On Tuesday, May 17, I invite all students, faculty, librarians, and staff to recognize the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia (IDAHOTB). Proposed in 2004 and launched the following year, IDAHOTB has gathered momentum and support worldwide. Today, it is recognized in over 130 countries, more than a quarter of which still criminalize same-sex acts.
The International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia is a day to celebrate sexual and gender diversity and to condemn the discrimination, violence, and stigma that members of 2SLGBTQ+ communities continue to experience in Canada and globally. The theme for IDAHOTB 2022—Our Bodies, Our Lives, Our Rights—reminds us that everyone should have the right to live free of transphobic, homophobic, and biphobic interpersonal or structural discrimination.
On this day, we recognize our ongoing responsibility at the University of Toronto to create a community of belonging that affirms all our lives and identities. We also recognize the invaluable contributions that 2SLGBTQ+ members of the U of T community have made—and continue to make—to research and teaching; to campus life, services, and operations; and across all disciplines at this institution.
Read the full statement by Kelly Hannah-Moffat, VP, People Strategy, Equity & Culture.