The exhibit from the Canadian Museum of Human Rights looks at the mistreatment of queer people in the public sector…
It destroyed over 9,000 careers and was one of the longest-running, largest-scale violations of human rights in the workplace in Canadian history. Now, ahead of its stop at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa (June 28 – August 29, 2025), the travelling exhibition Love in a Dangerous Time: Canada’s LGBT Purge is popping up at the Embassy of Canada Art Gallery in Washington, D.C. ahead of World Pride.
The pop-up was developed from a permanent exhibition that is housed at Winnipeg’s Canadian Museum for Human Rights, created by the museum and LGBT Purge Fund. The 500-square-foot exhibit in Washington, tells the story of the “LGBT Purge,” which saw the harassment and firing of 2SLGBTQI+ members of the Canadian Armed Forces, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and federal public service between the 1950s and 1990s.
The exhibit illustrates the damaging impacts of the policies enacted by the Government of Canada that destroyed careers, ruined lives and caused psychological damage. It also showcases the courage of the community who took the government to court in the 1980s and 1990s.
“This exhibition shines a light on the baseless and tragic pursuit of 2SLGBTQI+ people who sought to serve their country,” said Michelle Douglas, survivor and executive director of the LGBT Purge Fund, in a press release. “It reveals important lessons for today and strives to leave visitors with a sense of the resilience of those who experienced the Purge.”
In 2016, a class action lawsuit by survivors of the “LGBT Purge” was launched and resulted in a settlement of $145 million. Most funds went to survivors, with $25 million earmarked to fund projects, like this one, to represent the Purge victims who had passed. “We also hope this exhibition will give people pause and not allow history to repeat itself,” Douglas continued.
The exhibit comes during a turbulent time in the United States of America. Earlier this month the U.S. Supreme Court permitted Trump’s ban on transgender people in the military, allowing armed forces to discharge current transgender troops and reject new recruits.
Since last year, the pop-up exhibit has travelled across Canada to cities in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario.
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