Synopsis: In previous entries I have worked to establish a basis in understanding Pinkwashing in a global context, but I also want to take time to acknowledge how this issue is present within our own movement here in Victoria BC. The Victoria Pride Festival is sponsored by TD Bank, an entity that continues involvement in resource extraction and exploitation on stolen Indigenous lands. Furthermore, our event includes the involvement of the police and military despite their ongoing violence towards LGBTQIA+ folks, most particularly those who are Indigenous, people of colour, low-income, disabled, sex workers, homeless, and mentally ill. These issues are particularly devastating to those who do not adhere to the Canadian state and governance, most notably immigrants and refugees, and sovereign Indigenous peoples in BC.
Rationale:
As someone who considers themselves a queer and trans activist, I find these issues in the mainstream Pride movement here in Victoria BC really troubling. Many don’t realize that the presence of all these power structures and institutions makes the event inherently inaccessible for those who continue to experience ongoing state and corporate violence. Indeed, I have friends who refuse to attend because they are either homeless, do sex work, or experience heightened violence because of their backgrounds and identities outside of who they are as queer and trans people. This is especially true for those who are immigrants, people of colour, and Indigenous in particular because they are far more often isolated from the support that we grant those who are white and have citizenship in the LGBTQIA+ movement.
Keywords: Citizenship, Pinkwashing, Colonialism, Liberalism, Intersectionality
Author: Ashelyn Latam
Thanks for your series of posts on Pinkwashing, Ashelyn. It was really informative to be able to read about the topic through multiple resources, and this was really effective in connecting what is happening here in Victoria.
When I was halfway through the class reading about Pinkwatching, which you reference in one of your posts, I began to be confused as to why the author would be critical of a group that was calling for an end of Israeli occupation of Palestine. Then, upon finishing the article and comparing it to other readings about divestment and decolonization, it really made sense. It’s easy to be critical of Israel’s continued occupation and violence in Palestine and to actively participate in boycotts…
Thank you for bringing this piece to the table. I have noticed over the past few years that Victoria Pride has become more and more corporate, and as a queer person it makes me deeply uncomfortable. Not only is pride not an inclusive space for many LGBT+ people, this continued capitalization of LGBT+ communities and identities make pride more and more inaccessible for LGBT+ people (in many ways, as you have mentioned). Similarly, to what some other posted articles have touched on, I think this capitalization of queer identities in the past five years or so is harmful to the local community because it detracts from the inherent message and long history pride festivals have. Thanks for sharing.
Pseudonym: kb