Spatial Reclamation: "The Steps"

Rendering of "The Steps", 546 Church Street

Ginger, 546 Church St

From the 1980s to the 90s, on the intersection of Church Street and Wellesley Street, the steps leading up to the local Second Cup coffee shop accidentally became one of Toronto’s first queer gathering spaces. This informal yet famous public fixture became a visual claimant of spatial ownership, belonging, and community for queer Torontonians.

However, due to shifting demographics and social attitudes—by the early 2000s—the steps became known for at-risk youth and homelessness. By 2004, the steps were demolished by the owners and sealed behind a flush wall—to the protest of many in the local queer community.

“A parade ground of sorts: permanent bleachers form which to watch an endless line of humans, mostly men, though not exclusively, many of whom would make numerous passes. In a period when gay bars were beginning to have sidewalk presences rather than remain hidden behind tavern walls or up stairs, it was a very public, conspicuous, and sexy high-jeaned type of cruising. We’re here, we’re queer, and the sidewalk is ours”

-Shawn Micallef