Independent firm reviewing Pride Toronto's grant spending following allegations of mismanagement

An independent accounting firm is looking into Pride Toronto's use of federal grant money following allegations that the organization misrepresented how the funds would be used.

In a statement released last week, Pride Toronto said it hired KPMG in October 2021 to conduct a "grant compliance review." Executive director Sherwin Modeste told CBC News the review will cover three grants the organization received from the federal government in 2018 and 2019, totalling $1.85 million. 

KPMG is investigating and will provide recommendations to ensure the organization's internal processes meet high standards, the statement said.

Pride Toronto issued its statement after Toronto historian Tom Hooper released an investigative report into the grants that he claims highlights problems with the grant applications and inconsistencies in how the organization reported progress to the federal government.

"These allegations were brought to our attention. We realized that the scope of this work was beyond the scope that the board or myself ... would be able to undertake," said Modeste, who was not in charge of the organization at the time the grant applications were made.

"Hence, we brought in KPMG to do a review of the grants that were in question by Mr. Hooper."

The review, which is expected to be completed within the next two weeks, will be released to the public, Pride Toronto said.

The review will cover two grants from the Department of Canadian Heritage and one from Public Safety Canada. Pride Toronto was planning to use some of the funds from those grants to work with renowned Cree artist Kent Monkman on a public art project for the 2019 Pride Festival.

Among the allegations laid out in his report, Hooper said Pride Toronto submitted unauthorized letters of support on its applications, used Monkman's name to raise grant funds even after he left the project, and promised benefits to Indigenous people that never materialized. 

"I think it demonstrates that Pride Toronto is more interested in pursuing its corporate bottom line. It's more interested in gaining assets on the backs of Indigenous artists than it is addressing the real problems that exist for Indigenous and two spirit people within our communities," Hooper said.

CBC News has not independently verified all of the allegations contained in Hooper's report, which was based in part on documents he obtained through access to information requests.

However, three organizations, including the Assembly of First Nations and The 519, confirmed to CBC News that they did not authorize letters of support that Pride Toronto apparently submitted on their behalf in support of its grant applications.

A spokesperson for Monkman also told CBC News that the statements in Hooper's report regarding the Kent Monkman Studio are accurate.

"On April 29, 2019 I ended a year of talks with Pride Toronto due to the continued lack of a contract, disagreements over creative control of various project elements, and lack of confidence in Pride Toronto's management of the project," Monkman said in a statement. "I was extremely disappointed to hear the allegations that funds earmarked for representation and celebration of Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer people and our histories have been mismanaged."