Christine Morrissey

Christine Mary Morrissey
OC
Born(1942-12-27)December 27, 1942
Leicester, England
DiedApril 14, 2025(2025-04-14) (aged 82)
CitizenshipCanada
Alma materCollege of St. Rose
Known forLGBT Activism
PartnerBridget Coll
AwardsOrder of Canada
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal

Christine Morrissey (1942–2025) was a Canadian LGBT activist and community organiser based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Born in Leicester, England, she emigrated to Canada as a child and later served as a Franciscan nun in Malaysia and Chile. After settling in Vancouver, Morrissey became known for her work on immigration rights for same-sex couples and LGBT refugees. In the early 1990s, she and her partner, Bridget Coll, challenged Canadian immigration rules that did not recognize same-sex partners under the family class. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2019.

Early life and religious work

Christine Mary Morrissey was born on December 27, 1942, in Leicester, England. In 1951, when she was eight years old, she moved with her family to Prince George, British Columbia, where her uncle and his family lived.[1] Morrissey and Coll later said that the move reflected family concerns about communism in postwar Europe.[1]

At sixteen, Morrissey became a Franciscan nun and moved to Albany, New York, to attend the College of St. Rose. While in Albany, she met Bridget Coll, who was also a nun.[2][3][4] Morrissey completed her teaching degree in 1967 and was assigned to Malaysia, where she taught Bible study, English, and English literature.[1][5]

In 1981, Morrissey and Coll asked to be moved to a convent in Chile. While there, Morrissey became involved in opposition to the Pinochet dictatorship, including by carrying messages for resistance members.[5] She was also active in Movimiento contra la tortura, an organization opposed to torture under the dictatorship.[6][7][8] Morrissey and Coll left religious life in 1988,[9] and moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, the following year.[6][10]

Immigration challenge

After leaving Chile, Morrissey attempted to bring Bridget Coll, her partner of 14 years to Canada in 1990.[11] After two and a half years, Morrissey attempted to sponsor her partner's immigration application, which was rejected,[11][12] as their relationship was not considered to fall within the "family class" category, which was limited to heterosexual relationships.[13][14] On January 14, 1992, Morrissey and Coll held a press conference with member of parliament Dawn Black announcing their lawsuit.[15] Their case challenged Canada's immigration laws and brought a constitutional challenge before the courts.[16][17][18] Their case rested on Morrissey's equality rights, which were guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, arguing that her partner's rejection constituted unlawful discrimination, on the basis of sexual orientation.[19] In February 1992 a second Charter challenge on the "family class" issue was raised by another lesbian couple Carrott and Underwood.[13][20]

In October 1992, Morrissey's partner's immigration application was granted under the independent immigrant category, allowing her to remain in the country. With the government settling the case without a ruling it allowed a ruling on the issue to be dropped.[17][21] The lawyer for Morrissey and Coll later stated after the case was dismissed that this was "the federal government's way of sidestepping the messy issue."[22][23] In June of 1994, Immigration Canada issued telex ORDO150 to its embassies and consulates aboard, giving programme managers discretion to allow same-sex partners to immigrate to Canada in cases where "undue hardship could result from separation".[14][24] Administrative changes such as these were gradual steps towards equality that cases like Morrissey's had created.[14][24] The significance of the case was that the Canadian government admitted they were unable to win the case and that undue discrimination was occurring because of immigration legislation.[21][24]

Canada's Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was later amended in 2001, updating the country's immigration laws to formally recognize same-sex partners as members of the family class. This change to the law was one that Morrissey and other community members had advocated for in the years after her Coll had been granted entry into Canada.[13][25]

Later life

Rainbow Refugee at the Vancouver LGBTQ Pride 2015

Morrissey was an active member of the LGBT community throughout her life.[2][26] Part of this work included her co-founding Lesbian and Gay Immigration Taskforce (LEGIT) in Vancouver to help same-sex couples of different nationalities navigate the immigration process to enable their cohabitation within Canada.[27][28][29] LEGIT was one of the first organisations to challenge Canada's immigration laws on behalf of same sex couples.[29][30][31] In addition to her work with LEGIT, Morrissey also founded Rainbow Refugee along with Sharalyn Jordan.[2][30][32] The organisation she founded works to support individuals who identify as LGBT and are fleeing persecution in their home countries on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or HIV status, helping them navigate the resettlement process and rebuild their lives in Canada.[33][34][35]

Canada has a vital role to play as a place of relative safety and respect for those who need to flee sexual orientation, gender or HIV based persecution.

In 1999 both Morrissey and Coll were selected to serve as the grand marshals for the Vancouver pride parade in recognition for their advocacy.[6] As part the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2012 Morrissey was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.[36] Morrissey later received the Vancouver Pride Society's Legacy Award in 2014, honouring decades of public service and community leadership in the Canadian LGBT community.[37] In 2022, Morrissey took part in a pride campaign with IKEA Canada, lending her voice to highlight the importance of creating safe and welcoming spaces for meaningful LGBTQ+ advocacy, visibility, and representation.[38] On November 22, 2019 the Governor General of Canada announced that Morrissey was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in recognition of her advocacy and work on behalf of 2SLGBTQ+ immigrants and refugees.[33][39][40] She was formally invested on October 26, 2023 the Governor General's citation credits her with supporting "supported refugees who faced discrimination in their home countries because of sexual orientation or gender identity".[39][2]

After her partner, Coll, was diagnosed with dementia,[9][41] Morrissey became one of the few paid advocates in Canada focused on advocating for long-term health care for LGBT people.[31][42] Her work included advocating for housing security[43] and organizing supportive care groups.[44] She also worked to provide trainings for long term care facilities and their provider staff on the unique needs and experiences of LGBT people under their care.[45][46] Her partner Bridget passed away in 2017 due to complications from dementia.[3][41]

Morrissey died on April 14, 2025 at the age of 82 surrounded by her chosen family.[2] Until her final days, she remained deeply dedicated to supporting immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community, and other marginalised groups through her tireless advocacy and community work in Vancouver.[30][47][48] The City of Vancouver declared July 22nd, 2025 as Chris Morrissey Day in honour of her work and memory of her passing.[49]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Morrissey, Chris; Coll, Bridget (December 28, 2009). "Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Chris Morrissey and Bridget Coll". QMUNITY's Stories of Older Queers (Interview). Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Dickson, Courtney (April 19, 2025). "B.C.'s Chris Morrissey, a 'fierce' advocate for 2SLGBTQ+ immigration rights, mourned by community". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  3. 1 2 McCann, Nuala (June 28, 2021). "Bridget Coll: Catholic nun was lesbian, militant and a history maker". British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  4. ↑ Hendrickson, Bob (January 15, 1992). "Lesbian couple sue immigration department". The Province. Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada. pp. A6. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Robson, Claire Elizabeth; Sumara, Dennis (August 8, 2013). "Fishing for difference: A case study of singularity and sensibility in critical literary life writing". Journal of the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies. 11 (1): 23–40. doi:10.25071/1916-4467.36551. ISSN 1916-4467.
  6. 1 2 3 Casey, Maurice J. "The Irish-Canadian couple who campaigned together in Pinochet's Chile". The Irish Times. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  7. ↑ Boadle, Anthony (July 12, 1986). Spicer, Keith (ed.). "Chilean leader reveals plan to retain power until 1997". The Ottawa Citizen. UPI. pp. A7. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  8. ↑ O'Quinn, Makenzie. "Coll, Bridget". In McKee, Eamonn; McGowan, Mark (eds.). Fifty Irish Lives in Canada: 1661 to 2016. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Novalis. ISBN 9782898303029.
  9. 1 2 Perelle, Robin (December 5, 2013). "The isolation of dementia". Xtra. No. 529. Vancouver: Pink Triangle Press. p. 2. ISSN 1198-0613.
  10. ↑ Vikander, Tessa (October 17, 2016). "Meet some volunteers in Vancouver's 'circles of hope'". Xtra Magazine. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  11. 1 2 Martin, Matthew (February 14, 1992). Khan, Treena (ed.). "Having to fight the system again". The Charlatan. Vol. 21, no. 23. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Carleton University. p. 15. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  12. ↑ Bula, Frances (December 12, 1992). "Marriage not necessarily like a horse and carriage". The Vancouver Sun. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. pp. B9. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 LaViolette, Nicole (September 2004). "Coming Out to Canada: The Immigration of Same-Sex Couples Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act". McGill Law Journal. 49 (4).
  14. 1 2 3 Vidmar, Dominic, ed. (April 10, 1997). "Immigration for Same-Sex Couples". Lambda. Sudbury, Ontario, Canada: Laurentian University. p. 6. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  15. ↑ "A Year in Review". The Gateway. University of Alberta. March 10, 1992. p. 7. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Gays Want Immigration Law CHanged". Daily Gleaner. No. 137. Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. June 11, 1992. p. 9. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  17. 1 2 Fisher, John (2003). "Outlaws or in-laws: Successes and challenges in the struggle for LGBT equality". McGill Law Journal. 49.
  18. ↑ Smith, Miriam Catherine (1999). Lesbian and gay rights in Canada : social movements and equality-seeking : 1971-1995 (1st ed.). Toronto, Ontario, Canada: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 9781442676633.
  19. ↑ "Canadian News Briefs". The Times-Transcript. Vol. 10, no. 11. Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. January 15, 1992. p. 24. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Gay and lesbian legal issues and HIV/AIDS: a discussion paper". Canadian HIV-AIDS Policy & Law Newsletter. 3–4 (4–1): 6–9. 1997. ISSN 1195-5252. PMID 11365298.
  21. 1 2 LaViolette, Nicole (2007). "Irish American Lesbian Gains Canadian Immigrant Status". In Faderman, Lillian; Ramírez, Horacio Roque (eds.). Great Events from History: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Events.
  22. ↑ Griffin, Kevin (October 9, 1992). Haysom, Ian (ed.). "Lesbain activist's partner gets landed status". The Vancouver Sun. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. pp. B5. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  23. ↑ Sanders, Douglas (1994). "Constructing Lesbian and Gay Rights". Canadian Journal of Law and Society. 9 (2): 99–143. doi:10.1017/S0829320100003677. ISSN 0829-3201.
  24. 1 2 3 Lupul, Philip (1998). Use of Discretion in Independent Migrant Selection: A Study of Canadian Immigration Law, Policy and Practice (PDF) (Master of Law thesis). Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada: Dalhousie University. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  25. ↑ Chrétiennot, Léa (2021). Lorsque le couple rencontre l'État : analyse de l'épreuve du parrainage conjugal dans les couples lesbo-queers [When the Couple Encounters the State: An Analysis of the Challenge of Spousal Sponsorship in Queer Lesbian Couples;] (Master of Science thesis). Montreal, Quebec, Canada: University of Montreal. doi:10.71781/21258. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  26. ↑ Morton, Brian (February 28, 2003). "Gay Prideline to help assault victims". The Vancouver Sun. p. 23. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  27. ↑ White, Melissa Autumn (2014). "Archives of intimacy and trauma: Queer migration documents as technologies of affect". Radical History Review. 2014 (120): 75–93. doi:10.1215/01636545-2703733.
  28. ↑ Warner, Thomas E. (2002). Never Going Back: A History of Queer Activism in Canada. University of Toronto Press. p. 244. ISBN 9780802084606. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  29. 1 2 White, Melissa Autumn (2016). "Governing Queer Intimacies at the US-Canada Border". Feminist (Im)Mobilities in Fortress(ing) North America. Routledge. p. 150. ISBN 9781317135760. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
  30. 1 2 3 Carman, Tara. "Activist crusades to open Canada's doors to LGBTQ refugees". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  31. 1 2 "Lesbian seniors turn to friends for care and support". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. March 11, 2014. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  32. ↑ Goldie, Jamies (January 17, 2017). "Canada to deport lesbian refugee to country where being gay is a crime". Xtra Magazine. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  33. 1 2 Mooney, Harrison (December 28, 2019). "Lions owner Braley, LGBTQ activist Morrissey among Vancouver's Order of Canada recipients". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  34. ↑ LGBTQ+ at Risk Abroad: Canada's Call to Action (PDF). Report of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (Report). Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: House of Commons. 42nd Parliament, First Session. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  35. ↑ Hasselriis, Kaj (July 2, 2013). "From far and wide". Xtra Magazine. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  36. ↑ Lewis, Shauna (December 13, 2012). "Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal". Xtra!. No. 504. Vancouver: Pink Triangle Press. p. 8 – via EBSCOHost.
  37. ↑ Thomas, Stacy (May 5, 2014). "Vancouver Pride Legacy Awards honour community leaders". Xtra Magazine. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  38. ↑ "IKEA Canada and 2SLGBTQ+ Community Celebrate Pride". Marketing News Canada. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  39. 1 2 Order of Canada citation
  40. ↑ Zimonjic, Peter (December 27, 2019). "Nobel laureate Donna Strickland, James Cameron, Inuk actor Johnny Issaluk among Order of Canada appointees". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  41. 1 2 Innes, Val (2017). "Queers in Family". Counterpoints. 485: 89–91. ISSN 1058-1634. JSTOR 45136215.
  42. ↑ Moore, Dick (2009). "Designing Long-Term Care for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transexual, and Transgender People". In Armstrong, Pat (ed.). A place to call home: long-term care in Canada. Black Point, Nova Scotia: Fernwood Publishing. ISBN 978-1-55266-293-9. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  43. ↑ Hughes, Tegwyn (March 15, 2023). "Other Cities Have Housing for Queer Seniors. Why Not Vancouver?". The Tyee. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
  44. ↑ Blair, Kelsey (January 2, 2019). "'Memory in two voices:' an aesthetics of care in performance groups for older adults". Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance. 24 (1): 67–71. doi:10.1080/13569783.2018.1535271. ISSN 1356-9783.
  45. ↑ Keilholz, Doerthe; Gotell, Lucy (May 10, 2008). "Redefining Care". The Vancouver Sun. pp. B3. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  46. ↑ Robson, Claire; Morrissey, Christine (2008). "Quirk-e: Queer seniors creating community". The Canadian Journal of Nursing Research. 40 (4): 147–150. ISSN 0844-5621. PMID 19186790.
  47. ↑ "Ms. Christine M. Morrissey". The Governor General of Canada. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
  48. ↑ "Advocates want support for LGBTQ refugees". The Globe and Mail. July 28, 2014. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
  49. ↑ "Vancouver Proclaims Chris Morrissey Day July 22, 2025 – Quirk-e". Retrieved March 30, 2026.

Public Salon Talk

This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.