In February 2018, Anneke Jansen van Doorn’s Grade 11 Gender Studies class at Glebe Collegiate Institute began Youth Ottawa’s Civic Engagement Programming. In this program, high school students choose an issue of civic importance to address in an eight-week action plan in collaboration with a trained facilitator and a community partner. The students at Glebe reflected on what they and their peers often felt at school – that LGBTQ students are still discriminated against despite the perception of growing acceptance. They met with the school’s Rainbow Alliance Club and decided that a mural in the main stairway would encourage an inclusive and caring space for students for years to come.

Over a period of several months, the students talked with their peers and community-based LGBTQ2S+ artists Thane Robyn and RJ Jones to determine five moments in North American LGBTQ2S+ history to highlight in the mural. They desired the mural to include all voices, especially those who have been marginalized and whose history hasn’t made the history books. One of the most notable aspects of the process is the students’ relationship with Glebe principal Steven Massey. Although there were roadblocks, including fears that fire code would be violated for placing the mural panels in a staircase, they “never felt at any point that the project would be shut down”, one student said. That trust in a principal is rare. The unwavering support and willingness of Mr. Massey to learn and adapt throughout the process earned him this trust from his students and made him a key ally and collaborator.