Brian Provini has marched with the Casey House contingent in the Pride parade for many years.

Before that, he marched with a gay-lesbian Italian group and Prime Timers Toronto, a social organization for older gay men.

But this year, the 69-year-old gay man is boycotting the June 25 parade, as is his partner.

He says it’s solely because of the push by Black Lives Matter — Toronto (BLM) to ban police participation.

“I find it to be totally unacceptable,” said the retired community college professor and senior policy officer with the provincial ministry of training, colleges and universities.

I spoke to Provini Thursday, a few hours after he e-mailed a letter to Pride Toronto and the police advising them that he cannot “support a Pride that is not inclusive of the police.”

He said the LGBT community and the police force have done a lot “to build bridges” over the years and as far as he’s concerned, Pride no longer represents Toronto’s LGBT community.

“I think they represent BLM,” he said.

Efforts to reach a representative of BLM-Toronto and the new executive director of Pride, Olivia Nuamah — or one of her co-chairs — were unsuccessful Thursday.

The Toronto Sun released an exclusive Forum poll earlier this week that showed nearly 50% of Toronto voters surveyed disapprove of the fact that the Toronto Police will not have a float (or booth) in this year’s annual celebration of LGBTQ rights.

The survey of 966 voters put the disapproval rate at 48% while a mere 21%, mostly those under 34 and living in the old city of Toronto, approved of the ban.

BLM disrupted last July’s Pride parade with a 30-minute sit-in, presenting a list of demands that included a call to ban police from the event in the future.

The ban was officially sanctioned at the Pride AGM in mid-January when a group of self-described “white butch dykes” (and BLM sycophants) aggressively took control of the meeting and forced a vote on the issue. The item was not on the agenda before they wrestled control of the proceedings.

After the vote in favour of the ban, board-co-chairman Alica Hall made it clear, at least to me, they are happy to take the $500,000 in free policing (not including pay duty) provided to the parade.

In mid-February, Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders announced the police would bow out of the parade this year. He had no choice, given the lack of support from his political masters and the self-appointed leaders of the gay community.

Provini said the only reason BLM and its supporters were able to take over the AGM, was because Pride is a “weak” organization.

“They are weak and allowed themselves to be bullied,” he said, adding that people he knows were “furious” that BLM hijacked last July’s parade.

“Pride has lost its way ... You’re either inclusive or not inclusive,” he said.

He said some of his gay friends have actually changed their travel plans so that they’re out of the city during the Pride festivities and others are worried that it “may get ugly” this year.

Provini hopes attendance by the LGBT community at the parade and other festivities will be “way down” and that an inclusive Pride BBQ will be held instead on Toronto Island.

“Toronto Pride has an opportunity to change its mind,” he said. “BLM is a hate group ...it really concerns me ... For them to be attacking other minorities it’s not good, especially the LGBT minority.”

SLevy@postmedia.com