Roger-Luc Chayer (Image : Gay Globe Média)
From the DPJ to a Royal Medal: My Personal Journey
Every year, on Remembrance Day, November 11, which is commemorated around the world to mark the end of the First World War, I take a moment at 11 a.m., the exact time the armistice came into effect on November 11, 1918, to acknowledge that this date is also important to me, both for what I represent as a classical musician and publisher of a gay media outlet, and for our LGBTQ+ communities in general.
On November 11, 2012, by order of Queen Elizabeth II, I was presented with a medal recognizing my work as a Canadian and French horn player and conductor, as well as my career as an LGBTQ+ journalist and publisher, in recognition of my entire career in Canada and Europe. It was a first for a journalist from the LGBTQ+ communities to receive such recognition from the Sovereign.
It is even more important for me to acknowledge this, partly because I am extremely proud of it. Having built a life rich in achievements across several fields of expertise, despite a difficult childhood, represents a personal accomplishment whose full significance I understand. But beyond my own story, I also hope that my journey can serve as an example to younger generations who, like me, aspire to achieve their dreams, even when they lack the financial means, resources or favourable circumstances to make them happen. I want to remind them that a difficult start in life does not necessarily determine one’s destiny, and that life’s obstacles should never become limits to one’s ambitions.
From a Child in the Care of Quebec’s Youth Protection System to the Nice Conservatory
When I look back on my journey, I cannot separate the man I have become from the child I once was. Mine is not the story of someone who grew up with every opportunity ahead of him, supported by a family able to provide the means to fulfil his ambitions. Rather, it is the story of a child whose life was shaped by Quebec’s Youth Protection Directorate (DPJ) at the age of 16, and who had to learn early on that, to achieve certain dreams, he would have to find solutions elsewhere.
I did not have the privilege of relying on a family that could finance my education, plan my future or make my first steps into professional life easier. I had to find my own way. That does not mean everything was easy, nor that I always knew how I would get there. But I had ambitions, and I wanted to give them a chance.
Classical music became one of the major directions I chose for my life. The French horn, orchestral music and conducting became fields in which I wanted to develop my skills. My ambition eventually took me to France, to the Nice Conservatory.
Studying at a French conservatory represented an extraordinary opportunity, but also a financial challenge I could not meet on my own. I had no family support to rely on. It was thanks to the generosity of Quebec ministers Claude Ryan and Lise Bacon, as well as the support of the Nice Conservatory—its director, Mr. André Peyrègne, my French horn teacher Paul Warin, and my chamber music teachers Paul Jamin and Jean Lapierre—that I was able to pursue this training. Even today, I want to acknowledge their contribution, because it played an important role in making my ambitions a reality. These were people who had no obligation to help me, yet they chose to do so.
I have never forgotten that.
This period allowed me to develop as a musician, French horn player and conductor, and to build a professional career spanning Canada and Europe. Classical music has occupied a major place in my life and remains an essential part of my identity.
But I also had another interest that would eventually become just as important: journalism.
I began building this second career in Quebec’s media landscape, notably at RG magazine, where I contributed for six years, from 1993 to 1999. I also had experience with the Journal de Montréal and television, particularly at TQS, now Canal V, as part of the program Le Midi avec André Arthur.
In 1998, I began working at the magazine Le Point, which would eventually become Magazine Gay Globe. In 2002, I acquired Revue Le Point and continued developing my media business. What had started as an editorial project became a fully independent media company: Groupe Gay Globe Média.
Since then, I have devoted more than three decades to journalism, publishing and producing news and information. I wanted to build a media outlet capable of covering subjects beyond strictly community-related issues, while giving significant attention to LGBTQ+ realities. Health, politics, culture, social issues and international current affairs are all part of this work.
Journalism has allowed me to develop another form of discipline, different from that of music but just as demanding. Both fields require hard work, rigour, preparation and a constant desire to improve.
On November 11, 2012, I received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. This recognition, connected to my professional journey and contributions, represented an important moment in my life. It acknowledged a path that had begun far removed from honours and distinctions.
That is probably what touches me most when I think back to that day. I knew what the medal represented, but I also knew where I had come from and everything I had gone through to get there.
I am proud of my journey. Not simply because of the positions I have held, the institutions I have attended or the recognition I have received. I am proud that I managed to build two careers in such different fields as classical music and journalism, without having had access, at the outset, to the family resources available to many other people.
If I am taking the time to tell my story today, it is also because I think about young people growing up in difficult circumstances, particularly those who experience life within the DPJ system. I want them to know that a difficult childhood does not define their future. Financial resources, connections and family support can make things considerably easier, but their absence should never force anyone to abandon their ambitions.
I was fortunate to meet people who believed in me and helped me overcome certain obstacles. I am grateful to them. But I also had to do my part, work hard, persevere and seize the opportunities that came my way.
Today, I look back on this journey with clarity and great pride. I am not trying to embellish my story. I simply want to tell it as it is: the story of a child who grew up under the care of the DPJ, who had the opportunity to study music in France, become a French horn player and conductor, and then devote more than thirty years of his life to journalism and publishing.
I did not have an easy start in life, but I was given the opportunity to build a professional and personal life that reflects who I am. And perhaps that, when all is said and done, is what makes me most proud.
As a personal anecdote, a few weeks after receiving this distinction at a formal ceremony, surrounded by the people who meant the most to me, I felt compelled to write personally to Her Majesty to thank her for the honour. I never expected to receive a reply. Yet, to my great surprise, a letter arrived in return. I must admit that it was a particularly touching moment for me. After everything I had been through, from my difficult childhood to this royal recognition, receiving a personal response from the Sovereign gave the story a very special meaning. For me, the circle had truly come full circle.
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