AGQ-F0041

Fonds La Coalition des organismes des minorités sexuelles du Montréal-Métropolitain (COMSMM). – 13 April 1977-August 2000, mostly 1990-1992.- 168 cm of textual records and other records.

Administrative history:

Even before the dissolution of the Association pour les droits des gais et lesbiennes du Québec (ADGLQ) in 1987, a number of representatives from various LGBT organizations were meeting monthly at a table called La Coalition-Regroupement des minorités sexuelles de Montréal. Their first letters patent were obtained under this name on 6 August 1986.

In the autumn of 1989, the Coalition’s founding organizations wanted to redefine the organization’s mission and, at the same time, restructure it. The Coalition obtained its second letters patent on 23 August 1990, instituting a new corporate name: La Coalition des organismes des minorités sexuelles du Montréal-Métropolitain.

On 3 November 1990, the 13 founding organizations adopted the constitution, charter and agreement on the bylaws and general regulations of their new federation.

The new objects of the Coalition’s charter included the following:

• To bring together the largest number of organizations that defend the interests of or offer services to people who belong to sexual minorities on the Island of Montreal.
• To set up, organize and provide member organizations with information, training, administrative and organizational advice and any other services they consider relevant.
• To promote changes in society that are favourable to people belonging to sexual minorities and to the organizations that are members of the corporation.
• Act as a spokesperson for its members in dealings with public authorities and the general public.

The Coalition also wanted to act as a mediator between its members and society in general, which is predominantly heterosexual.

In January 1992, the Coalition had 19 member organizations: Action Partage, Archives gaies du Québec, Association des lesbiennes et des gais de l’UQAM, Association des motocyclistes gais du Québec, Association des pères gais de Montréal, Baron-Montréal Inc, Centre communautaire des gais et lesbiennes de Montréal, Comité Sida Aide Montréal (CSAM), Diffusions gaies et lesbiennes du Québec, Dignité Montréal, Dignity Montreal, Équipe Montréal ’94, FACT, Gai-Écoute, Gay Line, Groupe de discussion du mercredi (GDM), Jeunesse Lambda, Ligue de Volley-Ball Lambda and Plein-air BCBG. In 1992, three organizations left the Coalition. They were Équipe Montréal ’94 (April 1992), Diffusion gaies et lesbiennes (February 1992) and the Centre communautaire des gais et lesbiennes de Montréal (the month of withdrawal is unknown). SAVHA, the Conseil Central du Montréal Métropolitain and Femmes 2000+ were accepted as members in July 1992.

The 1990s saw a renewal of activism that “began with the formation of the Coalition des organismes des minorités sexuelles du Montréal Métropolitain” (Demczuk and Remiggi, 1998). Over the years, the Coalition has worked on a number of issues. The main ones have been: recognition of same-sex couples, relations between the police and gays and lesbians, public safety for gays and lesbians, membership development with other LGBT organizations and the organization of a conference bringing together members and anyone concerned by the Coalition’s mission. It also set up a committee on same-sex couples to make proposals to the Justice Summit on 19 February 1992. The main aim of these proposals was to eliminate the inequalities and discrimination against same-sex spouses and couples that existed in laws and regulations.

According to RG magazine, the Table de concertation des lesbiennes et gais du Grand Montréal was founded on 7 November 1992 during a meeting of the Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain (CSN)[1]. This same Table is now known as the Conseil québécois LGBT, and has been since 2006. The Table was not intended to be a new organization, but rather “a flexible, informal structure aimed at bringing together organisations and individuals in Montreal who defend the rights of gays and lesbians or offer them services” (Pleau, 1992). According to Marcel Pleau (1992), a former editor of RG magazine who attended the meeting, a bleak picture was painted of the Coalition des organismes des minorités sexuelles du Montréal-Métropolitain. The participants criticized its inefficiency, its overly complex structure and regulations, and its loss of relevance. Indeed, a number of points showed that La Coalition was coming to an end: its $3,000 debt and lack of money for day-to-day operations, the absence of a candidate for the position of President, the resignation of Executive President Daniel Lanthier and a number of unpaid annual dues from member organizations.

Despite holding a congress on 13 February 1993, the Coalition was unable to review its objectives and structure. The exact date of the organization’s dissolution is not known to the QGAs, but the February 1993 issue of RG magazine stated that the Coalition was “now defunct” (Bouchard, 1993).

Scope and content:

The fonds documents the activities of the Coalition des organismes des minorités sexuelles du Montréal-Métropolitain during its second “period”, i.e. mainly between 1990 and 1992. The fonds documents the Coalition’s involvement in issues such as discrimination and inequality against same-sex couples under the law, and strained relations between homosexuals and the police. The fonds also bears witness to the Coalition’s relations with its member organizations, the services it offered them and its relations with the media.

The fonds contains numerous administrative documents such as minutes, statutes and by-laws. Documents relating to financial resources include statements of income, income and expenditure and budget estimates. The fonds also includes reference material on various subjects (including homosexuality and the law). Letterhead, a business card and a draft COMSMM brochure are also included. There are documents about members, such as membership lists, memberships and withdrawals, annual dues, correspondence and a questionnaire (“Coalition human resources consultation tool”) completed by Gai-Écoute and member organizations. The COMSMM kept press reviews, press releases and correspondence, which can be consulted in this fonds. Numerous documents on their activities, for example, on their various committees and their participation in the Justice Summit, can be found here. 1 audio cassette includes the press conference given on 26 August 1991 on the subject of same-sex spouses. The photographs, taken by Daniel Lanthier, cover three events in 1991: Gay Pride (June 22), Bastille Day (June 23) and the press conference on August 26.

The fonds contains the following files:

• AGQ-F0041/S1. Administrative management
• AGQ-F0041/S2. Legal affairs
• AGQ-F0041/S3. Human resources
• AGQ-F0041/S4. Financial resources
• AGQ-F0041/S5. Material and immovable resources
• AGQ-F0041/S6. Information resources
• AGQ-F0041/S7. Communications and public relations
• AGQ-F0041/S8. Membership
• AGQ-F0041/S9. Activities
• AGQ-F0041/S10. Correspondence produced and received
• AGQ-F0041/S11. Object
• AGQ-F0041/S12. Photographs

Notes:

Source of title proper: Title based on the contents of the fonds. The second name was adopted as the title of the fonds since all the documents in the fonds, apart from the first letters patent, were produced or received during the second “phase” of the Coalition, that of the Coalition des organismes des minorités sexuelles du Montréal-Métropolitain (COMSMM).

Physical description: The fonds also contains a stamp of the Coalition, 54 colour photographs with negatives, 3 3.5″ diskettes and 1 audio cassette.

Immediate source of acquisition: The fonds was transferred to the QGA on August 10, 1993 by resolution of the Résolution du Conseil fédéral de La Coalition (through Martin Duchesne, treasurer of the executive committee, and Pierre Freyssonnet, the secretary) (acquisition 1993-012). Other documents were added in 1993 by Claude Bourassa, president of the executive (1993-017). Another part of the fonds was transferred to the AGQ on 8 July 1999 by Jacques Beausoleil, who was president of the Coalition from 1990 to 1993 (acquisition 1999-07). Finally, the fonds was paid on 15 August 2009 by Claude Bourassa (2009-025).

Arrangement: The arrangement already established by the donors has, in part, been respected. Some documents have had to be moved for reasons of coherence and logic, as well as to maintain chronological order.

Language: Most documents are in French. Some documents are in English.

Related groups of records in different fonds external to the unit being described:

• The AGQ-F0011 Bernard Courte fonds contains documents relating to the Coalition in one file (S7/D22). The documents date from before 1 June 1984 to before 23 August 1986, and thus correspond to the Coalition’s first “period”.
• The AGQ-F0013 Projet Action-Intégration fonds also contains a file on La Coalition (D33). The documents probably date from 3 March 1985 (ca) to May 1985, and thus correspond to the Coalition’s first “period”.
• The AGQ fonds AGQ-F0017 Association pour les droits des gai(e)s du Québec (ADGQ) includes a file on La Coalition (S6/SS4/D18). The documents date from approximately June 1985 to October 1985, corresponding to the Coalition’s first “period”.
• The AGQ-F0019 Mark Pfeifer fonds contains an entire series relating to La Coalition (S2). The documents date from 1984 to 1988, corresponding to the first “period” of La Coalition.
• The AGQ-F0047 Le Centre communautaire des gais et lesbiennes de Montréal (CCGLM) fonds contains several documents about La Coalition, in the following files: D01 to D03, D05b to D13. These documents date from 1984 to 1992.

Finding aids: Digital inventory of the fonds in Excel format. Classification plan is available in PDF format.

Conseil québécois LGBT. (s.d.). À propos. Retrieved from https://www.conseil-lgbt.ca/a-propos/

Demczuk, I. et Remiggi, F. W. (1998). Conclusion. À l’aube du prochain millénaire. In I. Demczuk et F. W. Remiggi (dir.), Sortir de l’ombre. Histoires des communautés lesbienne et gaie de Montréal. VLB, 399-405.

Faivre, A. (1991, 10 juin). En sécurité avec la police? Nouvelles Centre-Sud, p. 6.

Pleau, M. (1991, octobre). La Coalition et les conjoints de même sexe.  RG, (109), p. 20-21

Les gais et lesbiennes s’organisent. (1991, 18 février). Nouvelles Centre-Sud, 1(50)

Pleau, M. (1992, décembre). La Coalition agonise… RG, (123), p. 19.

[1] On the Conseil québécois LGBT website (https://www.conseil-lgbt.ca/a-propos/#historique) and on the Conseil québécois LGBT Wikipedia page (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conseil_qu%C3%A9b%C3%A9cois_LGBT), the Table might have been created in 1993

Dernière modification : 2025-03-03