Our New Name

For some time, our previous name had started to feel too narrow for the work this community was already doing. Too often, it left people with more questions than clarity. So we consulted widely, listened closely, and had rich conversations about identity, belonging, and what kind of name could hold this work more fully. We are delighted to be moving forward as Queer Aging BC.

The word queer was not chosen lightly. We know it carries history. For many people, it was first heard as an epithet before it ever became a point of recognition or belonging. We know that feeling too. But throughout this process, in interviews, focus groups, and community conversations, this word came up unprompted again and again. People were already using it to describe the community, the work, and the wider movement around queer aging. One community member, now 79, shared that in his lifetime the word has shifted “from a slur to a badge of honour,” shaped by self-acceptance, community, and connection to something larger. That does not erase the charge the word still carries for some, but it does help name why it now holds so much meaning for others.

Queer Aging BC gives us simple language to describe who we are and what we’re focused on. Aging works because it speaks to a lived process, not a fixed label. BC works because our reach stretches across the province, while leaving room for the name to grow alongside the wider queer aging movement. And ‘queer aging’ itself is already a legible idea in research and academia, which tells us this language is already alive in the wider world.