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Celebrating Canada's 2SLGBTQI+ Communities

Your Essential Pride 2020 Reading List

Happy reading…

By Sienna Vittoria Asselin

Celebrate this Pride Month by looking back on the major milestones of the past half-century with one of these must-read books. Each tells the story of the key players and activists who fought against discrimination, and will leave you feeling inspired to pick up the flag and continue the fight for freedom. Happy reading, and happy Pride!

The Book of Pride: LGBTQ Heroes Who Changed the World
By Mason Funk
Through in-depth interviews with the movers and shakers in the LGBTQ rights movement, this book tells an important piece of modern history spanning the 1960s till now. It is a must-read for anyone looking to learn more about the political and personal efforts made by activists and everyday people for positive change.
Buy it here: Amazon | Indigo

PRIDE: Fifty Years of Parades and Protests from the Photo Archives of the New York Times
By Abrams Books
For the visually minded, this book offers an overview of the LGBTQ rights movement using photography collections from The New York Times. The archival photos capture key scenes in the fight for equality starting with the Stonewall Riots just over 50 years ago, moving through decades of parades and protests, to the present day.
Buy it here: Amazon |

Rainbow Warrior: My Life in Color
By Gilbert Baker
In this personal memoir, Gilbert Baker brings readers through his painful childhood, his time in the army, and then his arrival in San Francisco, where he cultivated a career as a visual artist and designed the now-iconic rainbow flag. It debuted in June 1978 at San Francisco’s Gay Freedom Day parade, and since then has become arguably one of the most recognizable visual symbols of a movement.
The books are available at Amazon or Indigo, and through your local independent bookstore.

Pride: The Celebration and the Struggle
By Robin Stevenson
In this book for younger readers, the history of the LGBTQ rights movement is told in an approachable and accessible manner. It includes an overview of the milestones of the past 50 years, with a particular focus on profiles of activists from around the world, including refugees from Indonesia and Kenya, and teens in Inuvik.
The books are available at Amazon or Indigo, and through your local independent bookstore.

Pride
By Matthew Todd
This large-format hardcover book makes for a perfect coffee table conversation starter. The glossy tome charts the major events of the past 50 years, starting again with the Stonewall Riots and walking readers through the worldwide action that emerged in the decades to follow, including important moments (passing marriage and anti-discrimination legislation) and featuring interviews and essays from notable figures along the way.
Buy it here:


SIENNA VITTORIA ASSELIN is an Ottawa-based freelance journalist with an MA in history and a love for all things bookish and historical. Follow her on social media at @SiennaVittoria.

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