T.O. unveils gay
statue
By JOEL WASS,
cnews.canoe.ca on the Web, May 29, 2005
TORONTO, May 28 -- A bronze
statue of one of Canada's first gay public figures was unveiled in the heart of
the city's gay village Saturday.
Hundreds of people were on hand to witness the first glance of the 2.5-metre
monument of Alexander Wood, a 19th century city magistrate.
"Two years ago, we decided we wanted to do a public art project," said Dennis
O'Connor, chair of the Church-Wellesley Village Business Improvement Area, the
organization that decided to honor Wood as a forefather of the gay community.
"We chose him because he has a connection to our community, and this particular
spot."
In 1827, Wood purchased a parcel of land in what is now Toronto's gay
neighborhood.
The statue is located in the area, on the corner of Church and Alexander
streets, the latter of which is named after Wood.
At the time, many mockingly referred to the flamboyant Wood as Molly Wood, Molly
being one of the era's derogatory terms for homosexuals.
"(The statue) is an important lesson to show people that there has been
prejudice and homophobia historically," said Kyle Rae, a gay Toronto city
councilor. "Often queer youth don't understand the struggle it took to get
to where we are today."
Those at the ceremony said Wood's statue and accompanying plaque provide an
important history lesson for the gay and straight communities.
"I don't know much about him," said Diane Whitehead, a Toronto-based designer,
who attended the event with her two-year-old daughter Olivia.
"Having this kind of exposure (to) the different kinds of lifestyles in Toronto,
and in Canada, is important," she said.
There are gay rights monuments in Amsterdam, Holland as well as New York City
and Cologne, Germany.
"It took me ages to find (the Amsterdam monument) because it's very small," said
flight attendant Gerry Leblanc, 40, and member of Toronto's gay community.
"This is huge compared to what that is ... it has a presence."
Wood's place in Canadian history is relatively unknown.
He emigrated from Scotland prior to the beginning of the 19th century.
He established himself as one of Toronto's leading merchants and was appointed
as a city magistrate in 1800.
Wood became the centre of a gay sex scandal 10 years later when he was accused
by several young men of fondling them during a rape investigation.
A woman who claimed to have been attacked by a group of men told Wood she had
scratched the penis one of the assailant, so Wood took it upon himself to
investigate the suspects' genitals.
He was soon forced to flee to Scotland in order to avoid potential sodomy
charges. At the time, homosexuality was an offence punishable by death.
Wood returned to Canada two years later, without charge.
With the unveiling of the $200,000 statue, many members of the gay community
hope Wood will become a more widely recognized figure in Canadian history.
"People who have lived in this neighborhood have known and heard about him over
the years and about the scandal, but it's never been mainstream," said Rae.
"This now becomes part of all of everyone's knowledge."
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