IN Magazine: July/August 2019 by IN Magazine

JULY / AUGUST 2019

WHY IS PrEP SO INACCESSIBLE IN CANADA? WHERE DO WE GO AFTER POLICE PRIDE BANS?

VIVEK SHRAYA TURNS HATE INTO ART 1

IN MAGAZINE

JULY / AUGUST 2019

inmagazine.ca PUBLISHER Patricia Salib GUEST EDITOR Christopher Turner ART DIRECTOR Prairie Koo COPY EDITOR Ruth Hanley SENIOR WRITER Paul Gallant CONTRIBUTORS Fraser Abe, Bobby Box, Colin Druhan, Ryan Emberley, Adriana Ermter, Bianca Guzzo, Courtney Hardwick, Vanessa Heins, Jeremy Hs, Kinga, Karen Kwan, Paul Langill, Moe Laverty, Ivan Otis, Paul Pereira, Michael Pihach, Jumol Royes, Adam Segal, Fredsonn Silva Aguda, Kahmeelia Smith, Doug Wallace, Casey Williams DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND SPONSORSHIPS Reggie Lanuza MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS MANAGER Bradley Blaylock CONTROLLER Jackie Zhao

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JULY / AUGUST 2019

VIVEK SHRAYA: Shot exclusively for IN Magazine by Vanessa Heins

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CONTENTS

Gillette went viral in May with an emotional new ad featuring a dad teaching his trans son (Toronto-based artist and activist Samson Brown) how to shave

Issue 89

July / August 2019

INFRONT

FEATURES

06 | ALTERNATIVE AGING Want to look your best, but don’t want to go under the knife? No problem. Join the non-invasive anti-aging ranks

15 | SO YOU WANT TO BE AN ALLY The journey begins with a smile

08 | MOVING BEYOND THE BUSINESS CASE FOR QUEER AND TRANS INCLUSION Why the work of inclusion is so important 10 | 2020 COMES EARLY WITH THESE SLEEK RIDES Get ready to celebrate! 11 | WILL HE LEAVE HIS OPEN RELATIONSHIP FOR ME? Am I being absurd to think that it will ever happen? 12 | SWEAT IT OUT Wait. You mean we don’t really sweat out toxins? 13 | BRING YOUR OLD AND UNUSED MEDICATIONS TO REXALL FOR SAFE DISPOSAL August is National Drug Drop-off Month 14 | ON THE TOWN Scenes from the party circuit

16 | THE FACES OF HIV ADVOCACY Meet six Canadians who are working to make a difference – and be inspired to join the club 18 | WHY IS PrEP SO INACCESSIBLE IN CANADA? Even though the medication helps sexually active Canadians avoid the threat of contracting HIV, the cost deters many Canadians from actually buying it 20 | STOP RELYING ON THAT BODY The way LGBT folks relate to our bodies may be making us miserable 22 | NETFLIX’S TALES OF THE CITY IS A NEW CHAPTER IN AN ICONIC STORY Embrace your chosen family at 28 Barbary Lane 24 | VIVEK SHRAYA AND THE BEAUTY OF TURNING HATE INTO ART The author and Canadian LGBTQ icon is back with a brand new graphic novel, Death Threat, that mirrors a scary reality from her own life

28 | PLASTIQUE FANTASTIQUE! The Season 11 Drag Race queen opens up about representation, leaving her mark, and having an iconic drag mother 44 | WHERE DO WE GO AFTER POLICE PRIDE BANS? Let’s determine what the benchmarks are – and, more importantly, how they might be achieved 46 | CURAÇAO CRUSH The gem of the southern Caribbean yields the best of island life, with an exquisite icing of European chic to make things even more interesting 50 | FLASHBACK: AUGUST 12, 2009 IN LGBTQ HISTORY Harvey Milk is posthumously awarded the Medal of Freedom FASHION 32 | DOWNTOWN BOYS Slick summer styles and downtown vibes 42 | WEAR YOUR PRIDE Wear it loud, wear it proud all summer long

LOOKING GOOD

ALTERNATIVE AGING Want to look your best, but don’t want to go under the knife? No problem. Join the non-invasive anti-aging ranks By Adriana Ermter

Have you ever wondered what other people think when they look at themselves in the mirror? Are they mentally high-fiving themselves for looking great, or are they cringing while they fumble to find the biggest pair of sunglasses they own? Chances are, both. But here’s where it gets interesting. According to a March 2017 report published by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, the number of non-surgical procedures (a.k.a. no knives) increased by seven per cent in 2016, and was 38 per cent higher than in 2012.

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Don’t get us wrong, looking young and radiant is still coveted, but the way we realize it is changing. Many are now joining the rising non-invasive age-erasing trend by seeking alternative ways to eliminate fine lines and wrinkles and to achieve the firmer, plumper, tighter skin associated with the proverbial fountain of youth. The answer: easy-to-access over-the-counter creams, face masks, serums and more. “Cosmetics companies have stepped up, creating skincare products to guard against aging and to prevent further damage from pollution, smog and the sun’s ultraviolet rays and repair the dermis,” affirms Dr. Sandy Skotnicki, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto and a dermatologist at the Bay Dermatology Centre. “Men and women alike are overworked and overstressed, and our defence system is weakened, so our skin cells are not able to defend themselves” – at least, not without the right products. So bigwigs like The Ordinary, Indeed Laboratories, Dermalogica, NeoStrata 6

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and more are mix-mastering their way to create everyday prevention, protection and treatment opportunities that don’t require stepping inside a cosmetic surgeon’s office. The age factor No one wants to get older, and yet aging is inevitable. Pollution, smog, and the sun’s UVA (aging) and UVB (burning) ultraviolet rays are a given. They’re difficult to avoid and can cause clogged pores, a dull complexion, constricted blood vessels and damaged cells; accelerate the production of free radicals in the skin; and deplete collagen and antioxidants. While the body creates antioxidants to help prevent cellular damage, regular exposure to environmental stressors often results in age spots and wrinkles. “It happens with every breath we take; oxygen radicals age in every cell in our body, including our skin,” says Dr. Skotnicki. The alternative solution Products are quickly becoming the alternative anti-aging solution. Those containing exfoliating charcoal and hydroxy acids as well as smoothing fruit enzyme-based antioxidants, like Dermalogica’s Daily Superfoliant ($83, available at dermalogica.ca) and NeoStrata’s Anti-Aging Peel Solution (from $78, available at Shoppers Drug Mart), promise to help reduce inflammation; eliminate grime, pollution and dead skin cells; and tackle free radicals, eradicating age spots and fine lines. And everyone is promoting moisturization. While hydration is the first step in skin defence to reduce premature

aging, the right infusion of vitamins is key in helping you get the results you need. Toronto-based Indeed Laboratories’ Vitamin c24 ($25, available at Shoppers Drug Mart) contains the purest form of vitamin C (22% L-ascorbic acid) to help protect your skin from damage caused by environmental stressors, while keeping your face baby-soft and smooth. “Wearing an SPF, like our InDefense30 ($20, available at Shoppers Drug Mart), is also a non-negotiable in order to defend from harmful UVA/UVB rays,” says Dimitra Davidson, Indeed’s president and COO. If you want to maintain optimum skin care without ever needing the assistance of a Botox of filler-filled syringe, it’s crucial to use mild formulations of lactic and hyaluronic acids and retinol. They absorb into your skin slowly, rejuvenating moisture and removing dead skin cells. Additionally, products containing hyaluronic acid encourage skin cell renewal and water retention. How do they work? As your skin ages, it becomes drier and its ability to retain water lessens, resulting in diminished firmness and fine lines. Face products containing hyaluronic acid can rehydrate your skin, giving it a plumper appearance; as well, they can protect it from the environment, sun exposure and harsh chemicals; and

help you postpone the necessity of taking a more invasive route such as an eyelift or a vampire facial. Acne-prone? No problem. Retinol-based skin care can help fight pimples and blackheads, while simultaneously reducing wrinkles, stimulating collagen and promoting cellular turnover. Lactic and hyaluronic acids and retinol all even out skin tone and increase blood flow to the skin, making products like The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% +B5 ($7, available at Sephora) and Indeed Laboratories’ bakuchiol reface pads ($20, available at Shoppers Drug Mart), a natural retinol alternative, safe and convenient to use – not to mention an affordable alternative to more traditional treatments like facelifts and collagen injections. “By creating products with results-driven formulas, we are able to give consumers an option if they don’t feel comfortable with invasive treatments,” says Davidson. “We believe our products are essential for daily maintenance, even for those individuals using invasive treatments. While some seek out invasive treatment in hopes of altering something, everyday products are a way of helping your skin do what it is meant to do naturally.”

ADRIANA ERMTER is a Toronto-based, lifestyle-magazine pro who has travelled the globe, writing about must-spritz fragrances, child poverty, beauty and grooming.

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PRIDE AT WORK

MOVING BEYOND THE BUSINESS CASE FOR QUEER AND TRANS INCLUSION Why the work of inclusion is so important By Colin Druhan

Diverse teams are more creative. Workplaces with a broad variety of perspectives get better results. When people are able to bring their authentic selves to work, they perform at higher levels and are more productive. These are all star lines from the script for selling diversity and inclusion in the workplace. They are some of the points that make up the ‘business case’ for increased support for LGBTQ2+ people in the area of employment. In my role at Pride at Work Canada, I lean – a lot – on these and similar statements to get buy-in from employers. I have seen the evidence to back up these assertions, and I’m very comfortable putting the business case forward, but I have to admit that increasing productivity is not exactly what inspires me to do my job.

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As a queer person, I have first-hand knowledge of what it’s like to be discriminated against because of my sexual orientation. Years of working directly with LGBTQ2+ communities have afforded me knowledge of the countless barriers to employment that are currently in place for queer and trans people, impediments that keep many of us out of the workplace and in poverty. Over a quarter of Canada’s homeless population is LGBTQ2+. Throughout my career I have come into regular contact with people who are not out as LGBTQ2+ at work because they are deeply afraid it will impact their prospects for advancement or, in some cases, their physical safety. I want to see more people from queer and trans communities have access to good jobs and I want everyone in Canada to feel safe going to work. That’s really why I do the work I do. The truth is that I would do it even if there wasn’t a business case to support my efforts. That’s why I was excited to hear from Sarah Kaplan, the director of The Institute for Gender and the Economy at the Rotman School of Management, at a recent symposium on women in the workplace presented by the Government of Canada at the University of Toronto in May. In her keynote, Kaplan spoke about rebooting the gender equality conversation, and questioned whether we have perhaps leaned on the business case too much in our work to promote workplace inclusion. Kaplan, with Canadian Women’s Chamber of Commerce CEO Nancy Wilson, spoke specifically about women in the workplace in The Globe and Mail in March. Of the business case for gender equality, Kaplan and Wilson wrote that it “is designed precisely to remove emotion from decision-making, but the latest research points out that the emotional sense of outrage about inequality is what can drive disruptive action.” Their point was not that the business case is irrelevant or wrong. To the contrary: there is evidence that diversity of all kinds is good for business. However, relying on the business case alone has not resulted in a ton of progress. The fact is that many of us have been hammering the business case for inclusion for years, but right now almost as many Fortune 500 companies have a CEO named John as are led by women. More than half of LGBTQ2+ people in Canada are not

IN MAGAZINE

out at work. The average income for people of colour in places like Toronto has been going down while incomes for non-racialized people have risen. Maybe it’s time to look beyond overly pragmatic proposals and get to the heart of the matter. An increasing number of researchers have taken a scientific lens to the question of whether the business case is less or more persuasive on social issues in a corporate environment. According to research findings published in the Harvard Business Review by David M. Mayer, Madeline Ong, Scott Sonenshein and Susan J. Ashford, “economic language was never significantly related to effectiveness” when making decisions about how to address social issues like sustainability or diversity and inclusion. Based on their many studies, they conclude that changing the narrative to include moral language “may be a more useful influence strategy for persuading managers to create social change.” Also in the Harvard Business Review, Alison Taylor of BSR (a global non-profit that promotes sustainability), said, “Frankly, I’ve never attended a meeting at which a doubtful executive was won over solely by a business case for integrity, no matter how persuasively it was delivered.” She argues that based on her experience driving social change in the private sector, a focus on purpose needs to accompany any business case. “If we try to make a case for integrity solely using these short-term operational planning tools, we miss a bigger opportunity,” she writes. This ability to see, and speak to, a broader idea of what is possible through social change is particularly relevant when supporting LGBTQ2+ communities. The history of the global movement for queer and trans rights is full of examples where doing the morally right thing provided good business results. The UK organization Stonewall was founded in 1989 with a specific mission to fight for the rights of bisexual, gay and lesbian people. When Ruth Hunt, the organization’s then CEO, announced in 2015 that Stonewall would also start advocacy and education work on trans issues, she faced backlash. A vocal group of bisexual, gay, lesbian and straight protesters said they would cease donating to Stonewall if the new direction was adopted. Looking back on the decision upon her exit from Stonewall this year, Hunt explained to The Guardian that the organization had a moral responsibility: “Our lack of trans inclusion was baffling – why would we work with 800 employers and tell them everything about how to monitor sexual orientation and not tell them about trans? It was preposterous.” Given the threats to the organization’s bottom line through an anticipated decrease in donations, one could say she didn’t have a leg (or a business case) to stand on. However, the change contributed to huge growth for Stonewall, in part due to public interest in content about gender identity and gender expression. Donations

went up. Stonewall almost doubled its revenue and staff team in less than five years. “We’ve lost a few donors but we’ve gained a huge number,” explains Hunt, adding that Stonewall has created “relationships with people who wouldn’t be working with us now if we weren’t trans inclusive.” The business case for allowing gender and sexual minorities to participate equally in the workforce is clear: provide the best candidates with access to jobs – regardless of their gender expression, gender identity or sexual orientation – and your business will do better. Provide an environment in which people can focus on their job without feeling the need to hide part of who they are, and performance will increase. Researchers, advocates like Hunt and academics like Kaplan are not recommending that this case be forgotten. They are simply pointing out that there is a big problem with it being the sole focus of those looking to advocate for change. Stereotypes and myths about LGBTQ2+ people persist and pervade workplaces. The issue with focusing only on business cases for inclusion is that they tend to ignore the simple truth that biphobia, homophobia and transphobia (and, for that matter, ableism, racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination) are not typically advocated for or introduced through any kind of formal business process. They are inherent parts of workplace culture and, whether we like it or not, acknowledge it or not, they impact everyday decisions like hiring and promotion.

In Kaplan’s symposium keynote, she referenced her article in Rotman Management Magazine titled “Because it’s 2017: Gender Equality as an Innovation Challenge,” which reminds everyone of what systems are currently at play. She writes in the article: “We are all jointly producing and perpetuating a system that is biased and so, we are going to have to collaborate in order to solve the problem,” and she encourages companies to look at inclusion as an opportunity for innovation. She explains, “The demand for a business case perpetuates the existing ways of doing business, because we are being asked to make a case within the existing system – instead of thinking about how to change that system.” After Kaplan spoke at the Government of Canada’s symposium, remarks were delivered by Patty Hajdu, the minister of employment, workforce development and labour. She reflected on her years before entering politics, when she was running a shelter that provides basic needs, dignity and comfort to those living in poverty in her hometown of Thunder Bay, Ont. She recounted that some of her matter-of-fact appeals for funding or government support went unanswered. Speaking to the crowd of business leaders attending the event, she openly wished that she had more powerfully emphasized the moral imperative that drove her work forward, and vowed to think differently moving forward. The minister finished by thanking Kaplan for reminding her to look beyond dollars and cents to why the work of inclusion was so personally important to her. Silently, I did as well.

COLIN DRUHAN is the executive director of Pride at Work Canada, a not-for-profit organization that empowers employees to foster workplace cultures that recognize LGBT employees. For more information, visit prideatwork.ca.

WHEELS

2020 COMES EARLY WITH THESE SLEEK RIDES Get ready to celebrate! By Casey Williams

While 2020 won’t officially roll in for many more months, it has already thrown confetti on the automotive world. From a cache of crossovers to a track-ready luxury coupe, flamboyant American sedan and all-road wagon, these are rides that will have you waiting for the New Year with champagne in hand. 2020 Lincoln Corsair Lincoln’s return to proper names continues with a compact crossover that flaunts muscular style channelled from the larger Aviator and a focus on silent travel with its posh interior protected by active noise cancellation. Owners can use their phones as customizable smart keys that automatically configure the car to their preferences. Delight in the Revel audio, head-up display, wireless phone charging, standard Wi-Fi, and 24-way adjustable seats with massagers. Choose a 250- or 280-horsepower turbo-four engine. Five drive modes will suit everybody. 2020 Subaru Outback Subaru’s icon gets a makeover via crisper lines and XT Onyx off-road edition with blackedout grille and wheels. Interiors are dominated by a tablet-style touch screen, Harman Kardon audio, head-up display, and Wi-Fi. Beneath the hood is a new 260-horsepower 2.4-litre turbo-four. Subaru’s EyeSight crash avoidance system, with forward collision avoidance and active lane centring, is standard. It will even monitor your face and sound an alert if you are not paying attention to the road ahead. All-wheel drive is, of course, standard. 2020 Toyota Highlander Beyond the bold, chiselled new design is much substance. The available 240-horsepower hybrid system is 17 per cent more efficient than the previous version and employs electric rear motors for all-wheel drive. Drivers can use the shifter for battery charging on demand. There’s also a 295-horsepower V6 on the menu. A futuristic three-row interior is graced with a large info screen, Amazon Alexa capability, Wi-Fi, JBL audio and head-up display. Safety is enhanced by a crash avoidance tech that includes lane tracing, pedestrian detection and radar cruise. 2020 Cadillac CT5 Sexy Caddy swagger is repackaged in an all-new sport sedan with rakish design language inspired by the recent Escala concept. Notice the fastback roofline, edgy lines and finlike vertical tail lights with horizontal elements. Cabins are awash in layered leather, wood, Bose audio and large screen with rotary controller. Safety is enhanced by a full suite of crash avoidance tools and Cadillac’s highway focused Super Cruise hands-off automated driving system. Putting it down-road is 237-horsepower turbo-four or 335-horsepower twin-turbo V6. All-wheel drive is optional.

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2020 Lexus RC F Track Edition A limited-production model for hardcore enthusiasts, developed with help from Lexus race teams, this fast coupe harbors a 472-horsepower V8 to rocket it from 0-100 km/h in under four seconds and to 270 km/h. Carbon ceramic brakes, BBS wheels and titanium muffler further enhance performance – as do a lightweight carbon fibre hood and roof. Visual intoxication comes from red brake calipers, front splitter with canards, and carbon fibre wing. The interior is luxuriously sporty with red leather seats, sueded accents and carbon trim. Drive until it hurts!

CASEY WILLIAMS is a contributing writer for Gaywheels.com. He contributes to the New York-based LGBT magazine Metrosource and the Chicago Tribune. He and his husband live in Indianapolis, where Williams contributes videos and reviews IN MAGAZINE to wfyi.org, the area’s PBS/NPR station.

Am I being absurd to think that it will ever happen? By Adam Segal

Dear Adam, For the past two years I have been involved in a mostly sexual relationship with a man who is already in an open relationship with his primary partner. They’ve been together for about six years; he tells me that they are miserable and that he plans to eventually end their relationship and prioritize being with me. He’s been promising this for at least a year, but I don’t see him budging at all. I know it must be hard to end a long-term relationship, but I’m getting resentful for having to wait this long and wondering if I’m being absurd to think that it will ever happen. How do I know whether or not I should hold on to this? We have a great connection, the sex is incredible, and I haven’t met anyone that I feel this strongly about before. I’m scared to throw something away that I might never find again, but the whole thing leaves me feeling rejected. How do I make sure I’m not losing myself? —Philip Dear Philip, The concern here is that what you have with this guy exists in a sort of vacuum. I don’t doubt that you have an incredible time together and earth-shaking sex, but it’s really hard to know what a steady and committed relationship with him would be like even if he gave you both that chance. With your current arrangement, you exist in a fragmented aspect of his life. I’m sure he’s pumped to see you each time because you offer him a time-out – a chance to step away from his complex and stuck relationship into something fun and unfettered. It probably feels great to be the person he gleefully escapes with, but that isn’t what will sustain a relationship longer-term.

Your frustration stems from how you both experience this arrangement so differently – you’re left in a frustrated limbo, and he benefits from getting to maintain the status quo with his main squeeze while getting mini fantasy breaks with you. In short, you have more to lose and are probably more motivated to change the situation than he is. I believe that your feelings for him are deep, but your fear of missing your one shot at big love (and that belief is hurting you too) might be keeping you stuck in something unhealthy. It seems you’re approaching a crossroads: will you call it all off and leave yourself available for something more satisfying? Or will you get real with him, tell him what you need, and see if he actually takes action? Either way, you’ll feel more empowered than you do now.

ADAM SEGAL, writer and therapist, works in private practice in downtown Toronto. Ask him your relationship or mental-health questions at @relationship@inmagazine.ca.

RELATIONSHIPS

WILL HE LEAVE HIS OPEN RELATIONSHIP FOR ME?

HEALTH & WELLNESS

SWEAT IT OUT Wait. You mean we don’t really sweat out toxins? By Karen Kwan

Nothing like a good sweat, right? But other than regulating your body’s temperature, there’s a lot of talk of what perspiring can do for you. When you go to hot yoga, do you have buckets of toxins pouring out of your pores? Will a session at places like Shape House in the US – where the Kardashians reportedly go – or the Dew Sweat House in Toronto have you sweating your way to a slimmer body, better mood and a good night’s sleep? We looked to the experts and research to determine if good things really do come to those who sweat.

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Sweating will not help clear your acne Although it might seem like sweating would help rid your skin of what ails it (including acne), in fact sweating can make your acne worse if you don’t wash it off. “For people prone to acne on the forehead and back, I recommend taking a shower after working out. And for sports where you use helmets or headgear, clean the equipment afterwards and wash your face or at the very least use a facial wipe,” says Dr. Julia Carroll, a dermatologist based in Toronto. She adds that in predisposed people, sweating can exacerbate a yeast infection called tinea versicolor, which is caused by a yeast that lives on the body. “It takes time to show up, so you might go on a Caribbean holiday and work out, and then experience a flaky, patchy rash of white and brown spots weeks later.” Sweating may help prevent infections If it seems like you’re always getting sick and you wish you could walk around with disinfectant to sanitize every surface, you might want to consider regular sweaty workouts instead. According to research conducted at Eberhard Karls University Tubingen in Germany, human sweat appears to contain an antimicrobial peptide called dermcidin, which has been found to fight certain germs and pathogens. 12

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You don’t sweat out toxins Well, not in a significant way. Although research has found some traces of bisphenol A (a chemical found in plastics and resins) and heavy metals in sweat, this hasn’t been found to have an impact on your health. “It’s not the skin’s job to get rid of toxins; your liver and kidneys clear toxins,” says Dr. Carroll. “The hot yoga and toxins thing is overblown.” Sweating doesn’t burn calories Sweating doesn’t burn many calories in and of itself, so simply perspiring on a hot day as you lounge by a pool with a margarita in hand doesn’t equal torching a ton of calories (if only!). You may sweat enough liquid to cause you to lose water weight – but that’ll be temporary. Sweating won’t make your muscles more pliable, but… When your muscles are warm – which means you’re probably sweating – they’re more pliable, which is why warming up before a workout is recommended. “You want to start with an easier pose before moving into deeper ones that require more flexibility,” says Dave Sewell, a registered kinesiologist and certified exercise physiologist with Leslieville Kinesiology. “Your body increases blood flow to your muscles, so you’re physically warmer and nutrients are supplied to your muscles so you’re better able to perform.” That said, Sewell adds, there is not a lot of research into whether hot yoga in particular (in which you’re warm both inside and out) definitively works better than any other kind of yoga at allowing you to go deeper into postures. “You do the same thing in a hot yoga class: start with easier poses and progress into deeper poses,” he says.

KAREN KWAN is a freelance health, travel and lifestyle writer based in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter at @healthswellness and on Instagram at @healthandswellness.

August is National Drug Drop-off Month

Medications are a vital part of our lives, and they play an important role in treating various conditions and diseases. When these medications are no longer required or expire, they need to be safely disposed of – and that includes the cough and cold medications, ointments and pain medications that you may have in your home. Safe disposal of medication is necessary to ensure that old, expired or no longer needed medications are not accidentally used or are intentionally misused. Safely disposing of medication also ensures that unnecessary chemicals and products are not released into the environment. At Rexall, we understand that safe disposal of medications is key to keeping you and your loved ones safe. In an effort to support safer homes and communities, your local Rexall Pharmacy offers a Medications Take Back service year-round, at no charge. Simply drop off your old and/or expired medications to any Rexall Pharmacy for safe disposal. If you aren’t in the habit of doing this already, this is the perfect time to start: August is National Drug Drop-off Month. Why should I clean out my medicine cabinet? It is important to check your medicine cabinet and home regularly for medications that are old, expired or no longer needed, to ensure they are disposed of quickly and safely. Old, expired and unused medications can be accidentally used or intentionally misused, which can put the ones you love and others in your home (including pets and children) at risk. To avoid accidents and misuse, remember to keep all medications out of reach in a non-accessible place.

As well, the incorrect disposal of medication can have a negative impact on our environment. Flushing drugs down the toilet or throwing them in the garbage has led to traces of pharmaceuticals being found in soil and water. Currently, levels are very low but as the use of medications increases, the buildup of this waste over time can have detrimental effects on us and our environment. Your Rexall Pharmacy has access to a specialized service that ensures safe and proper disposal of medications.

Additionally, medications that have passed their expiration date – including over-the-counter (OTC) products, vitamins and minerals What can I take back to my local Rexall Pharmacy? – may start to degrade and become less effective with age. Some You can return: expired medications can also become dangerous as they degrade, • All prescription medications (such as ointments, tablets and capsules) so it is best to dispose of them right away. • Over-the-counter (OTC) products (such as cough syrup and pain medications) Where do I take all my old, unused and expired medications? • Natural health products (such as vitamins and supplements) One of the easiest, safest and most convenient ways to dispose of your • Inhalers and devices (such as epinephrine autoinjectors) unwanted medications is to bring them to your local Rexall Pharmacy. • Needles or sharps in appropriate disposal containers (for your safety Your Rexall Pharmacist is happy to help facilitate the correct and and the safety of our staff, needles and sharps will be accepted only safe disposal of all your old, unused and/or expired medications at if they are in appropriate sharps containers, which you can obtain no cost to you! Your local Rexall Pharmacy will accept all returns, from your local Rexall Pharmacy) including medication that was not purchased at Rexall Pharmacy. To find your nearest Rexall Pharmacy, go to rexall.ca/storelocator. For additional information on the safe disposal of different types of medications and OTC products, speak with your Rexall Pharmacist. Why should I safely dispose of my old, unused, expired medications at my Rexall Pharmacy? Visit your local Rexall Pharmacy today to learn more about how Having old, expired and unused medications in your home can easily your Rexall Pharmacist can help you safely dispose of unused, put you and your loved ones at risk of accidental use or intentional unwanted and expired medications and OTC products. Together, we misuse. In fact, according to Drug Free Kids Canada, one in 10 can keep our homes, communities and the environment healthy and teens admit to having taken a legal prescription drug in the past safe for everyone. year to get high, and 55 per cent of those kids say they took them from their home. Help keep your community safe and healthy by Brought to you by safely disposing of old, unused and expired medications.

HEALTH

BRING YOUR OLD AND UNUSED MEDICATIONS TO REXALL FOR SAFE DISPOSAL

ON THE TOWN

SCENES FROM THE PARTY CIRCUIT By Michael Pihach

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Green Space Festival Launch Just A Taste at The 519 - Photos courtesy of Green Space 1: Brody Jones, Ryan Stark, 2: Steven James, Jacq Hixson-Vulpe, Eli Carmona, Lisa Gore-Duplessis, 3: The Illustrious Blacks, 4: Yvie Oddly, Tynomi Banks. Inside Out Film and Video Festival Rainbow Carpet - Photos by Moe Laverty 5: Andrew Murphy, Andria Wilson, 6: Kit Williamson, 7: Tyler Jensen, Mark Patton, Roman Chimienti. Operanation Tall Tales at Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts - Photos by Ryan Emberley 8: Frank Griggs, Jeremy Laing, 9: Odessa Paloma Parker, Mary Symons, Alex Filiatrault, 10: Ryan McGovern, Sadhisha Ambagahawita, 11: James Temple, 12: Sepideh Moazzani, Sergio El-Azzi.

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PRIDE

So You Want To Be An Ally The journey begins with a smile By Jumol Royes Brought to you by Crest

It’s just a smile, but it can make a difference. For a female university student nervously sharing a story about a same-sex kiss and coming out as a lesbian to one of her friends, or a transgender woman telling a guy she’s trans and would like to go out on a second date, or a drag performer being seen in drag for the first time by their dad, a smile is more than just a smile – it’s a signal of support and a sign of an ally in the making.

inhibition,” says Jay Strut. “As much as I sometimes feel like I should keep certain things to myself to protect others, being part of this campaign reminds me that I am not living to protect others, but to live my best life – and that’s really what Pride Month is all about.” We like that the campaign amplifies the voices of people in marginalized communities and sends a message that even small acts of kindness – like a smile – can have a meaningful impact.

Crest believes that support starts with a smile and that a smile can help serve as a positive first step towards building strong “By making our stories heard, it creates a allyship with the LGBTQ community. As dialogue that might not have happened part of its #CrestSmileWithPride campaign otherwise. It would have made a huge (which includes billboards, posters difference in my coming out if I had seen something like what Crest is doing,” says and social media conversations), the brand has partnered with three Toronto- JuiceBoxx, a self-described “drag unicorn princess.” based LGBTQ influencers – Vanessa Webster (@v_webs), Jay Strut (@jaystrut) Because ally is an action word, Crest is also and JuiceBoxx (@juiceboxxofficial) – to actively working to raise $50,000 (double create video vignettes where they share the amount raised last year) in support of their real stories of when a smile turned tension into acceptance. The hope is that the the Green Space Festival and year-round campaign will inspire others to do the same. programs at The 519. “For me, being a part of this campaign really means being completely proud to share who I am and my journey without

“At Crest, we believe in the power of a healthy, beautiful smile,” says Neil Mistry, Crest Canada’s brand director. “Our latest

#CrestSmileWithPride campaign, now in its third year, captures real stories from the LGBTQ+ community. The stories highlight key moments where a simple smile can truly make a difference to those who need it most. We hope this campaign will inspire all Canadians with its ‘support starts with a smile’ message.” While a smile is always a good place to start, there are other practical and proactive steps you can take on the journey towards becoming an ally (as outlined in The 519’s guide to being an effective trans ally): Beside You may need to stand beside someone to support them. Listen to them and walk with them through an experience. In front You may need to stand in front of someone to help them avoid harm and hurt. Behind You may need to stand behind someone to support them, recognizing that they are the experts and know what is best for them. Just remember: a supportive smile can be the first step in impacting someone’s life.

JUMOL ROYES is a Toronto-based writer, content creator and communications strategist with a keen interest in personal development and transformation. Follow him on Twitter at @Jumol.

THE FACES OF HIV ADVOCACY

HIV ACTIVISM

Meet 10 Canadians who are working to make a difference – and be inspired to join the club

HIV activism in Toronto continues to be strong, but increased attention to the issue and resources to community-based groups will be crucial to ending the epidemic. In the spirit of Pride, we celebrate people working in HIV activism who continue to make a difference in our communities every day. There are so many ways to make a difference, and there is no better time to get involved than during this important Pride season. Haran Vijayanathan Executive Director, Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention (ASAAP) HIV is a chronic manageable illness in Canada; people are living longer and healthier lives with HIV. This is great news! But, sadly, many in the LGBTQ+ community still stigmatize the disease and those living with HIV. You can end the stigma and discrimination through your volunteer engagement with the many AIDS service organizations in Toronto – and if you are someone who is of South Asian or Middle Eastern background, please consider volunteering with ASAAP! The more visibility of our folks in the work, the more conversations happen within our families and communities. When conversations happen, education happens. Through education we can chip away at stigma and discrimination while creating safer spaces for those living with HIV, and can reduce the number of new infections through raising awareness! Matt Hyams, Brandon Hamilton and Barrett Morrison Co-Founders, The Red Dress Ball We saw an opportunity and really wanted to make a big bang by raising some significant funds. Together we combined our efforts and the skills that we already had in organizing events, volunteer management, and engaging our networks. Over the course of many months of hard work, The Red Dress Ball was born. Getting into volunteering in the HIV sector is easy, and it can certainly be a ball! If you’re looking for something different, reach out to a local HIV/AIDS charity or service provider and ask whether your professional skills could be of benefit to them. Alternatively, ask them if there’s another way to show your support. Even condom packing parties make a difference, and they’re a great activity to bring a group of friends to. Volunteering with people you love is great motivation to get into the spirit of giving back, and to meet new people too! Matthew Halse Manager, Community Relations and Communications, ViiV Healthcare Canada I began volunteering in the HIV sector when I was 16 and I haven’t looked back since. My role at ViiV allows me to help foster grassroots programs and services as well as policy that helps folks living with HIV get on treatment and, hopefully, thrive.

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To end HIV in Canada, we need more voices at the table driving a multifaceted response to an ongoing epidemic: diverse people living with HIV, LGBT groups, Indigenous groups, folks who use drugs, governments, funders, pharmaceutical companies and youth. Only then can we tackle the root causes of HIV, which continue to impact health, access to information, well-being, and access to services. The nature of HIV is shifting as people are aging, as funding erodes, and as an opiate crisis continues without an adequate response. We need people like you to join our cause and volunteer for one of the many agencies in Toronto providing crucial front-line services! Dr. Jill Andrew MPP Toronto–St. Paul’s, Ontario NDP Official Opposition Culture Critic As a Black queer woman, I know first-hand the impact anti-Black racism, sexism and homophobia can have on our individual and collective health. For community members and loved ones living with HIV/ AIDS, these social determinants of health – among others like access to equitable housing and health services, poverty, immigration status and violence against women – have a tenfold effect. We must all do our part to support our communities. Supporting community can take many forms: volunteering with and/or donating to local HIV/AIDS organizations; joining their education, arts/culture and awareness campaigns; or even committing on a daily basis to doing your part engaged in any work that helps to end social stigma and systemic discrimination still associated with HIV/AIDS. If you are interested in volunteering or donating, go for it! Attend volunteer or information sessions, learn about programs and services offered, make many new friends along the way and sign up to support. There is no help you can offer that will ever be too little or too late. We are community, and the best thing we can ever do is show up with love for each other however we can.

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Andre Ceranto Peer Program Manager, Casey House I started volunteering in the HIV sector because when I needed help and support from AIDS service organizations, they were there for me. Volunteering was my way to say thank you and give back to the community. What I did not know was that I was going to get so much more that I thought I was giving. I learned so much about HIV/AIDS, about sexual health, about the LGBT community and, most importantly, about myself. I also had the opportunity to meet wonderful, skilled, compassionate and resilient people who were my inspiration to keep moving forward and to be where I am today. Working in volunteer management, I have learned that people decide to get involved for different reasons. The common denominator is they feel good because they are having a positive impact and helping others.Working in peer engagement, I notice and that being able to give back not only gives peers satisfaction but is part of their empowerment and healing process.

John Maxwell Executive Director, ACT I’m currently co-chair of the Gay Men’s Health Hub task group of Toronto to Zero – an ambitious city-wide drive to make new HIV transmissions rare and ensure people with HIV lead long healthy lives, free from stigma and discrimination. While numerous task groups have been formed, I am very excited about our plan to develop a space where gay, bi and other guys into guys can receive sexual health services – services like HIV and STI testing, access to PrEP, linkages to doctors if they test HIV positive, and mental health and substance use supports such as one-on-one and group counselling sessions and workshops – all in a warm and inviting space that celebrates us in all of our diversity, and is a place for community programming and connections. Other cities in Canada and across the world have developed these hubs, and Toronto is long overdue.

Tammy C. Yates Executive Director, Realize I wasn’t born in Canada. I don’t self-identify as a member of the LGBTQ2S+ community. I’m not living with HIV. Now that I’ve told you who I’m not, let me share with you who I AM! I am a Black heterosexual Roman Catholic woman, originally from the Caribbean who immigrated to Toronto seven years ago, who has worked in the HIV/AIDS sector for over 13 years and who is a staunch LGBTQ2S+ ally. Why is this important to share? Because many would expect that due to several of the labels that I wear, I would not be the ‘typical’ volunteer in this area – but quite to the contrary... When it comes to giving of your time, experience, wisdom and energy in a voluntary capacity, we need all hands on deck! Long before I started working in the HIV/AIDS sector, I volunteered in it and to this day, some of the closest people in the world to me and some of the richest pearls of wisdom I’ve learned in life have come from the countless volunteers in this sector who give back in order to make a difference. Now, we’d like to welcome you to the fold! Believe me, you’ll gain immeasurably more than you can imagine. Carlton King, Kistsipawakasi (Blackfoot name: “Striped Deer”)HIV/AIDS Educator, 2-Spirited People of the 1st Nations What would make someone get involved in supporting those living with HIV / AIDS is the knowledge that great strides are being made in medical research on HIV / AIDS and that HIV+ people are living longer, healthier, and more productive lives as a result. I believe that a cure will be found in the near future and while we wait for that cure we need to include in our personal and work lives our HIV+ brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, relatives, friends and neighbours. By including them in our lives, we will help get rid of the stigma associated with HIV / AIDS. As an HIV/AIDS educator, I am grateful and thankful to the HIV+ people I am dealing with for the education they are providing me. They are strong, intelligent, resilient and precious. I believe they will survive. To them, I say, “Thank you! Meegwetch!”

PrEP

WHY IS PrEP SO INACCESSIBLE IN CANADA? Even though the medication helps sexually active Canadians avoid the threat of contracting HIV, the cost deters many Canadians from actually buying it By Bobby Box

I’ve been a sex writer for the better half of the decade, and I am an openly bisexual man. That being the case, many people are surprised that I am not on PrEP, the daily oral medication that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says reduces the chances of being infected with HIV by over 90 per cent. Don’t get me wrong, I want to be on it. But as a freelance writer, I don’t have insurance, and without insurance, PrEP and similar drugs are heinously overpriced and unaffordable.

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I know I am not alone. Access to PrEP can be difficult, even with insurance. A co-worker, who recently switched insurance companies, described the experience of obtaining PrEP as “one for the ages,” adding that he “couldn’t imagine the difficulty [of getting it] without work insurance, even though you always hear of programs to help out.”

For instance, there is universal coverage of PrEP in British Columbia and Alberta, but not in Ontario, where the provincial government offers a host of different programs (most of which, I will add, are incredibly difficult to navigate). There are also programs offered by the federal government that cover PrEP for Indigenous people with status cards and for refugees. There are many programs (provincial and federal) that people can apply to for prescription drug coverage. But again, eligibility for coverage varies among the provinces and territories. Fanous uses Ontario as an example. “Depending on age, income and disability, someone in Ontario may be eligible for OHIP+ [for those over 25 years of age with a health card and no other private plan coverage], Ontario Disability Support Program [ODSP], Ontario Works [OW] or the Seniors Program [65 years or older],” he says. “All Ontarians with a valid health card in the province [OHIP] are eligible to apply for the Trillium Drug Program.”

The truth is, it’s extraordinarily difficult, even with the programs available. To help better understand the process, IN spoke with Michael Fanous, a pharmacist and the owner of MedsExpert.ca in Toronto, which bills itself as “Canada’s only LGBTQ pharmacy.” It’s worth mentioning that when yours truly called Trillium to The centre boasts an all-queer staff dedicated to helping clients inquire about PrEP coverage, the woman on the phone responded, navigate the complicated and often confusing insurance landscape “What’s PrEP?” in Ontario. Costs associated with PrEP Below is key information for those seeking PrEP in Canada. (Note: There are four generic versions of emtricitabine-tenofovir DF (the In many instances in this article, “PrEP” is used as a blanket term generic name for the medication used to treat HIV), priced around to categorize all HIV prevention medications available in Canada.) $200-$280 per month for those without insurance in Ontario. Truvada (the brand name drug) is priced around $1,000 per month. Access to PrEP is different in every province Every province and territory has its own program for pharmacare. “However, it is my hope that one day Ontario will follow suit with

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BC and Alberta in giving universal coverage to all people taking antiretroviral drugs [for PrEP, or PEP (an option for someone who thinks they’ve recently been exposed to HIV) or HIV treatment],” Fanous says. If using the Trillium Drug Program, then prescription drug costs are covered entirely once the person’s quarterly deductible is satisfied. However, there are stipulations to this plan. People who make over $75,000 per year will not reach their deductible if they are using it for their PrEP prescription only. Clients who are covered by ODSP, OW, OHIP+ or the Seniors Program should not have to pay anything, but there may be an annual deductible for some high-income seniors.

the LGBTQ+ communities that stems from misinformation and a lot of individuals who are unwilling to update their knowledge of HIV treatment and prevention,” Fanous says. There are many online and brick-and-mortar resources available that can help connect you with proper medical professionals, including MedsExpert and Rainbow Health Education in Ontario. Once you’ve found an informed resource, simply follow the doctor’s orders; they will handle the rest. Will HIV medications ever be accessible to all? In order for HIV medications to become universal, it is important to educate not only the LGBTQ+ community, but also primary care providers to be competent and comfortable in HIV, which is not exclusive to the LGBT community.

With private insurance, what you’ll spend on PrEP depends on the plan. Typically, if someone has private drug insurance that covers “We understand that gay, bisexual and other men who have 100 per cent of the cost of their medication and dispensing fee, PrEP sex with men are at the highest risk of HIV, but so are other costs nothing. However, if someone has 80 per cent drug coverage, communities,” Fanous says. “Indigenous and Afro-Caribbean they will pay roughly $50 per month (or a much steeper amount if Canadians as well as IV drug users are all at high risk of HIV, they are prescribed Truvada). and yet so many providers are not informed about the science behind pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis or HIV prevention The recommended process to obtain PrEP in those populations.” The first step to getting on PrEP is to visit a healthcare professional who is familiar with all aspects of HIV prevention, including For that reason, he continues, there needs to be a two-pronged counselling, medication, and links to the necessary care and resources. approach to fighting this stigma: educating community members and updating the professionals who should be serving them. In Unfortunately, a discernible number of medical practitioners are doing so, we’re benefitting our community so that we can be not familiar with HIV-prevention drugs and will not be of much use. better served by those dedicated to our health. “There remains a lot of HIV-related stigma both in the medical and

BOBBY BOX is a prolific freelance journalist in Hamilton, Ont. He currently works as contributing editor at Playboy.com and has had the privilege of speaking with the world’s most recognized drag queens, including Trixie Mattel and Alaska Thunderfuck. While proud of his work, Bobby is not above begging. He asks that you follow him on Twitter at @bobbyboxington.

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SELF-ESTEEM

STOP RELYING ON THAT BODY The way LGBT folks relate to our bodies may be making us miserable By Fraser Abe

A muscle-bound Adonis, whose handle is something like “TheRealJohnSmith94”, thirst traps in his underwear (you can get a pair just like it with his promo code!), a coffee cup somewhere in the frame. The caption: “Don’t even talk to me before I’ve had my coffee!” Thirty unrelated hashtags and emojis follow. It’s a common scene on Instagram, especially among the gay community. But what does scrolling through thousands of perfectly buffed and polished (and FaceTuned) bodies do to the average gay man’s self-esteem? Research shared by the US National Eating Disorders Association shows that gay men represent 42 per cent of males with eating disorders, even though they are thought to represent only five per cent of the male population. A 2016 study in Psychology of Men and Masculinity found that gay men were more likely than straight men to feel pressure from the media to be attractive (58% versus 29%), and to report dissatisfaction with their physical appearance (29% versus 21%) and muscle size/tone (45% versus 30%). Meanwhile, a 2016 study published in the Archives of Sexual Behaviour found that body dissatisfaction significantly predicted elevated depressive symptoms. So, is everyone miserable, or what? And why?

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There are a lot of possible culprits. A study published in the Archives of Sexual Behaviour in 2018 found that gay and bisexual men consumed greater amounts of sexually explicit material (porn) than straight men, and that more consumption was linked to a more negative body attitude and both depressive and anxious symptoms. The authors of the study are quick not to blame porn, however. In an interview with Vice Magazine, author Jeffrey T.

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Parsons, a professor at Hunter College and founder of its Center for HIV Educational Studies and Training, said, “We’re very conscious in this study about not being porn-negative. There are a lot of benefits to sexually explicit media. For some gay men, that’s how they learn about sex. For gay men who are not in West Hollywood or New York, who don’t have access to the same number of potential partners, porn can also help them have a more satisfying sexual life.” Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) was added to the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) in 2013, under a section on obsessive-compulsive disorder. Much of the public discussion exists as personal essays on the subject, but a common theme among these is that there is a desire to attain the standard of beauty set by the media (which often places toned, able-bodied, white, cisgender men at the top of the pyramid). Most gay men can recall being mercilessly bullied in the playground for being too femme, too girly, too swishy to play with the other boys, and some may feel that being muscled with eight per cent body fat makes them “masculine.” Then there are the apps: Grindr, Scruff, Hornet, Chappy…the list goes on. “No fats, no femmes” is a common refrain seen on those, even if couched as “just a preference.” These highly image-focused platforms have been found to increase muscular dissatisfaction and eating disorder symptoms, especially compared to nonimage-focused platforms like Wordpress. That also includes apps like Instagram, where men like the aforementioned Internet personality display as much flesh as allowed while selling diet teas and their OnlyFans accounts.

The drive to push one’s body to its limits is certainly not new (or confined) to Olympic sports, but US men’s figure skater Adam Rippon took it to extremes in 2016, when he was only eating three slices of whole-grain bread a day topped with tiny dollops of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter, all washed down with three cups of coffee, each sweetened with six packs of Splenda. Rippon told the New York Times that the diet “makes me dizzy now to think about.” In the same article, two other male figure skating Olympians, Brian Boitano and Johnny Weir, both out gay men, talked about their history with food restriction. Weir said he’s happiest consuming one meal a day, always before 5 pm, and otherwise drinking coffee. For a treat, a small piece of dark chocolate or a spoon of caviar would do, he said. Boitano said that in competition, he almost never exceeded 1,800 calories a day, even though he expended far more than that. The athletes contend that the caloric restriction is for the sport – but contrast their diets with Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps’ famous 12,000-calorie diet, and one wonders if their status as members of the LGBT community could play a role.

Body issues are not limited to just gay men. One 2016 study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, found that trans university students were more likely than cisgender heterosexual women (often seen as the face of eating disorders) to exhibit disordered eating behaviours, including abusing weight loss pills and vomiting. Many (though not all) trans folks report having some degree of gender dysphoria (the feeling of discomfort between the gender assigned to you at birth and the gender you are), and may engage in behaviour to try and force their bodies to change. For trans men, this might include dieting to inhibit breast and hip growth and stop menstruation. For trans women, disordered eating might be perceived as more feminine. Non-binary people may strive to be thin and lanky, like many famous androgynous models. This season, when summer body memes are in full force (a Google search shows 62 million results), remember to be kind to yourself. Having a body means having a summer body, and the only thing that’s certain about your body is that every day it’s the youngest it will ever be, so enjoy it while you can.

FRASER ABE is a Toronto-based writer. His work has been published in Toronto Life, The Globe and Mail, Sharp Magazine, NOW Magazine and more. When he’s not busy writing, he’s shrieking Gia Gunn quotes at his boyfriend, Colin.

STREAMING

NETFLIX’S TALES OF THE CITY IS A NEW CHAPTER IN AN ICONIC STORY Embrace your chosen family at 28 Barbary Lane By Courtney Hardwick

Murray Bartlett as Michael “Mouse” Tolliver and Laura Linney as Mary Ann Singleton in Netflix’s Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City

Family is important, but as many LGBTQ+ people know, a family doesn’t necessarily mean you’re related by blood. In fact, sometimes the most important people in your life are the ones you choose. Armistead Maupin’s original Tales of the City book series, which spans from 1978 to 2014, is all about the people you choose to have in your life – the ones who really get you.

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Netflix’s new limited original series, based on the books and following in the footsteps of three previous miniseries, is described by the streaming giant as the “lasting value and importance of a chosen family, who fully embraces and accepts you just as you are. Whether you are rejected by your biological family or just not fully understood, your chosen family provides a haven as you navigate through the sometimes-turbulent journey of discovering your true self and who you want to be in this world.” The new iteration – which can be enjoyed as a standalone series or as a continuation of the original characters – is set in present-day San Francisco. Mary Ann Singleton (Laura Linney) has returned to 28 Barbary Lane to celebrate the 90th birthday of Anna Madrigal (Olympia Dukakis), a woman well-known in the community for giving LGBTQ+ people a home and somewhere to feel like they belong. Despite Mary Ann’s decision to leave San Francisco years before, she clearly still has a soft spot for the city and the people she met while she was there – but she also has a few relationships to mend. Linney and Dukakis both appeared in Showtime’s 1998 and 2001 miniseries, and have reprised their roles. Ellen Page, Paul Gross, 22

Zosia Mamet, Molly Ringwald and Murray Bartlett (among many others) also make appearances. Netflix’s new chapter is also notable for its all-LGBTQ writer’s room, including Andy Parker, Patricia Resnick, Marcus Gardley, Jen Silverman, Hansol Jung and Thomas Page McBee. The directors are also part of the LGBTQ community, including trans directors Silas Howard and Sydney Freeland. Armistead Maupin published the first Tales of the City novel in 1974, which was around the same time he came out as gay. The series featured characters from across the LGBTQ+ spectrum and over the years touched on timely issues such as the AIDS epidemic. Its close connection to the real world makes the series an important representation of the LGBTQ+ experience and how it has evolved. For example, in the first episode, a young trans couple talk about whether it’s a good thing that they “pass” as a straight couple to strangers. The world wouldn’t be what it is today without the wide variety of individuals who have fought to be who they are, and Netflix’s new Tales of the City chapter is another reminder that LGBTQ+ characters deserve to be well-rounded and nuanced rather than just another iteration of the token gay friend. Barbary Lane represents a place where anyone can feel accepted no matter who they are – and isn’t that what we’re all ultimately looking for?

COURTNEY HARDWICK is a Toronto-based freelance writer. Her work has appeared online at AmongMen, Complex Canada, Elle Canada and TheBolde.

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Keep moving your way From coast to coast, we encourage diversity—it’s part of what makes each of us unique and proud to be Canadian.

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Vivek Shraya

and the Beauty of Turning Hate Into Art The Author and Canadian LGBTQ icon is back with a brand new graphic novel, Death Threat, that mirrors a scary reality from her own life By Christopher Turner

The idea of turning hate into art is complicated, but it’s nothing new. After all, our afflictions are often inseparable from what we love. Throughout the years, countless artists have attempted to flip the script and turn pain into something more positive. Canadian LGBTQ icon and multidisciplinary artist Vivek Shraya now stands among those brave artists. An assistant professor of creative writing at the University of Calgary, Shraya has established herself as a unique voice in Canada’s LGBTQ community through her music, art and writing. Shraya’s accolades and achievements are countless. She’s released several solo albums and has also released music as one-half of the duo Too Attached, with her brother Shamik Bilgi. Her album, Part-Time

Woman, which she recorded with the Queer Songbook Orchestra, was nominated for a Polaris Prize. But Shraya is most recognized for her writing. She has published several essays and is the founder of the publishing imprint VS. Books. She is also the author of God Loves Hair (2010), She of the Mountains (2014), even this page is white (2016), The Boy and the Bindi (2016) and the much-praised memoir I’m Afraid of Men (2018), a poetic examination of the misogyny, homophobia and transphobia she has experienced throughout her life and the cumulative damage it has caused. It’s safe to say that Shraya hasn’t been afraid to make waves through her art. Throughout the past decade, her work has challenged stereotypes, tackled systemic racism, dissected the concept of white privilege, fought for gender nonconformity and empowered voices that are seldom heard in popular culture. Last year, when Penguin Canada released I’m Afraid of Men, it took North America by storm, contributing to an overdue cultural shift towards greater inclusivity. Grammy-nominated Canadian indie duo Tegan and Sara Quin deemed the book “essential reading for everyone,” and Vanity Fair declared it “cultural rocket fuel.” So where does one go after international media appraisal? In May, Shraya released Death Threat, a slim hardcover graphic novel she created with Toronto artist Ness Lee and colourists Emmett Phan and Heng Tang, about the fear and the fascination she felt because of the hate and harassment she was subjected to by one internet troll in particular.

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“A couple of years ago I started receiving these messages that were very disturbing,” Shraya told me when we spoke recently. “They weren’t your typical hate mail or trolling.… It was somebody saying they were chanting my name in their house hoping that I would die. They were referencing my family.” The transphobic messages were vivid, descriptive and terrifying. Some messages were even not-so-veiled death threats. “Your name was shouted at my place as someone who has to die,” read one. Some were filled with a combination of Hindu terminology 24

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Shot exclusively for IN Magazine by Vanessa Heins

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and mythology, while others fixated on Shraya’s gender. “Your mother wants to hear sweet words from you. Tell her you are not a woman,” read another. Shraya grew up in a Hindu atmosphere where prayer and chanting is often about invoking the divine – but this was invoking for hateful purposes. “As someone who gets trolled on the internet semi-regularly, I have certain strategies in place to cope with those things where I immediately block [the person], or I don’t engage,” Shraya says. “But these messages were coming straight to my email account and they were so disturbing.” What Shraya found most unsettling was that they were not anonymous, like so many previous online attacks. The person sending these particular messages made no attempt to hide themselves – they left their name and address at the bottom of each email. “I found, because of the descriptive nature of the messages, that they were impossible to ignore, and I found myself thinking about them a lot. What does someone who’s chanting your name in their house, hoping you die, look like?” When Shraya shared the messages with close friends, their response was: block, delete. But after months of struggling with the messages, her mind began to morph them into images. That’s when Shraya says she started thinking about turning those messages into something else and reclaiming the hold the predator had on her.

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“It seems like the opposite thing that you should do when you receive hate mail,” says Shraya. “The common response is block, delete, as opposed to let’s make art about it.”

I really wanted someone who I felt comfortable with. This wasn’t going to be a graphic novel about time clocks or furniture. It had a very specific theme. It needed to be someone I have a lot of respect and admiration for.” The timing was perfect: Lee had wanted to explore a long-form narrative for some time. Shraya says it was serendipitous. Their collaboration is a surprisingly vibrant experience of surreal images in bright, bold primary colours (Ness has traditionally worked in black and white) that take the reader on a journey recounting not only the harassment but also the process of putting the book together. The reader flips the pages as Shraya tries to establish who the messages are from and why they seem to possess her thoughts and her dreams. The book even explores taboo themes like victim blaming: “Maybe I had nothing to complain about. I was lucky to be loved. And doesn’t being trolled on the internet go hand in hand with being feminine?” Shraya also examines how her marginalized identity might work against her if she chose to report the individual sending her messages. At one point in Death Threat, she imagines going to the authorities, only to be told, “You probably wrote them yourself because you are obviously an attention seeker” before she is arrested for “false accusation.” There are also subtle nods throughout the graphic novel to her own work, the Dixie Chicks, Troll Dolls and even US president Donald Trump, which help lighten the mood and distract from the disturbing messages. It was also a way for Shraya to reclaim power over the situation.

Experiences of hate are nothing new for many members of the “Once I decided to turn the messages into a comic book, the last LGBTQ community, and as a queer, trans woman of colour, thing I wanted to do was make something that felt purely based harassment has long been an integral part of Shraya’s life. Still, on real events. I liked the idea of finding humour and pop culture even for those too familiar with hate, Death Threat is a jarring read. to take away the power of these messages.” Of course, it’s supposed to be. Remember, Shraya has made a name for herself by tackling difficult subjects that are often pushed aside “In a lot of ways, it’s a comic book about making a comic book.” because they make us uncomfortable. What kind of responsibility do social media companies have? In Death Threat, Shraya uses her personal story to paint a larger Turning lead into gold Over the years, Shraya has written novels, short stories, poetry picture of hatred in our digital society, and leaves the reader to collections and even a children’s book, but she had never attempted think about the dangers that lurk online. Hate online seems to come to create a graphic novel before. hand in hand with celebrity these days – but not just celebrities. The internet in many ways has become a dangerous place for “I just started reading a whole bunch of graphic novels, and graphic anyone and everyone. novels are so strange – they can go to so many places.” I mean, really, have you gone on Twitter or Facebook lately? It seemed like the perfect medium to flip the script on the troll and turn the hateful messages into something positive. And so the “I think there needs to be a broader conversation around how we process of turning the letters into a story with illustrations began. It encounter trolls and hate on the internet,” says Shraya. was a way to cope with the experience. In fact, Shraya says there After all, trolls are no longer just random people who, as Shraya’s was something redemptive about turning hate into art. character in the graphic novel says, live in their mom’s basement Of course, she would need a top-notch artist to help her recreate somewhere. her vision. So she thought of Ness Lee, who had collaborated with “We are all expected to be online, but there aren’t really any safety her on the artwork for Part-Time Woman. measures in place for the kind of things that have happened to me,” “Part-Time Woman was such a wonderful collaboration and when I says Shraya. “And I’m not unique in this experience. There’s just started thinking about who I wanted to work with on Death Threat, not a lot of protection for anyone.” 26

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Even those who avoid the dark corners of the internet can expect to encounter hate while surfing the web or browsing through the most mainstream social networking sites. In the first quarter of 2018 alone, a Facebook spokesperson says, the company took action on 2.5 million pieces of content that had been classified as hate speech. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg, since hateful messages obviously are still easily getting through. It goes beyond hurt feelings and fear: even though hate speech seems to be largely ignored, it’s a big problem because encountering hateful speech can skew attitudes. Researchers have long warned that dehumanizing people is a tactic that goes hand in hand with oppressing them, because it helps create mental distance between groups. It can become an endless, dehumanizing cycle for the victim that can take a toll on their well-being and mental health. But for some reason most of us turn the other cheek. So what should you do when you encounter hate speech on the internet? “You can report, but that doesn’t prevent someone from

simply trolling someone else,” warns Shraya. “I don’t have a solution per se, but I do think we need to be putting more pressure on these sites – that we have given a lot of our personal information and time to – to protect us. I think the least that Twitter or Instagram or Facebook or any of these sites should be doing is making sure that we can be in these spaces and be more protected beyond blocking or reporting,” says Shraya. “Because it feels like those gestures fall short if individuals who are blocked are still able to do it to someone else. “A big part of taking on this project was obviously for selfish reasons in terms of coping, but another part was to instigate and be part of this broader conversation on how do we reimagine the internet as not just a harmful place.” If anyone has the answer, let us know. Death Threat by Vivek Shraya and Ness Lee is available online and at select bookstores now.

CHRISTOPHER TURNER acted as guest editor for this issue of IN Magazine. He is a Toronto-based writer, editor and lifelong fashionisto with a passion for pop culture and sneakers. Follow him on social media at @Turnstylin.

INTERVIEW

PLASTIQUE FANTASTIQUE!

The Season 11 Drag Race queen opens up about representation, leaving her mark, and having an iconic drag mother By Bianca Guzzo

JULY / AUGUST 2019

From the moment Plastique Tiara entered the werk room in her flowing purple ensemble during Season 11 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, she identified herself as a top competitor for the season. Her polished and glamorous looks – paired with her complicated and unique backstory, and her large social media following – made her one to watch, and a front-runner from the beginning of the competition. Her story as an immigrant from Vietnam set her apart from the other queens…not to mention the fact that her drag mother is the iconic, and forever-favourite, Alyssa Edwards. While walking into the werk room looking like plastic perfection might be one way to play the game, Plastique explains that being perfect in that type of environment is not always a benefit. “I’ve learned that it’s not all about being polished and perfect, you know? It’s vulnerability and imperfection that really makes America fall in love with you,” Plastique tells IN on a phone interview. Focused on making the right impression on TV, and always wanting to appear polished to perfection, Plastique realized halfway through her time on the show that she wasn’t having any fun. Taking some cues from the other queens, she learned to embrace her quirks and imperfections, becoming more vulnerable and letting viewers into her story. While Drag Race is a competition, not every queen that competes can win a crown. “Being in the competition itself is a blessing,” Plastique says. She entered the competition with one of the strongest social media followings of any of her fellow Season 11 competitors, and her follower count has only 28

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Though having one of the most iconic Drag Race contestants ever as a mother can be a lot of pressure, it also has its perks. Plastique tells IN that Alyssa is a supportive drag mother and describes her as a wonderful human being who has always been there for her. “Ever since the first day I met her, she’s reminded me that I’m a star, and for somebody of her status to say that when I was a baby queen starting out...having somebody who believed in me, who believed in my art – it was a lot, but a blessing.” It comes as no surprise that Plastique is part of the iconic House of Edwards. Her polished Growing up in Vietnam, Plastique says her looks and magnetic personality are both background and childhood affected the way staples in her drag family. she interacted with other queens on the show. She was constantly being taught that whatever Plastique may have been eliminated during she was feeling was wrong and should be the middle of the competition (leaving the kept hidden deep inside. “Throughout the show in eighth place), but she won viewers’ competition I was pretty quiet, not saying hearts by turning out stunning looks on much because in my culture I was raised the runway each week, and by opening up to be silent.” about her past. Though the experience of competing on RuPaul’s Drag Race is an For Plastique, it was important to represent honour just on its own, Plastique tells IN gay immigrants to show them that their that earning validation, and the admiration of culture could be celebrated in ways that host RuPaul, was one of her most memorable also allowed them to be themselves, and moments of the season. “I had so many to be proud of who they are. She describes blessings that episode,” says Plastique. She her drag style as a mix between her Asian is, of course, referring to the validation from roots, blended with both new and classic RuPaul, a surprise visit from Alyssa, and a drag aesthetic. video message from her boyfriend during Untucked – all of which took place in the Immigrating to America as a preteen, Plastique same episode. first got into drag from watching RuPaul’s Drag Race. “I saw Jujubee [from Season 2] Life after Drag Race and I was just hooked.” She finally auditioned Today, life looks a lot different to Plastique. for Drag Race after her drag mother, Alyssa Though she admits it’s a lot busier, she loves Edwards, told her she should, and describes every moment of it, and is so thankful for being cast on the show as a full-circle moment all of the new people she meets. “I get to and “a dream come true.” meet people who say I’ve changed their risen since appearing on the show. While social media-based queens sometimes get a bad reputation on the show, and in the drag community, Plastique has used it as another platform to spread her message of inclusion and representation. “When I was growing up, I never had anyone like me on TV that I could look up to, so I was alone most of the time. So if I could just be a voice or an example for somebody, even if I don’t win, I was here, I made my mark and they should know that whatever they’re feeling is not wrong, and they are not wrong.”

life somehow, somewhere, just by being myself. It’s amazing validation.” Aside from constantly travelling and touring, Plastique is following in the footsteps of other past Drag Race queens by releasing new music. She describes her music as a fun way for her to give back to the drag community, and represents the confidence that drag has given her. Through her time in the spotlight, Plastique has created a lasting impression both online and in the drag community. At the end of the day, she says, she wants to leave her mark, and conquer the world one platform

at a time. She might be remembered from her time on the show as a pageant queen striving for perfection, but Plastique tells IN that’s not what she wants people to take away from her drag. “I want people to take away not necessarily how I look, but how and what I represent. I think queer Asian representation is so important. I am a first-generation Vietnamese immigrant – and if I’ve made it, and made it on the show, if I can do it, anybody can do it.” Plastique’s story is inspiring right from the start, and we can’t wait to see where her career takes her next.

Watch for Plastique Tiara this summer in the Season 11 RuPaul’s Drag Race North American tour. Canadian dates include: Vancouver: Vogue Theatre (May 29), Calgary: Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium (June 1), Montreal: L’Olympia (July 12), Toronto: Danforth Music Hall (July 4), and Winnipeg: Regent Event Centre (July 15).

BIANCA GUZZO is a writer based out of the GTA. She spends her free time watching Trixie Mattel makeup tutorials, though she has yet to nail the look.

IN MAGAZINE

JULY / AUGUST 2019

CALGARY PRIDE FESTIVAL WWW.CALGARYPRIDE.CA #YYCPRIDE @CALGARYPRIDE

Visit Calgary, Alberta during one of the best and brightest celebrations of the year!

CALGARY PRIDE PARADE & FESTIVAL SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2019 11:00AM - 6:00PM

FEATURING Music by Too Attached and Milk & Bone, performance by Le Cirque de la Nuit, over 100 marketplace exhibitors, Palm Bay Lounge & Village Beer Garden, entertainment & activities for all folks & all ages

Princes Island Park

PRIDE LOUNGE

FAMILY ZONE

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PICNIC AREA

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BEER GARDENS 5 St SE

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PRIDE WELLNESS OASIS

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MAIN STAGE

MARKETPLACE

DOWNTOWN BOYS Slick summer styles and downtown vibes

JULY / AUGUST 2019

PHOTOGRAPHER: Ivan Otis FASHION DIRECTION: Paul Langill STYLIST: Fredsonn Silva Aguda for Langill Management STYLIST ASSISTANTS: Jeremy Hs, Kahmeelia Smith HAIR: Paul Pereira from Solo Bace Salon MAKEUP: Kinga for Langill Management MODELS: Aaron McQuaid (Plutino Models) Nyong James (Plutino Models)

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SUIT: Simons SWEATER: Nike SHOES: Top Man

JULY / AUGUST 2019

SWEATER: Hugo Boss from Simons BELTS: Kappa from Simons

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FASHION

VEST: Xian from Toronto Fashion Academy SWEATER: H&M PANTS: Hip and Bone from Toronto Fashion Academy WATCH: Armani AX

FASHION JULY / AUGUST 2019

SWEATER: Hugo Boss from Simons WATCH: Ice BRACELETS: Catharsis Toronto

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FASHION

TOP, VEST AND SHORTS: Xian from Toronto Fashion Academy ACCESSORIES: Catharsis Toronto

JULY / AUGUST 2019

HOODIES AND SWEATER: The Born Ready Brand from Simons WATCH: Ice BRACELETS: Catharsis Toronto

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FASHION TRACK SUIT: Adidas T-SHIRT: Calvin Klein Jeans

FASHION JULY / AUGUST 2019

SHIRT: Mayer Man ACCESSORIES: Catharsis Toronto

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TRAVEL TOP, VEST AND SHORTS: Xian from Toronto Fashion Academy SHIRTS AND OVERALLS: Dickies from Simons ACCESSORIES: Catharsis Toronto

SHOPPING

WEAR YOUR PRIDE Wear it loud, wear it proud all summer long By Christopher Turner

If you want to make a statement this summer, why not wear it? Inspired by LGBTQ communities around the world, these Prideinspired pieces also serve as reminders that the fight for tolerance, diversity and equality is ongoing. Here’s a roundup of some of our favourite rainbow designs you can pick up this summer. Michael Kors #MKGO Rainbow Collection The first-ever collection in support of the LGBTQ community from Michael Kors features classic silhouettes, casual-cool separates and signature logo accessories. Rainbow stripes and multi-coloured sequins splash across hoodies, swimsuits, T-shirt dresses and white jeans, while accessories include sporty slides, a crystal-clear PVC tote bag, a lightweight rainbow trim track jacket, and a jet-setready backpack. Our favourite? The rainbow-hued MK logo tees for both men and women!

JULY / AUGUST 2019

Hunter Pride PLAY Boot Hunter, the UK-based rain boot label, is celebrating Pride with the launch of a rainbow-edition version of its best-selling PLAY boot. It is 100 per cent waterproof, handcrafted from natural rubber and is designed with a dynamic flat platform sole for maximum comfort and versatility. The limited-edition Hunter Pride PLAY boot comes in both a flatform and heeled version in a black colourway with a fun, very visible, rainbow sole to show your pride on those rainy days. The boots also feature a rainbow pull-tab and rainbow Hunter logo at the back of the boot. Available at the Hunter store at Yorkdale Shopping Centre, the brand’s first store in North America. Nike BeTrue collection Nike’s 2019 BeTrue collection for men and women was created in partnership with the Gilbert Baker Estate, paying homage to the political activist who created the original Pride Flag. The collection includes a variety of tees, tanks, jackets, socks and a unisex shoulder bag, as well as five pairs of sneakers: the Air Max 720, Air Tailwind 79, Zoom Pegasus Turbo, Benassi JDI and Air Max 90. Every piece in the collection features the eight original

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colours of the original flag, Baker’s signature and his signature glitter shimmer. Bonus: Nike is donating a portion of all BeTrue sales to organizations empowering the LGBT sports community. Converse Pride collection Converse is back with another must-have Pride collection that includes sneakers, accessories and apparel. This summer, there are six footwear styles along with accessories and pieces of apparel. Both the iconic Chuck Taylor All Star sneaker and Chuck 70 silhouette get a bright makeover with Pride-inspired versions of the classic HI and OX silhouettes. But the brand’s first-ever sneakers to be inspired by the trans flag (light blue, pink and white) steal the spotlight! In celebration of the brand’s annual Pride collection (which started in 2014), proceeds will support LGBTQ charities including the It Gets Better Project. Fjällräven Kånken Rainbow The Kånken has been around since 1978, but this summer Fjällräven has released a special-edition version of the iconic backpack, with rainbow-coloured shoulder straps and handles at the top to help you get your pride on. A portion of each sale of the Kånken Rainbow goes towards the Arctic Fox Initiative, which supports non-profit organizations that are working to protect the environment and encourages people to spend more time in nature. Is there a better way to celebrate Pride Month and support the environment? Levi’s Pride collection Levi’s sixth annual Pride collection celebrates the LGBTQ community with a wide variety of gear with rainbow details. The collection includes a variety of white and black graphic tees, a denim trucker vest, a pair of 501 original cut-off denim shorts, a white tapered denim short, and a variety of accessories including caps, a bandana, woven belts and a tote. The standout piece is a white denim jacket with rainbow collar. This year, 100 per cent of net proceeds from the collection will be going to OutRight Action International.

INSIGHT

WHERE DO WE GO AFTER POLICE PRIDE BANS? Let’s determine what the benchmarks are – and, more importantly, how they might be achieved By Paul Gallant

JULY / AUGUST 2019

Neil Paterson seems like a stand-up guy, so I have no reason to disbelieve him when he tells me, “It is without a doubt that the police marching group at Pride will get the biggest cheers and the biggest support from the community, over many of the other groups at Pride.” He’s the assistant commissioner of the Victoria Police, a state police department responsible for Melbourne, a very multicultural Australian city of about five million people. Paterson marches with about 160 uniformed officers each year during Midsumma Festival, Melbourne’s Pride.

communities). What does a police force have to do to be good enough to be invited to, and cheered in, a Pride parade?

Paterson’s answer is, frankly, boring. It’s about boards and oversight committees and, ugh, reports and studies. “Police often look for an evidence base to support something. We do that because we are used to presenting matters at court. We are often looking for evidence of why we should change,” says Paterson, an out gay man who has two children from a previous heterosexual marriage and two children with his male partner of 17 years. “We have to capture the evidence Living in Toronto, it’s hard to get my head around what Paterson’s to present to the whole organization that this is the reason we need saying. Here, uniformed police officers have not been welcomed to change. It’s the lived experience, the storytelling that gives you in the Pride parade since 2016, when Black Lives Matter, the a really good footing to drive cultural reform.” honoured group that year, stopped the parade to issue a number of demands, including the “removal of police floats in the Pride Because much of the “evidence for change” produced by progressive marches and parades.” Cities like Vancouver, Halifax and Edmonton forces within Victoria Police is gathered in partnership with other have followed suit. The complaints against the Toronto police are government agencies or partner organizations, it’s harder to ignore. myriad: queer people of colour are subject to racial profiling and Last year the force partnered with academics to release the report are more harshly policed than others; police failed to take seriously Policing for Same Sex Attracted and Sex and Gender Diverse (SSASGD) the concerns that a serial killer was stalking queer men of colour Young Victorians. “There are a number of actions coming out of that and those from more marginal communities; police arrested gay study,” says Paterson. “In this state, we typically don’t get reports that aren’t actioned. We hold ourselves accountable, and the commen for cruising in an isolated part of an Etobicoke park. munity holds us accountable in terms of meeting recommendations.” Older gay and lesbian people – who have, over the decades, seen dramatic improvements in more blatantly homophobic police A few years ago, there were complaints from young trans people behaviour – tend to bristle at the uniformed-officer bans: our former about how police were addressing them on the street. New policies bully now wants to march with us! We have been vindicated! Set were rolled out with the help of the service’s system of 230 Lesbian, aside a few uncomfortable details and let us enjoy this win! But Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Liaison Officers. younger people, and people from racialized communities, have “Police weren’t familiar, hadn’t been trained and had little exposure to any member of the trans community in terms of correct pronouns established different benchmarks. and how a particular person would want to be referred to,” Paterson What I’m curious about is what exactly those benchmarks are and, says. “It was about, first of all, treating everybody with dignity and more importantly, how they might be achieved. For example, the respect. If [officers are] not sure which pronoun to use, then [they] boycott against South Africa ended when apartheid ended there should ask.” in 1994 – done and done. But you can’t just sign a document to put an end to bad policing. Even the best police departments will Paterson and one of his colleagues, Gabrielle Tyacke, the only full-time occasionally hire assholes, and even the best officers will make LGBTI Liaison Officer in Victoria Police, both presented on these mistakes both in the moment (needless escalation of violence, topics at Proud to Be Your Friend, an international LGBT-focused sometimes because of biases, sometimes purely out of panic) and conference for criminal justice professionals that Toronto hosted systemically (policies and attitudes that target or ignore certain this June. About 150 people from 13 countries attended. Organizer

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Danielle Bottineau, Tyacke’s Toronto equivalent, says the annual conference gives attendees a chance to share life experiences and best practices. “We’re extremely fortunate in a lot of ways here in Canada,” says Bottineau. “We have members from different countries who were not supported by their services, who can’t wear the uniform and be LGBTQ. You can still be fired in some areas of the world for being LGBTQ.”

like marginalized queers do in the city at large: invisible and disrespected. “The commitment starts at home in your own agency,” says Paterson. “You can’t be trusted by the community unless the LGBTI community within the agency trusts their own agency, and feels valued and respected. So everything you do comes across as genuine.”

One of the key takeaways from the conference, and from my conversation with Paterson, is that more community-minded policing has to start with how police organizations treat their own LGBT employees. Police culture tends to be hypermasculine, heteronormative and white, which can discourage queers and people of colour from signing up – and, if they do sign up, from speaking up. In their own organizations, LGBT officers can feel

For the community, “genuine” means being open, transparent, and honest about where you’ve gone wrong – admitting to mistakes, proposing how to prevent them in the future and then demonstrating that action has been taken. It’s not revolutionary stuff and it won’t solve problems overnight. There’s lots of jargon. But the best kind of progress is progress that comes from heartfelt thoughtfulness. It’s boring, but effective.

PAUL GALLANT is a Toronto-based writer and editor who writes about travel, innovation, city building, social issues (particularly LGBT issues) and business for a variety of national and international publications. He’s the executive editor of Bold, a global travel magazine for Canadians.

TRAVEL

CURAÇAO CRUSH The gem of the southern Caribbean yields the best of island life, with an exquisite icing of European chic to make things even more interesting By Doug Wallace

Jurandy picks us up in his Jeep, all smiles and shiny aviators, and we head to Floris Suite Hotel & Spa, where he works. We’ll be checking into Curaçao’s noted gay resort later in the week, but today we’re checking out its weekly Friday night party, where hotel guests rub shoulders with the local LGBTQ crowd who pop in for beers or bubbles before heading into the weekend. We say hi to a Yank or two, some fellow Ontarians, a few internationals. The vibe is relaxed, the DJ is cute and the chicken satays are excellent. It’s no wonder the adults-only Floris is the headquarters for the seventh annual Curaçao Pride this September.

JULY / AUGUST 2019

A tropical escape at the southern end of the Caribbean, Curaçao and its capital city Willemstad form a complete vacation checklist: brilliant-blue waters, 35 white-sand beaches, a heritage comprising more than 55 different cultures (including Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese), beautiful European Colonial architecture (with more than 700 listed buildings) and, most important, a live-and-letlive perspective on the LGBTQ, near and far. The benefits don’t stop there. This island of 160,000 is also outside the hurricane belt and blessed with trade winds that make it seem not quite so hot. Visitors find excellent and eclectic museums, some of the best scuba diving in the world, and an actual café society (due in part to the thousands of Dutch tourists who flock here year-round, including a large number of students). Despite becoming a largely independent constituent state of the Netherlands in 2010, Curaçao maintains a close relationship that is mutually beneficial and culturally satisfying. Most islanders speak three or four different languages.

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Get a belly-full When we split the party, Jurandy drives us to Kas di Piskado Snapp, a family-run fish place north of town, where he’s greeted warmly with chides of “Where have you been?” We sit down to a mixed tray of grilled fish – half of which I’ve never heard of – that we polish off in minutes. It is the first of many unique, inexpensive and delicious food experiences we have, from high streets to back roads. The insider treatment takes us back into Willemstad after dinner to the hot spots of the Pietermaai district, where we suck back whisky sours at Caña Bar & Kitchen and get our first taste of the late show, making the transition from country kitchen to cocktail bar with ease. Nicknamed the Soho of Curaçao, Pietermaai was until recently a druggy mess of derelict mansions that are now home to the bulk of the island’s high-end restaurants, boutique beach clubs, a hot jazz club where patrons spill out into the street, a brasserie built into a former chapel, a hotel dedicated to scuba diving and more. Still more shabby than chic as old buildings wait their turn for renovation, the area is where we do some of our best eating: Ginger Restaurant dishes out delectable Carib-Asian Indian cuisine in a romantic backyard; Kome’s international Caribbean menu shouts out to the local farmers for their assistance with juicy beef brisket and cast-iron chicken; on the patio in back of BijBlauw Hotel, we indulge in perfect ceviche, succulent snapper and tuna, the waves crashing into the rocks a few feet away. It is also in Pietermaai that a giant mural of Brigitte Bardot has me fishing for my phone. At Saint Tropez Ocean Club – a seaside

Photos by Tim Stewart

lounge, French restaurant, apartments and pool – you can spend the day hiding in a South Beach-style cabana ordering blue margaritas until you’re blue in the face. Note to selfie. Take time to be a tourist When it’s time to be there, do that, buy the T-shirt, we ditch the car and wander Willemstad’s narrow laneways on foot, soaking up the Punda quarter of town, trying not to get lost. The brightly coloured Dutch-style colonial houses you see in all the postcards are charming and the old fort is still fortifying, everything very much worthy of its UNESCO designation. We follow a small crowd into the Mikvé Israel-Emanuel Synagogue, the oldest in the Western Hemisphere, its sand floor a tribute to ancestral history and the Sinai desert.

eavesdropping on the people coming off the cruise ships docked nearby. The must-do on this side of town is the Museum Kurá Hulanda, an anthropological museum that focuses on the predominant cultures of Curaçao. Set on the site of a former slave yard above the St. Anna Bay, it is the largest collection of African artifacts in the Caribbean, and includes a massive and very moving exhibit on the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Pigs on a blanket Getting out of town and away from the resorts needs to be part of your plan in Curaçao, with the northwest end of the island ripe for exploration. One early weekday morning, we eat breakfast in the car as we take the road to Christoffel National Park for a rejuvenating one-hour hike up Mount Christoffel, the highest point on Curaçao, elevation 372 metres. It’s not bust-a-gut hard, but close to it. The view, however, is well worth it, the entire island stretching out before us in the morning haze. It’s also a great feeling having what feels like a week’s worth of exercise all done before 9 am.

At the Floating Market, we watch locals fill their baskets with produce unloaded from boats alongside. They normally come from nearby Venezuela, but its upheaval is cause for much talk about a Plan B where the market is concerned; with very little agriculture, Curaçao imports most of its food. After a bowl of goat stew at the nearby circular Plasa Bieu Market – one of the best meals of the trip – we carry on into the eclectic neighbourhood of Scharloo, where the murals and street-art installations are like little surprises around practically every corner.

There’s more hiking to be had a few minutes away at Shete Boka National Park, where the crashing waves have sculpted the limestone coastline into all manner of crevices and crags. It’s nature putting on a show for sure, the landscape doing its best to imitate science fiction. Happily, crashing waves photograph beautifully.

Later, we skirt the crowds at the pedestrian Queen Emma Bridge, better known as the Swingin’ Old Lady, which swings off to one side to let ships in and out of the harbour, foot traffic coming to a halt. Once she is back in place again, we trek over to the city’s Otrobanda quarter and wander through a few of the fancier shops,

This part of the island is also where a number of the best beaches are, with beach-hopping an actual thing, each little bay having its own personality: Playa PortoMari has resident red pigs Woody and Willy (not kidding) to romp with, while Playa Piscado is busy with half a dozen wild turtles who clamber for treats from the local fishermen and

delight the families swimming along just a few feet away, the kids laughing into their snorkels. Lagun Beach is tiny and more peaceful, popular with divers and locals. Really, the whole island is a diver’s paradise with more than 60 sites, all teeming with life, including dazzling coral. At the popular Grote Knip, we spot muscle Marys but they turn out to be just muscles. We order an extra beer and stick around to make sure. Inevitably, our stomachs start to grumble and we head to Jaanchies restaurant, a local institution, where hundreds of noisy bananaquits fill the front garden feasting on free syrup. Jaanchie himself recites the menu to each table, one at a time. He lets us try a small taste of the iguana stew, a house specialty. Yup, just like chicken. Make a Pride plan Winding down back at the Floris, we take a break from their private beach to hang at the secluded pool, talking with other loungers as we wait for happy hour. Jurandy is busy at the bar with an event supplier of some kind, making party plans for the hotel’s Gay Spring Break Festival. It’s a precursor to September’s Pride, when the resort lays it on thick, culminating in Saturday night’s white party poolside and a Sunday afternoon boat ride. At last year’s Pride, Curaçao Prime Minister Eugene Rhuggenaath made a major supportive speech, drawing the attention of all the other Caribbean nations, who hopefully took notes. We make a note in our calendar for September 25 to 29. Air Canada flies direct. Visit curacaopride.com and curacao.com.

JULY / AUGUST 2019

DOUG WALLACE is the editor and publisher of travel resource TravelRight.Today.

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WORKPLACES TO CONSIDER CELEBRATING DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN THE WORKPLACE.

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FLASHBACK: August 12, 2009 in LGBTQ History Harvey Milk is posthumously awarded the Medal of Freedom

On August 12, 2009, US President Barack Obama bestowed slain gay rights icon Harvey Milk with a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honour. At the time, the White House said Milk and the other honorees chosen by the president that year were “chosen for their work as agents of change.… They have blazed trails and broken down barriers.” Milk’s award was accepted by his nephew, Stuart Milk. “The recipients of the Medal of Freedom did not set out to win this or any other award. They did not set out in pursuit of glory or fame or riches,” Obama said at the 2009 ceremony in the East Room of the White House. “Rather, they set out, guided by passion, committed to hard work, aided by persistence, often with few advantages but the gifts, grace and good name God gave them.” JULY / AUGUST 2019

Milk was a gay rights pioneer who is remembered for his legacy of fighting for LGBTQ+ equality. On November 27, 1978 – just one year after becoming California’s first openly gay elected official – he was assassinated by a fellow city supervisor who had recently resigned. Milk was just 48.

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