1916 – Manitoba Women Win the Right to Vote
Manitoba became the first province in Canada to grant women the right to vote. Led by activists like Nellie McClung and the Political Equality League, this victory laid the groundwork for suffrage across Canada.
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1969 – Homosexuality Decriminalized in Canada
Under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Canada passed a bill decriminalizing homosexual acts between consenting adults. Trudeau famously said, “There's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation.”
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1977 – Quebec Adds Sexual Orientation to Human Rights Code
Quebec became the first province to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. Ontario followed in 1986, marking growing legal recognition of LGBTQ rights in Canada.
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1996 – Canadian Human Rights Act Amended
The Canadian Human Rights Act was amended to include sexual orientation as a prohibited ground of discrimination, strengthening federal legal protections for the LGBTQ community.
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2005 – Legalization of Same-Sex Marriage
Canada became the fourth country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide through the Civil Marriage Act. This landmark legislation affirmed equal marriage rights regardless of gender or sexual orientation.
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