watercolor, colored pencil, ink; 16×20″
“My topic is LGBTQ+ rights regarding oppression, and through my research I learned the many struggles queer people have had to deal with historically, especially when having to battle against misinformation being spread about the community. Many people have felt unsafe because of speculation from people who didn’t know anything about the queer community. Highly influential people or groups would state to the public that being queer was a mental illness or was wrong. The American Psychiatric Association was one of these groups, and listed homosexuality as a “Sociopathic personality disturbance” in a manual listing mental disorders. These statements were announced with the intention to turn the public against LGBTQ+ people, and often these claims gave way to many forms of violence targeting queer people. I have a strong passion regarding LGBTQ+ rights because things I have seen happen not only through research, but through the struggles those close to me have faced. People apart of the community have been underrepresented and silenced for years in many different ways, and have been treated cruelly for speaking their truth. It’s important to me to share the reality so people can feel heard, because the fact of being different is no reason to deny people decent treatment and a voice.”
ARTIST BIO: Abi Osborne is a grade 11 student at Butler Tech School of Art studying art under art teacher Mary Catherine Ruby.