Learning Commons Blog

Happy Pride Month, everyone! Every June since 1970 queer folx (whether they are openly queer or "closeted") and allies march to celebrate their true colours and advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights, while acknowledging the history of pride and those in countries where queer people are unprotected and criminalized by law. Without the work of activists such as Marsha P. Johnson , North America would likely not be as safe of a space for the celebration of queerness, though even in 2021 there aren't always accessible safe spaces. At times when queer folx have been isolated, attacked, and underrepresented, we have turned to our favourite queer-coded characters for comfort.  Historically, queer coding  - which here refers to the process by which characters in fictional media are implied to be queer - was used in a time when it was all but banned for LGBTQ+ characters to be represented on screen (and it was banned from the 30s until the 60s in accordance with the Hays Code ). For this r...

June is National Indigenous History Month, an opportunity for celebration and a reminder for settlers to appreciate and learn about the culture, history, and contributions of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people. St. George's School is situated on the unceded traditional territory of the Musqueam First Nation; as we study, work, learn, and play on this land, we must make individual efforts to move our country forward on the path of reconciliation . This can begin with listening to Indigenous voices. If you are looking to engage with and appreciate Musqueam culture, or the culture of neighbouring First Nations, there are cultural institutions in and around Vancouver you can visit such as the Musqueam Cultural Education Resource Centre, or UBC's Museum of Anthropology. Additionally, St. George's School has resources available for your perusal! Within the Learning Commons and online, we have Indigenous works in poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. Indigenous Peoples are not a r...