ASPA is proud this year to sponsor the reissue of buttons from Neil Richards’ collection sexual and gender diversity.
The University of Saskatchewan Archives and Special Collections contains many original buttons related to 2SLGBTQIA+ rights and activism, and once again has chosen to reissue four buttons that are still relevant to issues the 2SLGBTQIA+ community faces today.
For more on the Neil Richards’ collection, watch this video on queer Saskatchewan history and check out this guide to the resources available in the University Archives and Special Collections on Sexual and Gender Diversity.
As a union, ASPA is committed to building and supporting an inclusive, diverse, and equitable workforce. If you’d like a button, visit your ASPA office at 302 and 304 Kirk Hall.
Since 2023 the University Archives and Special Collections have chosen four buttons to redesign and reissue from the Neil Richards Collection of Sexual and Gender Diversity. plus one new Gay Bob design, each year to celebrate Pride. The buttons in the archival collection date from the 1960s to the early 2000s and the designs chosen maintain their historical relevance by reflecting current and ongoing issues faced by the LGBTQ2S+ community
Buttons are available at every University Library branch, USSU Pride Centre, ASPA Office, Turning the Tide bookstore, Wanuskewin, Saskatoon Public Library, Western Development Museum, SKYXE, YXE Sexual Health, OUT Saskatoon, West Winds Clinic, Diefenbaker Centre, and the Antiquities Museum. They will also be available at the University Library and Diefenbaker Centre table at the Pride Market on June 27th and 28th.
The funding for this year’s buttons was generously provided by the University Library and ASPA.
Gay Bob, photographed here in 2023 in the style of Burt Reynolds was the centerfold for the April 1972 Cosmopolitan Magazine. Burt Reynold’s centerfold was credited for the inspiration for the creation of Playgirl Magazine in 1973 – the first magazine of its kind catering to “the female gaze” which was beloved by both women and gay men. Gay Bob is also an iconic centerfold having been featured in the April 1979 issue of Honcho Magazine.
Both Gay Bob and Honcho Magazine can be viewed at the University Archives and Special Collections after they re-open in their new space in the Fall of 2026.
This button references the sexual and social revolution that occurred in the Western world from the 1950s to the 1970s – a movement that challenged sexual and interpersonal relationships and traditional codes of behaviour. The University Library has many resources on the topic and will be creating an exhibit and reading list for Pride 2026 – coming in June!
The Silence = Death project began in 1986 during the AIDS crisis as a mutual support collective. Founded by Avram Finkelstein, Brian Howard, Oliver Johnston, Charles Kreloff, Chris Lione, and Jorge Socarrás, they reclaimedthe imagery of the pink triangle, originally used by Nazi’s during the Holocaust to persecute 2SLGBTQQIA+ people. The pink triangle became the visual symbol for AIDS activism and was adopted by advocacy groups such as ACT UP.
The Fruit Cocktail Party was an annual fundraising revue for the Lesbian and Gay Community Appeal, held first in Toronto in 1983. The idea spread throughout the country, with counterparts being held in Saskatoon as a fundraiser for Perceptions magazine.