The LGBTTQ Oral History Initiative, a University of Manitoba Academic Enhancement Fund project, seeks to develop a testimony of life experience of Le***an, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Two-Spirit and Q***r (LGBTTQ) individuals, and thus preserve a permanent record of LGBTTQ experience in Manitoba. Collecting individual oral histories of LGBTTQ people is part of the larger project of witnessing and
remembering, which are cornerstones for the establishment, protection and expansion of Human Rights. This oral history initiative will deepen the research base on LGBTTQ history for scholars, community groups and organisations and preserve a record of everyday life, early political organizing, and the challenges posed by the onset of HIV/AIDS in order to understand how LGBTTQ people have built their lives, resisted discrimination and responded to challenge and crisis. Additionally, this project reaches out to those whose experiences and stories have not yet been heard, especially histories from Two-Spirit Aboriginal peoples, individuals involved in the establishment of HIV/AIDS work in Manitoba, and Transgender communities. Ultimately, this research aims to broaden knowledge and understanding of sexual and gender diversity in Manitoba and Western Canada.
