A group of young Inuit who have been organizing the only Nunavik Pride parade in Kuujjuaq for three years now regrets having lost part of their funding this year and having to launch a fundraiser to maintain all their activities. The health authorities who finance the project say they wanted to distribute the budget in the 14 communities of the territory.
The holding of a Pride parade in Kuujjuaq is quite recent. The first event of its kind was held in 2021. Last year, 80 people walked the streets of this small Inuit community in Ungava Bay or took part in activities that were held on the sidelines. The Pride Kuujjuaq group, which organizes the parade, is saddened to lose part of the funding this year that would have made it possible to bring in young people from other communities as well as artists or stakeholders from outside Nunavik.
“These people can come and give talks about acceptance. To motivate young people. To say that they are not alone”, explains an organizer who prefers to remain anonymous so as not to suffer reprisals.
To raise funds, the organizers launched a campaign via the GoFundMe site. On the site, they mention that transportation costs are “their main concern, considering that the plane is the only possible way” to reach Kuujjuaq.
A single plane ticket can easily cost over $2000 per person.
Pride Kuujjuaq regrets that “funding for the essential aspects of Pride has been revoked” this year by the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services (RRSSSN), the main funder of the event.
They also imply that it is the “homophobia” of certain members of the NRBHSS that is behind this decision. The organizer joined by The Press confirms that there seems to be homophobia among some members of the Régie, but also among other members of the community. “But that’s okay. We want to get over that. We are very happy that the Régie is funding us again this year,” he said.
Money distributed
The NRBHSS rejects these accusations. In a memo obtained by The Pressthe executive director, Jennifer Munick-Watkins, assures that her organization “has supported the LGBTQ+ community of Nunavik for several years and wants to continue to do so”.
By email, the Régie mentions that it has not reduced its financial support for Pride Week, which will be held from June 2 to 7. “The funding was instead redirected to the 14 communities of Nunavik, instead of being directed only to Kuujjuaq. The Régie affirms that the sums which were reserved to pay for the travel of young people from other communities to Kuujjuaq in recent years “have rather been redirected towards the organization of activities within their community of origin”.
In this way, and taking into account the regional mandate of the NRBHSS, we ensure that all Nunavik communities receive funds equally and that they all therefore have the opportunity to organize their own local pride events.
Excerpt from a memo from the NRBHSS
How many other communities have expressed their intention to hold a parade this year? None, recognizes the Régie. “But there are still several weeks to go until Pride Week,” they say.
The Régie explains that Pride Week “is part of the public health department’s sexual health program, which aims to promote sexual health among young people”. The Régie intends to cover “the travel expenses of experts who will hold certain educational activities for young people, as well as the cost of promotional material for the activity”.
The Régie plans “a wide variety of awareness-raising and educational activities on topics related to sexual health, prevention and screening for STBBIs, as well as workshops on healthy and safe interpersonal relationships”. The subject of sexual orientation will be discussed there.
The amounts involved for Pride Week activities have not yet been determined, but will be higher overall than last year, according to the Régie. Interview requests from The Press with management have remained a dead letter.
A taboo topic
In an interview with the Nunatsiaq News media last year, a sexologist from the NRBHSS noted that it “is still a bit taboo to talk about anything related to sexuality in Nunavik, especially LGBTQ subjects”.
The organizer joined by The Press confirm that this is the case. “This reality is not really accepted. The Catholic religion is still very strong in many families. It’s correct. We just want with our event to break the loneliness and bring all Nunavik communities to learn more about the subject. We just want to be accepted and grow our event,” he says.