Brent Hawkes
Contents
Country
Canada
Birth - Death
Occupation
Religion
Notable Achievements
Order of Canada
Description
Senior Pastor, Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto, Ontario and a leading LGBT activist. Presided over the funeral of Jack Layton, former leader of federal New Democratic Party. Was instrumental in the fight for LGBTQ marriage equality in the province and Canada by providing the first same-sex marriage ceremony in 2001 which led to the court battle to challenge the ban in existence at the time. On July 12, 2002, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that the marriages performed by were legal, but stayed its decision pending a possible appeal, and on June 10, 2003, the Court of Appeal for Ontario declared the common law definition of marriage as "invalid to the extent that it refers to “one man and one woman”, immediately striking down all barriers against same-sex marriage in the province. Appointed to the Order of Canada in 2007.
