A monument that pays tribute to LGBTQ Canadians who suffered government-sanctioned persecution and discrimination officially opened in Ottawa on Aug. 21.

Former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Governor General Louise Arbour, and Women and Gender Equality Minister Rechie Valdez are among those who attended the ceremony.

A Canadian government press release notes Thunderhead, which is located on Parliament Hill, “recognizes the historic discrimination faced by 2SLGBTQI+ (two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex, plus) people in Canada, including during the LGBT (lesbiennes, gaies, bisexuelles, trans) Purge.”

(French and English are Canada’s official languages.)

Trudeau in 2017 formally apologized to Canadians who suffered persecution and discrimination under the country’s anti-LGBTQ laws — including those convicted of “gross indecency” before Canada decriminalized consensual same-sex sexual relations — and policies. Trudeau also formally apologized to those who were fired from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the country’s military and civil service from the 1950s to the mid-1990s because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The Canadian government later settled a class action lawsuit that LGBT Purge victims filed.

The settlement funded the monument.

The Canadian government’s press release notes an “all Canadian team” from Winnipeg, Manitoba, designed it. The monument is also located on the Anishinabe Algonquin Nation’s traditional territory.

“It celebrates the resilience and achievements of those who fought for equality, educates visitors, and inspires the change still needed so that everyone can openly love who they love and express and identify themselves as they choose,” reads the press release.

“Thunderhead stands as a tribute to the lives, stories, and contributions of 2SLGBTQI+ people across Canada,” said Prime Minister Mark Carney on Facebook. “It’s reminder of the discrimination too many endured — and honors those who fought to build a country where everyone can live freely, safely, and with dignity.”

Canadian authorities on Wednesday said the person who killed seven people and injured more than two dozen others at a school in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, the day before was transgender.

Dwayne McDonald, the deputy commissioner for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in British Columbia, during a press conference said Jesse Van Rootselaar, 18, “was born as a biological male who approximately … six years ago began to transition as female and identified as female both socially and publicly.” McDonald added it is “too early to say whether” the shooter’s gender identity “has any correlation in this investigation.”

The shooter died by suicide, and authorities found her body inside the school.

“We have a history of police attendance at the family residence,” said McDonald. “Some of those calls were related to mental health issues.”

Egale Canada, the country’s LGBTQ and intersex rights group, on Wednesday said it is “heartbroken by the horrific shooting in Tumbler Ridge.”

“Our deepest condolences are with the victims, their families, and the entire community as they navigate unimaginable grief,” said the group in a statement. “We unequivocally condemn this act of violence. There is no place for violence in our schools or in our communities. At this profoundly difficult time, we hold the people of Tumbler Ridge in our thoughts and stand in solidarity with all those affected.”

Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, unlike in the U.S.

GLAAD notes statistics from the Gun Violence Archive that indicate trans people carried out less than 0.1 percent of the 5,748 mass shootings in the U.S. between Jan. 1, 2013, and Sept. 15, 2025. The Human Rights Campaign, the National LGBTQ Task Force, and other advocacy groups last August condemned efforts to scapegoat the community after a trans woman shot and killed two children and injured 17 others inside the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.

Organizers of Montreal’s Pride parade have reversed their decision to ban Jewish groups from participating in the annual event.

The Montreal Gazette reported Fierté Montréal on July 30 informed Ga’ava, a group that is affiliated with the Toronto-based Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs, it could not march in the Aug. 10 parade.

Ga’ava in a statement said it and the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs “were deeply shocked to learn today from Montreal Pride that LGBTQ+ Jews and their allies will be excluded from the 2025 Pride Parade.” Fierté Montréal earlier in the day in its own statement condemned “the ongoing genocide in Gaza, expresses solidarity with the Palestinian people, and calls for the lives of 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals in Palestine, and everywhere in the world — to be respected and protected.”

“Fierté Montréal’s position on violence of any kind inflicted upon marginalized populations or communities — especially 2SLGBTQIA+ communities — has always been clear: we denounce all forms of violence, we amplify the voices of queer communities who, on our stages and in our spaces, express their support for oppressed peoples, particularly the Palestinian people, and their opposition to genocide,” said Fierté Montréal. “The work of Fierté Montréal is rooted in a long-standing movement to fight oppression, and we acknowledge the pain expressed by queer communities in Montréal since the beginning of the conflict in Gaza.”

“Accordingly, and in line with our zero-tolerance policy for hate speech and incitement to violence, and to ensure that the Fierté Montréal Festival remains a safe and celebratory space for everyone, the board of directors of Fierté Montréal has made the decision to deny participation in the Pride Parade to organizations spreading hateful discourse,” it added. “This measure is taken in the context of a complex geopolitical situation and stems from our commitment to preserving the emotional and physical safety of our communities.”

Five Canadian MPs are among those who sharply criticized Fierté Montréal’s decision.

Bernard Truong, the group’s former board chair, resigned on Monday. The Montreal Gazette on Tuesday spoke with his successor, Marlot Marleau, about the decision to reinvite Ga’ava and the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs to participate in the parade.

“We realized the decision was seen as excluding the entire Jewish community. That was never the intent,” Marleau told the Montreal Gazette. “We’re sorry for making them feel unwelcome.”

“LGBTQ+ Jews are happy that Montreal Pride walked back its politically motivated decision to oust the Jewish community from the Pride Parade,” said Ga’ava President Carlos A. Godoy on Tuesday in a statement he sent to the Washington Blade. “Either you’re inclusive or you’re not. LGBTQ+ Jews have to bring their full authentic selves to the parade — we can’t ask Jews to separate their identities and attachments. LGBTQ+ Jews belong in Pride parades.”