The LGBT Purge Fund is very pleased to see the announcement of the five design teams that will submit designs for Canada’s LGBTQ2+ National Monument in Ottawa.

The five selected design firms clearly represent professional excellence. They have also demonstrated their commitment to diversity, inclusion and implementing the vision of the monument.

The five design proposals will be made for stakeholder and general public viewing and engagement later in 2021.

Here is a link to the government of Canada news release with more details about the design teams and the process.

Ottawa, November 6, 2020 – This week, the LGBT Purge Fund board of directors unanimously approved a resolution to resume negotiations with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) to plan an exhibition about the LGBT Purge at the Museum.

In June 2020, very serious allegations of racism and homophobia at the CMHR emerged. This situation shocked and saddened the LBGT Purge Fund and caused us to suspend negotiations to plan for a major exhibition at the CMHR in Winnipeg about the LGBT Purge. The exhibition was part of a legal settlement agreement and was directed by court order to be mounted at [...]

So far, 2020 has been a busy time for the LGBT Purge Fund. We continue to work on our projects despite the challenges posed by COVID. Here are a few updates:

• The LGBTQ2+ National Monument project is advancing nicely. We are in the process of inviting design firms to share interest and qualifications for the design the monument. The Request for Qualifications is here. The monument will be completed in 2025.
• The LGBT Purge Fund is continuing to make grants to some amazing organizations. We have provided funding to: VETS Canada to support LGBTQ2 veterans in crisis; an oral history [...]

The LGBT Purge Fund is delighted to announce the Jury for the LGBTQ2+ National Monument. The group of 10 includes experts in the fields of visual arts, landscape architecture, architecture, urban design, as well as LGBT Purge survivors, representatives from key stakeholder groups, and subject-matter specialists. Together, the members also bring diverse LGBTQ2+ voices, BIPOC perspectives, geographic and linguistic diversity, and the outlooks of those in early career stages.

The members include:

Aaron Betsky, architect Maya Desai, urban designer and planner Michelle Douglas, Executive Director, LGBT Purge Fund, and LGBT Purge survivor Grant Fahlgren, landscape architect Reverend Dr. Brent Hawkes, C.M., O.N.B, subject-matter expert Bernard Lamarche, art historian and [...]

The LGBT Purge Fund has just become aware of very serious allegations of racism and homophobia at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR), as reported in the news media.

The LGBT Purge Fund was created as a result of a class action lawsuit with the primary purpose to memorialize this tragic chapter in our history and to build reconciliation between the federal government and the LGBT community following the homophobia and other forms of systemic discrimination experienced by thousands of LGBTQ2+ Canadians who worked in the federal public service, the RCMP or the Canadian Armed Forces.

The Fund is required by the settlement [...]