TORONTO – The group that organizes Toronto’s annual Pride parade has apologized for displaying a land acknowledgment that failed to mention any of Canada’s Indigenous communities.
Pride Toronto faced sharp criticism online over the sign, which encouraged attendees to connect with the land they were on.
But many pointed out that the land acknowledgment – which is supposed to recognize the Indigenous communities who were displaced by European settlers – did not mention that Toronto is located on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
The only reference to First Nations, Metis and Indigenous communities in the acknowledgment was the inclusion of the Ojibwe phrase “chi miigwetch,” meaning “thank you.”
In a statement posted to Facebook, Pride Toronto says that in failing to mention the traditional land on which the festival took place, the organization contributed to the erasure of two-spirited and LGBTQ Indigenous communities.
The organization says it still has more work to do to become truly “intersectional, radically anti-racist and anti-oppressive.”
WATCH: Toronto celebrates pride with one of North America’s largest parades