Pride Toronto short $900K, may need to scale back festivities next year

Pride Toronto says its annual festival is short $900,000 as more corporate sponsors withdraw their funding, and the group is now seeking help to fill the gap — or risk scaling down festivities next year.

Home Depot and Google were the latest corporate sponsors to leave Pride Toronto, just two days before the start of Pride Month.

"I can assure the public that there will be no noticeable differences in the parade, in the festival throughout the month. However, if we do not get the support that is needed, 2026 will be the festival that will be mostly impacted," Kojo Modeste, executive director of Pride Toronto, told a news conference on Wednesday.

Modeste said the loss of some sponsors comes as diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are under attack in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's 2024 election. 

"We believe that there is a direct connection between the policies that we're seeing coming out of the White House and the organizations that are pulling out," Modeste said.

LISTEN | CBC Radio's Day 6 spoke with advocate Nicki Ward on corporations withdrawing funding: 

Day 66:20As corporate sponsors walk away, some LGBTQ advocates say Pride should return to its activist roots

Just days before Pride month kicked off, two corporate sponsors pulled out of the festival in Toronto and they were biggies - Google and Home Depot. This comes on top of several other companies, like Nissan Canada and Adidas, withdrawing their sponsorship. As Pride Toronto scrambles to fill the gaps, advocate Nicki Ward, hopes this may return the festival to its early grass-roots activism.

In February, Pride Toronto said three large corporate sponsors pulled out their funding, though it only named Nissan Canada and Clorox. 

"They are pulling away from diversity, equity and inclusion," Modeste said.

Modeste said Toronto being the host of the world's second largest pride festival allows businesses in the gay village to make over 50 per cent of their annual revenue. 

The City of Toronto has pitched in $350,000 this year and has made a commitment to increase funding over the next three years, but Modeste says he's not seeing the same return from the provincial and federal governments.

Modeste was not able to say which programs might have to be cut next year given the funding shortfall, but said Toronto will see a "smaller Pride."

"One hundred per cent, Pride will look a lot smaller. We would not have the same impact, both financially and culturally, that we normally do."

Pride Toronto said it doesn't want to put on a scaled-down festival at the risk of losing its status as one of the largest Pride celebrations in the world that also gives the local economy a strong boost.

"Many folks from across the globe come to Toronto because it is a safe space and what we will be doing is taking away an opportunity for folks to be their authentic self away from them. So I'm hoping that we don't have to get there," Modeste said.

Modeste said that other companies have stepped up, including No Frills, Shoppers Drug Mart, The Ballroom Bowl and SEIU Healthcare.

So far, Modeste said, over 175 individual donors have contributed more than $10,000.

"There is still room for organizations and individuals to give," said Modeste.