In the 1970s, Dianna Boileau became one of the first Canadians to undergo gender-affirming surgery. It was the first time such surgery was covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan.
This is her story.
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This is her story.
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At first, her parents did not accept her identity but over time they did and became supportive of her transition.
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In 1962, she was involved in a car crash that killed her friend Rosemary. Boileau was charged with dangerous driving.
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In the 1960s, she began to take feminizing hormones and in 1969 underwent orchiectomy.
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This was the first time such a surgery was covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan.
In order to get the surgery, she had to go through two weeks of psychiatric interviews.
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In 1972, CBC interviewed her but the program never aired.
After she published her memoir, Dianna left the public eye.
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She passed away in 2014.
In 2023, a plaque in Fort Frances, where she grew up, was unveiled to honour her.
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