Christine (Chris) Bearchell (August 16, 1953–February 18, 2007) was a Canadian

gay liberation The gay liberation movement was a social and political movement of the late 1960s through the mid-1980s in the Western world, that urged lesbians and gay men to engage in radical direct action, and to counter societal shame with gay pride.Hoff ...

activist and

right to privacy The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals. Over 185 national constitutions mention the right to privacy. Since the globa ...

advocate. Between 1976 and 1987, she was a regular contributor to ''

The Body Politic ''The Body Politic'' was a Canadian monthly magazine, which was published from 1971 to 1987. It was one of Canada's first significant gay publications, and played a prominent role in the development of the LGBT community in Canada. ''The Body Po ...

''. During her time living in Toronto from 1975 to 1995, she co-founded or was a leading member of several organizations, including Canadian Lesbian and Gay Rights of Ontario and Maggie's. She also participated in the protests against

Operation Soap Operation Soap was a raid by the Metropolitan Toronto Police against four gay bathhouses in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, which took place on February 5, 1981. Nearly three hundred men were arrested, the largest mass arrest in Canada since the 1970 O ...

Early life

Bearchell was born in

Edmonton, Alberta Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

in 1953. She was the eldest daughter of Julia Battersby and Ben Bearchell, and had one younger brother and two younger sisters. Bearchell attended Jasper Place High School. As a teenager, she participated in the

anti-Vietnam War movement Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War began in 1965 with demonstrations against the escalating role of the United States in the war. Over the next several years, these demonstrations grew into a social movement which was ...

and the Campaign to Defend Dr. Henry Morgentaler. She moved to

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in 1975.

Death

In 1995, Bearchell moved from Toronto to Lasqueti Island in British Colombia. Two years later, in 1997, Bearchell was diagnosed with

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

. After a ten-year illness, she died in hospital in Vancouver on February 18, 2007. She was 53 years old at the time of her death. Bearchell's death was marked by obituaries in ''Xtra!'', ''

Now Magazine ''Now'' (styled as ''NOW''), also known as ''NOW Magazine'' is an online publication based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Through most of its existence, ''Now'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper. Physical publication of ''Now'' was suspended ...

'', and ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', with other prominent Canadian LGBT activists sharing their recollections of her. A memorial service was held at

The 519 The 519, formerly known as The 519 Church Street Community Centre, is an agency by the City of Toronto. A Canadian charitable, non-profit organisation, it operates a community centre in the Church and Wellesley neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, ...

in Toronto, and was attended by "a veritable who's who of queer activism" in the city.

Activism

Bearchell was involved in organizing for multiple causes in Toronto between 1975 and 1995. Her causes included

, lesbian rights, sex workers' rights,

privacy rights The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals. Over 185 national constitutions mention the right to privacy. Since the global ...

, opposition to

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

advocacy, and

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also self-styled as pro-choice movements, are movements that advocate for legal access to induced abortion services, including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their p ...

. Bearchell was also a member of the

League for Socialist Action The League for Socialist Action (LSA) was the principal Trotskyist organization in Canada for much of the 20th century. Throughout its history the LSA went through many different names and iterations. In chronological order it was known as: the ...

, a

Trotskyist Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...

organization.

Gay liberation

Chris Bearchell was a towering figure in the Gay Liberation movement in Canada. She spoke about their goals, saying "Discrimination became a reality as gay people emerged from the closet in larger numbers. We wanted to organize people in opposition to that discrimination, in part to bring them out in even greater numbers, knowing that that was a necessary precondition for the creation of a gay community and a gay political movement."

Coalition for Lesbian and Gay Rights of Ontario

In the year 1975, Chris Bearchell co-founded the Coalition for Lesbian and Gay Rights of Ontario. She helped prepare "The Ontario Human Rights Omission" and the brief was presented to the Ontario MPPs which included detailed incidents in discrimination for housing and employment against gays and lesbians.

Operation Soap

Bearchell participated in the Feb. 6, 1981 protest against the mass arrests conducted by

Toronto Police The Toronto Police Service (TPS) is a municipal police force in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and the primary agency responsible for providing law enforcement and policing services in Toronto. Established in 1834, it was the first local police se ...

the previous night during

. Bearchell gave a speech to the gathered protesters at the corner of Yonge and Wellesley in Toronto's

Gay Village A gay village, also known as a gayborhood or gaybourhood, is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people. Gay vil ...

, and was reportedly the one to start the chant "No more shit!", which became a prominent slogan in the community response to Operation Soap.

Sex workers' rights

Beginning in the 1980s, Bearchell began organizing in the sex workers' rights movement. In 1983, she was a founding member of the Canadian Organization for the Rights of Prostitutes (CORP). This organization advocated for the decriminalization of prostitution, spoke out against the prosecution of those involved in sex work, and provided advice and support to sex workers facing criminal charges. After Bill C-49 was passed in December 1985, CORP organized to challenge the

constitutionality In constitutional law, constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applic ...

of the law. During the period of 1986 to 1991, Bearchell was one of the activists "at the helm of CORP's efforts for decriminalization". In 1986, Bearchell helped found Maggie's, a drop-in and advocacy organization for

sex workers A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is vo ...

. In 1990, Bearchell became the organization's coordinator after the previous coordinator, her close friend and collaborator Danny Cockerline, stepped down.Leatherfield, Paul. (1999).
Danny Cockerline fonds
(finding aid). Prepared for The Arquives, Toronto. Retrieved 16 Mar 2024.

''The Body Politic''

Bearchell began writing for ''The Body Politic'' in 1976. She had a column called "Dykes" and wrote about lesbian issues. In 1978, she helped lead a campaign to defend the paper against criminal indecency charges. In 1979, she joined the paper's collective, becoming the collective's only woman member.

References

External links

Christine Bearchell fonds
at

The ArQuives The ArQuives: Canada's LGBTQ2+ Archives, formerly known as the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives, is a Canadian non-profit organization, founded in 1973 as the Canadian Gay Liberation Movement Archives. The ArQuives acquires, preserves, and pro ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bearchell, Chris 1953 births 2007 deaths Canadian lesbian writers Canadian LGBTQ rights activists Canadian LGBTQ journalists Canadian newspaper journalists Lesbian journalists 20th-century Canadian women journalists 21st-century Canadian women journalists 20th-century Canadian LGBTQ people 21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people