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Roy was one of three plaintiffs in the class-action suit against the government. She was 19 when, in 1981, she was dismissed from the Canadian Armed Forces for her homosexuality.

“We were treated like deviants,” she says. “We got fired for something that had nothing to do with our skills. We got fired for who we loved.

“Some people killed themselves. And some never came out of the closet again.”

A not-for-profit corporation, the $15-million LGBT Purge Fund was created with settlement proceeds to non-survivors. A portion was, by the terms of the settlement agreement, to be directed to “memorialize the historical discrimination against LGBTQ2 Canadians, including with respect to the LGBT Purge.”

After the NCC announces the site, the Department of Canadian Heritage will lead the project, including an international design bid process and public electronic consultation on the monument’s design.

Roy says the monument is expected to be completed by 2024.

“This is something you’ll see everyday that will remind people,” she says. “And at the same time we want it to be a place where people can celebrate. We want to be proud of it as Canadians. It’s a testimony of collaboration, between the community and the government.

“At the end of the day, I just want to make Canada a better place, and to me, the best way to do that is to be reminded of what it means to be included.”

The LGBT Purge Fund, which also supports those affected by the Purge, will additionally help develop an exhibit on the Purge, which will be displayed at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg. The exhibit is expected to be launched in 2023.

bdeachman@postmedia.com