Isabel C-R.

Ottawa, Ontario

Ottawa Regional Fair

The LGBT Purge

You may have heard of the Stonewall riots that occurred in the USA, but did you know that Canada was having similar issues in the civil service? Throughout this project you will be learning about what the LGBT purge was and how it has affected queer Canadians to this day.

 

What was the most interesting thing you learned about your topic?

I think the most interesting thing that I learned about my topic was how long The Purge lasted. It was really shocking to see that this had happened for about 50 years before things started to change for the better.

What important lessons have you learned that you want to share with other Canadians?

Not only did I learn so many things about Canadas LGBTQ+ history while researching my topic, but before I did my project I hadn't even heard of the LGBT purge. I was shocked when I found out that hardly anyone was taught about this major historical event, and decided on it as my topic to bring more awareness to this huge and overlooked time in Canadas history.

How would you compare your life today to the lives of those studied in your project?

Obviously life today is quite a bit better, and LGBTQ+ rights have come so far, but we still have so far to go. Especially recently, with the fight for trans rights, The LGBT Purge is a relevant topic to today that should be more talked about than it is.