December 1 Toronto The Ontario […]
When
1981-12-01
Description
December 1 Toronto The Ontario Legislature defeated NDP member James Renwick's amendment to Bill 7 to include protection from discrimination based on sexual orientation in the Ontario Human Rights Code by a vote of sixty-nine to twenty-three. After the defeat was announced, several non-violent gay protesters (including Rev. Brent Hawkes, Del Mansell, and Paul Murphy) handcuffed themselves to railings in the Legislature's spectators' gallery, and the Legislature was disrupted briefly. The protesters were removed, but were not arrested. A decade of gay protest and lobbying in support of the amendment had ended in failure, and the bill passed third reading on December 7, 1981, and was proclaimed on June 15, 1982. Sexual orientation protection would eventually be granted under (another) Bill 7, which passed into law in December 1986.
All Events
October 28–November 4 Toronto The […]October 1 Toronto A full month of […]May 15 Toronto In her inaugural […]April 24 Toronto Ontario Labour […]All Places
Queen's Park Ontario Legislature Legislative Assembly of OntarioTorontoAll People
Paul MurphyDel MansellBrent HawkesJames RenwickAll Organizations
New Democratic Party OntarioGovernment of OntarioAll Monograph
Ontario Human Rights CodeBill 7All Citations
Sylvia Wright, "Liberal Crusader Sheila Copps Expected Amendment to Lose" (column), Kingston Whig-Standard, 5 December 1981, p. 7."Rights Rejected, Hawkes Ejected," Toronto Clarion, 11 December 1981, p. 4David Oved, "Revised Rights Bill Approved," Toronto Sun, 8 December 1981, p. 20David Oved, "Gays Chained in Legislature: Protesters Denounce Rights Bill, " Toronto Sun, 2 December 1981, p. 22"Ontario's Rights Bill Given Nod," Toronto Star, five star ed., 8 December 1981, p. A11"Human Rights Defeated in Ontario," Gay Niagara News, 3, no. 1 (January 1982): 1, 3–4Claire Hoy, "An Idea That's Best Forgotten: Special Status for Homosexuals" (column), Toronto Sun, 2 December 1981, p. 34Rick Haliechuk, "Homosexual Rights Activists Disrupt MPPs," Toronto Star, four star ed., 2 December 1981, p. A28"Gay Rights in Ontario—Still a Few Years Away," Guelph Gay Equality Newsletter, January 1982, p. (3)P.F. (Philip Fotheringham), "Vying for the Leadership," Body Politic, no. 80 (1982), p. 11"Disputed Rights Bill Passes Third Reading," Globe and Mail, metro ed., 9 December 1981, p. 5Fred Blazer and Sylvia Stead, "Revised Rights Code Becomes Law Today Amid Mixed Reviews," Globe and Mail, metro ed., 15 June 1982, p. 4"Bill 7: Kiss Your Rights Goodbye," It's Your Move, 6, no. 1 (January 1981): (1)Chris Bearchell, "Ontario Finally Says No: Human Rights Decade Ends Amid Angry Protest—and Some Relief," Body Politic, no. 80 (1982), pp. 8–9
