GenNext East Ontario kicked off Ottawa’s Pride Week in style with Mix & Mingle: Say it Proud — a community celebration with a side of advocacy.
For us, “Say it Proud” wasn’t just the name of our event, but a call to action about the need to act now and speak out in support of 2SLGBTQ+ rights and their diverse needs.
We partnered with Capital Pride, not only because they’re our pals and we love getting together with them. But because we stand with them in their mission to create opportunities to celebrate, advocate, educate and connect people, respecting the full diversity of 2SLGBTQ+ communities.
If you missed the event, we can’t make you a friendship bracelet or replay Larissa Desrosiers incredible acoustic set that now lives rent-free in our minds, but we can share the key takeaways from our Q&A with Fae Johnstone, a leading voice on 2SLGBTQ+ issues in Canada.
This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity. You can watch the full conversation with moderator Tony Bui on our Instagram.
“Find the cause that you care about and you will find your people.”
Q: Being an advocate can be rewarding and inspiring. It can also be emotionally demanding and overwhelming at times. How do you practice self-care in those moments, to make sure you can continue that fight?
I think one thing we learned during the nightmare that was, and continues to be, the pandemic, is that community is there when we need community most.
I actually think one of my biggest self-care strategies is to just spend time with queer and trans folks and not talk about the state of the world. And no one’s supposed to mention words like systemic homophobia, rising hate, the impending climate apocalypse or anything like that.
The other side of it, I think, is we have to let ourselves fall apart when we need to. Sometimes this world does get to be too much. I see more dread in the eyes of queer and trans people than I did five years ago. And that really does worry me because I ask like, what is the mental health impact?
"I think a lot of us feel like this hate is rising and we don't know what in God's name to do about it. But remember that we're not alone in this, that we can tap out of this, and that we’ve won this fight before."
Capital Pride Executive Director, Toby Whitfield, helped us surprise Fae with a United Way Community Builder Award during our Mix & Mingle.
Q: For folks who are becoming advocates for the first time, what additional tips do you have for somebody who is trying to avoid burnout?
Especially in my early twenties, it felt like if I didn’t organize this protest, or if I did write this op-ed, if I didn’t show up for that interview, no one else was going to. And part of that is true. On the flip side, if we take a step back, the 19-year-old kid who came out six months ago is going to be like, “I’m ready to do this.” And they will step into that space.
"It doesn't always have to be showing up at the protest. You don't have to be the person who's going and yelling things on Parliament Hill. I think that we often have one idea of leadership, one idea of what being an activist looks like."
And honestly, I wish more people would just talk to their dads. Sorry to the dads. Or that they would like to spend the five seconds writing their MP or engaging with the city councilor or resharing that brilliant op ed that somebody else wrote in The Citizen.
Advocacy and activism can look like being the shoulder someone else can cry on, being the person who is there when somebody is having a hard time.
We would be better at managing burnout if we didn’t define advocacy as always being the gal who is already a Leo and who loves the spotlight.
HEAR MORE FROM FAE
- Ottawa Citizen: March For Trans Rights calls for greater support for transgender people
- Hey Cis! Podcast: Pitchforks and Tiki Torches with Fae Johnstone
- Ottawa Citizen: As hate rises, we need straight allies to show up for queer people at Pride on Sunday
- CBC News: Trans activist won’t be shut up by backlash to Hershey campaign
Q: What actions can folks take – as individuals who want to make a difference?
Remember that queer and trans folks, shockingly, exist beyond the June to August window. And so what that looks like, supporting us year-round, is having conversations with your family, having conversations in your workplaces.
"It’s being the person who jumps in when you hear somebody make a joke about men in dresses or when you hear your colleague be misgendered. It's having the courage to say, 'I actually think that person uses they/them pronouns' or 'I love RuPaul.'”
When you’re looking at your capacity to donate, look at the local queer and trans organizations that are on the front lines. Do you know who is there when a gay kid gets kicked out of their house? It’s organizations like Kind Space. Do you know who is there when a queer or trans newcomer has had to flee a country where they’re not safe and they’re coming to Canada desperately in need of support and connection? Capital Rainbow Refuge.
And so, support United Way. Support all of the other queer and trans organizations in the city. It is not all about the money. There’s so much more we can offer. Be a volunteer. Be supportive and show up and retweet that darn link when they ask you to give them some money.
Q: Any recommendations for folks that want to be more engaged in 2SLGBTQ+ issues and advocacy?
Mix & Mingles are a great way to connect with people who are passionate about local issues and want to advocate for change.
My favourite TV show to recommend Pose. It’s set in 1990s drag and ballroom culture in New York. It is a show that depicts largely Black and racialized trans women and gay men surviving and doing their magical thing and finding community and culture in an era where hatred of our community was radically different and less polite than it is today. I also love to watch The L Word and Queer as Folk.
In terms of books, Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars by Kai Cheng Thom.
In terms of learning and advocacy, I have this wonderful new non-profit called the Society for Queer Momentum, if you want to tap into advocacy around rising hate and challenge governments to do more for queer and trans communities.
To learn more about how GenNext East Ontario works with local partners to help 2SLGBTQ+ communities thrive:
Read our stories
Find out how we're connecting 2SLGBTQ+ youth with mentors that make them feel seen and heard.
Explore our four causes
See our work on mental health, youth homelessness, diversity and inclusion, and equitable employment.
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