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Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
@CraigBaird
Jun 9, 2023 • 6 tweets • 3 min read • Read on X
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It is #PrideMonth and this is the story of Operation Soap.

On Feb. 5, 1981, Toronto Police raided four gay bathhouses in Toronto. Nearly 300 men were arrested in the largest mass arrest since the 1970 October Crisis.
The event is often called Canada's Stonewall.

🧵1/6 Image
Tensions with Toronto Police and the gay community was especially bad at the time.
In 1979, the Toronto Police Association newsletter published an essay called "The Homosexual Fad" that portrayed gay men as militant deviants who recruited children into their lifestyle.

🧵2/6 Image
In the raids, undercover police wore red dots on their clothing so police could "know who are the straights."
When the men were arrested, police used homophobic slurs & references to gassing homosexuals in Nazi death camps.

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Police compiled personal data on the men including who were married, their jobs, work superiors and the names and phone numbers of wives.
Of the 286 arrested, only 20 were charged. The bathhouses also suffered $50,000 in damages from police during the arrests.

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The next evening, 3000 people marched through Toronto to protest the arrests. As they approached Queens Park, they were met by 200 police officers. Violence broke out, leading to 11 arrests and several injuries on both sides.
Public outcry of the arrests continued.

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Despite the public outcry, the raiding of bath houses in Toronto did not stop.
Further raids would occur in 1981, 1983, 1996 and 2000.
Despite this, the Toronto Pride community continued to grow & be accepted. Today, Pride is one of Toronto's biggest annual celebrations.

🧵6/6 Image

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More from @CraigBaird

Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
Apr 16
On this day in 1992, David Milgaard was released from prison.
He spent over two decades imprisoned for a crime he did not commit. His mother Joyce never gave up on him and fought for his release.
This is the story of the man who inspired the song Wheat Kings.

🧵1/18 This black-and-white photo depicts David Milgaard. He wears a long-sleeved shirt with rolled-up sleeves, his arms crossed, and gazes directly at the camera. Two small posters are pinned on the wall behind him.
David Milgaard was born on July 7, 1952 in Winnipeg.
In January 1969, he was in Saskatoon with his friends Ron Wilson and Nichol John on a trip across Canada.
While visiting their friend Albert Cadrain, 20-year-old nursing student Gail Miller was found dead nearby.

🧵2/18 This black-and-white photo shows a person with short, dark hair wearing a collared shirt with a buttoned neckline. The image has a grainy texture, suggesting it may be from an older time period.
The assault and murder of Miller generated a lot of attention in the media. Police questioned sex offenders in the area but had no leads.
A month after the murder, Cadrain went to police and told them Milgaard was acting suspicious on the drive to Calgary.

🧵3/18 This black-and-white newspaper clipping from "The National Police" reports on the search for Gail Miller's killer. It mentions Canadian police, including the Saskatoon force, aiding in the investigation, offering a $2,000 reward for information. Gail Miller, a 20-year-old nurse, was found murdered at 7:30 a.m. near her residence at 130 Ave. O, south, in Saskatoon. The article notes the body was discovered by a schoolboy around 8:30 a.m.
Read 19 tweets
Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
Apr 15
On this day in 2022, Mike Bossy died.
Among his many accomplishments, his 0.76 Goals-Per-Game Average remains a record to this day.
He is considered by some to be the greatest natural goal scorer in NHL history.
This is the story of Mike Bossy.

🧵1/16 A color photo shows Mike Bossy, a hockey player, smiling in a white jersey with blue and red accents. He holds a red, white, and blue hockey glove over his shoulder against a dark backdrop.
Mike Bossy was born in Montreal on Jan. 22, 1957, the fifth son in a family of ten children.
As a child, he had a backyard rink he practiced on. In 1969, he played in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament, and then joined Laval National of the QMJHL.

🧵2/16 A black-and-white photo shows Mike Bossy in a hockey uniform with a "C" on his jersey, wearing a helmet and holding a stick. He appears to be interacting with a man in a suit in a hallway, with another person in a jacket nearby. A logo with a cross is on the wall.
In five seasons, he scored 309 goals and 562 points in 264 games with Laval, but was called "not rugged enough" and defensively weak by scouts.
In the 1977 NHL Draft, 12 teams passed him over. The Rangers and Maple Leafs passed on him twice.

🧵3/16 A color photo shows hockey players on the bench during a game, wearing helmets and jerseys. The player on the left has "DALEY 22" on his back, and they hold sticks while sitting in an arena with a blurred crowd in the background.
Read 17 tweets
Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
Apr 12
On this day in 1980, Terry Fox dipped his leg into the Atlantic Ocean at St. John's to begin his run across Canada.
This is the story of the Marathon of Hope.

Listen to my episode on the Marathon of Hope 👇


📸CBC

🧵1/20 pdst.fm/e/chtbl.com/tr…The photo shows Terry Fox and Doug Alward standing on a rocky shoreline by a body of water. Terry, on the left, wears a white shirt, shorts, and a prosthetic leg, while Doug, on the right, is in a brown jacket and pants. The background features a calm sea and distant land.
In March 1977, Terry Fox was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a cancer that starts near the knees. The day before his leg was amputated, he read about the first amputee to complete the New York City Marathon and he became inspired.

📸Simon Fraser University

🧵2/20 The black-and-white photo shows Terry Fox in a starting position on a track, crouched with hands on the ground. He wears a sweatshirt with text, sweatpants, and sneakers, with a prosthetic leg visible. The background includes a fence and trees.
After 14 months of training, which involved running every day for 101 days, he competed in a 27-km marathon in Prince George.
On April 12, 1980, after months of preparation, Terry dipped his leg into the ocean and filled two bottles with ocean water.

📸CBC

🧵3/20 The photo shows Terry Fox standing on a rocky shoreline in St. John's, with a body of water in the background. He wears a white shirt, shorts, and a prosthetic leg, with text "St. John's" overlaid at the bottom.
Read 21 tweets
Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
Apr 9
During this week in 1815, eruptions began at Mount Tambora in Indonesia.
It culminated in the most powerful volcanic eruption in recorded human history that lowered global temperatures in 1816.
This is the story of Canada's Year Without A Summer

🧵1/12 This painting depicts Mount Tambora erupting dramatically at sunset, with a massive plume of dark smoke and ash billowing into a fiery orange sky. The volcano looms over a calm sea, reflecting the glowing sun, while a small sailboat floats nearby and palm trees line the shore, capturing the awe-inspiring and destructive power of the 1815 eruption.
After days of eruptions, Mount Tambora erupted with a volcanic explosivity index of 7.
The 37-45 sq-km of dense-rock equivalent material was thrown into the atmosphere and spread around the world.
This cooled global temperatures by .53 degrees Celsius.

🧵2/12 This painting depicts a chaotic scene of people fleeing as Mount Tambora erupts violently in the background. Dark smoke and fiery ash billow from the volcano under a stormy sky, while villagers in traditional clothing run in panic amidst palm trees, capturing the terror of the 1815 eruption.
Through the winter of 1815-16, things seemed normal in Canada.
By the time spring was supposed to arrive, residents of present-day Quebec and Ontario began to notice winter was not leaving.
Three to four feet of snow existed still in late-April.

🧵3/12 This black-and-white illustration depicts a somber scene in a snowy landscape. A man pulls a sled carrying a person wrapped in blankets, while a woman in a long dress walks beside him, holding a child. Bare trees and a dark sky create a bleak, historical atmosphere, likely illustrating hardship or migration.
Read 13 tweets
Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
Apr 5
Throughout the federal election campaign, I am looking at elections from Canada's past.
Today, it is the 1917 election, or Khaki Election.
This was one of the most divisive and bitter elections in Canadian history, which reshaped Canadian politics for decades to come.

🧵1/14 This black-and-white photo captures a group of soldiers in military uniforms, likely during World War I, in a room with a "List of Electors" sign on the wall. Two men at a table exchange documents, while others stand around, with papers and a basket on the table.
Three years after the last election in 1911, the First World War began.
Sir Robert Borden was still Prime Minister and leader of the Conservatives.
The six year gap between the 1911 and 1917 election is the longest election gap in Canadian history.

🧵2/14 This black-and-white photo shows Sir Robert Borden, dressed in a long coat, standing on a platform at a formal outdoor event. He’s surrounded by military officers in uniform and civilians, with a large crowd in the background. A Union Jack flag and other banners are visible, suggesting a significant public gathering, possibly during World War I.
In 1916, due to the First World War, Parliament agreed to suspend an election for one year.
Borden hoped that the delay would allow him to form a coalition government of all the parties as he attempted to put through conscription.

🧵3/14 This black-and-white photo shows Sir Robert Borden, wearing a long coat and hat, standing outdoors in front of a group of soldiers in military uniforms. The soldiers are holding rifles and standing in formation, likely during a World War I military inspection or ceremony, with trees and a crowd in the background.
Read 15 tweets
Craig Baird - Canadian History Ehx Profile picture
Mar 23
I have covered many aspects of Canada's border history in the past week.
Today, I am exploring why the Canadian border with Alaska extends so far south along the Pacific Coast and how the decision led to a desire for greater Canadian independence from Britain.

🧵1/13 The image is a map of Alaska and parts of Canada, showing geographical features like the Arctic and Pacific Oceans, the Yukon Territory, and British Columbia. Key locations such as Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau are marked, along with national parks like Denali and Glacier Bay. A red circle highlights the southeastern region, including Juneau and the Alexander Archipelago.
The issue of the border dates back to 1825 when Russia (who owned Alaska at the time) signed the Treaty of Saint Petersburg with Britain. The treaty only focused on the coastal area as the interior was mountainous and of little interest to either country.

🧵2/13 This is a vintage map of Alaska, titled "Map of Alaska," showing detailed topography with shaded relief. It highlights the Arctic Circle, major rivers like the Tanana and Yukon, and mountain ranges. The map includes surrounding areas like the Bering Sea, Arctic Ocean, and parts of Canada, with an inset of the Bering Strait. The scale is in miles and kilometers, and longitude is marked west from Greenwich.
On March 30, 1867, the United States bought the entire Alaska region from Russia. With the purchase, the United States hoped to claim territory from Alaska down to Mexico and control the entire Pacific Coast.
That hope ended when British Columbia joined Canada in 1871.

🧵3/13 The image depicts a historical painting of several men in formal 19th-century attire gathered in a room, discussing a large globe and maps. The setting includes American and Russian flags, a chandelier, and a green carpet with a cross pattern. The men appear to be engaged in a significant diplomatic or political discussion, possibly related to the Alaska Purchase.
Read 14 tweets

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