Annika Turenne is a university student finishing her social work degree. She’s also a francophone member of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and helping other French-speaking members of the queer community to find safety and belonging at Centre de santé Saint-Boniface (CDS), whether they’re clients or not.
“When you’re a member of the queer community, you’re really careful about how you identify yourself, let alone the spaces and people where you share all parts of your identity,” shares Turenne. “Even in high school, when we tried to gather as a community, we didn’t want to call attention to ourselves, give the group a queer name, or be very visible about it. This is the reality of our lived experience.”
When the Collectif LGBTQ* du Manitoba and Université de Saint-Boniface released a joint research paper on the experience of franco-queer Manitobans in 2024, there was a glaring lack of programming and safe spaces for community, especially for youth. Centre de santé Saint-Boniface wanted to help.
“We knew there was a need in community, and we know that the work to create inclusion, belonging and safety should never fall on the people who are marginalized,” explains Janelle Delorme, Manager of Indigenous Relations & Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at CDS. “All of our systems need to figure out how to offer equitable services, and how to make our spaces safer. We have a collective responsibility to be more inclusive, to adapt and create new services that will meet the needs of this community.”
Twice a month, anyone who identifies as franco-queer is invited to casual, lightly structured evenings where community members can literally find their voice. In the report released in 2024, 68% of franco-queer youth said there was a lack of supports for them in French. “I don’t think we can overestimate how important the language part of this is,” continues Turenne. “I spoke to someone who has known she’s bisexual for her whole life, and now, in her late teens, she’s told me that it’s the first time she could really be herself, and in her mother tongue. Everyone wants to be authentic and safe, while meeting new people.”
Funded by a grant received from the Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada (HIROC), Turenne joined the team to act as coordinator of the program, after other members of the community had helped shape and co-create the programming itself. The funding also covered important work by Jay Campagne and Mia Bestvater, who developed the project pitch and are working on a franco-queer resource guide.
Staff from CDS hoped that they’d be able to reach 20 members of the community over the course of their first year. As it draws to a close, over 45 people have shown up, with numbers growing monthly. The project was such a success that HIROC invited them to apply again and have funded a second year of providing these crucial supports in Manitoba.
“I think especially of the folks who join us from rural communities, where they might not feel as safe to be out,” reflects Turenne. “They’re driving in from an hour away to be with us. We go to museums, forest walks, anything the group wants. We’re learning from each other and creating space together. That’s the biggest success we’ve had: creating a sense of community.”
For her part, Janelle Delorme is sure that much of the success of the program comes down to who led it. “We’re still at the beginning stages, but none of this would have happened, none of it would have worked so well if it wasn’t being led by franco-queer youth,” she concludes. “They, and their community, have so many ideas and ways to keep growing together. They know they can ask for what they need and all we have to do is keep listening.”
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If you are a member of the franco-queer community and would like to learn more about these events, please email aturenne@centredesante.mb.ca. Your message will be received and kept in confidence.