Sarah
Sarah is an artist in Toronto. Having grown up in a very homophobic home she talks about coming out in her forties. She found support at the 519 Community Centre and eventually started a women’s coming out group there. You can find more about Sarah’s artwork here.
Sarah’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant. Special thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Steen
Steen, a writer and performance artist, talks about marrying young, being a mother and how feminism brought her into her queer identity.
Steen’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant. Special thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Warren
Warren is a two spirit gay man from Iskatewi-zaaga’iganiing Nation at the Manitoba/Ontario border. He is among the last in his nation to grow up speaking the language and learning traditional ways. At the time of this video he was working with the Ontario Aboriginal HIV/AIDS Strategy. Warren is now an independent consultant, advocate and educator around human rights issues, Two Spirt culture and Aboriginal culture. You can find Warren HERE
Warren’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant. Special thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Christian
Christian is a gay Asian man and at the time of this video was working in the HIV/AIDS sector in Toronto. He was Community Engagement Co-ordinator at Asian Community AIDS Services (ACAS) and the Ontario Positive Asians (OPA+) Coordinator. He talks about immigrating to Canada, his sexual history and substance and his work in the gay Asian communities.
Christian’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant. Special thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Meryn
Meryn talks about his process of becoming himself. A writer and performer, Meryn garnered an amount of fame in the early 90s for his spoken word single “The Sweater”. At the time, he was under some scrutiny from the LGBTQ press. Here, he talks about being queer in the 80s (not queer enough for some) and eventually changing his gender (but not his queerness). Rock on Meryn.
Meryn’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant. Special thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Jack
Jack talks about his experience as a young trans person and how that inspired his advocacy work today. at the time of the video Jack was the President of the Student’s Union at the University of Saskatchewan, he was also the Saskatchewan Rep for the Mental Health Commission of Youth Council, the Saskatchewan Rep and Vice Chair for the National Indigenous Youth Council on HIV and AIDS, and was on the Aboriginal Peoples Patient & Family Advisory Council in the Saskatoon Health Region.
Jack’s story is one in a series recorded in conjunction with Out Saskatoon, in 2014. Heart felt thanks goes to the sponsors of this series: media-net.bc.ca in Victoria, BC and www.outsaskatoon.ca in Saskatoon, SK. Special thanks to Liz Senecal at Out Saskatoon.
Andrew
Andrew talks about coming out as queer and the double whammy of being queer with a disability. He has an open and disarming way about him and has made it his goal in life to help bring the level of discomfort around disability to something more manageable for everyone. Andrew is a disability awareness consultant and a public speaker and can be reached at: www.andrewgurza.com. Visit Andrew’s website to find out more about the #deliciouslydisabled campaign.
Andrew’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History GrantSpecial thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Sandy
Sandy talks about growing up and coming out in South Western Ontario. She began volunteering with People Living With AIDS at the beginning of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. Sandy shares her continuing insights from working in this field, about the meaning of family, and reaching her fifties.
Sandy’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks go to the sponsors of this series: Media Net in Victoria, BC, Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant Special thanks to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Andrée
Andrée talks about coming out in a small town in Quebéc and eventually finding the lesbian community in Montréal. Andrée has worked for most of her life on LGBT political causes including being on the board of the Canadian AIDS Society and is still involved with LGBT issues in her current position at CSN – the Confédération Des Syndicats Nationaux (Confederation of National Trade Unions). Andrée tells her story in both French and English.
Andrée’s story is one in a series recorded at World Pride in Toronto, Ontario in 2014. Heart felt thanks goes to the sponsors of this series: MediaNet in Victoria, BC and Trinity Square Video in Toronto and The Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, Lynch History Grant. Special thanks goes to Milada Kovacova at Trinity.
Wes
Wes’s Story was recorded in November of 2014 in Saskatoon SK. at the Avenue Community Centre (Now OUT Saskatoon). It was with great sadness that I learned that Wes passed away on October 10th, 2015 in Edmonton, AB. Wes was a perpetually cheerful, glass half full (especially in a Star Trek outfit) kind of guy. He consistently produced his own writing (author of four books and a book of poetry), promoted fellow Saskatchewan Writers and literature through his Shaw Cable show ‘Lit Happens‘, and taught workshops on self-publishing and promotion. Wes will be sorely missed. Wes always found the good in people and situations, and never apologized for who he was or how flaming a creature he truly was. Rock on Wes.
Wes’s story is one in a series of videos that were recorded at OUT Saskatoon, in November of 2014. Heart felt thanks goes to the sponsors of this series: media-net.bc.ca in Victoria, BC and www.outsaskatoon.ca in Saskatoon, SK. Special thanks to Liz Senecal at OUT Saskatoon.