If you had no idea of the recent news, the two gatherings at Marie Curtis Park in Etobicoke would have just looked like a bunch of people out to enjoy the green space. On Saturday, area residents and community police officers from 22 Division were engaging residents as part of its Walk the Beat initiative, in an effort to step up community enforcement and build a better relationship. About 30 feet away, members of the LGBTQ community held a counter protest called Queers Crash the Beat, expressing their disgust with what they feel was a large scale police investigation with homophobic undertones that they feel targeted a marginalized community. “It’s not just men engaging in sex in the park, there have been a couple of sex offenders, there is drinking and there have been drugs, so we’re dealing with all of those issues,” said Const. Kevin Ward, of 22 Division’s Community Response Unit.

Source: thestar November 20, 2016 01:25 UTC