Toronto heroes: Newsmakers 2014

The people who shaped our year for the better


Ontario Catholic educators march in Pride parade

This year the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association voted in favour of marching in the WorldPride parade as a show of support to their LGBT colleagues and students, an act of faith so loving and non-judgmental that you’d be forgiven for thinking it was done by individuals other than those within the Catholic school system.

WorldPride in Toronto

If you’re still hung over from this year’s Pride festivities, we understand. For two glorious weeks, Toronto hosted the world, and queers from all corners of the globe flooded the city to participate in various festivities, including Canada’s largest LGBT arts festival, a human-rights conference featuring delegates from more than 50 countries and a six-hour parade. And then Mother Nature proved her love for all things queer by wrapping the city in a gigantic double rainbow, because we’re that awesome, you guys.

Ontario voters

On June 12, 2014, Ontario voted in Kathleen O’Day Wynne as premier of the province and the first openly gay head of government in Canada. And perhaps what was most significant about both the campaign and victory was how little the media and her political opponents called attention to Wynne’s sexual identity. At a time when mudslinging in the political arena is common, Wynne’s win came across as a tentative step forward for both the province and LGBT rights.

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