17 Iconic 2SLGBTQ+ Canadians We’re Celebrating This Pride

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Happy Pride Month! Every year, folks from crossed Canada and astir the globe flock to the rainbow-painted streets of Toronto to observe pride. If you're unaware of however iconic we are arsenic a metropolis and country, Toronto hosts 1 of the largest Pride parades successful the satellite (after São Paulo, respectively).

And yet, contempt the unthinkable attendance and agelong legacy, Pride Toronto struggled to rise capable wealth past twelvemonth aft respective companies withdrew their support. With a shortfall of astir $900,000, it came down to the assemblage to measurement successful and effort to span the fiscal gap. While the City of Toronto and caller partners contributed, determination were besides implicit 175 idiosyncratic donors who were capable to rise implicit $10,000.

Those idiosyncratic efforts became a beauteous illustration of however we tin marque meaningful alteration successful our assemblage erstwhile we enactment together. And for Toronto-based activist, contented creator and exemplary Myles Sexton, being capable to amusement up and springiness backmost to the queer assemblage is thing they're profoundly committed to, "So overmuch of my enactment is intertwined with advocacy due to the fact that from a precise young age, I followed my imagination to go the idiosyncratic I privation I knew existed erstwhile I was younger."

We got an accidental to chat with Myles astir Pride Month, their advocacy work, and however we tin each amusement up for the 2SLGBTQIA+ assemblage this Pride:

How excited are you to observe Pride this year?

"Pride feels particularly important this year. Across the world, we’re witnessing a rollback of rights for galore trans radical and a diminution successful Pride visibility successful communities crossed Canada. That’s wherefore showing up matters. It’s important for radical to spot that we’re inactive here, celebrating, connecting, and uncovering joyousness together. Pride has ever been astir resilience arsenic overmuch arsenic celebration, and this twelvemonth feels similar a almighty reminder that adjacent successful the look of challenges, our communities proceed to thrive, enactment 1 another, and instrumentality up space."

Pride Toronto is 1 of the largest parades successful the world, but had to scramble to get capable backing past year. What was your absorption to the nonaccomplishment of backing implicit the years contempt the increasing popularity of Pride?

"We’re seeing a existent backing situation crossed the committee —not conscionable for Toronto Pride, but for 2SLGBTQIA+ charities and assemblage organizations crossed the country. Fewer donations tin mean less situation calls answered, longer waits for support, and greater barriers to accessing care, treatment, and assemblage resources. At a clip erstwhile immoderate governmental voices are increasing louder successful their efforts to undermine oregon rotation backmost LGBTQ+ rights, it’s captious that individuals, corporations and assemblage partners don’t measurement back. Continued enactment for Pride and for the organizations doing this enactment year-round isn’t conscionable symbolic—it has a tangible interaction connected the lives and well-being of LGBTQ+ radical crossed Canada."

What are immoderate tangible and adjuvant ways that everyone tin springiness backmost to 2SLGBTQIA+ communities during Pride?

"It starts with education. I would promote everyone to instrumentality the clip to recognize what each missive successful the 2SLGBTQIA+ acronym represents and the divers experiences and communities it reflects. Greater knowing helps physique empathy, situation misconceptions, and make much inclusive spaces. But consciousness unsocial isn’t enough—action matters.

Can you speech astir your ain fundraising initiatives and wherefore this enactment is soimportant to you and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community?

"This Pride Month, I’m partnering with CanadaHelps to rise wealth for 5 charities that are incredibly important to me: CANFAR, Egale, Rainbow Railroad, Skipping Stone, and The Two-Spirited People of the First Nations. I wanted to bash thing that could person a existent impact. My extremity is to rise consciousness astir the challenges they’re facing and promote radical to enactment them nevertheless they can. Even a tiny donation tin marque a meaningful difference."

What are you astir arrogant of successful your life, career, and activism?

"I grew up successful a agrarian farming municipality successful Nova Scotia, and I didn’t turn up seeing radical who looked similar maine oregon loved similar me. Getting to exemplary successful large advertisement campaigns and person Safer Spaces trainings successful tiny towns are what marque maine truthful arrogant due to the fact that I tin spot the affirmative interaction it’s having."

Are determination immoderate Canadian activists, artists, figures that you truly respect and would similar to springiness a shoutout to?

And determination are adjacent much queer Canadians we should beryllium celebrating too! Here's a small database of the astir iconic 2SLGBTQIA+ celebs successful Canada:

1. In 2025, Lauren Chan made past arsenic the archetypal openly queer pistillate to look solo connected Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover. The Canadian model, editor, and nationalist talker came retired successful an essay she wrote the mag conscionable 2 years before, capturing the precise existent acquisition of starting your queer travel aboriginal successful life."

2. From his archetypal gig arsenic a VJ connected MTV Canada and a abbreviated stint connected Degrassi successful the aughts to writing, producing and starring successful his ain award-winning amusement Schitt's Creek alongside drama legends Catherine O'Hara and Eugene Levy, Dan Levy has had a precise agelong and precise Canadian-coded vocation successful television. In an interrogation Dan talked astir the value of making a amusement that was escaped of homophobia, "You don't privation to needfully picture a wholly unrealistic mentation of life, but determination was thing precise fascinating successful the exploration of projecting a mentation of our satellite that was kinder and much empathetic, and by not showing the homophobia."

3. Elliot Page came retired arsenic trans successful an Instagram station successful 2020, aft years of struggling with his queer identity. In 2023, helium released his bestselling memoir Pageboy, wherever helium opened up astir his journey, sharing stories of his childhood, his vocation successful Hollywood, and his acquisition being 1 of the astir disposable trans celebs successful the world.

4. Sook-Yin Lee is thing abbreviated of a queer legend. You astir apt knew her arsenic a MuchMusic VJ successful the '90s, but the Vancouver autochthonal has created an unthinkable assemblage of enactment arsenic a musician, filmmaker, histrion and artist. One of her astir caller projects, the 2024 movie Paying for It, is an adaptation of Chester Brown's graphic caller that explores the themes of enactment idiosyncratic rights, queer rights, and women's rights.

5. Devery Jacobs was successful the mediate of filming American Gods erstwhile she decided to travel retired arsenic queer. In an interview, she shared that she felt inclined to travel retired aft speechmaking a survey from the Trevor Project and learning that of each queer younker of colour, Indigenous younker were much apt to dice by suicide, "For maine it didn't truly consciousness similar an enactment to beryllium successful the closet. It's important for maine to beryllium capable to person immoderate visibility for that agrarian autochthonal kid connected a res determination who feels similar they're trapped oregon feels similar they can't travel out."

6. Mae Martin has ever been unfastened astir their bisexual identity, often weaving anecdotes of their experiences arsenic a stand-up comedian and writer. In the past decade, Mae has written and starred successful Feel Good, a semi-autobiographical drama bid that explores the complexities of sex and intersexual fluidity and Wayward, a thriller mini bid wherever they play a transgender constabulary officer.

7. When k.d. lang came retired successful a 1992 interrogation with The Advocate, it was during the tallness of the AIDS epidemic successful North America. In a aboriginal interview, she shared that she thought it was the close happening to do, "I conscionable felt similar I was astir apt going to beryllium outed and I truly felt similar it was the societal responible happening to do."

8. Tegan and Sara's vocation whitethorn person started arsenic an indie popular duo from Calgary, but successful the past decennary they've released 3 books and a tv amusement based connected their 2019 memoir High School. The duplicate musicians person utilized their level to enactment with grassroots organizations and 2SLGBTQ+ communities done their eponymous foundation.

9. Catherine Hernandez is an accomplished playwright and writer champion known for her archetypal novel, Scarborough, which was adapted into an award-winning movie successful 2021. When she's not writing, Catherine hosts workshops and literate readings for up and coming artists crossed literature, film, and theatre.

10. Vivek Shraya is simply a multi-hyphenate creator who's enactment spans film, television, music, and ocular art. After graduating from University of Calgary with a Masters successful Creative Writing, she returned arsenic an subordinate prof to mentor the adjacent procreation of artists. She precocious released a caller medium Vivica and her has a caller book, The Hystericals, coming retired aboriginal this year.

11. Jeremy Dutcher is simply a Two-Spirit singer-songwriter and ethnomusicologist who advocates for Indigenous sovereignty and 2SLGBTQIA rights. They transcribed euphony from hundred-year-old wax cylinders made by his ancestors into modern compositions. Their debut medium earned respective awards including the 2018 Polaris Music Prize and Indigenous Music Album of the Year astatine the 2019 Juno Awards.

12. Brooke Lynn Hytes roseate to fame aft appearing connected the eleventh play of RuPaul's Drag Race. She went connected to becoming the big and pb justice of Canada's Drag Race, and has worked with respective organizations to combat against anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ+ authorities and rise wealth for queer folks and resistance artists to person amended entree to healthcare.

13. Montreal autochthonal Kaytranada has been breaking barriers and winning awards successful the physics euphony abstraction since helium released his debut medium 99.9%. Just a fewer years aft coming retired arsenic cheery during an interview successful 2016, helium went connected to triumph 2 Grammys successful 2021 (for Best Dance/Electronic Album for Bubba and Best Dance Recording for "10%").

14. Zaiba Baig is an accomplished histrion and playwright. Best known arsenic the creator and prima of the award-winning tv bid Sort Of, Zaiba uses her level to advocator for amended trans practice successful the arts and started her ain mentorship programme for the adjacent procreation of trans artists.

15. Anna Paquin has been a vocal advocator for bi visibility. In 2010, the Winnipeg-born histrion came retired arsenic bisexual successful a run organized by Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Fund to rise consciousness for the information and rights of the LGBTQIA2S+ community. In a aboriginal interview, she said it was casual for her to do, "Everyone successful my backstage beingness knew. It conscionable felt weird being assumed to beryllium consecutive due to the fact that I was joined to a man."

16. And finally, Orville Peck has been a queer icon since helium stepped into the spotlight, bringing much-need practice into the state euphony scene. He famously performed a screen of "Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond Of Each Other" with state creator Willie Nelson, and has been recognized with respective awards including Vito Russo Award astatine the GLAAD Media Awards and Elton John Impact Awards for utilizing his level to advocator of the queer community.

🌈 Who are your favourite queer Canadian stars, activists, creators? Leave their sanction successful the remark conception truthful we tin observe them, too!

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