John Greyson made international headlines when he was imprisoned in Cairo’s infamous Tora Prison in August 2013. A grassroots movement was launched to help free him and his travelling companion, Dr Tarek Loubani.
After his release, Greyson arrived back in Canada in October 2013 to a hero’s welcome. But during his imprisonment, his sexual orientation was kept under the radar. Newspapers referred to his longtime partner, Stephen Andrews, as a friend, and Daily Xtra pulled a clip from a video interview that referenced the fact that he is gay.
In the above interview, Greyson talks about why this decision was made, the politics of the closet and what he thinks about John Baird’s much-discussed sexual orientation.
A selection of Greyson’s videos, dating back to 1984 and including the recent Prison Arabic, are part of the Generations of Queer exhibit, an official WorldPride 2014 event, at OCAD’s Onsite Gallery.
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