2016 Halifax Pride AGM

2016 Halifax Pride AGM

The October 5, 2016 Halifax Pride Annual General Meeting was quite contentious.

At issue was a resolution to determine whether Tel Aviv Pride should be allowed to have a booth in the event after the Pride Parade. Queer Arabs of Halifax asserted that their presence was oppressive and that allowing them to be there was "pinkwashing" of the country of Israel.

At the time, the rules for the Halifax Pride AGM were that anyone who showed up, was considered a member and could vote on resolutions.

So, at an AGM which had 30 people the previous year, and 6 the year before that1, hundreds of Jews showed up - after a very well organized call by the AJC - the Atlantic Jewish Council, being literally bussed in and arranging a meal beforehand and childcare2. A very tiny number, perhaps one, Queer Arab of Halifax showed up, who said that there were many more but due to extreme homophobia within the Arab community, more could not be "out" at a meeting.

Some people observed that most of the Jews there were not members of the queer community but of course there was no way to prove that.

Needless to say, the resolution was rejected by a vote of 210 to 106 with five abstentions.3

Here are a few clippings about it - a full article should be written.

The next year on July 28, 2017 the AJC had a shabbat intended to mend rifts; here's an article

Footnotes:

1. WillemBlois?, in his welcome that evening
2. DanielMacKay - heard this