Panelist Canada
Puelo Deir

Puelo Deir’s journey from high-priced party boy to activist began at the 1989 International AIDS Conference in Montreal when he stormed the stage with other activists to protest government inaction on AIDS.

A spark was lit and Deir went on to organize protests following the violent Montreal police raid on the Sex Garage party, widely considered to be “Montreal’s Stonewall” before he founded, developed and produced Divers/Cité, the weeklong LGBTQ2 cultural festival that became one of North America’s most successful Pride events for over 20 years.

The award-winning Deir also created and co-produced the groundbreaking Just For Laughs Festival smash hit show Queer Comics and has written five plays, including the acclaimed 2013 queer coming-of-age ensemble piece Holy Tranity! which had its French-language world premiere at Montreal’s Place des Arts in 2014. Named one of Fugues magazine’s “100 most influential LGBTQ Quebecers”, Deir is also a veteran Unit Publicist who has worked with many of the world’s leading directors, actors and filmmakers.