Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada has made great strides in achieving equality for LGBTQ people but there's still work to be done.

Trudeau was greeted with a standing ovation as he took to the stage at a Toronto hotel on Thursday night to accept an award from human rights group Egale Canada for his LGBTQ advocacy.

As he reflected on his efforts to make amends for historic wrongs suffered by LGBTQ Canadians, the prime minister affirmed his commitment to remedying present-day discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation.

"I am on your side," he told the crowd at the Egale Identity Gala. "I will fight for you, and I will fight with you."

The prime minister mingled with advocates and allies as he found his seat in the rainbow-hued ballroom at the downtown Toronto Hilton. Read more via CBC

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Accept the 2018 Egale Leadership Award at Egale Canada's Inaugural, National IDENTITY Gala

TORONTO, May 9, 2018 /CNW/ - Egale Canada is honoured to confer the prestigious Egale Leadership Award for 2018 to The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada. The award will be presented at Egale's 2018 IDENTITY Gala, an evening of celebration, bringing together 400 LGBTQI2S community members, politicians, labour advocates, business professionals, artists, and allies, representing various industries, organizations, and companies. The gala is set to take place at the Hilton Toronto on the evening of May 24th amid the three-day inaugural, national conference, IDENTITY: Canadian Perspectives on LGBTQI2S Inclusion.

The Egale Leadership Award is presented to an individual who has made significant contributions towards advancing rights for LGBTQI2S (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex and Two Spirit) people in Canada. Past award recipients have most notably included; Ed Clark, Jaime Watt, Kent Monkman, The Honourable Louise Arbour, Cynthia Peterson, and The Honourable Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario. Bharat Masrani, CEO at TD Bank, the Presenting Sponsor of the IDENTITY Gala, alongside Helen Kennedy, Executive Director at Egale Canada will make the award presentation to the Prime Minister.

"It is an honour to be able to extend our Egale Leadership Award to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Not only has Trudeau taken iconic steps to model his support for the LGBTQ2S community, but he has also taken pertinent steps through legislation and policy reform in an attempt to create a more equal Canada for LGBTQ2S people," said Helen Kennedy, Executive Director of Egale Canada. "It is a combination of these efforts that make Trudeau a leader in LGBTQ2S rights in Canada."

Trudeau has always been an outspoken supporter of LGBTQ2S rights in Canada and around the world. Since becoming the Prime Minister of Canada, he has continued to uphold these values and remained a strong ally of the LGBTQ2S community.

In May 2016, Trudeau's government introduced Bill C-16, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code. The bill, commonly referred to as the the bill against transgender discrimination, adds gender expression and gender identity as protected grounds to the Canadian Human Rights Act, and also to the Criminal Code provisions dealing with hate propaganda, incitement to genocide and aggravating factors in sentencing.

This past year in November 2017, Trudeau delivered an historic apology to LGBTQ2S Canadians for decades of state-sponsored, systematic oppression and rejection. Thousands from the LGBTQI2S community witnessed the emotional speech where for the first time in history, there was recognition of the horrendous actions the state took against LGBTQ2S members of the Canadian military and public service from the 1950s to the 1990s. The apology, presented by Trudeau on behalf of the Government of Canada, was a significant step forward for LGBTQI2S rights in Canada.

About Egale Canada
Egale Canada works to improve the lives of LGBTQI2S (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Intersex and Two Spirit) people in Canada and to enhance the global response to LGBTQI2S issues. Egale achieves this by informing policy, inspiring cultural change and promoting human rights and inclusion through research, education and community engagement. Egale also works to provide the LGBTQI2S community in Canada with access to essential services including counseling through Egale Youth OUTreach and crisis as well as transitional housing through the Egale Centre. Egale's vision is a Canada, and ultimately a world, without homophobia, biphobia, transphobia and all other forms of oppression so that every person can achieve their full potential, free from hatred and bias.

About Egale
www.egale.ca

For further information: on Egale or the IDENTITY Gala and Conference or to request an interview, please contact: Jennifer Boyce, Media Relations, Egale Canada, 1 437 777 3624, jboyce@egale.ca