Racial Belonging at the Vancouver Dyke March

Racialized members of our 2SLGBTQIA+ communities deserve belonging, respect, and justice. The Vancouver Dyke March is intended to center and celebrate all marginalized voices, which includes racialized individuals who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+.

When we use the term racialized, we are recognising that race is a construct that has been applied to people throughout history by the ruling class. Folks who may be racialized include (but are not limited to) those who are Black, Brown, Indigenous, African, Asian, SWANA (Southwest Asian and North African), Caribbean, and Pacific Islander.

Racialized queer people often endure compounding and intersecting effects of racism, colonialism, and anti-2SLGBTQIA+ sentiment which impacts racial belonging in queer spaces. As a result, Pride Societies (including Vancouver Dyke March) have historically been whiter spaces — despite the fact that racialized individuals have always led the fight for queer liberation. We are dedicated to working towards Pride events that adequately attribute and celebrate the contributions of BIPOC folks to queer history and liberation.

We are committed to anti-oppression practices in order to improve our organization, make safer spaces, and uplift racialized voices.

In practice, this includes:

• Code of Conduct and Incidents:

1. Requiring vendors, performers, volunteers, and other festival organizers to sign an inclusive Code of Conduct before they are permitted at our festival

2. Requiring our organizers to respond to incidents at our event promptly and seriously to promote safety

3. Clearly stating a Code of Conduct for all attendees

• Festival and Participation:

1. Prioritizing performance space for racialized artists

2. Working closely with all artists and emcees to ensure safety and respect on our stage

3. Prioritizing the participation of racialized vendors and reducing or waiving fees when they are a barrier to attendance 

• Organizers and Volunteers:

1. Prioritizing racialized representation on our Board of Directors and within other positions at Vancouver Dyke March

2. Providing volunteers with de-escalation training and support for situations such as reactionary counter-protestor presence or code of conduct violations