News Flash
Mammoliti wants to pull Pride funding (again)
After attracting over a million participants and onlookers, Pride may once again encounter difficulty securing funding from the City of Toronto, at least if Giorgio Mammoliti has anything to say about it. The Ward 7 councillor, who earlier this year lead a movement to deny funding for Pride 2011 should the controversial group Queers Against Israeli Apartheid participate, claims to have video evidence that QUAIA members were present at Saturday's Dyke March.
Although QuAIA did hang a banner atop Wellesley Subway Station, in the absence of Mammoliti sharing his video, it's unclear what other presence the group had (there were no reports of QuAIA at the Sunday's parade).
For more on this, check out today's AM640 interview with Mammoliti and Andrea Houston of Xtra! Canada, which got just a little heated.
Correction: An earlier version of this post indicated that Mammoliti wants to pull funding for next year's Pride, when in fact it is this year's funding that he plans to target (again).
Discussion
83 Comments
Sort By Oldest First / Newest First
Subscribe
Enough of these suburban people coming into the city and being mad that the city is a city.
Instead of trying to take things away from the city, try to get public funding for events in the suburbs: have a family day or something.... oh wait, they already have that.
Seems like these conservative right wingers won't be happy until all radical difference has been stifled.
We can't go back in time, most of us don't want to.
Antique car collectors, hikers, base jumpers, porn film lovers do not receive funding from the government, does it make all current governments "antique car haters"?
Are you cottage hater? ;-)
If there were large contingencies of "antique car collectors, hikers, base jumpers, porn film lovers" that will bring millions of dollars to the city, then YES, we should fund them too. It makes economic sense.
If you were given the opportunity to invest $10 and get back a return of $100, would you? Of course. Unless you morally abject, or hate, what the investment is for, then you would say no.
Do not forget about people who do not come to he city because they do not like gay parades (not to confuse with gays).
If LGBT supporters believe it brings "millions of dollars" they should collect these money directly: sell tickets, find sponsors, but do not waste my money on it.
Millions of people come to gay parades? Ask money from hotel and restaurant owners and award them with "gay sponsor" sign!
Ford supports Sheppard subway - he tries to get money from builders, not from taxes!
Please enroll in a remedial Adult English class quickly. I say quickly because Ford will probably cut that funding too.
I like that you demonstrate that left wings can argue only with personal attacks not with facts. Right way to go guys: next elections, Ford and Harper will get 70%.
1. In your first sentence, before the word "but" there should be a comma.
2. In your second sentence, after the word "Please", there should be a comma as well.
I guess, we need to enroll in the same class.
BTW, English is not my first language. What about you?
"Ford supports Sheppard subway - he tries to get money from builders, not from taxes!"
what an incredibly stupid thing to say! Ford CREATED the sheppard subway idea and is seekign money from INVESTORS, to give to the builders. As far as I know, he's had no offers yet either, nor will he ever. It's also funny that you bring this up considering this is a great example of how ford mismanages money and Toronto projects. You're worried about $150,000 in cash and $150,000 in services rendered for Pride, yet you have no problem with the wasting of $700,000,000 for Transit? Or the $50,000,000 wasted on police? Or the scrapping of the vehicle reg tax, costing the city another $65,000,000? I'd say you should just admit it: you're a homophobe, you don't have a problem with the money being spent (it's paltry by comparison anyways), you ahve a problem with the LGBT community and you're a coward.
As for sponsorship, they already do that, you really should, oh Idk, learn about what you're talking about before you open your mouth. You are really quite ignorant.
Where can I claim my money for this?
I am sorry that 50 years ago gays were subject of discrimination. And I am very happy that they have the same rights as straight people now. But for some reason, many of them are thinking that the society owns them not equal, but preferred treatment. This is totally wrong. Everybody should be equal.
Nah, you just quite obviously have a problem with the LGBT community. If you this was abotu the funding you'd a) have concise knowledge of the funding structure for Pride, not made up, completely innaccurate numbers, b) not denigrate the plight of the LGBT community or diminish it with every sentence you write, c) wouldn't make "out-of-your-ass" statements like this one: " And I am very happy that they have the same rights as straight people now." Because, while places liek Toronto have made huge strides in LGBT rights, it's hardly that way everywhere, we're in fact an exception tot he rule, not the rule itself. Even in northern Ontario it's a problem, GSA's are still illegal in catholic schools (which are funded by your taxes too btw) and homosexuality is still illegal and subject to violence and tyranny in almost every other corner of the world. So the fight's not overwith, nto by a long shot, and the City of Toronto has typically stood side-by-side with us in that fight.
You mentioend that english is not your first language, I suggest reading something about the history of LGBT in north america, and educating yourself about the struggle most of us still face, learn about why Canada considers Pride to be so important and why, with Toronto having one of the biggest Pride parades in the world is, it's important to show that there is a place where LGBT people fearing for their lives and well-being in other countries can look upon with hope, in lives that are filled with despair.
Thank you, so so much.
An agreement was made (would like to see how that was written if it distinguished between Dyke or Pride march) with respect to Pride funding. That agreement was broken. Simple.
Also, why do we need a City Hall, just have people work from home and lease/sell the building.
Why stop at Pride???
http://seclusion.quaintous.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/H5I7427-1024x659.jpg
Not sure why he/she isn't arrested for public indecency. Any comments?
The city doesn't get a dime for the money it invests in all kinds of public works/events but, you see, the city's money is TAXPAYER money, and TAXPAYERS *do* see large economic returns. And those returns are hardly isolated to queer taxpayers.
Who stands around and films the Dyke March for evidence? It's vindictive to its core.
The fact is, QuAIA isn't a hate preaching group, hey may have tried to identify themselves with another plight in another country from another time, innaccurately, which caused some outrage, but they haven't preached hate. In fact, another talk was happening during the Pride Parade that advocated violence against homosexuals, one that ACTUALLY preaches hate, and that went off without a hitch as far as i know. Last time I checked, this city was very diverse, many cultures and values are represented here, not just the jewish community. I know i saw a large jewish contingent in the parade, which was great, but when did it become illegal for Palestinians to stand up for Palestine, if they're not preaching hate, what's the problem? I don't want to get into the argument about whose land is whose, I don't know enough about it to do so, but it's a fight that's not ours to fight, why are we taking one sideover the other. To me it seems terrible on both sides and like both sides are suffering greatly. Pride stands for human rights for all as much as it stands for them for the LGBT community, our "membership" stretches across all borders, cultural boundaries, races, and creeds after all.
This man is not a supporter of Pride or the of community. If he wasn't out looking for any reason possible to defund Pride, he would've probably gone to the cottage too.
However, with respect to the other conference being held, I'd love to see the likes of Pride supporters challenging them/protesting, but they won't as their Leftist ideology would be at a complete crossroads.
I love that the city hosts this type of event every year just like I'm glad it hosts a whole host of other events. I'm glad I live in a city that welcomes everyone and doesn't discriminate. I'm also glad I live in a city that has so many different things to experience.
It would be a shame for funding for these types of events to get pulled because of a lack of understanding and an unwillingness to learn more about it.
It was the Dyke March, not the Pride Parade.
The group wasn't QuAIA, no one has ever heard of this new group.
The only person complaining is Mammolit, no one has had similar stories or cried offense.
If people want to defund Pride because they're sick of the LGBT community they set-up to the plate and say that. These red-herrings are annoying and are inefficient.
Yeah, cause ya know us lefties never got anything done, like rights for the LGBT community or civil rights for all, never marched in anti-war protests or burned draft cards or bras. Us lefties never helped win Universal Suffrage, or, like, ran this country for a good portion of its existence. Useless lefties indeed. Maybe you're alluding to the idea that free speech and hate speech are not the same things, well, lefties helped create the definition of both fo those idea. All that beign said, this has nothing to do with left vs. right and everything to do with right vs. wrong.
why those absolute fools vote him in year after year is baffling.
An old proverb comes to mind: "penny-smart, pound-foolish".
You say that you don't want any of your tax dollars going to support an event that brings in $150,000,000 of spending to Toronto.
According to another poster, the city spent a grand total of $300,000 on funding towards Pride. Let's assume that 1% of that winds up back to Toronto via taxes. That's $1,500,000, which would mean $1,200,000 profit, which means $1,200,000 LESS in taxes that Toronto would need to charge taxpayers.
Oh, and also, gay, lesbians and transgendered persons pay just as much taxes as you, and would likely also enjoy keeping more of their money. And anyone with a fraction of business sense would see that making four times your money is a very good investment, indeed.
Besides that, there's a serious lack of media accountability over what's been going on between Israel and Palestine, and perhaps too much of a hands-off approach when it comes to response from our global leaders.
For at least 15+ years Israel has been building communities on disputed land, and for 15+ years the mainstream media discourse has been focused on Palestinian terrorism. There in lies some shades of gray.
Only after Obama made the suggestion that Israel revert back to 1967 borders did I finally gain a sense of intent from Netanyahu as to why the country feels justified in their settlement plans.
Calling QAIA hateful and discriminatory is an easy scapegoat to a conservation that has valid claims on both sides, yet fails to flourish.
It's time to cut the cord Pride. Your city wants to suppress fundamental freedoms of expression by placing economic sanctions on our right to assemble.
Should we still be funding events like this? Absolutely!
Regular people filming police brutality at the G20 were using the only power they had against massive lines of police troops armed to the teeth, being used against its own people. Some of those pictures were published and used to convict cops that allegedly "couldn't be identified" otherwise.
In contrast, this Julio Mammolati guy is a public Official. He has direct power to influence and make decisions. He took it upon himself to unilaterally collect evidence against a group of "dykes". I don't know buy that it's actual stalking of a sexual nature, but if you think about it for a second, you'd have to have some pretty strong personal motivations to do something like that.
This group, is not illegal and has been cleared of being discriminatory. Yet the city bans the group from Pride and puts the onus on PT to keep the people involved in the group out. According to allegations from a city councilor members of this group appeared at the the Dyke march.
What was PT or anyone attending the event supposed to do. They cannot call the police, no illegal activity happened. They cannot be forcibly removed that would be assault. The fact they were on the sidelines appears to be of issue too complicating how to remove them.
As an example would Canada Day Events at City Hall also be defunded or cancelled if they unfurled a banner, or wore t shirts with slogans or chanted as they walked around the square? What about the Jazz festival. ribfest and numerous other funded activities and festivals.
Why are so many being punished for the actions of a few? There are many in the LGBT community that do not support this group.
This sounds more and more like a which hunt, guilty until proven innocent, guilty by association.
Punish they children for the sins of the father.
Is this even democratic?
Those "Queers Against Israeli Apartheid" participates were not part of Pride, but individuals using the Canadian right to free speech. I don't support those participates, but to direct their "crime" of free speech on the Pride organizers is wrong. Anyways, Canada has the right to free speech and to have Mammoliti desire to have Thought Police control what we can say is wrong.
Watching this guy suck up to Rob Ford the way he has, after years of practically being his enemy on Council is downright shameful. He has no morals, and no convictions of his own. The fact that Ford let him anywhere NEAR the levers of power at City Hall by putting him on the Executive Committee on its own is reason enough to question his abilities to act as mayor of this City.
Seriously, this idiot needs to get out of public life - every utterance of his is nothing short of an embarassment to the City.
He has no credibility - his pathetic attempt to tie funding for ANY parade or cultural event to his attempts to shut down Pride is dangerous. I for one don't buy for a second that this is about protecting Jewish people (or whatever nonsensical excuse he's offering). This is about shutting down Pride - plain and simple. Believe me, even if this "issue" goes away, they'll find another reason to go after Pride - don't kid yourselves, that's the agenda here. The fact that he is on record as being willing to sacrifice any other Parade or cultural event, including Caribana and god know what else, shows how intense his hatred for Pride really is. He's a disgusting pig and needs to be stopped.
"I see alex isn't that bright, neither is his right winger friends. The city put in 150k into the parade and the city reaped 150 million in return." You just shot your own "argument" in the foot, genius, by telling us all how much money this event generates. Therefore, no funding is needed. Kill it. Now.
Hmm, because it seems to me that you know nothing about Pride's funding structure, or really anything about it at all, other than it's a parade and it's in Toronto and that Creepolitti says: bad.
Pride doesn't make money, not any that's not put towards Pride events and staff costs, otherwise known as an operating budget. The millions that alexisnotsmart is speaking about are the millions that is made in revenue by the businesses in the area, by the huge increase in people riding transit into and out from the city etc. The city makes money from this by taxing said revenue, numbered in the millions as well.
You must not have even read any of the articles regarding Pride's funding as all of this was outlined in most of them So where does this idea come from that you know enough about what you speak to make a judgement against it? Answer: You're not qualified at all, as you're bloody ignorant, you enjoy talking out of your ass.
"You're not qualified at all, as you're bloody ignorant, you enjoy talking out of your ass."
Tom, certainly not as much as you enjoy having a dick shoved into YOUR ass.
Enjoy!
classy. way to be a biggot. at least you maintain the consistency of your ignorance.
You people haven't seen nothing yet.
Pride, TIFF and Caribana are all things that make Toronto World Class. People from all over the world come here to spend money. These are opportunities for Toronto to shine in the eyes of the world and for the city to reap huge economic benefits from it. These are types of things we as a city should be encouraging, growing and profiting from. Choosing instead to stifle these things is like (this one is put in terms that Mammoliti might finally understand) cutting off your penis to spite your foreskin.
The only decent one left is cbc and i noticed they cover his stupidity very little.
Most reasonable people are part of Ford nation.
Ford represents the people of this city, not the queers of gay parade.
Ford represents the city unfortunately the city has been forced to accept all these antisocial communities. so unfortunate. all we can do downtown is cross our fingers and hope you twats evolve.
What a wonderful example of highly intelligent, polite, and tolerant member of the "progressive" movement. Are other parade supporters as "evolved" as you?
What a wonderful example of highly intelligent, polite, and tolerant member of the "progressive" movement. Are other parade supporters as "evolved" as you?
Ford represents the people of this city, not the queers of gay parade."
Actually, most reasonable people are not part of Ford nation, since most reasonable people wouldn't have cut the $60 car tax when the city has major shortfalls in income. Most reasonable people would spend $150k to a group of people to promote/plan an event that brings in $150M in spending into a city. Most reasonable people would want their municipal gov't to be petitioning the provincial and federal gov't for a fraction of the sales taxes so alleviate the shortfalls that have been caused by the downloading of services to the municipal level.
Also, most people 'in the city', as in the original, pre-GTA-amalgamation, didn't vote for Ford. And, the people of Toronto include gays, lesbians and transgendered people, who are just as much taxpayers as you, and don't deserve the bile that is being cast in their direction.
I'll end with that I think most reasonable people would hope the government would work together to come up with reasonable solutions to issues that are faced, keep out of peoples' private lives, and lose the "us-vs-them" mentality that seems like everything needs to be a hockey game.
Putting someone else down to make yourself feel superior to another is something I wish people would've grown out of by the time they left school. Pity it doesn't seem to be the case.
You are a fucking neanderthal, mate.
And we'll evolve all over your useless ass.
We The People.
you amend your website, how can i subscribe for a blog web site?
The account helped me a acceptable deal. I
had been tiny bit acquainted of this your broadcast offered brilliant
clear concept