One of the organizations we visited in Montreal was a coalition that serves as an activist group for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals and families. We sat in the small office of the organization’s manager and spoke extensively on what it meant to live in Montreal as an LGBT individual and what the organization’s goal and accomplishments were. Overall, their main focus is to raise awareness, socially and legally, and provide workshops for those and their families. Coincidentally, our hotel was actually located in the Gay Village of Montreal so before our visit we had already witnessed some expression of this. Even though we stayed in area where LGBT individuals were very clearly accepted by the community, we learned in our meeting that this not always the case across Montreal. Our speaker did admit that Montreal is much more progress than the United States regarding the attitude towards being gay or transgender but that there is still much work to be done. She shared children’s picture books and other learning materials with us that addressed the issues and solutions to finding one’s identity and being able to embrace and accept it at a young age. A particularly interesting educational tool, not yet on the market, that she shared with us was a doll called ‘Sam’. Designed like a Russian nesting doll, Sam told the story of a young girl experiencing confusion with her identity and eventually becomes a transgender male. I found this toy/tool so intriguing because it made me realize very quickly that I was not aware of how early these decisions can be made by an individual. Actually, the entire visit made me realize how little I knew about the LGBT community at all. I walked away with an appreciation for groups like this one who continue to advocate for these individuals.
A broad to specific understanding 