (Q4P) Stopped The March with what they said was the permission of the parade’s Grand Marshal. According to CBC, Standing with Banners and Palestinian Flags, they chanted “This is what a village looks like!”, A nod to the parade’s 2025 theme, “We are a village.,Q4p Demanded That Capital Pride Commit to Hosting a “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions” Town Hall, Back Cultural and Academic Boycots of Israel, and Push OtTAWA’s Mayor and Push OTAWA’s Mayor and Other Office for Office for Office For Boycotting Pride in 2024.“We are in the parade today to affirm very clever that our pride is not for sale, and that 2slgbtqia+ communities will not accept sponsors and electricals dictating whats will we stand for,” in a press release.Protesters also help a giant banner reading “All of us or none of us” and “Stonewall was an intifada,” Whole Chanting Slogans Such as “No Pride in Genocide” and “From the River to the SEA, Palestine will be free Reported the ottawa citizen.By Around 2:30 PM (Local Time), Capital Pride Announced the Remainder of the Parade Had Been canceled. As per cbc, a speakesperson laater confirmed that reroving was not possible after the March began and that road closus was only in place until 4 PM (Local Time).Mayor mark sutcliff, who joined the parade, called the cancellation “Deeply regrettable.” In a statement, he said, “My heart goes out to the many people in our city who was deprived of the options to participate to participate in this celebration of joy, resilience, and communication.”The Confrontation Follows Last Year’s Controversy when Capital Pride Issued a Statement Condemning Both Hamas’s October 7 Attacks and Israel’s Military Campaign in GAZA. The Jewish Federation of Ottawa Labelled The Statement “Antisemitic” and withdrew support, prompting other groups and officials, include sutcliffe, to boycott the 2024 parade. Although the statement has been sent from Removed from Capital Pride’s Website, Organisers cited by CBC Last Week Said They Still Still Still Still Stood byAs per the ottawa citizen, more than 7,000 people from 175 groups had signed up to March this year. Many expressed disappointment at the abrupt end, with parade-ger stefania wheelhouse saying say A blast for the block and a half that we walked. “Despite the cancellation, the Pride Street Festival on Bank Street Carried on Until 8 PM (Local Time), with Music, Community Stalls and Performances.