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New exhibit "Broken Promises" now open.

Rental fee: Please inquire.

Space requirements: 325–370 square metres (3,500–4,000 square feet)

A group of people protesting on the sidewalk in front of an office building. They are holding protest signs and banners and are arranged three and four deep. A police officer watches them. Partially obscured.

Source: Photograph by Jearld Moldenhauer

Learn how 2SLGBTQ+ members of the Canadian military, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and federal civil service were investigated, interrogated and removed from their jobs. Meet the brave activists who fought back. Explore the history of Canada’s LGBT Purge and find inspiration to help create a future in which the rights of 2SLGBTQ+ people are respected.

From the 1950s to the 1990s, the Government of Canada systematically persecuted 2SLGBTQ+ members of the Canadian Armed Forces, the RCMP and the public service. Known as “the Purge,” it was an attempt to remove 2SLGBTQ+ people from the workforce, justified by arguments that they presented a threat to national security. 2SLGBTQ+ Canadians fought back, launching political and legal campaigns to ensure sexual orientation became a protected ground under Canadian human rights law. Their activism ultimately dismantled the Purge and led to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s apology to 2SLGBTQ+ Canadians in 2017. It also led to a class action settlement in 2018 that established the LGBT Purge Fund, which partnered with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights to develop an exhibition about this troubling history, and the inspiring acts of resistance it sparked.

The travelling exhibition includes:

  • All artifacts. Loan agreements for the artifacts are the responsibility of the CMHR;
  • Images, audio soundscapes, graphics, AV projections, digital interactives and accessibility features;
  • IT/AV components. Remote IT/AV support will be provided;
  • All physical graphic/environmental components (venues will be required to produce single‐use graphics).

Note

Assets used within the exhibition are licensed for exhibition use. Licensing for promotional use may be the responsibility of the venue.

Partners

Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge is delivered in partnership with the LGBT Purge Fund and presented by RBC.

In 2016, survivors of the LGBT Purge launched a nation‐wide class action lawsuit against the Canadian government and a historic settlement was reached in 2018. The settlement allocated between $15 and $25 million for “reconciliation and memorialization measures.” These funds symbolically represent compensation for the suffering of victims of the LGBT Purge who did not live long enough to receive individual compensation under the settlement. We hope that this exhibition is a fitting tribute to their lives and legacy.

A large sign on a wall is made up of thick black horizontal lines and the English and French words “Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge” and “Amours cachés : La purge LGBT au Canada” are distributed within the lines. The top and bottom lines are a mix of black and rainbow colours. Rainbow colours cover the left edge of the wall.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A large exhibit panel on the left features the words “A Clash of Values: Colonization in Early Canada” and a colourful painting. On the right, there is a large black-and-white photograph of people parading in single file in 1940s women’s swimsuits.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A large exhibit panel with text and historical images is on the left. On the right is a large black-and-white photograph from the 1910s of a man in a military uniform flanked by two women in dresses. A photograph of a large building can be seen further to the right.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A series of exhibition panels feature historical images of military personnel. The word “Wars” is on the top of one panel. A display case located between two panels contains a First World War military uniform.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A replica of a small bar featuring high yellow stools, a mirrored wall behind the bar, and wine glasses hanging from overhead racks is next to an exhibition panel with a large image of people and text.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A person with their back to us watches a video. Small portraits of people flank the video monitor on the left and right.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
An exhibition panel on the left has a picture of a large eye on it. On the right, three small videos are projected on to the wall. The space is dark.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
Three metal chairs and a metal table covered with binders and a tape recorder are in the middle of a darkened space. A clock hangs on the wall above the table. A mirrored surface is to the right of the table.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A display case featuring a Stetson hat and magazines is to the left of an exhibition panel with photographs, text, and the words “Dave Van Norman.”
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A group of people wave their arms in front of a darkened wall. Colours, shapes, and words appear on the wall where their hands are.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A small group of people walk by a large sign on a wall, made up of thick black horizontal lines with the English and French words “Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge” and “Amours cachés : La purge LGBT au Canada” distributed within the lines. The top and bottom lines are a mix of black and rainbow colours. Rainbow colours cover the left edge of the wall.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A group of people crowd into a city street holding signs and rainbow flags. The sign in the foreground reads, “To protect all kids we must protect trans and queer kids.”
Source: The Canadian Press, photograph by Darren Calabrese
A group of people sitting on benches and standing in a dark wood panelled room. They are clapping and smiling.
Source: Photograph by Mitchel Raphael
A group of people wearing colourful Indigenous regalia dancing in a line inside a tent on grass.
Source: Photograph by Sadie Phoenix Lavoie
A group of young women in short-sleeved drab green t-shirts smiling.

Contact details

A large sign on a wall is made up of thick black horizontal lines and the English and French words “Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge” and “Amours cachés : La purge LGBT au Canada” are distributed within the lines. The top and bottom lines are a mix of black and rainbow colours. Rainbow colours cover the left edge of the wall.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A large exhibit panel on the left features the words “A Clash of Values: Colonization in Early Canada” and a colourful painting. On the right, there is a large black-and-white photograph of people parading in single file in 1940s women’s swimsuits.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A large exhibit panel with text and historical images is on the left. On the right is a large black-and-white photograph from the 1910s of a man in a military uniform flanked by two women in dresses. A photograph of a large building can be seen further to the right.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A series of exhibition panels feature historical images of military personnel. The word “Wars” is on the top of one panel. A display case located between two panels contains a First World War military uniform.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A replica of a small bar featuring high yellow stools, a mirrored wall behind the bar, and wine glasses hanging from overhead racks is next to an exhibition panel with a large image of people and text.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A person with their back to us watches a video. Small portraits of people flank the video monitor on the left and right.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
An exhibition panel on the left has a picture of a large eye on it. On the right, three small videos are projected on to the wall. The space is dark.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
Three metal chairs and a metal table covered with binders and a tape recorder are in the middle of a darkened space. A clock hangs on the wall above the table. A mirrored surface is to the right of the table.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A display case featuring a Stetson hat and magazines is to the left of an exhibition panel with photographs, text, and the words “Dave Van Norman.”
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A group of people wave their arms in front of a darkened wall. Colours, shapes, and words appear on the wall where their hands are.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A small group of people walk by a large sign on a wall, made up of thick black horizontal lines with the English and French words “Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge” and “Amours cachés : La purge LGBT au Canada” distributed within the lines. The top and bottom lines are a mix of black and rainbow colours. Rainbow colours cover the left edge of the wall.
Photo: Aaron Cohen, CMHR
A group of people crowd into a city street holding signs and rainbow flags. The sign in the foreground reads, “To protect all kids we must protect trans and queer kids.”
Source: The Canadian Press, photograph by Darren Calabrese
A group of people sitting on benches and standing in a dark wood panelled room. They are clapping and smiling.
Source: Photograph by Mitchel Raphael
A group of people wearing colourful Indigenous regalia dancing in a line inside a tent on grass.
Source: Photograph by Sadie Phoenix Lavoie
A group of young women in short-sleeved drab green t-shirts smiling.

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