Mayor Rob Ford attended the rainbow flag-raising marking the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia on after all, after indicating earlier he would not appear.

The flag-raising was designed as an outreach event and included a proclamation read by the mayor, which said all of Toronto was behind anti-homophobia.

This comes after he said he will be skipping Toronto’s Pride Parade for a second year in a row when it takes place later this summer.

Ford has said he will be at his family’s cottage for the Canada Day holiday weekend, which is when the country’s largest gay rights parade takes place. It’s the same reason he gave for missing last year’s parade — a controversial move that led some to accuse him of homophobia.

Thursday’s flag-raising ceremony was not part of Pride Week’s festivities, but was put on by the Toronto chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.

The event also featured a message sent by Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke, who is a strong supporter of gay rights. His gay son was killed in a car crash in 2010.

Ford has said that while he will be skipping the Pride Parade this summer, he may stop by some other Pride Week events depending on his schedule.

Toronto’s Pride Week runs from June 22 to July 1.

Former city mayors David Miller, Mel Lastman and Barbara Hall all marched in the Pride parade, which attracts more than one-million people and pumps millions of dollars into the Toronto economy.