‘We love to show up for each other’

University of Saskatchewan (USask) graduate Thios Mwunvaneza (BA’25) is passionate about making a difference in his community and ensuring spaces are inclusive and safe for all.

Mwunvaneza is a queer Rwandan-Canadian man who lives in Saskatoon, Sask., on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis. In 2024, Mwunvaneza founded Black Queer Alliance YXE, a grassroots, Black-led organization in Saskatoon dedicated to cultivating safe spaces, connection, and joy for Black members of the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community. He now serves as the organization’s co-president with his friend, Danielle Powell (BSc’25, CC’25), a fellow USask graduate who previously served as the Pride Centre coordinator with the University of Saskatchewan Students’ Union (USSU).

Mwunvaneza said Black Queer Alliance YXE was created after seeing the need for a community group in Saskatoon that brings Black queer people together.

“I knew of Black queer people, but we really didn’t have a space. It felt kind of isolating,” Mwunvaneza said, adding that queer people of colour have often felt tokenized or not fully included or embraced in other queer spaces.

Black Queer Alliance YXE is working to change that. Today, there is a lot of excitement and ideas amongst the group’s membership related to activities and events that the organization can lead, said Mwunvaneza.

“We really love each other, and we love to show up for each other,” he said, adding that “it’s nice to just feel seen.”

“It’s nice to be around people who understand the intersection of homophobia, transphobia, and racism, and it’s nice to be in a space where sometimes things that you might be taught to be ashamed of you can just be free about—and celebrate and uplift each other, and yourself, in the process.”

During Pride Month in June, Black Queer Alliance YXE will host two events. On June 13, the Black and Indigenous Rainbow Solidarity Picnic will be held from 1 pm to 5 pm in Victoria Park. Attendance is free and people of all ages are welcome. Black Queer Alliance is accepting donations of supplies for the event, such as picnic blankets, games, cutlery, and cups. The organization can be contacted by email at blackqueeralliance@gmail.com or found on Instagram.

“We’re still in planning mode, but things are coming together really well,” Mwunvaneza of the upcoming picnic.

On June 19, community members 18 years old and over are invited to celebrate Black Pride by attending the Juneteenth Movie and Trivia Night. The show will start at 7 pm at PAVED Arts, and admission is $5 or pay what you can. Mwunvaneza said the event is aimed toward a wider audience, since many previous Black Queer Alliance events have been for members only.

“We wanted to open something up to the public, especially after seeing the success of our Black History Month variety show,” Mwunvaneza said. “It sold out three days in advance, which was really shocking. It was very unexpected that we would have such a good turnout. It got a lot of traction.”

Mwunvaneza, who grew up in Kigali, Rwanda, and in Saskatchewan, is a community advocate who wants to make a difference for people in Saskatoon. He came to USask to study at the College of Arts and Science after graduating from high school in Saskatoon. While in high school, he saw firsthand the importance of learning and educating others about the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community when two students spoke in one of his classes about queer identities.

“Humanity is diverse. Human experience is always going to be diverse,” he said.

As a high school student, Mwunvaneza dreamed of one day becoming a counsellor and was known as someone who often provided guidance and support to other students. As a result, when he came to USask, studying psychology was a natural fit for him, and Mwunvaneza went on to earn his Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology in 2025.

While Mwunvaneza worked toward his degree during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was a difficult time for many, there were still positive experiences from Mwunvaneza’s journey as a USask undergraduate student. Highlights included studying abroad in Korea and taking women’s and gender studies classes as well as courses for the Certificate in Queer Theory, Gender Diversity, and Sexualities Studies. Mwunvaneza particularly enjoyed classes in the College of Arts and Science taught by Dr. Rachel Loewen Walker (BA’06, MA’08, PhD), Dr. Josh Morrison (PhD), and Dr. Alessio Ponzio (PhD).

While at USask, Mwunvaneza also appreciated the many resources that are housed in the Neil Richards Collection of Sexual and Gender Diversity at the University Library, to which he was introduced during a women’s and gender studies course. The library’s collection of books, periodicals, videos, and other items was established in 2010 and was named in honour of Neil Richards, a community activist and longtime USask library employee who dedicated his life to the preservation of queer history.

Mwunvaneza remembers, as a USask student, looking at pins and other materials and memorabilia in the Neil Richards Collection.

“Being able to see physical evidence of queer ancestors on the same lands that I was standing on was extremely, extremely powerful, and I have big dreams of adding my own queer memorabilia to the collection,” Mwunvaneza said. “I’ve been stocking up for a few years now, especially things related to our robust drag community.”

While Mwunvaneza does not perform in drag, he has been very inspired by members of the local drag community and by attending events such as Drag Race YXE. Mwunvaneza noted that the first winner of Drag Race YXE, in 2025, is a Black Queer Alliance member who advocates for disability inclusion in queer spaces through her drag performances.

“It’s been really amazing to watch the different ways that people use art to talk about their beliefs and to talk about current events,” he said.

Outside of his volunteer work, Mwunvaneza is employed with the Truly Alive Youth and Family Foundation Inc. (TAYFFI) is a non-profit organization serving Black and ethnic minority communities in Saskatoon. Truly Alive is a nationally recognized B3 organization—Black-led, Black-serving, and Black-focused—that offers programming for individuals, youth, and families from Black and other racialized/equity-deserving groups in Saskatchewan.

As a community advocate in Saskatoon, Mwunvaneza offers his support to Seventh Generation Rising Collective, which provides mutual aid, free meals, and other resources for people in the city. Mwunvaneza believes in advocating for the safety of all members of the community, particularly marginalized groups, and as such he has worked with other Black Queer Alliance members to provide free naloxone training in Saskatoon. Naloxone is a fast-acting and life-saving medication that can help reverse an opioid overdose.

In addition to serving as the co-president of Black Queer Alliance, Mwunvaneza is involved with other queer initiatives, including Queer Momentum, a non-profit organization that works to advance freedom, equality, and human rights for 2SLGBTQQIA+ community members. Mwunvaneza currently serves as Queer Momentum’s Saskatchewan provincial organizer and is passionate about advocating for queer people of all identities, especially members of the trans community. In July, Mwunvaneza plans to present a free educational workshop in Saskatoon about transgender experiences and identities, during which people can ask questions and learn in a judgement-free space.

In June, during Pride Month, Mwunvaneza is reflecting on the work that still needs to be done in society, particularly around addressing transphobia. He also is reflecting on the gratitude he feels for the efforts and activism of queer people who came before him.

“For me it means to look at the past and to look at the future,” he said of Pride Month. “I’m so grateful for all the queer people who came before me who made it possible for me to be able to say that I’m queer without worrying about losing my job, or my family, or my community. I don’t have to worry about somebody blackmailing me with the fact that I like men. I don’t have to worry about someone exposing me for being queer and sending a mob after me. I don’t have to tiptoe around my family. I’m really, really grateful for all of the work that they’ve put in.”