LKDSB+

Inspired by a curiosity to trace queer and trans histories, presents, and futures at the Lambton-Kent District School Board, LKDSB+ is a representation of an ongoing project that documents the work being done in schools at the LKDSB to animate queer and trans moments and conversations. Throughout the 2022/23 school year, schools were encouraged to collect items that reflected and recorded these conversations and submit them to their “pride mini-museum,” a banker’s box given to each school. In June, the boxes were delivered to the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice team, who donated the material to The ArQuives Collection. The exhibit is a selection of work submitted by students.

The Chatham-Kent and Sarnia-Lambton region (southern Ontario) that LKDSB covers has little queer and trans history documented, though much exists. Knowing where we come from can help us understand where we are and where we can go, particularly for young people. LKDSB+, and the stories it represents, is a rural Ontario school board’s attempt to remember, write, and imagine queer and trans histories and futures.

Open times and dates: Fridays 4 pm – 8 pm, Saturdays 11 am – 3 pm, Sundays 11 am – 3 pm, or by appointment – email curatorial@arquives.ca. Closed June 8, June 9, June 29 and June 30.

Installation facilitated by the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Justice Department of the Lambton-Kent District School Board, with support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Ontario.