Calgary's first 2SLGBTQIA+ community centre opens Saturday

Calgary's first dedicated 2SLGBTQIA+ community centre is opening Saturday in the Downtown West End, fulfilling a vision first imagined in 1970 by community pioneer Lois Szabo.

The Calgary Rainbow Room, run by the End of the Rainbow Foundation, will offer peer-support groups, sexual health education, tax clinics and refugee services. It's also home to several local organizations including Calgary Outlink, La Cité des Rocheuses, Rainbow Elders Calgary, the Centre Edge, the Centre for Newcomers and the Calgary Men's Chorus. The centre features a living room with colourful beanbags, a craft room and a 2SLGBTQIA+-specific library. A rotating art gallery will showcase queer artists, with 20 per cent of proceeds supporting the foundation.

"Fifty years of people like Lois Szabo and others that have really asked or tried to get together a community center, it's a big deal," said Kelly Ernst, president of the End of the Rainbow Foundation. "A lot of people are very excited. We literally have three hundred people signed up for our opening."

While cities like Montreal and Toronto have established 2SLGBTQIA+ neighbourhoods, Calgary has largely lagged behind. Ernst noted that although the Beltline is the unofficial gay community, the new centre marks a historic moment. The space is designed to be a safe refuge where people can simply exist without judgment, and to fill gaps in services rather than duplicate existing programs.