Page 214 - Katherine Ryan press pack

ever. I did not understand why I was cursed with this point of view that seemed to

be disruptive. I didn’t want to be like that. I wasn’t the class clown or anything. I

wasn’t funny at all, I was just a little bit strange and political and disruptive.

What prompted you to leave Sarnia?

I knew from a really small age that I wanted move away. I knew about Toronto, I

had an uncle who lived there. And I think everyone is more likely to find like-
minded individuals in a bigger city, it’s just a numbers game. I ended up going to

Ryerson University for urban planning, and then I got a job at Hooters in Toronto,

because honestly, I was still of the mindset that the best thing you could be was

pretty. And I wanted to be liked. So I thought, “Hooters teaches you to be this

calm, quiet cheerleader who’s really submissive and really sweet.” And that’s still
what I wanted. And it wasn’t until I actually worked there that I found that the

women who actually had the best time were really great at cooperating and doing

math and multi-tasking, and they had really good, interesting layers. And those

were the like-minded people that I found. So I kind of went to the University of

Hooters. I found these amazing women, and I learned there were way more ways
to be a young woman in the world. And I loved those women and I’m still good

friends with them, and you would never think that you would find feminism and

confidence in a place like Hooters, but I totally did.