The Pussy Palace Oral History Project, led by Professor Elspeth H. Brown through the LGBTQ Oral History Digital Collaboratory at the University of Toronto in partnership with The ArQuives: Canada’s LGBTQ2+ Archives, has been awarded the 2026 Allan Bérubé Prize by the LGBTQ+ History Association (an affiliated society of the American Historical Association).
The prize recognizes outstanding public or community-based work on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer history. The committee praised the project’s radical public history approach and the digital exhibit in particular, which guides visitors through the sights, sounds, and experiences of the landmark Toronto bathhouse events (1998–2014) while highlighting pleasure, resistance, and feminist organizing.
Core Research Team: Principal Investigator/Collaboratory Director: Elspeth H. Brown; Lead Oral Historian/Research Manager: Alisha Stranges; Co-Oral Historian: Elio Colavito; Creative Producer: Ayo Tsalithaba; Project partner: The ArQuives: Canada’s LGBTQ2+ Archives.
Learn more:
Explore the project website | Visit the immersive digital exhibit