We are delighted to share details of the Advisory Council, which has just been created to support a major project at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

Co-chaired by delegates from the CMHR and the LGBT Purge Fund, the Council will guide the development of a major temporary exhibition due to open in 2024, a travelling exhibition, a long-term exhibit in the CMHR core galleries and programs and online content.

The members of the Advisory Council are:

• Ex-officio: Michelle Douglas. LGBT Purge Fund Executive Director, Purge survivor, former Canadian Armed Forces officer. Ottawa.
• Co-chair: Douglas Elliott. LGBT Purge Fund board member, class action lead lawyer. Elliot Lake, Ontario.
• Co-chair: Riva Harrison. CMHR VP, External Relations and Community Engagement. Winnipeg.
• Mark Berlin. Purge survivor, Professor of Practice at McGill University, former Director General of International Legal Programs in the federal Justice Department, Senior General Counsel and Special Advisor to the Deputy Minister, CMHR Board Trustee. Ottawa.
• David Churchill. Professor of History, University of Manitoba, principal investigator and coordinator of the Manitoba Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Two-Spirit and Queer (LGBTTQ) Archival and Oral History Initiative. Winnipeg.
• Steven Deschamps. Purge survivor, Lieutenant-Colonel (retired), Royal Canadian Air Force. British Columbia.
• Lyle Dick. Senior Advisor, Know History Inc., former president of the Canadian Historical Association, former West Coast Historian for Parks Canada. Vancouver.
• T. Sharp Dopler. Purge survivor, former Lieutenant (N) (Retired), Royal Canadian Navy, Niizh-Manidoowag educator and activist. Ottawa.
• Monica Forrester. Program and Outreach co-ordinator, Maggie’s Sex Workers Action Project, Trans/Two-Spirit woman of colour. Toronto.
• Kathryn Foss. Purge survivor, Major (retired), Canadian Armed Forces. Ottawa.
• Patrizia Gentile. Associate Professor in Human Rights and Social Justice, Institute of Women’s and Gender Studies, Carleton University, co-author of The Canadian War on Queers: National Security as Sexual Regulation. Ottawa.
• Lynne Gouliquer. Purge survivor, former Canadian Armed Forces member, co-author of numerous scholarly articles on military “witch-hunts” against LGBTQ2+ soldiers and their families, Associate Professor in Sociology, Laurentian University. Sudbury, Ontario.
• Patti Gray. Purge survivor, former Canadian Armed Forces member, Rainbow Veterans of Canada. Toronto.
• Albert McLeod. Two-Spirit Elder, advisory council member re. Government of Canada apology for injustices faced by LGBTQ2+ communities, pioneer in HIV education for Indigenous people. Winnipeg.
• Orde Morton. Purge survivor, former Canadian diplomat. Toronto.
• Darryl Perry. Purge survivor, career executive (retired) in the Public Service of Canada, former CEO of the Canadian Association for HIV Research and the International AIDS Conference, former collaborating contributor to the Office of the Senior Advisor, LGBT Rights, UNAID/UN. Toronto.
• Todd Ross. Purge survivor, former Canadian Armed Forces member, LGBT Purge Fund board member, former president of Toronto and York Region Métis Council of the Métis Nation of Ontario. St. Andrews, New Brunswick.
• Douglas Stewart. Founding executive director of the Black Coalition for AIDS Prevention, founding member of Zami, the first Toronto Black queer group. Toronto.
• Elenore Sturko. RCMP officer and spokesperson, LGBTQ2+ activist, family members affected by the Purge. Surrey, BC.

You can read the CMHR’s full press release here.

Photo: Aaron Cohen/CMHR

OTTAWA (May 17, 2021) – Today, on this International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), and in recognition of the thousands of LGBT federal employees who were abused over 50 years during the LGBT Purge, the LGBT Purge Fund has released a new report, Emerging from the Purge: The State of LGBTQI2S Inclusion in the Federal Workplace and Recommendations for Improvement.

You can download an abstract of the report here or download the full report here.

The report is the product of a year-long study by subject matter experts from Egale Canada and Fondation Émergence who conducted consultations with the federal public service, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the Canadian Armed Forces. Emerging from the Purge presents key findings and makes 23 recommendations for improvement to support systemic change towards LGBTQI2S inclusion in federal workplaces.

 

“The history of systemic discrimination towards LGBTQI2S people in Canada’s federal workplaces is deeply troubling. Since the LGBT Purge, we have come a long way towards building inclusive federal workplaces, but it will take coordinated, deliberate, and effective efforts to promote sustainable culture change and foster truly inclusive workplaces across the Government of Canada. Emerging from the Purge is the roadmap for change.”

– Michelle Douglas, Executive Director of the LGBT Purge Fund.

 

Among the 23 recommendations in Emerging from the Purge, is a call for the Government of Canada to consult with key stakeholders – including subject matter experts, employees, and LGBTQI2S organizations – to develop and implement more comprehensive inclusivity training across all federal departments and review formal documents and policies to include LGBTQI2S considerations.

In addition to the report, The LGBT Purge Fund has published an open letter urging the Prime Minister of Canada to insist that ministers responsible for the federal public service, the RCMP, and the Canadian Armed Forces review the findings in the report and act on its recommendations.

 

“By implementing the recommendations in the Emerging from the Purge report, Canada will be a better employer, benefit from a more diverse workforce, and serve all Canadians from a strengthened position.”

– Michelle Douglas, Executive Director of the LGBT Purge Fund

 

Learn more about the LGBT Purge and our projects on our FAQ page.