​​Canadian Conservative Party Approves Anti-Trans Policies

On Saturday, at the Canadian Conservative Party’s annual convention in Quebec City, an overwhelming majority of delegates voted in favour of two policies limiting transgender access to health care and to gender-segregated areas.

The first motion declared that minors should be barred from gender-affirming care, while the second asserted a plan demanding single-sex spaces exclusively open to individuals defined as “female persons”.

Around 69% of the attending delegates supported the prohibition of young people from receiving gender-affirming care, such as hormone-related treatments aimed at delaying puberty.

Edmonton delegate, Michelle Badalich, argued for this stance, asserting that dysphoria should be treated as a “mental health disorder” warranting non-permanent interventions. Her plea along with the words “protect our kids” received fervent applause from attendees.

Although approved, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is not obligated to incorporate these policies into the party’s official platform, and he refrained from engaging with reporters following the convention votes Saturday evening.

Gender-Segregated Areas

Additionally, delegates voted, with an 87% majority, in support of a plan that called for the establishment of single-sex spaces exclusively accessible to individuals defined as “female persons” under the party’s recently adopted definition.

The policy’s intent is to maintain gender-segregated areas, such as women’s prisons, shelters, locker rooms, and washrooms, excluding transgender and other gender-diverse individuals from these spaces.

Delegates who supported this policy argued that it is “not extremist” but rather a means to create designated spaces for individuals they describe as biological women.

“It’s Lonely and It’s Scary”

When news of these policies first surfaced in August, it triggered widespread concern among 2SLGBTQ+ organisations and advocates who feared the potential ramifications for transgender Canadians. Fea Johnston, the president of the Society of Queer Momentum, took to Twitter to emphasise the community’s resilience and determination in the face of adversity:

“​​We have been hated before. We have been targeted before. We have been here before. We won then. We will win now. If the far right and their friends in public office want to start a culture war on 2SLGBTQIA+ issues, we will rise to the challenge. And we will win,” Fea Johnston, president of the Society of Queer Momentum, wrote on Twitter in August.

We have been hated before. We have been targeted before. We have been here before. We won then. We will win now.

If the far right and their friends in public office want to start a culture war on 2SLGBTQIA+ issues, we will rise to the challenge. And we will win.#NewProfilePic pic.twitter.com/CQNp88LGyS

— Fae Johnstone, MSW (@FaeJohnstone) August 29, 2023

As news of the approval of the policies broke on Saturday from Quebec City, Johnston and other advocates shared their deep concern on Twitter. Johnston urged a broader understanding of the situation, highlighting the rising tide of anti-trans hate as a threat to equity, diversity, inclusion, women’s rights, and the very essence of a healthy democracy.

I’m begging you not to dismiss this as a blip, but to recognize the rise in anti-trans hate as a threat to equity, diversity and inclusion, women’s rights and a healthy democracy.

This is about trans people – and about who we want to be as a society.

— Fae Johnstone, MSW (@FaeJohnstone) September 9, 2023

“I’m begging you not to dismiss this as a blip, but to recognize the rise in anti-trans hate as a threat to equity, diversity and inclusion, women’s rights and a healthy democracy. Do we want to stomp on a marginalized community? To make their lives harder? To allow an ideology that would re-entrench sexist and homophobic gender norms to flourish? I don’t have a roadmap but I hope those in a position to act, to offer resources and expertise, tap into this fight. Because it’s lonely, and it’s scary right now,” Fea Johnston wrote.