Shovels have hit the ground for construction on Canada’s LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa.
The historic milestone was commemorated at an event on Wednesday afternoon hosted by the LGBT Purge Fund with the monument’s design team and attended by representatives from the Anishinabe Algonquin Nation and the federal government.
The monument, called Thunderhead, is being built to commemorate and honour the victims of Canada’s LGBTQ2S+ purge and others in the community who have been marginalized for who they are.
The monument will be built in Ottawa, on a portion of land tucked behind the Supreme Court of Canada at the intersection of Wellington Street and the Portage Bridge to Quebec, close to the Ottawa River.
The design was conceived by a team based in Winnipeg, and includes architecture firm Public City Inc.’s Liz Wreford, Peter Sampson and Taylor LaRocque; visual artists Dempsey and Lorri Millan; and Indigenous and two-spirit adviser Albert McLeod.
Based on the current design plans, the monument will have a curved wall at the opening of the site that includes information about the purge. The structure features two levels that allow visitors to view it from the ground and from above, as well as a fire pit meant for small gatherings or vigils, and a larger stage that can be used for bigger events or performances.
The monument is estimated to cost at least $8 million, with the funding coming from the LGBT Purge Fund. The fund is a non-profit corporation established in 2018 to manage the millions of dollars provided as part of the settlement of a class-action lawsuit between the federal government and members of the LGBTQ2S+ community who had their careers sidelined by what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called “a campaign of oppression.”
The purge saw thousands of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Canadians actively discriminated against, interrogated, and fired or demoted from their jobs in the Canadian Armed Forces, the RCMP, and the federal public service between the 1950s and 1990s.
The creation of the monument was mandated by the Federal Court as part of the settlement, with the agreement earmarking $15 million for memorial activities including museum exhibits, possible archival projects, and the erecting of a national monument.
The National Capital Commission (NAC) will oversee the development and construction of the monument. It is scheduled to be completed in 2025.
With files from CTV News’ Rachel Aiello