I am a PhD student studying histories of sexuality with Prof. Steven Maynard. I have chosen to undertake a PhD in history, partly due to my lifelong interest in social history, but also my desire to contribute to the growing fields of sexuality and health history in Canada. Moreover, I have been profoundly affected by the recent surge of homophobic rhetoric against 2SLGBTQ+ communities, and, as a member of the community, I want to resist and decentre these troubling trends through new research on queer presence and history in the prairies. More specifically, my proposed dissertation research will examine the history of the HIV/AIDS crisis and its impacts on queer communities, politics, and health in Manitoba from the 1980s to 2012 — from the onset of the epidemic in Manitoba to the availability of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PreP). The project addresses questions about how queer communities and activism intersected with public health, increased homophobia, race, and class structures during this period.
About
