LGBTQ advocacy group, New York City Anti-Violence Project, wrote a letter to Heritage of Pride last June demanding the organization divest from the NYPD. The debate was renewed after the death of George Floyd last year while in police custody in Minneapolis, which sparked widespread protests against police brutality.
Louis announced similar policies, but reversed them following pushback. In 2017, Pride Toronto started barring police from participating in its march, amid demands from the local Black Lives Matter chapter. The calls have been renewed in recent years amid Black Lives Matter protests against police misconduct. The move comes as LGBTQ activists have debated the role uniformed police officers should have at Pride marches, which formed as a response to a violent police raid at the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City, in 1969. A police officer applauds as parade-goers celebrate during the New York City Pride Parade, in New York, June 26, 2016.
