statement on police exclusion

For the first years of Ottawa Dyke March we did not acquire a permit or ask for a police escort. In 2024, we did not acquire a permit or ask for a police escort. Today, we continue to choose not to get a permit because the Ottawa Dyke March is a peaceful political protest for the visibility of dykes, to demand political change, to protest the corporatization of the Pride Parade and to practice, in community, what it means when we say we keep us safe.