Last update: June 24, 2022

This post is not about squash, tennis, or social media. It is about pride and Toronto.

I had my first exposure to Pride Week when my wife and I stumbled into a wedding. To be more precise, we stumbled into a wedding that was just about to take place.

Out and about looking for a venue in Toronto for a social event, we landed at the Berkeley Church on Queen East. As part of the tour, the Director of the facility took us into the wedding hall and gave us a rundown of its history and features. The church, built in 1871, showed its age but had a charm that came with it. The decorations were bright and colourful. Hand-crafted centerpieces and streamers lined the tables. As I passed the receiving table, I caught a quick glimpse of the bride and the groom silhouetted on a placard. I stopped to look again; they were both men!

Welcome to Toronto and the Pride Week!

Two men from The Big Apple had picked our city to tie the knot.

Pride week is big in Toronto.

For those unfamiliar with the concept, it is an annual event where people from the Lesbian Gay Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ) communities congregate in Toronto to celebrate their diversity. If you are directly or indirectly connected to the LGBT community, you have every reason to love Toronto. You can click on the images below to view the web stories.

Feeling like a tourist, I walked the streets looking at the stores and commercial buildings dressed up in rainbow colours. It crossed my mind that there is a lot more to Toronto than the high-profile pride week.

A lot more, to be proud of.

For starters, it is safe and clean. It has a beautiful, yet under-utilized, waterfront. When it comes to the theatre scene, it ranks third in the world. It has a varied and diverse music scene with fans filling concerts that range from Arctic Monkeys to Ziggy Marley.

Museums like ROM and AGO are world-renowned and second to none. The cultural scene in Toronto is comparable to any other metropolitan city.  To top it off, it has a food culture that spans sports bars to artisanal, nouvelle cuisine.

And the beer!

The term “socially liberal fits Toronto well. Until a few years ago, Ontario was led by a lady Premier who was openly gay. As a people, we accept gay marriages, do not throw marijuana users in jail, and give people second and third chances. The former Toronto Mayor, Rob Ford, was a testament to the city’s liberal disposition.

Recent developments in the US have demonstrated that liberal freedoms can never be taken for granted. Headlines such as “LGBTQ community braces for rollback of rights after abortion ruling,” have put a damper on Pride Month festivities.

As I walked past two bright-haired girls walking hand in hand, I thought to myself – I am proud too.

Proud to call Toronto, home!