C. R. Procyk
One person can make a difference
Jeremy Dias shows the way
Jeremy DiasA lot of gay kids have been victims of homophobia but few have launched campaigns to fight it. That takes a special kind of person – someone like Jeremy Dias. When Dias was in Grade 10, his family moved from Alberta to Sault St. Marie in Ontario. There he shared his secret with a few friends. Someone let his secret slip and Dias was outed. The backlash from bigoted peers was painful, but it was the school’s official stance and the school board’s subsequent unwillingness to support his efforts to raise awareness about homophobia that really stung.
Rocks and Romance
The queer community’s curious passion for curling
In February of 2000, a young Texan boarded a plane on a balmy day in Houston. He got off the plane in Calgary and walked straight into an icy Canadian winter. Sitting in his hotel room, he turned on the TV and started flipping through the channels. His attention was caught immediately by a curious display of people sliding rocks on sheets of ice in a ritualistic fashion. This was accompanied by a furious sweeping of brooms and a cacophony of shouting. “Why are they shouting,” he wondered. “And what are they shouting?
A church with a history
Augustine United led the way
Augustine United ChurchAugustine United Church sits near a bustling intersection in the city's bohemian Osborne Village neighbourhood. From the outside, its century-old stone walls, sweeping double staircases, oak doors and towering spires make it look a bit old-fashioned and conservative. But it's anything but old-fashioned and conservative.
