CPHS Heritage Minutes: The 1969 Decriminalization of Homosexuality

In this Heritage Minute, we share some not-so-distant history of the treatment of Gender, Sexual, and Relationship Diverse (GSRD) individuals in Canada. In the late 1800s, the Canadian government enacted laws making homosexual acts illegal and, in some cases, punishable by death. By the 1950s and 60s, GSRD Canadians were frequently targeted by law enforcement over fears of communism during the cold war. A device called the "Fruit Machine" was used to detect homosexuality and cost many people their livelihoods. Following the decriminalization of homosexuality in parts of the UK, Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau amended the criminal code to decriminalize homosexuality in Canada on June 27, 1969 with the passing of Bill C-150, the Criminal Law Amendment Act. Unfortunately, this did very little to actually protect GSRD Canadians. It would be decades before this community gained any meaningful protections under Canadian law.