From 1969, when Pierre Elliot Trudeau partially decriminalized homosexuality in Canada, to recently in 2021 when conversion therapy was criminalized, the evolution of the queer community continues.
“One of the best ways of reducing discrimination is by learning about history by learning about each other,” said newly appointed Alberta senator Kristopher Wells.
That’s the message from LGBTQ2 advocates as queer history month kicks off in Edmonton.
The 2024 Edmonton Queer History Month Collaborative Group led by the Royal Alberta Museum, Rainbow Story Hub Foundation, Edmonton Queer History Project, the City of Edmonton Public Libraries, the City of Edmonton Public Archives, the Edmonton Heritage Council and their Edmonton City As Museum (ECAMP) project, and the Mitchell Gallery at MacEwan University.
“We’ve made incredible progress, which is why we have to remember that we have to continue to fight not only to protect these rights but also to build a more inclusive, diverse welcoming future for everyone because I think what people don’t understand a lot is that the queer community exists in every other community in society,” said Wells.
“Our queer history doesn’t just date back to the 60s when we started becoming more visible; it actually dates back centuries but our opportunities to start telling those stories have only begun recently,” said Ron Byers a queer historian. “Back in the 60s when I came out, it was illegal to be a gay man. I could have been thrown in jail and most of the young folks today don’t understand that,” said Byers.
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Byers said that history has only recently starting to be added to the City of Edmonton archives and the Edmonton Heritage Council records.
“It’s exactly one of the reasons we have this month to celebrate is to make this invisible history visible in our community, in our schools and across our nation,” said Wells.
He added this month stands as a reminder that the fight for LGBTQ2 rights continues. He opposes legislation Alberta Premier Danielle Smith plans to bring forward later this month.
“Danielle Smith’s ‘don’t say gay, don’t say trans’ policies push queer youth back into the closet. They tell them to be silent; to be invisible and they also enable hate and discrimination to occur,” said Wells.
If passed, the policy would include requiring parental consent for pronoun or name changes in schools for children under 16 and restrict transgender youth from accessing gender-affirming health care.
The fall sitting of the legislature starts October 28th and rallies opposing the legislation are planned in Edmonton and Calgary on November 2nd.
“Adults who choose to tell children that these policies were designed to hurt them or marginalize them, that kind of rhetoric is irresponsible and unhelpful to the people involved and it is entirely false,” said smith in a video posted on her social media.
An events page for Queer History Month is here.
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