Five questions with Kate Zieman
Senior Media Librarian, CBC
Q1: What does Pride week mean to you? How will you celebrate?
Pride Week always feels sort of like ‘Queer New Year’s’ for me: it’s an opportunity to reflect on the gains that LGBT people have made, consider what still needs to be done, catch up with old friends, and attend lots of parties. I’ve been going to Pride events since 1996, though this year will be a little different as my partner and I will be bringing our 9 month old baby with us. This obviously means that things will be a little tamer, but fortunately there’s lots of stuff for families to do (particularly the great beer garden with a splash pad behind the 519 Community Centre).
Q2: How easily or uneasily is/was your LGBT identity accepted in your workplace? (Personal experience? Others’ experience? Example?)
My identity is not an issue at all in my current workplace, which is something that I really, really appreciate. I’ve worked in places where it was not comfortable or even safe to be out–such as a warehouse in a rural area–and that sucked. Over time I’ve discovered that it’s crucial to come out early, often, and unambiguously no matter how awkward it might seem at first–this helps avoid situations like the one in which I learned after 2 years in one workplace that everybody assumed I was referring to a female buddy when I said “girlfriend”! It’s very strange to end up in the closet accidentally, but that’s what happened to me–by the time I realized the misunderstanding, it felt like too much time had gone by and I didn’t know how to set it right without embarrassing everyone or making it seem like I’d been hiding something. Hopefully some day this will be such a non-issue that nobody will even need to come out, but we’re certainly not there yet.
Q3: What’s the one progress we’ve made in recent years around LGBT acceptance that makes you really happy; and what’s the one improvement you hope to see society achieve soon in this area?
I’m proud that Canada is so far ahead on issues like marriage equality and legal protection for trans folks. In terms of improvements, I think Canadian queer people and our allies need to focus more attention on the global struggle and the ways in which we might be able to assist LGBT people living under increasingly harsh regimes (Russia, Uganda, and Iran are just a few that come to mind).
Q4: Did you have an LGBT (or non-LGBT) role model at work / in the industry? Outside? – Who was it and why?
I can’t really think of one particular role model, though I’ve certainly benefited from the experience of older LGBT people that I’ve befriended over the years. I volunteer with the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives, and through that organization I’ve come to appreciate the bravery and sacrifice that has led to the rights that I enjoy today.
Q5: What advice would you give a new/younger LGBT person coming into the industry?
I would advise them that the personal is indeed political, and that coming out is one of the best things that can do for themselves and their fellow LGBT people. I would also encourage them to get to know the history of the movement, and to resist becoming complacent or taking anything for granted.
Five questions with Louis-Philippe Deslauriers
Host/producer, Mini TFO
Q1. What does Pride week mean to you? How will you celebrate?
For me, Pride Week means we take a moment to celebrate ourselves on being LGBT and alive ! And to celebrate the generations of LGBT that came before us and worked hard to make our world increasingly open. Unfortunately, the process of coming out’ can still be difficult for a number of people, and unfortulately even in 2013, many young people commit suicide for various reasons in the process of coming out… So let us celebrate the courage of such a beautiful community et let’s continue to open the eyes of the rest of the world to eliminate 100 % the suicides related to homosexuality.
And Oh, I will celebrate with friends and drinks !
Q2: How easily or uneasily is/was your LGBT identity accepted in your workplace? (Personal experience? Others’ experience? Example?)
For me, being gay was always a positive. I was brought up in the arts and stage community since I was very young, and as far as I can remember, being gay was always part of my life. As soon as I came out, I felt even more empowered and better in my skin. I like to believe that helped me to be able to promote myself at auditions or interviews ! At TFO, there are many gay people that are out and it’s a great atmosphere – we can feel comfortable in our LGBT identity!
Q3: What’s the one progress we’ve made in recent years around LGBT acceptance that makes you really happy; and what’s the one improvement you hope to see society achieve soon in this area?
One of my dreams as a young man has always to have a family: a husband and at least one child. When I was a child, we started to hear talk of marriage but not of children … Today, I walk around Toronto and I see families with two dads and two moms . WOW! I think that’s great progress! In terms of what remains to be done, it would be really nice to never again hear ”gay bashing”.
Q4: Did you have an LGBT (or non-LGBT) role model at work / in the industry? Outside? – Who was it and why?
My parenst were always pionneers in the art of building a better world; they always told me it was normal to be gay. They had even chosen a gay person as my godfather. I can say that my godfather was the first gay person I knew. Growing up in such an open environment really helped me.
Q5: What advice would you give a new/younger LGBT person coming into the industry?
I know it sounds cliché, but to me being comfortable with oneself is the only way to succeed while respecting one’s values in this world and especially in the media industry … It’s much easier said than done, but surrounding oursleves with people who make us feel free is always something that helps… And instead of hearing the small demon in us that says that we are too fat, too ugly, too skinny or too tall, or not good enough or not enough of this or that, let’s try to find the little angel that sleeps in us and that says we are beautiful and that we are worthy of being listened to and of being heard.