Positive Space
The Positive Space Committee hosts events, conducts educational initiatives, identifies areas of concern, and develops strategies to create safe spaces for LGBTQ+ identified folks on campus. The visible symbol of this campaign is the inverted rainbow triangle, which signals to those at UTM that the campus is a “positive space” for queer members of the university community. This page contains several interviews conducted with students, staff, and faculty who have been involved with the Positive Space Committee here at UTM.
These interviews highlight the experiences and goals of members of the Positive Space Committee, dealing with the narrators’ work for the Positive Space Committee and as members of the LGBTQ2+ community or as allies. The narrators discuss the initiatives and goals of the Positive Space Committee, and highlight their achievements and shortcomings while creating a positive space for queer folks at UTM. Recurring topics include the Positive Space Gala, committee recruitment and organization, and tension between the goals of the committee and competing ideologies on campus.
The Interviews
Dr. Joan Simalchik is Dr. Joan Simalchik is director of the interdisciplinary Women and Gender Studies Program at UTM. She was the Co-Chair of UTM's Positive Space Committee in 2013-15, the Chair for a year after, and then a member of the committee until 2018. She describes the committee's decision to shift to an ongoing campaign and committee, rather than a once-per-year Gala. They wrote a mandate for the Committee's work. She reflects on the campus' chilly climate for LGBTQ2+ people during this period. Describes a series of posters they had designed to raise visibility on campus to raise awareness; they were up for about 1.5 years. Describes creating a faculty roundtable on inclusivity and a gala of about 300 people, with Prof. Mariana Valverde as speaker. Priorities: raise awareness and make change. At the time, OUT@UTM was not an official group; describes homophobia against the group by SAC and others. Discusses students walking out of her intro classes when LGBTQ2+ issues were part of the class; now it's very different. Describes how the athletic centre was an especially homophobic place.
Devin Kreuger is the Director of Research at University of Toronto (Mississauga). In this interview he shares his experiences being queer in Peel and working with the Positive Space Community from 2009 until now. He describes being one of the only LGTBQ+ identified members on the committee. He also reflects on his disappointment in Peel queer culture in comparison to what's available in Toronto; this imbalance is echoed on the two campuses. He discusses the committee's role in advocating for an equity officer at UTM, which has since been met. In this sense, the committee has had an important impact on the campus for all students, around equity and inclusion. He describes working with other student organizations such as OUT@UTM, making the RAWC gym scene more inclusive, and the impact the committee had at UTM. He discussed the difficulties the committee encounters, and expresses his desires for the future of the Positive Space Committee.
Judith Anderson is a psychology professor at the University of Toronto-Mississauga. Being a part of the Positive Space Committee from 2011-2018, Professor Anderson discusses her role on the committee. She also discusses her experience attending both a religious educational institution as well as attending and working in a non-religious institution. She reflects on the challenges that come along with identifying as LGBTQ+, and how different work settings vary in their acceptance of LGBTQ+ folks. She talks about the importance of the annual Positive Space gala, and what should be done to improve the future of the LGBTQ+ community.
Chad Jankowski shared his experience being part of the Positive Space Committee at UTM as a gay man. He is a UTM aluumna who then became a staff member. He is very active and involved in the UTM community, where he has worked to create a shared and positive environment for LGBTQ+ staff and students. He reflects on the failures, successes, and growth of the Positive Space Committee over time.
Christopher Lengyell is a UTM alumnus, LGBTQ+ ally and recent co-chair of the Positive Space Committee at UTM. During this interview he reflects on his experience on the committee as co-chair and the goals of the committee and their implementation at UTM. He discusses his unusual role as a straight-identified man who is an ally for LGBTQ2+ inclusivity on the Positive Space Committee.
These posters were commissioned by the Positive Space Committee at UTM in the 2015 school year. The project was arranged by committee member Cameron Clairmont, and the photographs were taken by Annie Sakab. Some of our narrators, including Dr. Joan Simalchik, Devin Krueger, and Chad Jankowski were featured in the project. Other subjects include students, staff, faculty, and other members of the UTM community.
These 'Positive Space' stickers were photographed at the Terrence Donnelly Health Sciences Complex on the University of Toronto- Mississauga campus in March, 2020.
