I sit in a room full of people, eat a cupcake, and think to myself, “I have absolutely no idea why these people are here.” Where did they come from, and how did they even hear about Q21? They have different backgrounds, are from different faculties, have different interests, and some of them are actually staff members. Every Thursday we meet and talk about a different theme relating to gender and sexuality such as “The Body,” “Families” and “Equality,” but the discussion goes wherever we take it.

Logo Courtesy Q21

I do know what made me want to help bring these people together. I have always had to deal with inclusion and exclusion in my life, and talking about it has been a lot easier than keeping it to myself. Since I came to U of T, I’ve had the opportunity to explore inclusion and exclusion in the Sexual Diversity Studies program. But outside of class people don’t necessarily feel like talking about social change or politics.

If this were what I wanted to talk about over coffee, how would you react? Gay activism has made incredible strides towards eliminating some inequality. So now, if you have the right amount of money, live in the right place and behave in the right way, you can avoid discrimination on the basis of being gay. But is this what we really want? Maybe some people do.

At Q21 I can bring up these thoughts, and other people can bring up their own. I don’t know where else I would have learned about sports and fitness at U of T from so many different points of view, perspectives that I didn’t even know existed. I had never thought about the role that gender plays in sports as early as elementary school. As a result I now have a completely different view on sports on a personal level. I probably wouldn’t have too many opportunities to share stories about online dating experiences with engineers and sociology grad students either.

The atmosphere is pretty laid-back, even if the topic is contentious. We’ve been successful at bringing together members of the U of T community with different experiences and perspectives, so even something that seems mundane is worth talking about. Q21 has given me a deeper understanding of life at U of T and the opportunity to connect with and learn from people I wouldn’t have otherwise. Q21 is important to me because coming together and talking about questions that have no easy answers is valuable for our community and for ourselves.

Jonathan Hadad is a Sexual Diversity Studies student.  Q21 meets weekly — more info at http://www.facebook.com/utorontosgdo/events.