People take part in a recent Calgary Pride parade. People take part in a recent Calgary Pride parade. While Calgary Stampede did march in this year's Calgary Pride Parade, there has been pressure to exclude the group from future parades.Lauren Krugel/The Canadian Press
Calgary Pride is under pressure to exclude one of Alberta’s most influential cultural organizations from future parades, as a member of a class-action lawsuit against the Calgary Stampede argues it has not been held to account for allegedly failing to protect him and others from a sexual predator.
Calgary Stampede participated in the Calgary Pride parade on Sunday, the highlight of the city’s 10-day celebration of the LGBTQ community. On Tuesday, a member of the group suing the Stampede for its alleged inaction asked Pride to reconsider including the organization, noting he and many others tied to the class-action lawsuit are members of the queer and transgender community.
Pride, according to the class-action member, who cannot be publicly identified because of the terms of the lawsuit, risks sending a “damaging message to survivors of abuse” by allowing the Calgary Stampede to participate in the annual march.
“It is disheartening to see an organization participate in the parade whose inaction caused life altering trauma to vulnerable members of our community,” he said in a letter to Calgary Pride. “Accountability for past wrongs is crucial for fostering a safe and supportive community.”
Calgary Pride did not respond to The Globe and Mail’s requests for comment.
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Pride organizations regularly consider whether it is appropriate for certain groups to participate in their events. Calgary Pride in 2019 banned political parties from marching in its parade and in 2022 formed a jury of LGBTQ community members to decide which ones should be permitted. Pride leaders weigh whether to allow police, uniformed or otherwise, to participate.
Philip Heerema, an adult working with Stampede’s premier song and dance troupe, known as the Young Canadians, in 2018 was sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexually exploitive acts involving six members of the group between 1992 and 2014. The class-action lawsuit, launched in 2017, alleges Stampede officials were informed Mr. Heerema had inappropriate relationships with boys in the Young Canadians decades prior to one victim reporting him to police in 2014.
Stampede, in July, agreed to accept “liability for responsibility” on a number of points contained in the related class-action lawsuit, although the financial terms of the deal are still unsettled. It is unclear why Stampede stopped challenging the lawsuit.
“While I am a strong supporter of the important work that Calgary Pride does to promote inclusivity and acceptance, I cannot help but feel troubled by the decision to include an organization that has acknowledged such serious misconduct within its ranks against our community,” the author of Tuesday’s letter wrote.
“It is absolutely tone deaf that the Calgary Stampede would participate in Calgary Pride,” given that court documents allege a former Young Canadian informed a senior Stampede official in 1988 that Mr. Heerema abused him, he added.
Shannon Greer, a Stampede spokesperson, said the organization could not comment because the lawsuit is still before courts. The two sides are scheduled to appear before a judge Sept. 25.