A Quebec public relations firm has been awarded a federal contract worth over $1.1 million to conduct an awareness campaign to counter stigma against LGBTQ individuals.
There has been no government statement suggesting this public relations campaign is related to the protests. However, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has blamed “far-right” misinformation in the United States for the wave of protests.
“If you look at the various curriculums, you'll see that there is not what is being said out there about aggressive teaching or conversion of kids to being LGBT,” said Mr. Trudeau.
“These are people in the far-right who have consistently stood against Muslim rights and the Muslim community, but they are weaponizing the issue of LGBT.”
The approximately eight-month project was awarded to Cossette on July 26 and continues to March 31, 2024. The federal government has the option to extent the term of the contract by up to three additional one-year periods under the same conditions.
“The purpose of the campaign is to raise awareness of the stigma faced by members of 2SLGBTQI+ communities in Canada and encourage Canadians to play an active role in reducing that stigma,” said the award notice.
The campaign “should address hateful propaganda and debunk disinformation targeting 2SLGBTQI+ communities,” “enhance inclusion,” and “break down underlying and long-standing stigma and discrimination against 2SLGBTQI+ communities through a multi-pronged approach that deconstructs stereotypes and influences positive change.”
Cossette will be asked to collect input from organizations that work with members of LGBTQ communities, including those that work specifically with members who are “Indigenous, Black, racialized, immigrant, people from a rural or remote area, and people with disabilities, and/or people from other equity-deserving communities.”
The goal of the contract is to support the mandate of the department “to promote a better understanding of the intersection of sex and gender with other identity factors (e.g., race, national and ethnic origin, Indigenous origin or identity, age, sexual orientation, socioeconomic condition, place of residence and disability).”
“This approach will further align with the Government of Canada’s gender and diversity lens known as Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus),” says the tender award.
Cossette is among 14 companies invited to submit a proposal for the contract.
“The average contract duration was 0.47 years, and the average contract value (not including contracts under $10k) was $852.0K. The longest contract was 6.01 years. The largest contract by value (including amendments) was $37.8M.”
