(Image: Luke Hollins)
No, the man with the hand-held video camera pointed at Saturday’s Dyke March was not a creepy voyeur—it was just city councillor Giorgio Mammoliti. A few months back, Mammoliti led a campaign to revoke city funding if Pride Toronto organizers allowed the Queers Against Israeli Apartheid to participate in its annual parade. The folks at PrideQuAIA accommodated city hall’s concerns and pulled QuAIAthemselves from the event—but evidently Mammoliti wasn’t satisfied. When the group Dykes and Trans People for Palestine promised on their Facebook page to show up at the Dyke March in support of QuAIA, Mammoliti immediately sprung to action, threatening to bring a camera to the march and film any “in your face” challenge of council’s decision to outlaw such groups—which is exactly what he did.
Possibly inspired by the new Mission: Impossible movie, Mammoliti embarked on a recon operation of his own, and after allegedly recording defamatory anti-Israeli chants, he’s planning to meet with Mayor Rob Ford to discuss cutting funding from next year’s parade.
Regardless of the merits of Mammoliti’s cause, his vigilante tactics have us scratching our head. At the very least, he could send somebody else—perhaps with a slightly smaller profile—to do his dirty work. But better yet, he could have abandoned the whole not-so-candid camera bit all together. After all, for a public figure—a city politician no less—to show up camera in tow as a virtual one-man army against alleged hate-mongers reeks of good ol’-fashioned politicking.
Chalk this one up to yet another superfluous event overshadowing what was an otherwise wildly successful weekend for Pride in Toronto.
• Councillor urges end to Pride funding after filming Dyke March [Toronto Star]
• Anti-Isreal group promises Dyke March appearance [Toronto Sun]
UPDATE: Queers Against Israeli Apartheid, not Pride as we had originally reported, accommodated city hall’s concerns and pulled themselves from the Parade, even though the city manager ruled that the group’s inclusion in the Parade did not violate the city’s anti-discrimination policy. We regret the error.
“I want a brothel on TO Island but not in my own Ward” Gino Boy has been itching to pull Pride funding for the longest time and this is the perfect pretext for him to disguise his homophobic motive. Even with the Ford attending Pride issue, which I can assure you most could care less if he was there, Gino Boy remarked the gays should respect the mayor’s choice since Pride is a “celebration of choice.” Just like he chooses to be a Gino Boy.
July 5, 2011 at 1:29 am | by ah123This is truly disgusting. Why are we allowing right-wing nut jobs to frame the message? How the hell is a group advocating for Palestinian freedom a “hate group?”. I find it scary that ANY criticism of the Israeli government is considered “hate”.
July 5, 2011 at 5:49 am | by Justin BernardCause there’s nothing pervy about some man wielding a video camera during a Dyke parade where women feel free to be empowered and express themselves, many without tops on.
July 5, 2011 at 7:18 am | by Joe DSeriously, who votes for this guy?
“Any criticism of the Israeli government is considered ‘hate’” is such a strong but powerful sentence. ANY criticism of the gay community is considered “hate,” even sometimes by its own members. Just your thought of the day. PS: who let him videotape? I would have ‘accidentally’ broken it.
July 5, 2011 at 9:36 am | by stylebyjury“Creepy Voyeur”? This is a public event, if people don’t want it videotaped, then don’t have it. You can’t suck and blow at the same time.
July 5, 2011 at 10:33 am | by OhBrother@OhBrother “You can’t suck and blow at the same time.”
July 6, 2011 at 10:12 am | by DonaldGino Boy Mammoliti can.
Mammoliti is an ongoing, walking joke machine. I can’t believe anyone would vote for this fool.
July 7, 2011 at 9:17 am | by lumps-in-my-gravy