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Free admission for kids 12 and under Dec. 27-Jan. 5 | Free entry for all Sundays

See hours

Rental fee: Free to Canadian venues until August 2025

Space requirements: 500 square feet

A group of people sitting on benches and standing in a dark wood panelled room. They are clapping and smiling. Partially obscured.

Source: Photograph by Mitchel Raphael

This pop‐up exhibition speaks to decades of human rights violations against 2SLGBTQI+ Canadians who wanted to serve their country and the brave activists who fought back. It is designed to educate and inspire Canadians to help create a future in which the rights of all 2SLGBTQI+ people are respected.

From the 1950s to the 1990s, the Government of Canada investigated, harassed and expelled 2SLGBTQI+ members of the Canadian Armed Forces, RCMP and federal public service during what came to be known as “the Purge.” Thousands of careers and lives were destroyed through this sweeping national policy, which came to be known as the LGBT Purge. But 2SLGBTQI+ Canadians led political and legal campaigns to change the policy and ensure protection under Canadian human rights law.

Some of their stories are captured in the Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge pop‐up exhibition. 

In 2016, Purge survivors launched a class action suit that resulted in a historic settlement in 2018. That large settlement established the LGBT Purge Fund, which worked with the Museum to develop Love in a Dangerous Time. The aim is to raise awareness of this little‐known history and to inspire new generations to rise to today’s challenges.

This travelling exhibition is a precursor to a much larger exhibition, which opens in 2025 at the national museum in Winnipeg. 

The pop‐up exhibition consists of three square pods that contain images and text elements, as well as a bilingual video.

Partners

Love in a Dangerous Time is a gift from the victims of the LGBT Purge, delivered in partnership with the LGBT Purge Fund.

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 June 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 be eligible to receive individual compensation under the settlement. We hope that this exhibition will be a fitting tribute to their lives and legacy.

Three large cubes covered in images and text are on display in a large public room. Two groups of two adults walk near them, perusing the cubes’ content. Off to the side, four people are talking.
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
Interior view of a white atrium with wooden levels above. Visitors are walking past three standalone informational displays. The displays include text and images set against a backdrop of wooden architecture and a staircase. Some visitors are engaged in conversation, while others interact with the exhibition.
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
Text from a display about Canada's LGBT Purge, featuring the title “Love in a Dangerous Time” and “Amours cachés,” with sections discussing discrimination and historical context, illustrated with rainbow colours.
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
A close-up of a display cube which bears, on one side, the headline “After the Purge” under which four photos of men are arranged with lines of small text beneath. Another section has three larger photos arranged vertically. The images indicate they are a Black Lives Matter Toronto march, a protest in support of trans kids, and an Indigenous Two-Spirit demonstration. The second side of the cube has a headline “Change is Possible: 2SLGBTQ+ Activism.”
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
Exhibit in a modern space showcasing historical posters and text about 2SLGBTQ+ activism, with people observing the display and a person on a balcony above.
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
A large building featuring an expansive open space, showcasing its impressive architecture and design. In this space, there are two standalone informational displays from the “Love in a Dangerous Time” pop-up exhibition developed by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
Display of cards with rainbow designs and messages, set in clear holders on a table. A poster in the background reads, “Listen to the Stories of LGBT Purge Survivors.”
Photo: Michaela Neuman & FOREIGNERZ (@equidiem @sansfuccs)
A group of young women in short-sleeved drab green t-shirts smiling.
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 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 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.
Source: Photograph by Jearld Moldenhauer

Tour schedule

Venues will be added to the official tour schedule once dates are finalized.

  • Central Library -, Calgary Public Library (Calgary, Alberta): August 26,2024 -– September 23, 2024
  • MacEwan University (Edmonton, Alberta): October 7, 2024 – November 8, 2024
  • Vancouver Island Regional Library – Nanaimo Harbourfront (Nanaimo, British Columbia): December 9, 2024 – January 10, 2025
  • Vancouver Island Regional Library – Campbell River (Campbell River, British Columbia): January 13, 2025 – February 14, 2025
  • Vancouver Island Regional Library – Cowichan/Duncan (Duncan, British Columbia): February 17, 2025 – March 21, 2025

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