FORMER SUPREME COURT JUSTICE LOUISE ARBOUR RECEIVES PRESTIGIOUS 2011 LGBT LEADERSHIP AWARD

TORONTO: Egale is pleased to announce that the Honourable Louise Arbour, CC, GOQ, has been selected as the 2011 Egale Canada Leadership Award recipient. The award is presented annually to those Canadians whose leadership has advanced Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans human rights both at home and abroad. During Madame Arbour's tenure as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, she was the first High Commissioner to speak openly about LGBT rights.

Prior to her appointment to the UN, Madame Arbour served as a Justice on the Supreme Court of Canada. Madame Arbour sided with the majority in Chamberlain v. Surrey, where the court ruled that local school boards could not restrict the use of books designed to promote tolerance of same-sex relationships. She is also widely known for her role as Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda.

The award will be presented by UFCW Canada, Canada's Largest Private Sector Union and the event Gold Sponsor, at Egale's 2011 Gala, Speak Easy: Stand Out, Speak Up, on Friday, September 23, 2011, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Toronto. Honorary Co-Chairs are Salah Bachir, President of Cineplex Media, and Senator Nancy Ruth, CM. All proceeds from the event will support Egale's national Safe Schools Campaign to combat homophobic and transphobic violence and create a more inclusive school environment for all.

Egale is Canada's LGBT human rights organization: advancing equality, diversity, education, and justice.

When: September 23, 2011
Where: Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Toronto
Time: Reception, 6:00pm, Dinner, 7:00pm
Tickets: Corporate/Union Table of 10 - $3,000; Individual Tickets - $225

For more information: Helen Kennedy, Egale, t. 416-270-1999, helen_kennedy@egale.ca
Naveen Mehta, UFCW Canada, t. 416-708-4724, naveen.mehta@ufcw.ca

Egale Canada ©2011

Égale Canada est l'organisme national de défense des droits des personnes LGBT, voué à la promotion de l'égalité, de la diversité, de l'éducation et de la justice.