Commencement speeches by queer celebrities

Classes have ended for the majority of Canadian university and college students, but high school pupils will have to sweat it out for a few more weeks.

If you’re a queer try-hard who will be delivering your graduating class’s commencement speech, you can find inspiration from one of the many gay and lesbian celebrities who have talked up tomorrow’s movers and shakers.

From Jane Lynch’s humble and hilarious 2012 Smith College speech to Anderson Cooper’s 2010 Tulane delivery, personal stories usually play best with no-longer-undergrad audiences.

Rachel Maddow, Smith College, 2010

Jane Lynch, Smith College, 2012

Anderson Cooper, Tulane, 2010

Ellen DeGeneres, Tulane, 2009

Algonquin College journalism grad. Podcaster @qqcpod.

Keep Reading

Karla Sofía Gascón as Emilia Perez in Emilia Perez. Gascón wears black with colourful embroidery, has long hair, and a brown purse and delicate chain.

Trans cartel musical ‘Emilia Pérez’ takes maximalist aesthetic to the extreme

REVIEW: The film’s existence raises intriguing questions about appropriate subjects for the playful machinations of French auteurs
Dorothy Allison sits behind a microphone. She has long, light-coloured hair and wears glasses and a patterned button-up shirt.

5 things to know about Dorothy Allison

The lesbian feminist writer passed on Nov. 6

‘Solemates’ is a barefoot stroll through the history of our fetish for feet

Queer historian Adam Zmith’s newest book allows us to dip our toes into the past of a common, yet stigmatized, kink

‘Masquerade’ offers a queer take on indulgence and ennui 

Mike Fu’s novel is a coming of age mystery set between New York and Shanghai