Cheri DiNovo

Cheri DiNovo, MPP (born c. 1951) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She is a New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario who was elected in a by-election on 14 September 2006. She represents the Toronto riding of Parkdale—High Park. She is a United Church of Canada minister who served at the Emmanuel-Howard Park congregation in Toronto, Ontario.

Background

DiNovo grew up in a rooming house owned by her parents. After her father's death from emphysema and witnessing her stepfather's suicide, she dropped out of school at Grade 10 to live on the streets for four years. During her time on the streets, she helped smuggle LSD into Canada from California inside hollowed-out bibles. Her time spent at the Fred Victor Mission convinced her to earn her high school equivalency test and enrol at Centennial College, though she soon changed from Centennial to York University. It was during her time at York that she became involved with the student protest movement of the 1960s and became joined the Young Socialists of Canada. An openly bisexual woman, DiNovo was one of the few women to sign Canada’s first gay liberation manifesto "We Demand" in 1971.