Happy Birthday CAEO!

Celebrating 50 years of educating for and by Montreal’s 2SLGBTQI+ community

NewsL.A. Parison — Published September 20, 2026 3 minutes

Café Cleopatra hosted a birthday celebration for an educational organization baked into Montreal’s 2SLGBTQI+ community on Friday, Sept. 18. 

The festivities included comedy, burlesque and drag performances, a silent auction for donated queer goodies and go-go dancing. Canadian Association for Education and Outreach (CAEO), originally Gay Line, has operated completely volunteer-run since 1976. 

According to a 2025 study by Gris-Montreal, included on CAEO’s website, discomfort with 2SLGBTQI+ identities has increased since the pandemic, particularly among those who did not personally know 2SLGBTQI+ people. 

In an age where transphobia is on the rise, the celebration of queer joy is as welcome to the event attendees as the work these volunteers put in throughout the year. 

CAEO’s Sexual Information Leads to Knowledge (SILK) program, providing English schools with free workshops on the 2SLGBTQI+ community and against bigotry, is no stranger to new circumstances.

Pak-Kei Wong, a teacher and volunteer since 2018, noted the work involved in pivoting the workshops to an online format after the pandemic lockdown. In recalling the effects of the pandemic, Wong noted more questions from students about transgender people and gender identities, usually with hostility. 

According to Wong, the cause largely appears to be TikTok, right-wing and alpha male approaches to gender and trans identities. 

While many teachers and the English Montreal School Board work readily with CAEO, the shift, as many volunteers have identified, has largely gone unchecked and has led to uncorrected access to a misinformation highway. 

While CAEO’s approach adapts to meet new obstacles, the bigotry itself appears to be a throwback, according to volunteer Sam Davis. 

“I’ve been able to see more of the effect of the ‘manosphere’ type stuff, especially in [...] the way young boys are talking. The [...] kinds of jokes that went away and are coming back into culture again,” Davis said.

The downward trajectory is disheartening after a trend of pre-pandemic positivity, but Davis maintained that the volunteers are prepared for any kind of response. 

 Many volunteers identified being present and showing that queer people can and do happily exist as crucial for students. As CAEO director Kimberly Wong said, anyone who is out of high school can be considered a queer elder.

Kimberly and CAEO historian Gregg Blachford identified resilience and adaptability as critical in keeping CAEO going since 1976. 

From Gay Line to CAEO’s SILK program, detractors against the queer community have always existed; both had experiences with hateful calls in their four-hour night shifts at Gay Line, and with rude comments in the classroom. 

"However, by refusing to show anger or fear and questioning the detractor, the volunteers can diffuse most situations," Blachford said. 

The passion and persistence of the volunteers are also key factors in CAEO’s success. According to Kimberly, many volunteers have come away with skills they honed connecting with queer youth. 

“Even if it’s not just trans kids, other children growing up with a more holistic understanding of the different kinds of ways a person can navigate the world, and how to be a person, that’s great,” — Isla Robertson, event attendee

The support was felt with a sold-out, enthusiastic crowd. Isla Robertson, one attendee, had heard about the organization’s show earlier that day from a friend. 

By the end of the evening, Robertson was waiting to meet with Kimberly to ask about volunteering. While her experiences with TikTok had helped her discover identity, she said having access to information at school would be beneficial. 

“Even if it’s not just trans kids, other children growing up with a more holistic understanding of the different kinds of ways a person can navigate the world, and how to be a person, that’s great,” Robertson said. 

Through October, aspiring volunteers can sign up for training in November. Additionally, SextEd continues Gay Line's legacy as a text service that answers sexuality and sexual health questions. 

A previous version of this article referred to an individual by the incorrect name. The mistake has been rectified. The Link regrets this error.