Fierté Montréal executive director Simon Gamache steps down

Fierté Montréal Executive Director Simon Gamache says the 2025 festivities are an invitation for LGBTQ2S+ people to take space and celebrate. (Laurence Brisson Dubreuil/CTV News)

Less than four years after being appointed as the head of Fierté Montréal, Simon Gamache announced he is stepping down.

Fierté Montréal made the announcement on Tuesday, saying in a news release that he made the decision after “careful consideration.”

“Getting to lead Fierté Montréal has been an honour and a unique privilege in my career. I would sincerely like to thank the thousands of individuals and organizations that have supported Fierté Montréal, both long-standing and newly joined,” Gamache said in a written statement.

“Your support is more important now than ever before. Please continue to support 2SLGBTQIA+ organizations that are doing heroic work at a time when our civil rights have been imperilled more than they have been in decades.”

In its statement on Tuesday, Fierté Montréal said it was “deeply grateful” for Gamache’s contributions since he was appointed executive director in September 2021.

“Simon has worked to bring together 2SLGBTQIA+ communities and their allies to advance the rights of local queer people, combating both backlash and complacency,” the organization said.

“During his tenure, more than 350 community, cultural, philanthropic, and hospitality organizations, as well as unions, professional, and student associations, cultural institutions, and businesses participated annually in Fierté Montréal, a complex convergence operating in a fluctuating social context. He also oversaw a major overhaul of the organization’s governance, the evolution of its business model and growth, consolidating Fierté Montréal’s keystone role in the festival ecosystem and as a standard-bearer of diversity and inclusion.”

An interim executive director is expected to be appointed in the coming days.

The high-profile resignation comes after controversy surrounding this year’s Pride festival, which ended on Aug. 10 with the parade.

After initially banning Ga’ava from marching in the parade over comments its president made about pro-Palestinian groups, Fierté Montréal later reversed course and reinvited the Jewish LGBT+ group to the event. The decision came under fierce criticism from several Jewish groups and others.

In the fallout of the controversy, the president of the board of directors of Fierté Montréal, Bernard Truong, resigned, citing personal reasons.

Marlot Marleau, who was secretary of the board of directors of Fierté Montréal, was then appointed by the board to serve as president of the organization.