Canada Day Utsav is making a comeback after two years of small festivals because COVID-19 pandemic, but some Canadians hoping to hold a traditional parade may be out of luck.
Many cities say the rising cost of protection and insurance, in addition to the difficulty in securing funds, is forcing them to rethink their celebrations.
In Montreal, there will be no Canada Day parade for the third year running, and this time COVID-19 is only partially to blame.
Organizer Nicholas Cowen says the novel coronavirus is a major concern, with the federal Heritage Department offering less funding in a year when inflation is at its highest level in decades.
“The parade is funded, so it’s like receiving a check for the same amount every year,” he wrote in an email. “Funding this year was to go back to 2015 levels at 2022 prices.”
The parade’s executive director, Carolyn Polksak, explained in an interview that the price of insurance has gone up with almost everything – down to the ingredients of large, traditional cakes served to the public. He said corporate sponsors are difficult to find as parade tax receipts cannot be given.
“For the parade, that means less money, more price,” Cowen wrote.
Instead, Canada Day celebrations in Montreal will take place at the Old Port, where events will include face painting, games, cakes and a concert.
Heritage Canada did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
Montreal isn’t the only city where Canada Day organizers are blaming rising costs of insurance and security for the canceled parade.
In Strathcona County, Alta., the Sherwood Park and District Chamber of Commerce announced in May that the Canada Day Parade would not take place.
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“Unfortunately, our success with many recent events at other parades in Canada and the United States has significantly increased the risks associated with the parade and the responsibility on event organizers,” Executive Director Todd Banks wrote in a message.
“The cost of physical infrastructure, insurance and security obligations is now beyond our capabilities, considering all monetary and voluntary requirements,” the banks said.
Last year, six people were killed and dozens were injured when a man allegedly drove his SUV to a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wis. And in Toronto in 2019, four people were injured after being shot at a parade celebrating the Raptors. ‘NBA Championship win.
The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, which canceled that city’s Canada Day parade in 2018 over rising prices, announced this year that it would do neither, citing “increasing costs for safety and security, and in the events industry”. Neither will host the parade nor present a fireworks display. Instead it will focus on other events.
Banff, Alta. decided to replace their parade with a day of activities and demonstrations.
On its website, the city cited several factors for changing its parade: the desire for fewer crowds during the pandemic; The advantage of being able to offer staggered time slot artists; reduction in the use of fossil fuel-powered vehicles; and staffing challenges that “have affected the city’s ability to move all odds and planters for an hourly event.”
Last year, several cities opted to cancel Canada Day events after unmarked graves were discovered at the sites of former residential schools. While most events are restarting this year, some cities, such as Winnipeg and Thunder Bay, have opted to celebrate Canada Day with cultural events instead of festive events such as parades and fireworks.
The cancellation of Montreal’s parade came months after the death of Trinidadian-born Dr Rupnarayan Singh, who organized the city’s first Canada Day parade in 1978, after being disappointed that no celebrations to mark his adopted country’s birthday were held. was not.
In an interview in 2017, Singh recalled years of fighting to secure funding for the event, sometimes becoming a thorn in the side of political leaders, angering the province’s separatist faction in the years surrounding the two referendums. didn’t want to.
Cowen said Singh, who died in March, had hoped to be in Montreal this summer for the parade. Polksack said that he would undoubtedly have been “disturbed” to see the incident for which he fought so hard to be canceled.
Both organizers say they are working hard to secure the funding needed to bring the parade back next year.
© 2022 Canadian Press