1982 sees the first cases of HIV in Ottawa. On August 24, 1982, over seventy people attend a Gays of Ottawa talk on ‘gay cancers’. In August 1983, Peter Evans comes out as Ottawa’s first AIDS patient. Evans participates briefly in the first AIDS…

The Lord Elgin's queer history is legendary, and starts virtually at its opening in 1941. Located near the drill hall, it became a natural space for closeted gay and bisexual men, especially those working the government, to meet here. In the 50s and…

En anglais avec les sous-titres en françaisEn partenariat avec la ZAC de la rue Bank et Fierté dans la Capitale.

Everett George Klippert was the last person to be imprisoned for homosexuality in Canada. In 1960, he is given four years in jail on eighteen counts of ‘gross indecency’. He is arrested again in 1965, this time on four counts of ‘gross indecency’,…

Everett George Klippert fut la dernière personne à être emprisonnée pour son homosexualité au Canada. En 1960, il est condamné à quatre ans de prison pour dix-huit chefs d’accusation de « grossière indécence ». Il est de nouveau arrêté en 1965, cette…

The history of the lesbian community in Ottawa begins well before the modern queer liberation and feminist movements that started in the early seventies.Gay women were left with even fewer options to meet each other than gay men who had at least had…

En anglais avec les sous-titres en françaisEn partenariat avec la ZAC de la rue Bank et Fierté dans la Capitale.

For the first part of this series on the Lesbian and Feminist movements, click here. Marie Robertson, along with Rose Stanton and others such as Candis Graham, forms a separate organization called Lesbians of Ottawa Now (LOON) in June 1976, operating…

The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community is dis-proportionally victimized by hate crimes, bullying and assault, sometimes so consistently that the victims feel death is their only escape. While estimates of LGBT population in Canada range…

En anglais avec les sous-titres en françaisEn partenariat avec la ZAC de la rue Bank et Fierté dans la Capitale.

Gays of Ottawa (GO) which became ALGO then ALGBO as the name reflected the realities of the diversity in the community, had a nearly 25 year history from 1971 to 1995 as a queer political, social and health services organization. Started months after…

Gais de l’Outaouais (GO), qui est devenu ALGO puis ALGBO, le nom reflétant les réalités changeantes de la diversité de la communauté, a connu une histoire de près de 25 ans, entre 1971 et 1995, en tant qu’organisation politique, sociale et de…

Gays of Ottawa (GO) which became ALGO then ALGBO as the name reflected the realities of the diversity in the community, had a nearly 25 year history from 1971 to 1995 as a queer political, social and health services organization. Started months after…

Gais de l’Outaouais (GO), qui est devenu ALGO puis ALGBO, le nom reflétant les réalités changeantes de la diversité de la communauté, a connu une histoire de près de 25 ans, entre 1971 et 1995, en tant qu’organisation politique, sociale et de…

Egale Canada (Egale was originally was an acronym for Equality for Gays and Lesbians Everywhere) had started in 1985 as a queer civil rights group in the living room of Jamie Robertson. Their main initial goal was to have sexual orientation protected…

On the corner of Bank and Gilmour Streets, a mural commissioned by the Village Committee was unveiled on the 40th anniversary of the 'We Demand' demonstration, the first ever such protest in Canada for LGBT rights. It shows a young Charlie Hill…

Le 28 août 1971, une centaine de personnes en provenance d’Ottawa, de Montréal, de Toronto et des environs se sont rassemblées sous une pluie battante sur la Colline du Parlement et ont entamé une révolution discrète, mais résolue.À l’angle des rues…