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Things You Maybe Didn’t Know about
“Best Politician” & “Best Local Activist” Gerry Rogers

You know Gerry – the cheery politician who can magically balance being both friendly and a force to be reckoned with for the causes she believes in.

And those are many. As the first openly gay politician ever elected to the provincial legislature, she’s been a gamechanger for LGBT rights, and an equally prominent voice for causes like child, youth & family services, justice & public safety, mental health, and well, anything from senior’s and housing causes to women’s rights.

She’s also been a staunch defender of the arts, championing their economic and cultural significance to our province, but did you know she herself is a very well-decorated artist? Gerry is an internationally renowned filmmaker with over 20 documentaries and 40 awards to her credit. Gerry’s film career began in 1982 in Montreal, where she was Program Producer of the Federal Women’s Film Program, a film production, distribution and training program for women filmmakers.

It was during this time she released the popular film, After the Montreal Massacre. In 1992, she returned to Newfoundland to form her own production company, Augusta Productions. Her best-known film, My Left Breast, documented her battle with breast cancer and won not one, but two Gemini awards. A true trailblazer for feminist issues and social activism, Gerry worked with the St. John’s Status of Women Council where she helped found the first Transition House for women and children victims of domestic violence.

Gerry has travelled extensively to speak on documentary filmmaking, status of women, and human rights issues. Those travels have included appearances on The Rosie O’Donnell Show and The Vicki Gabereau Show!