CANADA: Quebec promises funds to help homosexual seniors facing discrimination

. MONTREAL / The Canadian Press / May 3, 2009 The Quebec government is spending half a million dollars on an education campaign meant to improve the lives of gay, lesbian and transgendered seniors. It's a subject so taboo that the cabinet minister responsible for seniors and representatives of the gay and lesbian communities couldn't find a seniors residence willing to host a news conference. It was eventually held in a community centre on the fringes of Montreal's gay village. Still, Minister Marguerite Blais says it's more about ignorance than malice. "We would have found a residence eventually," she said. "I don't want to accuse anyone of anything. I just want to show how important it is to educate people on this issue." Laurent McCutcheon of the gay helpline Gai Ecoute says homosexuality isn't discussed in most institutions that serve the elderly, leading many Quebec seniors to hide their sexual orientation. As they age and lose their autonomy, gay, lesbian or transgendered seniors face stigma, loneliness, social isolation, rejection and in extreme cases, harassment from the very institutions they depend on to meet their needs. The new initiatives funded by the government are meant to highlight the isolation many of them feel. "We know there are gays and lesbians in these institutions who, sadly, spent their lives in the closet and will stay there until the end," McCutcheon said. "We'll try to do as much as we can for them but also lay the groundwork for the generations coming up." In some ways, it's become the final frontier of gay and lesbian rights. "We'll be the first generation to reach to our golden years after fighting for our rights," McCutcheon said, a comment later echoed by Blais. "Baby boomers don't want to accept these situations after a lifetime of living openly," she said. Gai Ecoute will receive $400,000 over four years to produce an education campaign for people who work with the elderly that will include a website and an information kit. The Quebec Lesbian Network will receive $120,000 over three years to broadcast a film that portrays the lives of six lesbians in their golden age. Diane Heffernan, director of the Network, spoke about the resistance she faced when she approached old age homes about airing the film. She says she was rejected outright by 118 of the 120 institutions she petitioned and in one home, only 25 of some 4,000 residents attended the screening. "They were rebels," Heffernan joked. "They'd been warned they'd be marked as lesbians if they showed up." Blais says her support for the projects came after statements made during Quebec-wide public consultations in 2007 on issues facing the elderly. "There's a long way to go in their social recognition. These two projects won't end taboos but it's a start...(But)I believe a human being is allowed to have dreams, a fulfilling life, right up to their last breath." Copyright © 2009 The Canadian Press