That is some of the history from which the Pride celebration was born. Uniformed police used to barge into places they weren’t needed, humiliating gay men in the closest things they had to safe places, to remind them they were nothing and what they wanted didn’t count. For Bordeleau to announce he’s going in uniform anyway, because he supports the gay community just so much that he must disregard the Pride committee’s stated wishes, is at the very least rude. He’ll do it as the leader of the institution we trust with a monopoly on the legitimate use of force. Bordeleau - an outsider, a guest - has announced he intends to substitute his judgment for theirs. The Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins will celebrate the LGBTQ+ community as they co-host the NHL's first-ever joint Pride Game on Saturday, April 17 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. If they’re handling it wrong, the community they’re organizing it for will hold them accountable. The organizers are the people signing the papers and handling the money and deciding how the parade will work, and who gets to march in their parade is their call. “Those are individual circumstances where the entirety of the group that I met with, there are some challenges.” In 2019, a 17-year-old Yanic Duplessis was drafted by the Drummondville Voltigeurs to become the first openly gay player to be drafted into the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) a key. He’s done the same for meetings with black people who don’t trust the police. A number of times I’ve decided not to wear my police uniform when we’re having discussions with young men, because of the friction that can exist,” Bordeleau said. “They deal with youth who identify with the LGBTQ communities. He’s on the board of the Youth Services Bureau, for instance. The chief said that as important as his uniform is to him, he’s recognized occasions when wearing it would be unhelpful. This is part of a dialogue that moves toward greater mutual understanding, respect and safety - if slowly. So if any part of our constituency is not feeling safe at Pride, we have an obligation to make that space feel safe for them,” Dopson said. We advocate for the community as a whole. Similar discussions have played out across the country since Black Lives Matter activists disrupted last year’s Pride parade in Toronto. She and the committee expected criticism, Dopson said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. National Capital Region's Top Employers.