LGBTQ+

This was the first Lesbian and Gay Pride Day in Toronto that coincided with the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City, considered one of the sparks for the lesbian and gay liberation movement. This Pride was fuelled by anger at the recent bathhouse raids in which over 300 gay men were arrested, and by defiance in response to the rising tide of right-wing bigotry.

This section contains materials related to lesbian feminism, as well as the fight by lesbians and others in the LGBTQ+ communities for recognition, rights, and justice not only in the wider society, but also within the emerging feminist and gay liberation movements. Items also reflect cultural and social organizing based on lesbian and other LGBTQ+ identities that forged community and passed on intergenerational knowledge.

More about LGBTQ+

Key themes:

  • Understanding and defining feminism from a lesbian perspective, including the politics of lesbian separatism
  • Challenging traditional and heteronormative concepts of sexuality, relationships, family, and marriage
  • Confronting heteronormative narratives that excluded, dismissed, or invisibilized LGBTQ+ people and experiences
  • Politics of sexuality and sexual orientation, including within LGBTQ+ communities as well as the feminist movement
  • Discrimination in law, policy, and public services, including family law, healthcare, and employment

Sub-Issues

Anti-homophobia
Lesbian Parents
Lesbian Feminism

Archival Materials

Buttons

A lawyer and social activist, Barbara Hall provided legal aid for gay men arrested in the Operation Soap bathhouse raids and ran for the New Democratic Party in the 1985 Ontario election, losing to Liberal Ian Scott. Later that year, she won a seat on Toronto City Council and in 1994 was elected as Mayor of the pre-amalgamation City of Toronto. During her tenure, she was the first mayor of Toronto to march in the Pride Parade. In 1997, she lost the election to be first Mayor of the new mega-city to Mel Lastman. In 2005, she became head of the Ontario Human Rights Commission.
Barbara Hall – Mayor for all the people

  • Year created:

    1994

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
better gay than grumpy

  • Year created:

    --

  • Region:

    National (all of Canada)

  • Language:

    English
This undated button supported lesbian and gay activism in the 1980s.
Doing It! Lesbian and Gay Liberation in the ’80s

  • Year created:

    --

  • Region:

    National (all of Canada)

  • Language:

    English
"Gay is what we make it". Undated button supporting LGBTQ activism.
Gay is What We Make it

  • Year created:

    --

  • Region:

    National (all of Canada)

  • Language:

    English
Intertwined Same Sex Gender Symbols

  • Year created:

    --

  • Region:

    National (all of Canada)

  • Language:

    English
This button supports Lesbian and Gay Pride Day in 1983 in Toronto.
Lesbian & Gay Pride Day ’83

  • Year created:

    1983

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
This was the first Lesbian and Gay Pride Day in Toronto that coincided with the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City, considered one of the sparks for the lesbian and gay liberation movement. This Pride was fuelled by anger at the recent bathhouse raids in which over 300 gay men were arrested, and by defiance in response to the rising tide of right-wing bigotry.
Lesbian & Gay Pride Day – 28 June 1981 – Toronto

  • Year created:

    1981

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
Lesbian & Gay Pride Day ’82

  • Year created:

    1982

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
The Simon Nkoli Anti-Apartheid Committee (SNAAC) was formed in Toronto in the mid-80s. The SNAAC was active on anti-apartheid work within the LGBT community in Toronto and on anti-homophobia organizing within the anti-apartheid movement. Nkoli was a South African gay anti-apartheid activist, working with the Congress of South African Students (COSAS) and with the United Democratic Front. In 1984, he was arrested as one of the Delmas 22 when South African police attempted to crush ongoing protests against rent hikes. In 1983, Nkoli joined the Gay Association of South Africa, which was predominantly white and later formed the Saturday Group, the first black gay group in Africa.
Lesbians and Gays Against Apartheid

  • Year created:

    1985

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
This button was produced by Gay and Lesbians Against the Right Everywhere (GLARE) which organized the June 1981 Lesbian and Gay Pride march in Toronto, building on the mass resistance to the gay bathhouse raids earlier that year. The rally and march were focused on celebrating lesbian and gay lives and resisting a rising tide of right-wing bigotry, ongoing police violence, lesbian mothers losing custody of their children, firings of lesbian and gay workers, and censorship in the mainstream media. GLARE also organized against the visit of Anita Bryant to Toronto and for inclusive, anti-homophobia and gay-positive education at the Toronto Board of Education.
Never Again – Fight Back (Gays & Lesbians Against the Right Everywhere)

  • Year created:

    1981

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
This is a button protesting the bathhouse raids carried out by the Metropolitan Toronto Police on February 5, 1981 that resulted in the arrest of just under 300 men. These raids and the consequent rallies organized in protest are considered a turning point in the organizing for LGBTQ+ rights in Canada.
No More Shit! Toronto, 6 Feb 81

  • Year created:

    1981

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
This button was created by the Canadian Labour Congress/Congrès du Travail du Canada (CLC-CTC) to show labour solidarity with LGBTQ+ activism and union members.
Solidarité Pride Fierté – Canadian Labour Congress/ Congrès du Travail du Canada

  • Year created:

    --

  • Region:

    National (all of Canada)

  • Language:

    English and French
The art show Still Sane hit the Vancouver art scene in 1984. It told the story of Sheila Gilhooly's entrapment within the phychiatric system in the late 60s and early 70s, when homosexuality was still a category in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual and sexism was rife in the profession. Twelve months later the book Still Sane rolled off the presses of the local feminist publisher Press Gang, bringing the show's compelling mix of feminist, lesbian and mad politics to a wider audience.
Still Sane

  • Year created:

    1984

  • Region:

    British Columbia

  • Language:

    English

Documents
International Women’s Day Celebration

  • Year created:

    1974

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
International Women’s Day Toronto (1979) – Pamphlet

  • Year created:

    1979

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
International Women’s Day Toronto (1984) – Pamphlet

  • Year created:

    1984

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English
thumbnail of Organize IWD 1979 – Flyer
Organize IWD 1979 – Flyer

  • Year created:

    1978

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English

Ephemera
Dykes on Mykes T-shirt (front/back)

  • Year created:

    --

  • Creator:

    Deborah VanSlet

  • Region:

    Ontario

Films

Film still from "Long Time Comin'" of Faith Nolan sitting on the left side talking to Grace Channer, sitting on the right side. Both are sitting in a forest.
Long Time Comin’

  • Year created:

    1993

  • Filmmaker(s):

    Dionne Brand

  • Language:

    English

  • Region:

    National (all of Canada)

Photos

Naomi Wall is featured in this photo taken at a demonstration by Gays and Lesbians Against the Right (GLARE) in Toronto.
Gays and Lesbians Against the Right (GLARE) Demonstration

  • Year created:

    --

  • Photographer:

    Judy Blankenship

  • Region:

    Ontario
This photo captures the Gay Men in Support of Feminists at the 1983 International Women's Day March in Toronto.
International Women’s Day 1983 (Toronto) – Gay Men in Support of Feminists

  • Year created:

    1983

  • Photographer:

    Judy Blankenship

  • Region:

    Ontario
This photo was taken at the Toronto Lesbian and Gay Pride Day march in 1982.
Lesbian and Gay Pride Day – 1982

  • Year created:

    1982

  • Photographer:

    Diana Meredith

  • Region:

    Ontario
This photo was taken at the 1982 Lesbian and Gay Pride March in Toronto.
Lesbian and Gay Pride Toronto – 1982

  • Year created:

    1982

  • Photographer:

    Diana Meredith

  • Region:

    Ontario
In this photograph, a young person is holding two placards, one saying "Lesbians United Cannot Be Defeated" and the other saying "My Parents Have a Gay Kid".
My parents have a gay kid

  • Year created:

    --

  • Photographer:

    Amy Gottlieb

  • Region:

    Ontario
Pride Toronto 1994 – TCAR and JWCEO Banners

  • Year created:

    1994

  • Region:

    Ontario

Posters
Building Bridges in 88

  • Year created:

    1988

  • Region:

    British Columbia

  • Language:

    English
Lesbian and Gay Movements Under Attack

  • Year created:

    1980

  • Region:

    Ontario

  • Language:

    English