In the fall of 2024, Peter Knegt (HBA ’06 Innis, Cinema Studies) penned the final edition of Queeries — his award-winning column dedicated to discussing and celebrating queer culture.
In the seven years since Queeries was first published on CBC Arts, Knegt made a splash within the Canadian media landscape, and provided rich commentary that brought queer culture to the mainstream without losing its authenticity.
In a CBC article about the end of Queeries, Knegt writes: “They let me count down the 200 most iconic queers in cultural history. They let me serenade Celine Dion and Carly Rae Jepsen. They let me trash Bohemian Rhapsody … and I’m incredibly grateful for all of that.”
While Queeries contributed a great deal in its time, Knegt has turned his attention to an exciting new project: Emerging Queer Voices — a weekly column that showcases new queer writers — regardless of age.
“It was important for me to launch Emerging Queer Voices for a few reasons. For one, I know what a challenging landscape it has become in this country for writers, especially if you’re just starting out. And it gets even harder if you want to write pieces that offer an uncompromising queer viewpoint without catering to ‘mainstream readers’.”
Congratulations, Peter, on seven incredible years of Queeries. We can’t wait to see the writers that emerge from Emerging Queer Voices and the impact it will have on the arts in Canada.
I hope that Emerging Queer Voices will be a space where writers can take their time to reflect on and to celebrate what is most inspiring, meaningful and important; a space to amplify vital voices, spotlight talents, make connections and build community.
Above: Photo of Peter Knegt from peterknegt.com