ProudPolitics is a Canadian cross-partisan organization dedicated to increasing the number of openly

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

public officials in Canadian politics."Ontario group looking for politically engaged gays"
''

Xtra! ''Xtra Magazine'' (formerly ''DailyXtra'' and ''Xtra!'') is an LGBTQ-focused digital publication and former print newspaper published by Pink Triangle Press in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The publication is a continuation of the company's former pr ...

'', May 10, 2013. The group was inspired by the

LGBTQ Victory Fund The LGBTQ Victory Fund (formerly the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund), commonly shortened to Victory Fund, is an American political action committee dedicated to increasing the number of openly LGBTQ public officials in the United States. Victory F ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, which offers grassroots leadership training, networking and mentoring programs for aspiring politicians who are part of the

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

communities."Proud Politics". ''

Metro Morning Metro Morning is CBC Radio One's local morning program in Toronto, airing on CBLA-FM. The program airs from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. weekday mornings, and has frequently been Toronto's highest-rated radio program in its timeslot. The program is c ...

'',

CBLA-FM CBLA-FM (99.1 MHz) is a non-commercial Canadian radio station in Toronto, Ontario. Owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the station is the flagship station of the CBC Radio One network, broadcasting a mix of news and talk ...

, April 18, 2013. Unlike the Victory Fund, however, ProudPolitics does not offer direct fundraising for candidates due to Canada's differing laws around election finance."Proud Politics aims to put more LGBT leaders in office"
''

'', September 8, 2014. The organization was co-founded in 2013 by Arthur Kong, a management consultant, and Louroz Mercader, a non-profit director who was a candidate for

Mississauga City Council Mississauga City Council is the governing body of the city of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The council consists of the mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a ...

in the 2010 municipal election. The organization's official launch, held on April 18, 2013 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, featured a keynote speech by Glen Murray, and a panel discussion featuring

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

Member of Parliament Craig Scott, former Progressive Conservative MPP

Phil Gillies Philip Andrew Gillies (born May 7, 1954) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1981 to 1987 as a Progressive Conservative, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Frank Miller. ...

and

Ontario Liberal Party The Ontario Liberal Party (OLP; french: Parti libéral de l'Ontario, PLO) is a political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. The party has been led by interim leader John Fraser (Ontario MPP), John Fraser since August 2022. The party esp ...

candidate Tatum Wilson. The group also received a letter of support from Ontario premier

Kathleen Wynne Kathleen O'Day Wynne ( ; born May 21, 1953) is a Canadian former politician who served as the 25th premier of Ontario and leader of the Ontario Liberal Party from 2013 to 2018. She was elected to the Legislative Assembly in 2003 and sat as the ...

, Canada's first openly gay provincial premier. In 2014 and 2018, prior to municipal and provincial elections across the country, the group held Canada's first and only candidate and campaign training program, titled Out to Win. The group's advisory council includes Gillies, chief commissioner of the

Ontario Human Rights Commission The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) was established in the Canadian province of Ontario on March 29, 1961, to administer the Ontario Human Rights Code. The OHRC is an arm's length agency of government accountable to the legislature through ...

and former

Mayor of Toronto The mayor of Toronto is the head of Toronto City Council and chief executive officer of the municipal government. The mayor is elected alongside city council every four years on the fourth Monday of October; there are no term limits. While in ...

Barbara Hall, former federal member of parliament

Bill Siksay William Livingstone Siksay (born March 11, 1955) is a Canadian politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) who represented the British Columbia riding of Burnaby—Douglas for the New Democratic Party from 2004 to 2011. Early life Siksay ...

, former

Toronto District School Board The Toronto District School Board (TDSB), formerly known as English-language Public District School Board No. 12 prior to 1999, is the English-language public-secular school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The minority public-secular franco ...

trustee Nadia Bello, 2010

Toronto City Council Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The current term began on November 15, 2022. Structure The cur ...

candidate Ken Chan, Ontario Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce president Ryan Tollofson,

Halton Catholic District School Board The Halton Catholic District School Board (HCDSB) serves over 37,000 students at its 46 elementary schools, 9 secondary schools and 3 continuing education facilities. The HCDSB serves the communities of Burlington, Halton Hills, Milton, and Oakvi ...

trustee Paul Marai, and urban strategist and writer Tanzeel Merchant.

References

External links

*{{official, http://www.proudpolitics.org LGBT political advocacy groups in Canada 2013 establishments in Ontario Organizations based in Toronto Organizations established in 2013