1990s
1994
Northern
Edmonton
- Edmonton mayor Jan Reimer declared second annual Gay and Lesbian Pride Day [1]
- Vriend v Alberta case: Alberta’s Court of Queen’s Bench decided to read in “sexual orientation” as a protected ground under the Individual’s Rights Protection Act (1980)
- Provincial government appealed Vriend v Alberta decision finding discrimination on a protected ground in Alberta’s Court of Queen’s Bench to the Alberta Court of Appeals
- December: Sherry McKibben was elected to Edmonton City Council to represent Ward 4 in the by-election to replace newly-elected Liberal MP Judy Bethel, becoming the first out queer woman elected in Alberta. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Her election made Edmonton the first Canadian city to have both a gay man and lesbian woman serving at the same time. [4]
Janice Rhea Reimer is a Canadian politician and the first female mayor of Edmonton, Alberta, having served in that capacity from 1989 until 1995. Highlights of her time in office included the inception of a new waste management system and repeated efforts by Peter Pocklington, owner of the Edmonton Oilers, to secure concessions from the city in exchange for his agreement not to move the team. Although she has never sought office at the provincial or federal levels, she is a lifelong New Democrat.
Vriend v Alberta [1998] 1 S.C.R. 493 is an important Supreme Court of Canada case that determined that a legislative omission can be the subject of a Charter violation. The case involved a dismissal of a teacher because of his sexual orientation and was an issue of great controversy during that period.
The Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta is the superior court of the Canadian province of Alberta. The Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta in Calgary was relocated to the Calgary Courts Centre in 2007. The Court of Queen's Bench has been located at the Law Courts building in Edmonton since the 1970s.
Central
Calgary
- Fourth annual Calgary Pride Parade
- Alberta Rockies Gay Rodeo Association (ARGRA) held its first Canadian Rockies International Rodeo [7]
Calgary Pride is an LGBT pride festival, held annually in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The event is organized by Pride Calgary, a non-profit organization, and is currently held in the final week of August, with the closing parade falling on the first weekend of September when necessary, each year.
Southern
1995
Northern
Edmonton
- Out alderman Michael Phair was re-elected in the Edmonton municipal election to represent Ward 4 on Edmonton City Council
- Alderman Sherry McKibben ran to represent Ward 3, came third and did not return to council
- Mayor Reimer declared third annual Gay and Lesbian Pride Day
- Estimated 500 people attended Edmonton’s Pride Parade
- University of Alberta queer students group renamed itself from Gays and Lesbians on Campus (GALOC) to OUTreach [8]
Michael Albert Phair is a Canadian politician, who served on Edmonton City Council from 1992 until 2007. He was the first openly gay elected politician in the province of Alberta, as well as one of the earliest openly gay elected officials anywhere in Canada.
The 1995 municipal election was held October 16, 1995 to elect a mayor and twelve aldermen to sit on Edmonton City Council, nine trustees to sit on the public school board, and seven trustees to sit on the separate school board. Edmontonians also decided two plebiscite questions.
Sherry McKibben (1944-2014) was an Edmonton alderman who was elected in the 1994 by-election to replace Ward 4 alderman Judy Bethel, who was elected to the House of Commons and resigned her seat on council.
Central
Calgary
- Fifth annual Calgary Pride Parade
- Richard Gregory, member of the Calgary Lesbian and Gay Political Action Guild (CLAGPAG), AIDS Calgary board member and volunteer, chair of the advisory committee to the social services programme at Mount Royal College, was a candidate to become Ward 8 alderman. Gregory became the first out candidate in Calgary city council history.
- Daniel MacGregor and James Cooke founded queer swim group Different Strokes [9]
- Gay and Lesbian film fest received 4 000$ from government, attacked in press by Christian groups
- May 28: birth of Canadian Olympic luger John Fennell, who competed for Team Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. [10]
Mount Royal University (MRU) is a public university in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
A luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. A luger steers by using their calf muscles to flex the sled's runners or by exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21–25 kg (46–55 lb) for singles and 25–30 kg (55–66 lb) for doubles. Luge is also the name of an Olympic sport.
John Fennell is an American-Canadian luger who has competed since 2011.
Southern
1996
Northern
Edmonton
- Government of Alberta won its appeal of the Vriend v Alberta decision in the Court of Appeals, Vriend appealed to the Supreme Court
Central
Calgary
- Calgary gay bar The Backlot opened by Ken Schultz and partners Rudy and Lorne
Southern
1997
Northern
Edmonton
Central
Calgary
- Outlooks Magazine founded (open until 2012)
- Christian evangelical groups pressure the chief superintendent of the Calgary Board of Education (public school board) to ban two books from school libraries for being “pro-gay”
OUTLOOKS was a Canadian LGBT magazine, published 10 times annually. Founded by Roy Heale in 1997 as a newsprint monthly, in 2009 the publication was purchased by Brett Taylor and was changed to a full gloss lifestyle magazine for the LGBT community. The head office was located in Calgary, Alberta.
Southern
1998
Northern
Edmonton
- Supreme Court of Canada rules to read sexual orientation into the Alberta Human Rights Act as a protected ground
- Premier Ralph Klein threatened to use the Notwithstanding Clause to delay implementation of the Vriend decision
Ralph Phillip Klein, was a Canadian politician who served as the 12th Premier of Alberta and leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta from 1992 until his retirement in 2006. Klein's tenure as premier ended when the Alberta Progressive Conservatives' new leader, Ed Stelmach, assumed office December 14, 2006, exactly fourteen years after Klein first became Premier. His nickname was "King Ralph", a reference to his political longevity and his management style. Klein continued the PC dynasty, winning four consecutive majority governments.
Central
Calgary
- The Calgary Police Service established the Gay & Lesbian Community/Police Liaison Committee and appointed a community liaison officer. [11] The first liaison officer was Constable Doug Jones. [12]
Southern
1999
Northern
Edmonton
Central
Calgary
- Fairy Tales International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival was started by three members of the Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers (CSIF) Trevor Alberts, Kevin Allen, and Kelly Langard [13]
Southern
