RCMP have launched an investigation after people posted hateful and homophobic content in response to a Facebook post celebrating Pride Month and Indigenous History Month.
The post, uploaded on Monday, listed several other awareness and recognition months alongside Pride Month and stated that “straight pride isn’t a thing because nobody has ever been oppressed or killed for being straight.”
In response, some users flooded the comment section – in a Yellowknife “rants and raves” group – with homophobic and hateful commentary. Comments included images showing young individuals holding firearms, alarming community members who later reported those posts to the RCMP.
Some of the images appeared to reference individuals connected to past mass shootings – including images that resemble the accused Tumbler Ridge and Nashville school shooters.
At the time of writing, those images had been taken down, though some comments containing hateful and homophobic language remained.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
In a statement, a police spokesperson told Cabin Radio the RCMP is “taking these allegations seriously and has launched an investigation” that is still in the preliminary phase.
In a message to Cabin Radio after this article was first published, Sean Crowe, who uploaded the post celebrating Pride Month, said he wanted to address comments like “why don’t we have straight pride month,” which appear annually in similar Facebook groups.
The responses he got “were shocking, even for a [Yellowknife rant and rave group],” and have reinforced the need for Pride Month to Crowe.
“There are still people out there who have hateful and violent views toward the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and think that we have no place in society,” said Crowe.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
“I urge everybody within the community or allies to come out to the pride parade next weekend. Show up for yourselves and for one another. – We are here, we belong, and if anything, we will only celebrate louder, prouder, and more unapologetically because of them.”
The annual Yellowknife Pride is set to take place on June 14 and is organized in partnership with the Northern Mosaic Network and Yellowknife Pride.
The Northern Mosaic Network – a territorial outreach organization that supports 2SLGBTQIPA+ people – was contacted for a comment regarding the Facebook comments, but stated it did not want to give a platform to the commenters’ rhetoric.
In response to the Facebook comments, NWT education and industry minister Caitlin Cleveland wrote in a separate Facebook post: “Everyone has the right to be, right to dignity, and right to a safe home, workplace, and community.”
“The fact that comments and threats like these continue to be hurled throughout our community shows that allys need to get louder, and protect space for the 2SLGBTQIPA+ community.”
Jan Vallillee, a longtime Yellowknife resident, told Cabin Radio the comments she read in the group were “frightening for the LGBTQ+ community.”
“I think the motivation is to rile up the population just to see who will bite, who will take it further,” said Vallillee.
She said the ability to post anonymously was a significant contributor to the spread of harmful messaging.
“I’m just stunned that social media allows this level of violence to be shown for all to see. It’s unbelievable,” she said.
“There’s no accountability for the hate, the vitriol, and all it does is rile people up.”
Meta, the company that owns Facebook, is facing a wave of litigation regarding harm the platform is alleged to inflict on its users.
Lawsuits brought by parents, individuals, and school districts in North America and Europe allege Meta’s platforms were intentionally designed to be addictive and harm minors’ mental health.
