Montreal Pride Parade cancelled just hours before it was about to start

Just hours before the streets were set to be filled with Pride, the Montreal Pride Parade was unexpectedly cancelled Sunday morning.

Organizers from the Montreal Pride Festival announced that the parade would not be taking place “due to security concerns.”

“A lack of sufficient staff to ensure security along the route has forced the organizers to cancel the event,” they said in a release.

The parade was set to happen on René-Lévesque Boulevard, between Metcalfe and Alexandre-DeSève streets.

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Earlier, Fierté MTL Pride said that they gave indications that the parade was cancelled by Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM). However, the organization later clarified that they were the ones who made the call to cancel the parade because of a lack of personnel to ensure safety along the route, and the police were not involved in the decision at all.

Ce matin nous avons publié un texte imprécis. Pour clarifier, la décision d’annuler le Défilé a été prise par Fierté Montréal. La raison est bien celle communiquée : un manque du personnel pour assurer la sécurité le long du parcours. @SPVM n’était pas impliquée dans la décision.

— Fierté MTL Pride (@FierteMTLPride) August 7, 2022

The eleventh-hour cancellation of the event understandably left would-be parade attendees upset. But just because the official pride parade was cancelled, revellers still took to the streets to celebrate.

They cancelled Montreal Pride Parade but the Afro Pride float is leading us on an unofficial route #fierteMTL pic.twitter.com/WDoROCLdy8

— Dr Jake Taylor (@AstroJake) August 7, 2022

Hundreds of people showed up anyway to March through Montreal’s gay village so I guess pride doesn’t need corporate floats after all !! pic.twitter.com/iwwsYUqnZH

— Ziya Jones (@ZiyaJonesA) August 7, 2022

Despite @FierteMTLPride canceling the Pride Parade, members of the LGBTQIA+ community still came together to walk, bringing joy and colour to the streets of downtown Montreal despite the scorching heat. #Montreal #MontrealPride pic.twitter.com/sQRw9yEZoq

— Felix Legault Photography (@Felixlegaultph1) August 7, 2022

Other Pride events scheduled at the Esplanade of the Olympic Park went ahead as planned.

🏳️‍🌈⚜️🇨🇦 Bonne Fierté Montréal édition 2022! / 🏳️‍🌈⚜️🇨🇦 Happy Pride 2022 from Montréal pic.twitter.com/YLKhLS91pH

— tonymandl (@tonymandl) August 7, 2022

But no heat warning or cancelled parades could keep Montreal down this Sunday.

Happy Pride!