[URBAN NOTE] "Toronto Pride 2014: A Look Back At Pride Before WorldPride"

[rfmcdonald]

The Huffington Post featured a nice photo essay examining the prehistory of Pride in Toronto. Charlie Dobie's black-and-white photos of the 1974 march, taken around the Church and Wellesley area, are a nice treat.

Toronto and pride have a long relationship, and while today it’s largely one of excitement and inclusion, that wasn't always the case.

The first unofficial Pride Week in Toronto took place in 1972 and was organized by the Community Homophile Association of Toronto (CHAT), according to On the Bookshelves, a website detailing Toronto's gay history run by Peter Zorzi. It was formed in in December 1970, as an umbrella organization that provided social services, education, political activism, and eventually became the organizers of Pride Week.

Internationally, the gay pride movement gained momentum during the 1960s, after the Stonewall Inn riot in New York City, when years of suppression reached a boiling point. Gay and lesbian individuals who had been subjected to laws that criminalized sodomy and were frequently harassed took to the streets to protest.

Although CHAT sought official recognition from the City of Toronto for their Pride Week, it was not forthcoming. While in 1973 mayor David Crombie extended well wishes to the event, permission to march down Yonge Street was denied.