May 1, 1974: Cora, a women's bookmobile and resource centre, began its travels around rural and small-town Ontario. Named after pioneering Canadian suffragist Ella Cora Hind, Cora was stocked with material on feminism and lesbianism.
At the time, gay women in rural or isolated areas lacked access to this kind of information, which was beginning to empower their counterparts in major urban centres. They struggled, often alone and with great vulnerability, against homophobia. By sharing information about the lesbian feminist movement, Cora helped women develop a positive self-image and overcome their sense of vulnerability.* A few years after Cora launched, a group of women based in the Fraser Valley formed the Rural Lesbian Association. Serving small settlements in BC, they provided services that included a lending library of lesbian writings. Their goal was to build “a network of country women” able to undertake the “political and spiritual work” needed for living in rural areas.** *Warner, Tom. Never Going Back: A History of Queer Activism in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2002. ** Rural Lesbian Association, pamphlet May 4, 1972: A community forum held in Toronto to challenge myths about homosexuality was disrupted when members of a right-wing group sprayed the crowd of 450 people with tear gas. Explaining the motivation for the attack, one group member stated “We intend to prevent future displays of perversion … We object to these homosexual people elevating themselves to normality.”* The Community Homophile Association of Toronto (CHAT), which hosted the even, was one of the earliest organizations to pursue a gay and lesbian agenda of political and social change. The forum was just one example where CHAT faced hostilities that sometimes turned violent. Hours after that event, someone attempted to firebomb CHAT'S community centre. The next night, someone threw a Molotov cocktail through a window into the centre, forcing CHAT to begin guarding the facility 24 hours a day.** *Tear Gas Spray Disrupts Meeting on Homosexuality," Toronto Star, Four star ed., 5 May 1972, p. 2 ** Body Politic, No. 5, July/Aug, 1971, p. 2 Panel discussing issues related to the myths and realities of homosexuality in front of an audience of 450 before they were attacked with tear gas.
May 9, 1996: The House of Commons passed a Canadian Human Rights Act amendment (Bill C-33) adding sexual orientation as a prohibited grounds of discrimination. This historic event marked the final chapter in a 25-year battle by activists across the country to amend the federal, provincial, and territorial human rights codes so that they would collectively prohibit all forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation. Prior to this amendment, gays and lesbians were routinely dismissed or refused employment, denied access to their children in custody cases, and barred from renting properties. Phone directories would not list contact information, and newspapers would not run ads, for gay and lesbian groups. May 9, 1977: The Canadian Forces’ Special Investigations Unit confronted Private Barbara Thornborrow of the Canadian Armed Forces following an investigation that uncovered that she was a lesbian. She was told she was being questioned for reasons of national security because she was “susceptible to blackmail.” Thornborrow admitted that she was a lesbian and was given two choices: sign a document confirming her true sexuality, which would lead to her release from the service, or undergo psychiatric counselling. Thornborrow rejected both options and decided to go public with her situation, which was covered extensively by the media across Canada. Thornborrow’s campaign, while brave and unprecedented, was up against an entrenched culture of discrimination. Society viewed homosexuals as unstable, unreliable, and untrustworthy. Government considered them potential security risks or traitors who could not be trusted with access to important state information.* Consequently, homosexuals were barred from all positions deemed sensitive, including the military. Despite here efforts, Thornborrow was discharged for being a “sexual deviate” who was “not advantageously employable.” It was not until 1992 that lesbians, gays, and bisexuals were allowed to serve openly in the military. *Gentile, Patrizia and Kinsman, Gary. The Canadian War on Queers: National Security as Sexual Regulation. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2009 (l) Barbara Thornborrow speaking at gay men and lesbians conference in 1977. (r) Barbara Thornborrow at left, taking her seat after her speech.
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This page lists key Canadian LGBTQ+ events, listed by the
month in which they occurred, and sourced from records and publications housed at the CLGA.* CategoriesArchives
May 2015
*Unless otherwise noted, sources are Lesbian and gay liberation in Canada: a selected annotated chronology, 1964-1975 &
A Selected Annotated Chronology, 1976-1981 by Donald W. McLeod. |