Tag Archives: Calgary

Our Past Matters—Five Years Later

Posted on November 8, 2023 by Kevin Allen | 1 comment

Kevin Allen launched his book Our Past Matters: Stories of Gay Calgary as the first historian in residence at the Central Library on November 22, 2018. Five years on, Kevin returns to the library to share stories of queer history he learned after the book was published. This special event, celebrating the book’s success, is happening at the Memorial Park Library on November 22, 2023, from 6-7 PM. Tickets are free (but limited); register here.

*Kevin Allen in 2023: photo Kelly Hofer*

Discover new stories of AIDS activists, enterprising community choirs, and the surprising queer history of the Memorial Park Library. Learn how infamous Calgary bus driver Everett Klippert, who spent most of the 1960s in jail for being gay, retroactively had his criminal charges reversed.

Queer history is more important than ever as we face contemporary challenges to our human rights victories. Kevin’s rallying cry is our past matters!

Bonus: A limited edition hard-cover copy of Our Past Matters will be given away as a door prize!

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1 Comment

Posted in Gay history

Tagged bisexual, Calgary, Central Library, Everett Klippert, gay, Gay history, human-rights, lesbian, Memorial Park Library, Our Past Matters, queer, transgender

herland: call for memories!

Posted on October 27, 2023 by Kevin Allen | 3 comments

Once upon a time in Calgary, there was an impressive grassroots film festival called herland (lowercase intentional). Created by the city’s feminist community, their queer programs were some of the most well-attended parts of the festival.

A new documentary project about herland is underway. Researchers are calling out to past organizers, coordinators, contractors, instructors, programming leads, managers, and directors to share memories. The filmmakers aspire to convey the remarkable grassroots vitality of herland herstory.

herland began in 1989, when a small group of women of colour connected to the Calgary Status of Women Action Committee (CSWAC) formed a collective called WOCC—or the Women of Colour Collective. WOCC members wanted to challenge both heteronormative assumptions in the women of colour community as well as white privilege in the local feminist community, which they felt was pervasive in Calgary.

WOCC members who identified as queer were part of the leadership team at herland. WOCC co-founder Susanda Yee, in 1992, would go on to found the of colour collective, which challenged racism within Calgary’s queer community.

CSWAC and WOCC hosted the first herland event as a film-focused fundraiser. Its popularity grew over time peaking at an audience of over 1700 in 2004. The festival was cancelled in 2007 for financial reasons and because of the growth of other local film festivals. In its time, herland provided a venue for films that covered a range of feminist topics not typically seen in the mainstream.

*The last herland film festival in 2007*

Were you connected to the herland festival? Please get in touch with the filmmakers at herland.doc@gmail.com. They would love to hear from you!

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3 Comments

Posted in Gay history

Tagged bisexual, Calgary, CSWAC, film festivals, gay, herland, lesbian, Of Colour, queer, transgender, WOCC

Pride Panel Announced

Posted on October 13, 2023 by Kevin Allen | 2 comments

October is Queer History Month! The Calgary Gay History Project has organized a panel to explore Pride’s local history in collaboration with Calgary Pride and the Calgary Public Library. Join us Tuesday, October 24th, at 6 PM for Calgary Pride: A Catalyst for Social Change.

To speak with us, we have found four amazing people from different points in Calgary Pride’s history: Nancy Miller, James Demers, Dallas Barnes, and Sumit Munjal.

Nancy Miller joined the Military Police right out of high school. Following her release, Nancy testified to the Canadian Human Rights Commission during their 1983 cross-country hearings on discrimination against homosexuals in the military. Nancy was recognized in 2016 with the Chinook Fund LGBTQ Hero Award for her role in coordinating Calgary’s first Pride marches and other equity-seeking actions as a member of the Calgary Lesbian and Gay Political Action Guild (CLAGPAG) in the early 1990s.

James Demers has been involved in Calgary Pride in various capacities since 2007. James is a senior strategist and equity educator specializing in gender and sexual diversity (GSD) communities. He has worked as a local community builder ranging from trans health advocacy to public education to performing and producing queer art with Fake Mustache Drag and Reading with Royalty. Currently, James is championing non-violent protest intervention strategies to address increasing misinformation and charter violations against queer citizens.

Dallas Barnes is a queer feminist, activist, and writer who has worked with Calgary Pride, Interpride, Calgary Outlink, and the Treaty 7 Dyke and Trans March. Dallas joined the board of Calgary Pride in 2008 after it financially collapsed and was part of the leadership team which moved the parade from June to September and incorporated Pride as a non-profit society.

Sumit Munjal is the current Manager of Production and Programming at Calgary Pride. Sumit is an Indian-born Canadian with a diverse communications, marketing, retail development and design background. As an avid supporter of minority groups and diversity in the workplace, Sumit takes a unique inclusionary approach to design and marketing that challenges the status quo high art. He believes the narrative of Canadian diversity needs to shift from tokenism to shared beliefs of fundamental human rights and respect for lived experience.

The panel will be hosted by the Calgary Gay History Project’s Kevin Allen.

Seats are limited. Reserve your spot (free) for Calgary Pride: A Catalyst for Social Change today.

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