Why We March

We are grateful to CTV News for featuring our press conference today, highlighting our receipt of the Ontario Trillium Foundation's Community Resiliency Grant. This grant of $11,100 allowed us to purchase equipment to enhance our virtual programming and strengthen our organization's ability to withstand the challenges posed by COVID-19.

At 3rd Annual Wortley Pride today til 5pm for Nokee Kwe! It’s a great day out so stop by and Also stop by the Why We March - LGBT booth

Canadian Blood Bank issues apology to 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

What are your thoughts?

Apology to 2SLGBTQIA+ communities | Canadian Blood Services On May 10, 2024, CEO Dr. Graham Sher delivered a formal apology, on behalf of Canadian Blood Services’ executive management team and board of directors, to 2SLGBTQIA+ communities across Canada. The apology acknowledged the harms experienced by gay, bisexual, and q***r men, trans people, and other ...

Thank you to all of our amazing volunteers! Without you, we could not achieve what we have done. London is getting ever closer to a dedicated hub than ever before!

We will be looking for new volunteers in various roles in the next few weeks as we prepare new programs for the year. Be sure to stay tuned to our social media or sign up on our website for our newsletter.

Check out this great club for Teens!

We’ve been hearing and seeing this new wave of hate across Canada, we are now seeing it go further as the Alberta Government looks to enact new draconian policies for 2SLGBTQIA+ children, mainly targeting the Transgender and Non-binary communities.

It’s time for the Government of Canada to intervene, updating the Rights of Children to include protections of their sexual orientation or gender identities.

We stand with the children; you exist, you matter.

According to the Canadian Community Health Survey, approximately 1.3 million people, or 4.4% of the Canadian population aged 15 years and older, reported being 2SLGBTQ+.

Among the 2SLGBTQ+ population, 52.7% were cisgender women, 39.2% were cisgender men, 3.9% were transgender women or men, and 4.2% were non-binary. Transgender or non-binary people accounted for 0.3% of the total population aged 15 years and older.

In the 2019 to 2021 period, one in 10 youth aged 15 to 24 (10.5%) reported being 2SLGBTQ+, which is a significantly larger share than among any other age group.

For more information: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/240125/dq240125b-eng.htm?utm_source=fb&utm_medium=smo&utm_campaign=statcan-general-23-24

Thank-you to everyone that stopped by our booth over the Pride weekend!

We had a blast!

Great news for LGBTQIA+ refugees

A Message from our CEO, Kimahli Powell:

Yesterday, the Prime Minister made the historic announcement that Canada will be partnering with Rainbow Railroad to identify and refer at-risk LGBTQI+ refugees through the Government-Assisted Refugees (GAR) Program.

With this landmark partnership, Rainbow Railroad will refer LGBTQI+ individuals and their families who are fleeing violence and persecution to the Government of Canada for resettlement as government-assisted refugees.

It will enable Rainbow Railroad to act alongside agencies like the UN Refugee Agency working with the Canadian government to refer at-risk LGBTQI+ persons for resettlement in the country.

For years, Rainbow Railroad, with the support of our community and partners including members of the From Borders to Belonging coalition, , has advocated for direct referral partnerships with governments around the world. This is a historic moment as Canada has stepped up as the first country to partner with us in this capacity — we hope that other countries will follow suit.

The goal of being a referring partner to governments has long been a policy goal of Rainbow Railroad - and me personally - it’s what our founders envisioned for the organization, mostly due to the fact that the number of internally displaced LGBTQI+ people are only going to increase. In the next few weeks, we will release our latest strategic plan - which outlines why this opportunity is so important.

As the number of displaced LGBTQI+ people around the world continues to grow, so does the number of requests for assistance for Rainbow Railroad. In 2023, we have already received nearly 4000 requests for assistance, and are averaging 10,000 a year.

This partnership will allow us to help more LGBTQI+ get to safety in Canada. We are incredibly grateful to our community of supporters for championing our mission, and making this possible.

For more information: https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/the-latest/major-announcement-getting-lgbtqi-people-to-safety-in-canada

We need to support those in Uganda more then ever!

A Message from Rainbow Railroad's CEO, Kimahli Powell:

Today, we have received concerning news - Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has signed into law one of the world’s most extreme pieces of anti-LGBTQI+ legislation.

In the bill, acts of homosexuality are criminalized, with punishments up to life in prison. The law has a provision that necessitates that civilians report on each other and punishes those that fail to do so.

The law includes the death penalty. Those found guilty of repeated offenses including relations involving HIV+ persons, minors, or those deemed “vulnerable” – would be punishable by death.

The law encourages employers to terminate their LGBTQI+ employees and requires that landlords evict LGBTQI+ persons and organizations.

Almost 600 LGBTQI+ people from Uganda have requested our help this year, far more than in any previous full year.

Rainbow Railroad is engaged in key efforts to strike down the bill and respond to the immediate consequences of its passage:

We are supporting partners on the ground as they lobby to strike the bill down, including through the funding of a petition that has already been filed with the Government of Uganda, and the drafting of a minority report to express legal dissent in hopes of successfully having the act stuck down in court.

We are also calling on the Canadian and US governments to develop a crisis response inclusive of immediate pathways to safety for members of the LGBTQI+ community and human rights defenders impacted by this legislation.

We have received numerous requests from partners in Uganda seeking assistance supporting projects that will help LGBTQI+ Ugandans at risk. We’re prioritizing these partner requests in real time.

And finally, we’re doing what we always do when individuals reach out for our support: we’re carefully analyzing and triaging the requests for assistance.

We are providing information, shelter and cash assistance, and emergency travel support to as many people as we can.

You can support us by writing your elected representatives and urging them to work with Rainbow Railroad on these proactive plans. You can amplify the work of our partners like Sexual Minorities Uganda.

And you can stay informed by visiting rainbowrailroad.org.

So much happening this summer! Be sure to follow our pages to keep up to date and not miss a thing.

Join us next month for a lively chat and social while we discuss Creating Safe Spaces.

Community Conversations is a free series offered and we also have light refreshments!

For more information and to register (space is limited) visit www.prismcommunityhub.ca/communityconversations

Home | Prism Community Hub | 2SLGBTQIA | London The Prism Community Hub offers programs, services and events to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in London Ontario.

Good day, I’m Dustin Boam and the Executive Director of Why We March and the Prism Community Hub.

We are proud to presenting programming and events this year through our temporary home of Innovation Works London until we have funding to open our own 2SLGBTQIA+ community hub.

We’ve seen a lot of interest in having a community hub in London for our community but we’ve also seen a number of groups try to work it out on their own.

We are a Federally registered Nonprofit and are successfully gaining grants, stepping ever so closer to opening our doors.

We know however, we can’t do it alone and need the support of the community and other groups to do this. No one person should own the community centre, nor should one organization control all the space. We are very open to collaborative efforts both before and after the space is open.

We also have a number of volunteer positions available as well as two leadership positions available on our board.

If you or your organization is interested, please contact us and we’d be more then happy to schedule a web or in-person chat.

Thank you,

With love and solidarity,

Dustin Boam and the Why We March team.
www.whywemarch.lgbt
www.prismcommunityhub.ca

Home | Prism Community Hub | 2SLGBTQIA | London The Prism Community Hub offers programs, services and events to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in London Ontario.

Looking for something to do Friday night? Join us for Community Conversations between 6 and 8pm!

This month we will be talking about Why We March, the Prism Community Hub and the importance of building spaces for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community!

There will also be lots of refreshments aswell.

Registration is free, but needed to to capacity limits, visit www.prismcommunityhub.ca/communityconversations for more details!

Prism Community Hub News Welcome to the Prism Community Hub! We are so pleased to see many subscribe to our new website. As we work hard to bring forth a community hub within the city, we decided to push through various programs, services, and events both in a temporary physical space, Innovation Works London, but also are....

Community Conversations | Prism Community Hub Join us and other members of the community for a lively chat and social gathering once a month. We will discuss various topics and have time to meet others in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. Light refreshments will be offered.

Q***r spaces throughout North America are under attack, and we must defend them; or we will risk losing decades of rights that we have fought so hard for.

From new laws across the border to protests throughout Canada; and now in London, cancellation of events and threats from the public increasing, q***r spaces need our help, and the community must get ready to come together and march yet again for our right to exist in public spaces.

It’s time to stand up once again – or risk all that has been gained.

DID YOU KNOW?

Why We March is working on building something truly special for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community?

Its called the
Prism Community Hub
and it will be a hub full of programs, workshops and events!

Learn more at:

Home | Prism Community Hub | 2SLGBTQIA | London The Prism Community Hub offers programs, services and events to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in London Ontario.

We are looking for Volunteers! Check out our website for more information: www.PrismCommunityHub.ca/volunteer

A new study lays out the ‘horrendous’ treatment of Canadian q***r WWI soldiers - National | Globalnews.ca The painful, often bleak, stories of these men were uncovered by Sarah Worthman while doing research at Veterans Affairs Canada.

We have taken the Prism Community Hub virtual! Check out www.PrismCommunityHub.ca today. We are working on building an online community complete with mini-groups and discussion boards. You can also sign up for our various events and activities. Become a member and get a chance at exclusive events we are planning, and be first in the know for new programs and services.

Want to support us? Become a yearly subscriber or donate online and help make future programming possible.

Inclusive Writing

We are currently looking for two new board members! Check out www.whywemarch.lgbt/volunteer for more information and apply today.