On May 17tt, former star athlete, Veronique Laramee-Paquette, presented Ouverture sur la diversité to an audience of 30 teens and adults at Maison des Jeunes, Huntingdon.
As a former Division 1, NCAA player for Detroit Michigan, team member of the Concordia Stingers, coach at Collège Lionel Groulx, and player for the Bracknel Queen Bees in England, Veronique knows how difficult sports and school environments can be for the LGBTQ young adults. “I’ve heard many mean things over the years,” she says. “And I have faced some complicated challenges, but nothing that I couldn’t move on from. I have, however, seen other teenagers and young people really struggle.”
The province of Quebec pioneered the celebration of May 17th as International Day Against Homophobia in 2003. Since then, with its mandate to encourage communities to organize events around inclusion, understanding and open-mindedness, the day has become celebrated worldwide. Since 2014, May 17th has been recognized as The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.
Every year on May 17th, Veronique takes the opportunity to express gratitude to her open-minded family and friends. She had long wanted to share her views and experiences more widely, and presented the idea to Maison des Jeunes coordinator, Nathalie Collin. The two agreed that although Montréal and Québec are known to be open-minded, rural areas sometimes have limited exposure to LGBTQ communities. Veronique’s aim was to introduce new realities to the rural community to help avoid potential bullying problems and fights over differences.
The format of her well-received talk was a mix of personal experiences, testimonials from friends, and five different interactive activities. Her overall message was a deceptively simple one of universal love and acceptance— a message that she knows can be hard to put into practice. In her words: “It is one thing to say you are open minded. But sometimes accepting differences in someone close to you like your son, cousins, or parents is harder. I believe everyone has the right to love the person he or she wants, and to be the person they are. As a mentor, I always make sure to be open about who I am so that teenagers or adults feel they can ask me anything.”
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