Jane Rule wins Order Of Canada

Great lesbian novelist gets recognition

Jane Rule has been inducted as a member of the Order Of Canada, announced Governor General Michaëlle Jean, Feb 20.

Rule, an out lesbian, immigrated to Canada from the US in 1956 and became an internationally renowned novelist, essayist, columnist and critic. She is an occasional contributor to Xtra and was a columnist in the sexual liberation journal, The Body Politic.

Although Rule prefers not to politicize the human family in her fiction, she has been an outspoken critic of censorship and proponent of sexual liberation.

“I feel very pleased,” she told Xtra West Feb 23. “I am often dubious about awards. I think they are often given and withheld for the wrong reasons but this particular one touches me. I’ve had a wonderfully productive and happy life here and Canada is now choosing me. I think that openly gay people are acknowledged is one of the symptoms of how far we’ve come.”

Rule lives on Galiano Island in the Straight of Georgia, BC.

Keep Reading

The new generation of gay Conservative sellouts

OPINION: Melissa Lantsman’s and Eric Duncan’s refusals to call out their party’s transphobia is a betrayal of the LGBTQ2S+ community

Over 300 anti-LGBTQ2S+ bills have been introduced this year. This doesn’t mean we should panic

OPINION: While it’s important to watch out for threats, not all threats are created equally. Some of these bills will die a natural death

Xtra’s top LGBTQ2S+ stories of the year

The best and brightest—even most bewildering—stories from a back catalogue brimming with insight

Elon Musk and Texas attorney general Ken Paxton are suing Media Matters. Here’s why queer and trans people should care

OPINION: When politicians and the rich leverage the power of the state to quell dissent, we all lose