Want to be part of a new committee that will help Ottawa Capital Pride better serve and meet the needs of youth? Ottawa Capital Pride is looking for someone like YOU!

The Board of Directors of the Ottawa Capital Pride is looking for engaged youth, between the ages of 15 and 25, to form its new Youth Advisory Committee (YAC).

The purpose of the YAC will be to provide insight, advice and guidance for the development and implementation of Board policies and decisions specifically affecting LGBTQ2+ youth. Further, the YAC may also counsel the Festival Director and the Youth Coordinator in their event planning process and implementation to better serve the community.

This opportunity will provide you with a space to develop your own ideas and the platform to support OCP achieve their mission of Advocacy and Education to the public. This opportunity will allow you to acquire relevant skills while also providing you with meaningful engagement within your community.

Learn more and apply now

Ottawa Capital Pride (OCP) is committed to the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion. Applications from all qualified candidates are welcome and, in particular, applications are encouraged from Trans youth, Racialized youth, Indigenous youth, youth with disabilities, youth living with HIV, immigrants and women.

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Whether you’re a student looking to gain new skills or a seasoned professional looking to give back, we need dedicated volunteers to take a leadership role in planning and executing specific parts of the festival as a member of our Operations Team.

You’ll work closely with the Festival Director and different board members in performing the duties of your role. Through spring and early summer, you can expect to commit about five hours per week, increasing up to ten hours in late July and through August. Depending on your role, you may be needed for one or more full days during Pride Week, which runs August 20-26. A further five hours will be needed in early September for debriefing and reporting.

Our festival is built on a strong foundation of dedicated volunteers with strong leadership skills, who always see their project through completion. Please be prepared to make this commitment to us if applying for any of these roles.

View all roles here.

Please note the following applies to all roles:

Requirements (must-haves)

• Member of, or ally to, the LBGTQ+ Community and a commitment to operating within an anti-oppressive work framework
• 18 years of age or over
• Ability to exercise good judgment and discretion in busy and occasionally high-stress situations
• Ability to take ownership of role and make reasoned decisions
• Ability to coordinate and supervise other volunteers
• Participate in Operations Committee meetings
• Organized and efficient working style
• Exceptional attention to detail
• Additional requirements are included in the individual role descriptions

Assets (nice-to-haves)

• Knowledge of, and experience volunteering in, the LBGTQ2+ community
• Experience working with volunteers
• Bilingualism
• Additional assets are included in the individual role descriptions

Applicants are asked to submit a resume and cover letter to our Festival Director Christian Garceau at [email protected] no later than Sunday, April 1, 2018. Only those candidates contacted for an interview will be notified.

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Ottawa Capital Pride seeks a Festival Director to oversee the organization and execution of Ottawa’s 2018 Pride Festival. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Director will work with the Festival’s volunteer Operation Team and be responsible for overseeing all aspects of the Festival.

The Director will lead the Festival’s Operations Team, which is made up of volunteers responsible for a wide range of festival organization including volunteer coordination, marketing, media relations, event production, festival accessibility and parade coordination. The Director will support the team through regular team meetings, establishing work plans and priorities and setting timelines and deadlines. The Director will also supervise two summer staff who will aid in the coordination of the Festival.

This successful candidate will work approximately 30-40 hours per week between February and April and increases to 40 hours per week between May and September. Some evening and weekend work is required between February and July and extended evenings and weekend hours will be required immediately leading up to and during the Festival.

Start Date: Week of February 12 (or as negotiated)

End Date: September 28, 2018

Compensation: Commensurate with experience

The Festival Director is responsible for

Sponsorship: Developing sponsorship material and generating both cash and in-kind sponsorship. Also responsible for renewing existing partnerships, generating new sponsorship opportunities, and ensuring sponsorship obligations are met.

Event Production: Overseeing the organization of the Festival’s signature events including the Pride Parade, Pride Pageant, Main Stage, Community Fair, Pride Social, Human Rights Vigil, Family Picnic and Youth Events.

Liaison with Municipal Partners: Developing materials in connection with the Festival’s Special Event Advisory Team (SEAT) application and working with various municipal partners (e.g. paramedics, police) to develop festival plans as required. Also responsible for preparing reports for SEAT following the Festival.

Volunteer Management: Working with the operations team to establish volunteer requirements for all areas of the Festival and overseeing the volunteer coordinators in the recruitment, training and supervision of volunteers.

Marketing and Promotion: Overseeing the development of the Festival’s marketing and promotions plan, including both local marketing and tourism destination marketing.

Media Relations: Working with the media relations team to develop and carry out a media relations strategy, including the production of media releases, coordination of interviews with organizational spokespeople and occasional media interviews as required.

Office Administration: General office administration, answering phone calls, ensuring proper record keeping, and responding to general inquiries.

Budget and Finance: Working with the organization’s Treasurer to prepare and keep updated the Festival’s budget and ensure revenue and expense targets are met.

Community Partnerships and Outreach: Working with the Board of Directors to identify opportunities for community partnerships and performing outreach activities to strengthen Pride’s relationship with community groups. Also responsible for supporting groups looking to organize events during the Festival and those who want to participate in the Festival’s parade.

Reporting: Delivering regular reports to the Board of Directors and preparing a fulsome post-festival report.

Desired Skills

The Festival Director will be a strong and effective leader who is committed to organizing a successful 2018 Festival. The Director will have demonstrable experience leading teams and organizing multi-day events or festivals.

The following skills and experience are required:

• Minimum 2 years’ experience working in festival or event production, including experience with venue management, negotiating vendor contracts, and coordinating artists. Experience negotiating artist contracts is an asset.
• Event or festival marketing experience, including both traditional and digital marketing.
• Ability to lead and motivate volunteers.
• Understanding of non-profit organizational governance.
• Experience developing sponsorship programs that target local, regional and national partners.
• Creative problem solver with an ability to think outside the box.
• Familiarity with Ottawa’s LGBTQ community including community organizations and groups.
• Reliable, self-motivated and have the ability to work productively on your own without supervision.
• Experience with media relations is an asset.
• Excellent time-management skills.
• Strong communication skills.
• Bilingualism is an asset

Applicants are asked to submit a resume and cover letter to [email protected] no later than Sunday, February 4, 2018. Only those candidates contacted for an interview will be notified.

Ottawa Capital Pride is committed to the principles of employment equity. Applications from all qualified candidates are welcome; in particular, applications are encouraged from racialized people, Indigenous people, people with disabilities, queer and trans people, and women.

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Ottawa Capital Pride is looking for new board members to help organize Pride 2018 and beyond! We are looking for people who are passionate leaders looking to use their skills to contribute to the success of Capital Pride.

Ottawa Capital Pride brings together a team of dedicated staff and volunteers to organize the Capital Pride Festival each year. The festival creates a space for celebration, advocacy and education for dozens of community groups and includes more than 60 community events across the region. The festival culminates with a massive weekend of events which includes our community fair, main stage and beer garden and the pride parade.

We are looking for a group of candidates who, together, will have a broad range of experience and contribute an array of skills that will benefit the organization and who reflect the diversity of the community we serve. Skills and experience that are welcomed (but certainly is not limited to) include:

• Strategic planning
• Community engagement
• Event and festival management
• Traditional and social media communications
• Human resources and volunteer management
• Experience involved in non-profit organizations
• Accounting and financial management
• Information management and administration
• Non-profit governance and experience serving as a director for other non-profit organizations
• Experience with, or involvement in, LGBTQ community organizations

To apply, please submit a cover letter and resume that outlines the experience and skills you
will bring to Ottawa Capital Pride. Applicants are asked to answer the following questions in
their cover letters:

• Why are you interested in joining Ottawa Capital Pride?
• What experience and skills will you contribute to the Capital Pride Team?
• Are you already involved in the LGBTQ community in Ottawa?
• Where do you see Ottawa Capital Pride three years from now? How do you see yourself contributing to that future?

Members of the community are asked to submit applications no later than January 15, 2018 to [email protected]. Please note, applicants will be reviewed on a revolving basis during the application period and so please feel free to apply early.

Are you interested in volunteering for Pride 2018? We’ll be recruiting volunteer team leaders and other volunteers in early 2018. Stay tuned!

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OTTAWA • Ottawa’s official Capital Pride Parade begins at 1:30 PM tomorrow, Sunday August 27. The parade leaves from the corner of Gladstone and Kent.

The Capital Pride Community Fair follows on Bank St. between Somerset and Florence, with entertainment and performances at the Main and Fresh Zone stages.

Notes for Media

Members of the press must present themselves at Capital Pride’s registration desk, at 338 Somerset West with photo ID, and official press credentials if available. Registration will be open between 11:30 AM and 12:45 PM.

Update: There will be a VIP media scrum at 3.00 PM. Media should present at 338 Somerset West to participate.

Contact

[email protected]

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Annual flag raising ceremony marks the beginning of Capital Pride 2017

OTTAWA • Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson raised the rainbow flag at Ottawa City Hall today, marking the beginning of the 32nd annual Capital Pride week in the city.

“The City of Ottawa, a leader in LGBTTQ+ equity, is a progressive, diverse and inclusive city, and proud to recognize the important advocacy work Ottawa Capital Pride has done over the years, while fostering a safe and vibrant rainbow community within the National Capital Region,” said Mayor Jim Watson. “The Capital Pride Festival is a great opportunity to highlight the contributions made by LGBTTQ+ communities everywhere, and acknowledge the progress that remains to be made at home and abroad.”

A week of celebrations

The flag raising precedes a week of festivities in the National Capital Region, culminating in the Capital Pride Parade on Sunday, August 27, 2017.

“This week, we celebrate with the LGBTQ2 community and its allies. “Just be,” the theme of this year’s celebrations, speaks to the festival’s goal of being a safe space for everyone. Canada’s capital city is in a position to be a leader for advocacy, education and celebration of the country’s LGBTQ2 communities and our Pride festival plays an important role in that,” said Tammy Dopson, the Chairperson of Ottawa Capital Pride.

Highlights of the week include the crowning of Mr./Ms./Mx. Capital Pride on Tuesday, a speech from this year’s Grand Marshal Candy Palmater and the annual Human Rights Vigil, both on Thursday. Sunday’s parade features performances by Mykki Blanco and the DJ Shub.

See the full festival line-up.

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The Ottawa REDBLACKS to recognize Capital Pride at the August 26 game against the BC Lions

OTTAWA • The Ottawa REDBLACKS announced today they will celebrate Capital Pride Week, August 21-27, 2017 with two events. The Saturday, August 26 game pitting the REDBLACKS against the BC Lions will be the club’s annual Pride Game ahead of the annual Capital Pride Parade, on August 27.  The parade will then feature players from the Ottawa REDBLACKS, the REDBLACKS Cheer Team, along with the Grey Cup, which the REDBLACKS triumphantly won in 2016.

“In a year where RNation welcomes OUR Nation it is imperative that we celebrate our Canadian values of diversity and inclusiveness,” said Bernie Ashe, CEO of OSEG, parent company of the REDBLACKS. “OSEG is looking forward to the events during Capital Pride Festival and we look forward to continuing our work with Capital Pride throughout the 105 th Grey Cup Festival and Game presented by Shaw.”

“Having the REDBLACKS participate in Ottawa Capital Pride events is a welcome message to Ottawa’s LGBTQ2 community that everyone has a place in the world of sports regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity,” added Tammy Dopson, Chair of the Ottawa Capital Pride Board of Directors.

Capital Pride Theme 2017: Just Be

Each year, the Ottawa LGBTQ2 community and its allies come together to celebrate Pride week in the Nation’s Capital. A fundamental goal of the festival is that it is a safe space for everyone – to spend time with friends and family, to meet new people, to talk about ideas and issues affecting our community, to dance, and yes, even to flirt! For many people it is also the time to come out and fully embrace their true identity or identities for the first time.  

With its theme this year, Capital Pride recognizes the journeys we have as individuals and the journey we share as a community. Attending Pride is part of both. When you come to Capital Pride this year, we hope you will have time to celebrate, but also reflect… we hope you will Just Be.

About Ottawa Capital Pride

The mission of the Ottawa Capital Pride organization is to create an environment for advocacy, education, and the fostering of a strong and vibrant LGBTQ2 community within the Nation’s Capital region. It does so through the annual Fierté dans la Capital(e) Pride festival, where it welcomes everyone to participate, celebrate, and experience being a part of the LGBTQ2 community.

Contact

Tammy Dopson
Chair, Ottawa Capital Pride
613 680 3033
[email protected]
www.ottawacapitalpride.ca

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Ottawa Capital Pride offers a lineup focusing on diversity, inclusiveness, and local talent.

OTTAWA • The organizers of Ottawa Capital Pride today unveiled the list of performers slated for the music festival portion of Pride Week.

On Sunday, August 27th, following the pride parade, Ottawa residents and visitors will descend on Bank St. for musical programming at the main stage that includes American rapper, performance artist, poet, and activist Mykki Blanco; DJ Shub; DJ Jungle Jen; Shawnee; and local favourites The Peptides.

The alcohol-free and all-ages friendly Fresh Zone will feature performances by Disco Drag with Kitty Funk and the Queens; Amanda Rheaume; Kimberly Sunstrum; Capital Kings; Drag Story Time; and DJ Grace.

“We had three goals in mind when choosing this year’s artists,” said Mike Connors, Festival Producer for Capital Pride.  “We wanted a lineup that captures diversity and inclusiveness with a focus on local talent.

Also announced today was the theme for Capital Pride 2017, Just Be. “Ottawa Capital Pride is intended to be a welcoming and safe space for everyone,” said Tammy Dopson, Chair of the Board of Directors. “Our theme celebrates the individual experience of all who attend our festival, as well as Pride as a place to celebrate our community’s diversity.”

Ottawa Capital Pride week begins on Monday, August 21st, with a flag raising ceremony at City Hall and concludes on Sunday, August 27th.

Capital Pride Theme 2017: Just Be

Each year, the Ottawa LGBTQ2 community and its allies come together to celebrate Pride week in the Nation’s Capital. A fundamental goal of the festival is that it is a safe space for everyone – to spend time with friends and family, to meet new people, to talk about ideas and issues affecting our community, to dance, and yes, even to flirt! For many people it is also the time to come out and fully embrace their true identity or identities for the first time.
With its theme this year, Capital Pride recognizes the journeys we have as individuals and the journey we share as a community. Attending Pride is part of both. When you come to Capital Pride this year, we hope you will have time to celebrate, but also reflect… we hope you will Just Be.

About Ottawa Capital Pride

The mission of the Ottawa Capital Pride organization is to create an environment for advocacy, education, and the fostering of a strong and vibrant LGBTQ2 community within the Nation’s Capital region. It does so through the annual Fierté dans la Capital(e) Pride festival, where it welcomes everyone to participate, celebrate, and experience being a part of the LGBTQ2 community.

Contact

Mike Connors
Festival Producer, Ottawa Capital Pride
613 680 3033
[email protected]
www.ottawacapitalpride.ca

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Ottawa Capital Pride honours Grand Marshal who has been an important activist and champion of inclusivity for the LGBTTQ+ community.

OTTAWA • Ottawa Capital Pride is excited to announce that actor, writer, columnist, international speaker, activist, comedian and multiple award-winning TV and radio personality Candy Palmater will be the Grand Marshall of 2017’s Pride Parade on Sunday, August 27 at 1:30 PM. Festival goers can also expect her to make surprise appearances at Capital Pride’s signature events throughout Pride Week in Ottawa; August 21 – 27.  Candy will also be delivering a keynote speech during Pride Week.

“Every year we choose a Grand Marshal who exemplifies leadership in advocacy and improving the lives of those in the LGBTTQ+ community, locally, nationally and on the global stage,” explained Tammy Dopson, Chair of Ottawa Capital Pride. “As part of Capital Pride’s 2017 edition, we have put First Peoples first along with this year’s Grand Marshal who will be leading the city’s most colourful procession.”

“I am honoured to serve as Grand Marshall of Ottawa Capital Pride. I think expressions of pride are important in every town, village, and first nations community across our country.  I am thrilled that my wife and I will be celebrating in traditional, unceded territory of the Algonquin people,” Candy said, following her acceptance of this crucial role in the Pride Parade.

Ottawa Capital Pride looks forward to working with Candy in fulfilling its mission of creating an environment for advocacy, education and celebration in the National Capital Region during various signature events throughout Pride Week 2017.

About Candy

A recovered lawyer turned feminist comic, Candy is the creator and star of her own national, multiple award-winning TV series The Candy Show (APTN). She has a role on the Trailer Park Boys S10 (Netflix), appeared in Call Me Fitz (HBO Canada), and Sex and Violence (OutTV), and received a Screen Nova Scotia nomination for her role on Forgive Me (Superchannel). She’s a Broadcaster with CBC Radio One where Candy has hosted The Candy Palmater Show, Q, DNTO and appears on Because News and The Next Chapter.

About Ottawa Capital Pride

The mission of the Ottawa Capital Pride organization is to create an environment for advocacy, education, and the fostering of a strong and vibrant rainbow community within the Nation’s Capital region. It does so through the annual Fierté dans la Capital(e) Pride festival, where it welcomes everyone to participate, celebrate, and experience being a part of the rainbow community.

Contact

Tammy Dopson
Chair, Ottawa Capital Pride
613 680 3033

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For Immediate Release

Friends,

As Pride Month comes to a close in many parts of the country, in Ottawa, the staff and volunteers of Capital Pride are going full steam with preparations for our city’s festival in August. It is also a time to reflect on the feedback we have received from our consultations with stakeholders and LGBTQ2 community members in the last several months.

Our city is evolving and growing and so too must Pride – a unique festival with as rich a cultural and political history as the people of Ottawa’s LGBTQ2 community. Capital Pride’s new organization and return to Bank Street in 2015 is representative of this shift, as is our community’s growing diversity.
Inclusion. Accessibility. Equity. These are just some of the most important and powerful principles that were raised in our consultations. While recognizing the hard work and advocacy in advancing LGBTQ2 rights over the last several decades, it is clear that social justice remains top of mind for many of us in Ottawa’s LGBTQ2 community, including Capital Pride.

Achievements like equal marriage, changes to public pensions, and most recently, the Royal Assent of Bill C-16, which adds gender identity as grounds for prohibiting discrimination in the Human Rights Act, do not automatically create social change. Many LGBTQ2 Canadians, particularly people of colour, people with disabilities, two-spirited people and members of the trans community still experience discrimination, harassment and violence in their day-to-day lives – on the street, in their workplaces and even in their homes and schools. There is still much work to be done.

During our consultation process and in ongoing conversations with stakeholders, we have been particularly mindful of events in the last year concerning police participation in Prides across the country. On the issue of police participation in the Capital Pride festival, community members have been passionate in their views. Of particular note were the strong feelings of many people who attended our consultation meetings – particularly LGBTQ2 youth – that uniformed police officers should not participate in Capital Pride activities off-duty. Conversely, we heard from many other community members that inclusion in Capital Pride for them means inclusion of uniformed police officers.

As an organization, Capital Pride supports the participation of individual LGBTQ2 police officers and their allies in this year’s festival. Indeed, we hope that members of police forces at all levels attend Pride events with their friends, families and colleagues. However, it is of prime importance to us that everyone feels safe at Pride, particularly LGBTQ2 youth, and racialized and Indigenous community members. Accordingly, we respectfully request that participating officers reserve their uniforms and vehicles for official work duties only this year.

The Ottawa Police Service will continue to provide the necessary services to ensure public safety at this year’s festival. Capital Pride recognizes the valuable work of the Ottawa Police Service in supporting us in the planning of the festival to this end.

In the coming years, the Capital Pride festival will continue to be a platform for its three pillars: celebration, education and advocacy. While Ottawa’s Pride is only one week in August and is centred around The Village on Bank Street, it is more than just one place and one weekend. Our festival programming is a reflection of our shared history, values and commitment to helping our community thrive year-round.

We hope that everyone in Ottawa’s LGBTQ2 community will continue to participate in the conversations started this year. We will be listening.

Capital Pride Board of Directors

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The assistant festival producer is a member of the Capital Pride operations committee and reports directly to the festival producer.

We are seeking a candidate with the following skills/experience:

• Project Management
• Event Coordination
• Logistics
• Communications
• Administration

Capital Pride is committed to ensuring diversity in our organization and our festival. Applicants are encouraged to self-identify as a member of underrepresented communities (e.g. trans* and non-binary, two-spirited, people with disabilities, and people of colour).

Those interested should email their resume and a brief cover letter explaining the skills they bring to the table, and why they want to be involved in the organization to [email protected]

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Ottawa Capital Pride will return next August for seven days of incredible programming! 2017 is going to be a big year in the nation’s capital! Here’s an early look at our signature events calendar.

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After celebrating 30 years of Capital Pride with a special logo in 2015, we’re working on a new logo and look to take us into 2017 and the next 30 years after! We’re building something that will represent Ottawa Capital Pride and its mission of advocacy, education and celebration. Check back soon and follow us on social media for more.

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Working with our community toward a more diverse, inclusive and accessible Pride

Ottawa Capital Pride believes that Pride is a platform based on three pillars: celebration, education and advocacy. We believe that it takes a combination of these actions to affect positive change for LGBTTQ people in Ottawa, in Canada, and around the world. We celebrate the advancements in LGBTTQ rights and equity that have been made here at home and globally. We educate and remind ourselves that the modern Pride movement started as a protest and is political. And we must also continue to advocate for freedom of gender identity and expression, and furthering dignity and respect for trans people, two-spirited and indigenous people, people of colour and people with disabilities.

Recent events, including the tragic killing of 49 people – many of them people of colour – at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando have demonstrated the disproportionate impact of discrimination and violence against LGBTTQ people of colour. As our community continues to rally together to express solidarity and sadness following these events, it is a crucial time to recognize that Pride needs to do more to reflect the diverse needs of the LGBTTQ community. Groups such as Black Lives Matter have highlighted the work that still needs to be done.

Too many people still do not have spaces where they feel safe or welcome due to their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity, age, or physical abilities. Ottawa Capital Pride understands that we must be engaged partners with every member of our community, and ensure that diverse voices are part of the movement.

In the year ahead, Ottawa Capital Pride will continue to build new connections while strengthening existing relationships with members of our community. We will work to improve the diversity of our organization, within both the community advisory and operations committees, and we will continue to evolve and improve our festival programming. To that end, we will be engaging community stakeholders and community members in direct conversations this fall, and inviting the public to participate in an event about lessons learned from this year and to gather feedback on ways improve our festival in the year ahead. We look forward to the opportunity to engage in respectful and honest dialogue with our community to make Capital Pride the best it can be.

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