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Ontario-Wide Religious-based Homophobia and Transphobia Research Report

     I.Background

Rainbow Faith and Freedom (“RFF”) is a Toronto-based charity that directly confronts and ends religious-based discrimination to make the world safer for LGBTI people and their allies. To do this, RFF advocates to change the hearts and minds of religious communities to be affirming and inclusive of LGBTI people and their allies. Led by Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, a former Senior Pastor of the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto, RFF is committed to inspiring faith communities and families to be safe places for LGBTI people by changing the hearts and minds of individuals, specifically people of faith, around the world.

RFF is a unique Canadian organization because it recognizes that religious-based discrimination is a problem in Canada. RFF, in contrast to most other LGBTI human rights organizations, does not believe that religious belief can be ignored any longer in the fight to end homophobia and transphobia. Because religious institutions continue to weaponize belief to perpetuate discrimination of LGBTQI people, and because religious belief is a human right, religious-discrimination must be confronted from a religious perspective that both affirms and is inclusive of  LGBTI identity and faith.

II.         Project Description

The Problem

Although Canada is a leader in LGBTI legislation, many people in different sectors of Canadian society still experience homophobia and transphobia. Equality in law does not mean equality in lived experiences. LGBTI discrimination in Canada exists despite progressive legislation. This has led to higher rates of suicide, addictions, and mental health issues in these communities. It has also led to higher rates of unemployment, hate crimes, and marginalization. LGBTI discrimination is often justified by religious belief by different faith traditions in communities. RFF is a unique Canadian organization because it recognizes that religious-based discrimination is a problem and is the most powerful and influential source of homophobia and transphobia in Canada. Even though conversion therapy is officially banned in Canada, other less “official” or institutionalized approaches to shame LGBTI people and demand they repress their sexual or gender identity will likely become a powerful mode of religious-based LGBTI discrimination that will directly harm Canadians, especially youth. Religious-based homophobia and transphobia must be confronted in order that all Canadians can feel that they belong. 

The Opportunity

Religious-based discrimination has a direct impact on the beliefs and social attitudes of Canadians, despite the progress in legal protections that we have here. RFF wants to ensure that all sectors of Canadian society are inclusive of LGBTI people, specifically for this project, that faith-based institutions and organizations (the faith sector) in Ontario are equipped to take action to confront and end religious-based discrimination. Canada is currently at an important juncture: now that conversion therapy has been banned, other, more insidious and invisible efforts could take their place in faith-based communities to force individuals to repress their sexual and gender identity. RFF will help faith-based institutions and organizations develop approaches to reduce and eliminate religious-based anti-LGBTI discrimination and/or harmful practices, and engage them with the resources to help them affirm LGBTI people and reduce social isolation. For this project, RFF aims to offer research, resources, and support to help drive community awareness and engagement to end religious-based LGBTI discrimination in the faith sector of Ontario.

The Project

RFF will work towards ending religious-based discrimination in the faith sector of Ontario through the following initiatives: Research, Community Consultation, and an Awareness Campaign. These initiatives will ensure that faith-based institutions and organizations in Ontario understand the issues and are equipped with the best practices to take action in addressing and ending religious-based discrimination against LGBTI people. This will be achieved by connecting them with research, resources, and support to help to affirm LGBTI people, reduce their social isolation, and ultimately drive community awareness and engagement to end religious-based LGBTI discrimination in the faith sector of Ontario. Funding from Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE) will enable RFF to engage more fully with faith-based institutions and organizations across Ontario. Though RFF has a global mandate to end religious-based discrimination, this particular project is focused on Ontario, Canada and achieving inclusion and equality for LGBTI people in Ontario.

III.         Objectives and Deliverables

RFF’s project includes the following objectives:

·     Carry out research, in collaboration with LGBTI individuals and other members of affirming faith-based institutions and organizations across Ontario, to obtain hard evidence (both qualitative and quantitative) of the extent of religious-based homophobia and transphobia in faith communities in Ontario. 

·     Carry out research into the LGBTI human rights interventions currently being undertaken by faith-based institutions and communities to provide the groundwork for establishing best practices to confront and end religious-based discrimination. (Initial research completed).

·     The results of the research will be published on our website, in our newsletter and on social media, and shared with everyone who has participated. 

·     Support the awareness campaign that publishes the results of our research. The awareness materials will be distributed online, for faith-based institutions such as places of worship and community organizations across Ontario. 

Information Needs: 

• Collect stories of hurt, disenfranchisement, and loss from those who have been harmed by religious-based homophobia and transphobia from within places of worship.

• Collect data on how many LGBTI people have experienced harm from religious-based homophobia and transphobia in Ontario

• Collect data on how many places of worship currently are not inclusive nor affirming of LGBTQ people and their allies.

• Collect information on best practices of places of worship which are inclusive and affirming of LGBTQ people and their allies.

Deliverables:

• A final report (between 10 and 20) pages including an executive summary that will be shared with WAGE and the RFF Community.

• Educational materials that guide places of worship in their efforts to be inclusive and affirming of LGBTQ people and their allies.

• An archive of stories of hurt, disenfranchisement, and loss of those who have been harmed by religious-based homophobia and transphobia from within places of worship.

Budget: Maximum $20,000 inclusive of HST

Timeline of work: September 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023

Proposal requirements:

• Please describe how you would undertake the activities mentioned above and any additional activities within the required timeline and budget.

• Please describe previously completed contracts/experiences that have prepared you for this project.

• Please provide contact information of a previous client for whom you have undertaken similar work.

• Please keep your submission to under 3 pages (not including CV).

• Please submit to smcclark@rainbowfaithandfreedom.org by 5:00 PM Wednesday, August 3rd

Writing A New Chapter in 2SLGBTQ+ Activism

Here at Rainbow Faith and Freedom we are writing a new chapter in LGBTI human rights activism. Similar to how other social movements such as feminism has been divided into historical waves we are writing the newest chapter of LGBTI activsm: Confronting religious-based LGBTI discrimination. LGBTI rights have been (mostly) increasing across the globe, yet many activists/activist organizations have largely failed to address religious-based homophobia and transphobia. While many organizations have been proudly secular in their work, we feel coordinating with local and international places of worship is integral to the full realization of human rights for LGBTI people. We want to affirm those who are religious while helping religious discourse around homosexuality evolve to be affirming of all people. According to a 2020 ILGA report 69/193 countries around the world still criminalize same-sex sexual activity.

We are extremely grateful to those who have been working to achieve LGBTI rights in previous chapters of the movement.  We know that LGBTQI people only have the rights and freedoms we have today because of two trans women of colour, Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. These women are generally cited as instigating the infamous 1969 Stonewall Inn riots by throwing the first bricks/bottles at cops. According to historian David Carter, it was also the homeless or "street" queer kids whose only safe space was the Stonewall Inn that led to the significant impact that the riots had on LGBTQ history. As we write this new chapter in LGBTI activism we will work to honor the contributions made by those most marginalized.

We know that religion is still the primary reason that homophobia and transphobia still exist. The interpretation of religious texts has varied over history – occasionally to suit the time, a moral or societal imperative, or a crisis of confidence by followers of the religious institution itself. This harms both LGBTI people of faith as well as those who consider themselves atheist or secular. At RFF we believe we will only achieve true equality for the LGBTI community by directly addressing and involving religious institutions that justify their discrimination with their faith. We believe that the central message of all religions is first and foremost to treat others as you would like to be treated. Decreasing and lessening the effects of religious-based LGBTI discrimination can, and will, make changing punitive laws easier and improve the lives of LBGTI people so they can be who they are, love who they want, and find safe and accepting places to practice their faith (worship).

One of our first projects in this new chapter is Worshiping with Love. Thanks to Canada’s Ministry of Women and Gender Equality we will be studying the best practices and barriers of a variety of Ontario-based places of worship in terms of being an affirmative institution for 2SLGBTQ+ folks. This research will be taking place over the next two years. Look out for more details on this project which will be coming soon!

In the meantime check out our resource portal. The resource portal features over 100 (and continuously growing!) resources including: books, articles, videos, films, children’s books, human rights organizations and much more. We encourage you to share these resources with your family, your community, and places of worship as a tool to become more affirming of the LGBTQI community.

You can help us write this new chapter by following us on our social networks (facebook, twitter, instagram), donating to RFF, signing up for our newsletter, or volunteering with us.

A New Canada Day

This Canada Day we at Rainbow Faith and Freedom propose a new way to celebrate our amazing country.

We would like to acknowledge the pain that has come from the colonization of Turtle Island into “Canada”. Many communities have been harmed by this colonization and we do not want to minimize the role religion has played in this. We at RFF believe we need to understand and acknowledge our history so that we can help those who have been harmed by it. For many Indigenous communities Canada Day is associated with children being ripped from their homes and cultures by religious institutions. In residential schools children were shamed for their heritage and abused in numerous ways. The Indigenous people have a long history of gender and sexual diversity which was violently suppressed by colonialism and residential schools. Children were forced to fit themselves into a colonial gender binary system which often included disparaging sacred Indigenous hair traditions. Alternative marriage and kinship forms went legally unrecognized and often resulted in the criminalization of Indigenous people. First wives were spared from attending residential schools resulting in Indigenous parents marrying off their young daughters to older men so as to protect them. This was then weaponized as barbaric propaganda by colonialists.  

  At RFF we are invested in undoing this harm to Indigenous communities so that they may once again express their sexuality and gender in ways that feel authentic to themselves and their culture. We are committed to learning the wisdom of the Two-Spirit people and other diverse forms of self-expression so that we may better honour these identities. The religious-based homophobia and transphobia that the Indigenous people were subject to is inexcusable and we are unwavering in our support to help them re-establish their ancestral traditions. The recent uncovering of mass graves serves as a reminder that this history is not in the past but still harms our Indigenous communities in the here and now. We envision Canada Day as a day of learning and reconciliation.

We envision a Canada Day where every Canadian takes the time to appreciate the diversity and culture we are lucky to be exposed to thanks to immigrants and refugees.

We envision a Canada Day where we thank our Indigenous population for taking care of the Earth and pledging to learn their practices so that we may peacefully nurse our planet back to health together. We envision Canada as a place where Indigenous people can thrive.

We envision a Canada Day where every place of worship opens its doors to all people, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or their religious beliefs.

We imagine a Canada Day celebration that centres around reflecting on our past to create a better future where all people no matter where they come from, what they look like, or who they love are able to have their human rights met.

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We recommend the following resources if you are interested in learning more about reparations efforts or are interested in donating.

Government of Canada methods of reconciliation to renew the relationship with Indigenous peoples: https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1400782178444/1529183710887

Calls to Action Accountability: a 2021 Status Update on Reconciliation: https://yellowheadinstitute.org/trc/

Indspire is an Indigenous national charity that invests in the education of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people for the long-term benefit of these individuals, their families and communities, and Canada: https://indspire.ca/ways-to-give/donate/

We’re Coming Out with Faith for Pride 2022!

Here at Rainbow Faith and Freedom we are beyond excited to be participating in Pride Toronto for the first time. Pride is celebrated across our nation and around the world. It originally began in New York City after police raided a local gay bar leading to the infamous Stonewall Riots in 1969. Toronto Pride was officially founded in 1981 in response to “Operation Soap”, a brutal Toronto police raid of numerous bathhouses where hundreds of men were publicly humiliated. Today, Pride Toronto aims to support the 2SLGBTQ+ community by providing a space where those of all gender and sexual orientations can be seen, accepted, and embraced for the beauty they bring to our city. 

We are thrilled to join forces with Pride Toronto to help bring our message of reducing and eliminating religious-based homophobia and transphobia to a wider audience. We feel it is important for us to be an active and visible part of our community to effectively combat this homophobia and transphobia. Faith is an important part of many 2SLGBTQ+ people’s lives. We are working hard to help all 2SLGBTQ+ folks feel free to be who they are within their religious communities and openly love who they love. We believe that no matter what faith you subscribe to (even if that is no faith at all), you are deserving of a safer space in which to interact with your community and practice what you believe in. All people are equal under their Creator. 

If you are interested in helping us on our mission of reducing religious based homophobia and transphobia at Pride, we have lots of volunteer spaces open! Whether you’ve been involved with us before or are looking to try something new, you are always welcome at Rainbow Faith and Freedom. We would love to have you march with us at the Pride Parade on June 26th or help us at our Pride Festival booth. At our booth we will be informing people about RFF’s mission, recruiting volunteers and sign-ups for our email list, as well as accepting donations. Visit our volunteer page at https://rainbowfaithandfreedom.org/volunteer-1 to sign-up and learn more. 

If you would like to support our efforts at Pride monetarily you can find our fundraiser at https://rff.salsalabs.org/comingoutwithfaith/index.html. Your contribution will help us support both religious institutions who want to become more welcoming to the 2SLGBTQ+ community and to 2SLGBTQ+ individuals looking for religious belonging. Any donation over $20 is tax-deductible. 

After two years of virtual Pride events we hope to see you in-person at Pride Toronto this year. Whether it’s volunteering with us at our booth, marching alongside us in the parade or coming out to cheer in the crowds, thank you for continuously being a part of the RFF community.

International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia & Biphobia 2022

Today we join with partners, friends, and community members around the world to recognize the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia & Biphobia.

While the rights of 2SLGBTQI+ people have seen significant advancements and recognition in recent years, we know that progress remains uneven and often inequitable.

This year’s theme, “Our Bodies, Our Lives, Our Rights”, serves as a reminder that every individual has the right to live freely as their authentic self, safe from the dangers of systemic discrimination.

While we celebrate sexual and gender diversity today, along with the incredible societal contributions of gay, bi, queer, trans, 2S and non-binary people, we stand firmly opposed to the stigma, abuse and persecution faced by members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community here at home and around the globe.

Today is an opportunity to reflect and to deepen our understanding of the diversity of sexualities and gender identities that comprise our wonderful community.

We celebrate you all and we stand with you!

Save The Date: Community Chat Series

Join us for the first installment of our six part community chat.

Our webinar series focuses on connecting with key stakeholders on our report: ‘Mapping the Landscape of Heterosexism and Transphobia in Canada’. Each community chat unpacks specific aspects of the report to explore how faith-based discrimination is operating in different institutional and community settings.

The aim of this series is to strengthen our community ties and to get feedback from key stakeholders on the report along with identifying key gaps in the research that can be examined further.

Our first community chat will take place on Tuesday, February 16 at 7:00 pm.

Registration is now open at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/community-chat-series-tickets-247237894197?keep_tld=1&eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=6ed6c124-095b-48c6-a177-2255912d1485.

How You Can Help - Donate

The twelfth instalment in a year-long series of posts by RFF Founder & Executive Director, Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, on the origins, mandate and work of the organization.

Homophobia and transphobia have impacted every institution of society throughout history, and while religion is not immune from this, it is reasonable to expect a higher standard for religion because the central value for all of the major world religions is compassion. Religion can be either an obstacle or an asset at expanding human rights for LGBTI people. The most obvious is the degree to which religion is an obstacle to the full inclusion of LGBTI people in society. A religious attack requires a religious response, and the LGBTI community needs more training and strategizing around how to confront a religious attack. 

Also, seeing religion as the enemy has added difficulty to the lives of LGBTI people of faith. We are both attacked by the religious right and often ostracized within the LGBTI community because of our association to faith and religion. A key response to both of these situations is to empower LGBTI people of faith to be viewed as an important part of the struggle to achieve equality. As we effectively step up, the broader LGBTI human rights movement will trust us and embrace us more. LGBTI people have historically had to choose between their spirituality and their sexuality, a choice no one should have to make. 

According to the Global Philanthropy Project, funding for spirituality is the most underfunded of the various strategies employed to achieve equality. RFF is uniquely positioned to address the above issues. We can be that voice counteracting the religious attack, we can empower LGBTI people of faith to be effective spokespersons. We can train LGBTI organizations on how to respond to the religious attacks. And we can participate in the longer term strategy of building religious support and transforming religious opposition. 

Our goal at RFF is to try to raise monthly pledges to achieve our vision. With monthly donations, we can better plan and budget for our various programs. This is an opportunity for LGBTI people in North America who are concerned about international LGBTI human rights to help make a difference through financial support. It’s also an opportunity for people in Canada to contribute if they want Canada to do better, and an opportunity for people of a certain faith traditions who want their faith to do better in Canada or other countries. We’re also seeking government and foundation grants, and targeted fundraising campaigns for one-off donations and pledges. We will be reaching out to the Canadian diaspora in the countries we will be working with, to help us with fundraising. We’ll also be seeking support from various faith communities in Canada (churches, synagogues, mosques etc.) Tax receipts will be provided in Canada and the US. For donations outside North America, we’re looking for partner organizations that can help us issue tax receipts.

How You Can Help - Volunteer

The eleventh instalment in a year-long series of posts by RFF Founder & Executive Director, Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, on the origins, mandate and work of the organization.

Why is volunteering important and why should you volunteer?

Volunteers are vital to keeping RFF moving forward (and other organizations, as well, of course)

The spirit of volunteering involves selflessness and passion. According to Statistics Canada, in 2018, almost 12.7 million Canadians engaged in formal volunteering, with a total of approximately 1.7 billion hours of their time given to charities, non-profits and community organizations—equivalent to more than 863,000 full-time year-round jobs. 

Today, Canadians are courageously volunteering in the midst of one of the largest health, economic and social challenges of our lifetime. The pandemic has had a series of impacts that vary depending on the type of volunteer organization. Physical distancing and necessary health protection measures quickly affected the provision of face-to-face services, events and meetings involving gatherings of people. At the same time, recent media reports have highlighted many examples of individuals directly assisting others, including picking-up and dropping-off groceries and other supplies in the community, cooking meals, sewing non-medical masks, sharing information and providing emotional support via online social media platforms.

People who volunteer do so for the following reasons: 

• Over 90% want to contribute to the community, 

• 77% want to use their skills and experience, 

• 60% are personally affected by the cause they volunteer for, 

• About half of Canadian volunteers do it to improve their sense of wellbeing or health, explore strengths, and network with or meet people. 

• About 35% want to support a cause and 

• 23% want to improve job opportunities

In terms of specific skills gained through volunteering, 63% of volunteers feel that getting involved has improved their interpersonal skills. Improved communication skills and organizational or managerial skills are also noted by about two-fifths of volunteers. A diverse group of volunteers can help to expand everyone's perspectives and ideas. Volunteers help to round out staffing of organizations like ours and bring different and unique skill sets.

There are many benefits to volunteering, it:

• Improves mental health 

• Forms meaningful connections with others

• Gives you a sense of purpose

• Gives you a career boost 

• Has many different areas, you can likely find a cause you’re passionate about and an area that matches your interest and skillset

• Provides an opportunity to learn new skills and get more experience which looks good on your resume, might help you with your career development and future job opportunities

• Can help you with character development

• May help you to decide what you want to do with your life

• Gives you the opportunity to join a strong network of people where you can make new friends, connections and references for job opportunities

• Gives you experience working with a team

• Gives you a broader perspective on life

• Usually has lower stress levels than a paid job

• Gives you opportunities to go abroad or help remotely - there are many remote volunteer opportunities, especially during the pandemic

So I encourage you to find a place to volunteer. There are many causes and opportunities, including Rainbow Faith and Freedom. Volunteers are crucial to the work we do and to the ultimate success of RFF achieving its mission and vision. Our values are learning, respect, compassion, teamwork and results. 

LGBT activists all over the world say that religious-based discrimination, especialy religious-based homophobia and transphobia are the main obstacles to full inclusion and human rights for LGBT people. RFF is uniquely placed to address this. In every country in the world, LGBT people and their families face religious opposition in one form or another. In some of those countries it shows up as criminalization and in other countries we’re being kicked out of families and faith communities. With your help we can do something about that. Thank you for helping us. While this work is very serious, we are also committed to having fun along the way, to building meaningful relationships and to taking care of ourselves as we do this. How we are with each other is just as important as the work we’re doing. 

We are always looking for good volunteers with varying skill sets for our Communications, Community Outreach, Finance, Fundraising, IT, Multi-Faith Resources, Canadian programming and Volunteer Teams. We have an established volunteer onboarding system, a volunteer handbook, and a  code of conduct.If you would like to volunteer with Rainbow Faith and Freedom, please contact us at volunteer@rainbowfaithandfreedom.org.

Guest Post: Jim Hodgson

Guest Post by Jim Hodgson

Before the pandemic, I had planned to retire from a sort of career that played out among topics you’re told not to talk about at your aunt’s dinner party: religion, politics and queer sexuality. You probably don’t know me. Inspired by liberation theology and the ways that Christians worked for peace and social justice, I worked as a journalist in Catholic newspapers, and later as a communicator and educator about media, social movements, global development, and ecumenical and inter-faith collaboration. I lived for two years in the Dominican Republic and six years in Mexico, and travelled in eastern Europe, Africa and Latin America. 

For the past 20 years, I worked with The United Church of Canada as its Latin America-Caribbean program coordinator. There, gradually, I helped to open space for North-South dialogue within and among churches for LGBTIQ rights and inclusion, finding allies in the Dignity Network, Rainbow Faith and Freedom and across the global South.

The retirement plan was to move with my partner to his hometown in southern Mexico, and to keep writing. The virus had other plans, and 18 months or so later, we are still in Toronto. 

For a couple of years before the pandemic, I had filled my reading time (in airports and planes) with Marlon James, Edwidge Danticat, Jewell Parker Rhodes, Julia Álvarez, Ahmed Danny Ramadan, Catherine Hernandez, Silvia Moreno-García—women, LGBTIQ, and majority-world writers. But with our quasi-quarantine, I found myself looking more often to books I had bought over the years—ones I had forgotten about or never read. 

One day in May, I wedged Moreno-García’s excellent Mexican Gothic on to the end of a crowded M shelf. I found myself staring at books that were stashed nearby. Two books by Brian Moore caught my eye. A third book, Boys Like Us, by Brian McGehee also called to me. And there too was The Bishop’s Man, by Linden MacIntyre. I pulled them from the shelf, and in the course of a few days, read the first three. 

Moore was an Irish-Canadian writer who is best-known for Black Robe, a novel and film that remain sharply pertinent as Canadian Christians contend with issues of history, truth and reconciliation with First Nations. The two novels on my shelf were The Colour of Blood (1987) and No Other Life (1993). Both wrestle with the role of religion in political spaces, the ground I have walked these past four decades. 

The Colour of Blood is set in a country like Poland and published in 1987, two years before the collapse of the Communist governments in eastern Europe. It tells the story of a Roman Catholic cardinal and the choices he must make in the face of a popular revolt against a morally-exhausted regime: think of the Solidarnosc movement in the late 70s. 

No Other Life is set in a thinly-disguised Haiti, and is about a Québécois priest who was friend and mentor to a younger, local priest who becomes president. The ending is different from that of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the priest who, drawing inspiration from liberation theology, was twice elected president and twice overthrown. I had made my first visit to Haiti in 1984 while Jean-Claude (“Baby Doc”) Duvalier was still in power, and visited again in 1987 while the country convulsed with hope as popular movements confronted the armed forces. In 1990, I returned as an observer of the 1990 election when Aristide surged to power on a wave of popular support. (I met Aristide a few days before the vote and then again a few years later during his first exile.)

No Other Life is like a very earnest Graham Greene, but it lacks Greene’s ironic humour about both the human condition and the brutal ignorance of oppressors. (Moore must have known that comparisons with Greene’s Haiti novel, The Comedians, would be inevitable.) Moore presents the essential conflict of needing to be rid of a violent and repressive system and trying to choose fair or ethical tools to use against systems that value no ethics. The rites and power games of church and state are well-described. Meanwhile, Haiti’s troubles and my solidarity continue.

After those two books, Brian McGehee’s Boys Like Us was refreshment. I was quickly enchanted by his lively writing, and his descriptions of the Church and Wellesley community and the shenanigans of our mutual neighbours. McGehee was originally from Arkansas and brought a healthy dose of Tennessee Williams and southern gothic style to his writing and our village. The book was published in 1991, which, I learned, was also the year that McGehee died. He was partner of Douglas Wilson, whom I remember from Rites magazine and AIDS Action Now. Doug died the following year. During this COVID pandemic, I have thought frequently of the other great pandemic of my life. AIDS was terrible, ravaging our people—writers, dancers, journalists, activists, artists and our partners.

Finally, I turned to The Bishop’s Man by Linden MacIntyre. It was published in August 2009 and won the Giller Prize that year. Creatively and efficiently, he moves a story forward about a priest who becomes disheartened by his role as the bishop’s fixer—the one who managed priests who struggle with addiction or commit sex crimes—as he faces the consequences of cases that he helped to cover up in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia.

The novel derives from disclosures in 1989 about abuse by an order of lay brothers at the Mount Cashel Orphanage in St. John's and the eruption of abuse complaints across Canada. Soon, Indigenous people who had attended any of Canada’s Indian Residential Schools were saying, “That happened to us too.” 

The Bishop’s Man became personal to me. If, as is said, everyone is connected by just six degrees of separation, in Canada it’s about two degrees—and that’s especially true in church circles. I come from a long line of settlers and was raised on the unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan people at the west end of this country, but in the late 80s and early 90s, I knew some of the Atlantic region bishops and priests whose actions or negligence inspired McIntyre’s story. One of them was Raymond Lahey, bishop of St. George’s diocese in western Newfoundland when I knew him (or thought I knew him), and later bishop of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, the diocese that includes Cape Breton where most of McIntyre’s story unfolds.

In the latter part of the time that I worked with the Canadian Council of Churches (1989-94), Lahey served on its governing board. He was also a member of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. He felt like an ally in some of the justice issues that I cared about. At the Synod of the Americas in 1997, he said: “the Gospel demands that the church today must dialogue with those estranged from it. Such group include: women, on their role in Church and society; homosexual persons, on discrimination and sensitivity toward them; youth, on the values they hold; environmentalists, on the use of creation and population issues; the pro-choice movement, on freedom of conscience; New Age movements; those in fractured families and broken marriages; and other similar groups. Dialogue involves risk, and will not be easy.”

In 1999, I met Lahey again in Mexico City when Pope John Paul II made the final synod document public. I was covering the papal visit for Catholic News Service, and met Lahey in a hotel lobby crowded with princes of the church.

He told me he was struck by the document’s “sense of honesty bringing the Gospel into the context of the modern world. I think it reflects faithfully on the state of the church in the length and breadth of America, which is really very similar all even from Canada to Chile. The needs of people in our world today and how to preach the Gospel in terms that people can hear and that can reconcile people to the institution.”

For me, it’s the Catholic social teaching represented in documents like that one, together with the documents of the Second Vatican Council in the early 1960s and various meetings of Latin American bishops (especially their articulation of a “preferential option for the poor”) that helped me maintain a fragile connection with the Catholic Church. 

A decade passed after my last meeting with Lahey and, as Gordon Lightfoot sang, “Heroes often fail.” On Aug. 7, 2009, Lahey announced that the Antigonish diocese had reached a $15 million settlement in a class action lawsuit filed by victims of sexual abuse by diocesan priests dating to 1950. Five weeks later, as he returned from international travel, customs officials at the Ottawa airport found child pornography in his laptop computer. Disgrace and prison followed. A priest of the St. John’s archdiocese later told reporters that he had told his archbishop in early 1989 that he had learned from one of the Mount Cashel survivors that Lahey had been in possession of child porn years earlier. Nothing was done. 

In late May this year, I finished reading The Bishop’s Man as news began to arrive in avalanches. On May 28, the report came of the discovery of 215 graves of children on the grounds of the Kamloops Indian Residential School. I knew two people, leaders respectively in the Syilx and Nlaka'pamux nations who survived their attendance at that school and who guided me in the late 70s into good ways of listening to Indigenous peoples and hearing their stories. They’re both gone now, and this settler boy is grateful for their patient teaching.

I had also been blessed to attend the presentation in Ottawa in 2015 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report and Calls to Action, and so I knew from the stories of survivors that days would come when stories would be believed, truth emerge, and cemeteries uncovered.

On June 6, a Muslim family of four was murdered in a hate crime in London, Ont., leaving only one child as a survivor. On June 21, a church that I know on the land of the Penticton Syilx First Nation was burned down, and other churches have burned or been defaced since then. A wild fire destroyed the beautiful town of Lytton, nearby Nlaka'pamux communities, and a vital Chinese-Canadian history museum. On July 7, the president of Haiti was assassinated, an event that seems completely detached from the reality of daily life of most Haitians while revealing the connections between Colombia’s armed forces, paramilitary death squads and mercenaries.

During the pandemic, like many others, I latched onto Netflix as a replacement for movie theatres. In Sense8, the characters wander at times through the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin. A line on a wall asks: "Ist der Holocaust ein Irrweg oder eine Spiegelung unseres selbst?" ("Is the Holocaust an aberration or a reflection of ourselves?"). 

While, increasingly, I think the latter (residential schools, voter suppression, malicious vaccine nationalism), there is an antidote: social movements—the multiple ways people connect with each other for change—defending voting rights in Georgia or Texas, protecting migrant workers and refugees, strengthening LGBTIQ rights around the world trade unions, cooperatives, the women’s movement. 

At their best, churches can bring people together. Too often now, we see them at their worst: bishops who refuse to apologize; evangelists who get rich by gouging the faithful; false prophets who spread hatred and fear.  So: what now of those church places where I have dedicated so much time?

At the July 1968 assembly of the World Council of Churches in Uppsala, Sweden, the African-American writer James Baldwin, the gay son of a Baptist preacher, spoke to the assembly on the theme "White Racism or World Community." He was there in place of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., who had been assassinated less than three months earlier. 

Baldwin introduced himself as one had always been outside the church, even when he had tried to work in it. "I address you as one of God's creatures whom the Christian church has most betrayed." Re-telling the long story of racism, he said: "long ago, for a complex of reasons, but among them power, the Christian personality split into two — into dark and light, and is now bewildered and at war with itself.... I wonder if there is left in the Christian civilizations the moral energy, the spiritual daring to atone, to repent, to be born again?"

To be born again, our churches must truly opt for the poor, the marginalized, the dispossessed, the locked-out, los de abajo, les condamné-e-s de la terre. They must abandon colonial privilege and begin at last to understand reality (as theologian Néstor Medina has said in a different context) “from the perspective of its underside.”

International Pillar

The tenth instalment in a year-long series of posts by RFF Founder & Executive Director, Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, on the origins, mandate and work of the organization.

International activists have consistently said that religious-based homophobia and transphobia i.e. religious-based discrimination, is the main obstacle to LGBTI human rights and inclusion. This is true for most parts of the world, the exception being some parts of Asia where homophobia and transphobia is anchored to cultural values. For decades, the LGBTI human rights movement has been satisfied with fighting religious-based discrimination and the LGBTI community has often won, however with the rise in fundamentalism of all faiths, we are now losing ground and therefore need to develop a new strategy. The result of this struggle has meant that LGBTI people were forced to choose between their sexuality and/or gender identity, and their religious faith. Being forced to make this choice has been very damaging to LGBTI individuals on many levels including the spiritual level and the emotional level. RFF was established to partner with activists on the ground in various countries, in order to develop long term strategies for changing hearts and minds so that families and local faith communities are safer for LGBTI people. This would result in LGBTI people not being kicked out of their homes or faith communities. 

International organizations working on behalf of LGBTI people were consulted and enthusiastically supported the vision for RFF. A symposium following the Parliament of the World’s Religions in 2018 brought together 25 activists to help refine the concept of RFF. And various consultations were held with people working in the field of LGBTI human rights and/or international work.

Our International Pillar involves partnering with organizations, institutions, and communities in selected nations to help them ensure that their communities are inclusive and affirming of LGTBQ2S+ people. This program will engage activist organizations at home and abroad to achieve the goal of full inclusion in anti-colonial, anti-racist, and equitable strategies. The international program shall be a 20-year strategic plan for programming for selected nations to achieve the vision of the RFF movement. This will result in a measurable decline in rates of religious-based LGBTQ2S+ discrimination. To start, we will pilot this initiative in one country with a focus on finding trustworthy LGBTQ2S+ organizations to partner with in a participatory way.

We also established, with the help of international partners, our criteria for establishing the countries we want to work with as follows: 

1. Strategically located. It would also be helpful if there are some strong and trusted regional structures. 

2. Established and respected LGBTI organizations to work with. 

3. Relatively safe countries for our initial work (safe for people on the ground etc.) 

4. The first country needs to have Christianity as its most predominant religion so that we can begin with what we know most about and to be able to focus our resources.

5. One or two languages which RFF can either learn, or find the resources for respectful translation done in good faith.

6. Existing progressive faith groups to work with.

7. Needs to be an Official Development Assistance (ODA) country

Countries were selected with input from international LGBTI organizations e.g. GIN-SSOGIE, OutRight Action International and ILGA. RFF reached out to the key LGBTI organizations in those countries to see if a partnership is of interest to those organizations. We will establish baseline metrics including a survey of cultural attitudes to ascertain the opposition/support for LGBTI inclusion. And where possible, the opposition/support that is religious-based. RFF and the local partner will collaboratively develop a long term (20-year) strategy to reduce the amount of religious-based discrimination. This strategy will be context specific and the wisdom of the local activists and communities will drive the development of strategies. Assessment tools will be developed to ascertain the effectiveness of individual strategies. This will help us, along with the communities who we are engaging with, determine what does and doesn’t work. Staff will be hired in the selected countries to implement the strategies. 

RFF will be acquiring grants from governments, foundations and individuals to financially support this work. An international team will review the strategies employed in different countries to determine best practices, what strategies are transferable etc. Additional countries will be selected as funds are available and as a growing base of knowledge around how to change hearts and minds is established. This will lead to a collection of possible strategies and an increase in the resources available. In addition, RFF will develop a mechanism for convening and supporting individual activists doing this work outside of the selected countries, as well as a mechanism for convening and supporting allies. 

Internationally, we formed partnerships with the Global Interfaith Network For People of All Sexes, Sexual Orientations, Gender Identities and Expressions (GIN-SSOGIE) out of South Africa, and Global Justice Institute (GJI) out of New York. We became a member of The Commonwealth Equality Network (TCEN), and are continuing to develop relationships with the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) in Geneva, Outright Action International in New York, and have been in partnership with Egale Canada Human Rights Trust since 2019. 

Through participating in various online conferences and webinars, RFF is gaining a profile around the world, and we are enthusiastically welcomed as an important part of the global effort. This is about changing hearts and minds, a bottom up approach rather than top down like legislative change or changing a denomination’s policy. We’re starting with one or two countries and eventually working our way up to 5. With the countries we have chosen to work with, we’re looking for the diaspora in Canada that could educate us to work in those countries and help us with fundraising. 

Stop Conversion Therapy in Canada!

Join us in calling on Parliament to approve Bill C-6 and Criminalize Conversion Therapy

Let’s call on all parties in Canada’s new minority parliament to amend the Criminal Code and pass Bill C-6 that would ban conversion therapy once and for all. This ban is long overdue and we cannot wait any longer. Your voice will help us end this abusive, barbaric practice that leaves victims with lasting trauma and suffering!

According to a report published in the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, in Canada more than 20,000 LGBTQ2S+ Canadians have been exposed to conversion therapy treatments or other efforts aimed at repressing or changing their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.

The move to crack down on conversion therapy at the federal level can be traced back to 2019, when queer NDP Member of Parliament Sheri Benson tabled a petition calling on the federal government to take action to ban the practice.

Now that the new government is formed, it is time for parliamentarians to re-table the bill and prioritize the passing of this legislation.

Conversion therapy aims to change an individual’s sexual orientation to heterosexual, to repress or reduce non-heterosexual attraction or sexual behaviours, or to change an individual’s gender identity to match the sex they were assigned at birth. It harms and stigmatizes LGBTQ2S+ persons, undermines their dignity and negatively impacts their equality rights. It also causes deep and long-lasting pain, suffering and trauma in those who have been subjected to it. It reflects myths and stereotypes about LGBTQ2S+ persons, in particular that sexual orientations other than heterosexual, and gender identities other than cisgender, can and should be changed. The practice can take various forms, including counselling and behavioural modification. Some victims have been treated as if they have a psychiatric disorder and have been medicated or subjected to electric shock therapy.

Criminal law reform is an important step toward protecting LGBTQ2S+ persons and promoting their human rights. Bill C-6’s main objective is to protect the dignity and equality of LGBTQ2S+ people through Criminal Code amendments that seek to end conversion therapy, a practice that discriminates against them. The legislation proposes five new Criminal Code offences related to conversion therapy. These include:

• causing a minor to undergo conversion therapy

• removing a minor from Canada to undergo conversion therapy abroad

• causing a person to undergo conversion therapy against their will

• profiting from providing conversion therapy

• advertising an offer to provide conversion therapy

The Government of Canada has said that they are committed to working with provinces, territories, municipalities and stakeholders to ensure that Canada is a country where everyone – regardless of their gender expression, gender identity, or sexual orientation – can live in equality and freedom.

Let's tell all parliamentarians to act on their commitment to criminalize conversion therapy in Canada. Without the passage of Bill C-6, members of the LGBTQ2S+ community will remain vulnerable to this cruel and inhumane practice.

Sign the petition now and add your voice to support the passing of bill C-6!