Today is the annual Trans Day of Remembrance (TDOR). This is a day for Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary, and gender diverse communities to make space for grief and remember people that we have lost to anti-trans violence, on both an individual and systemic level.
TDOR was started by Gwendolyn Ann Smith in memory of Rita Hester, a trans woman whose murder remains unsolved to this day.
This year on TDOR, we are sending our grief, love, and rage to trans youth, their families, their healthcare providers, and their wider trans community in Alberta.
Two days ago, Alberta’s government introduced a bill that would amend their three anti-trans laws to include the notwithstanding clause. This clause allows their anti-trans laws to operate notwithstanding violations of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Alberta’s government is intentionally legislating away the rights of trans and gender diverse youth in Alberta, and removing the ability of the courts to stop them.
There are not words to describe how egregious it is for a government to use the notwithstanding clause to force through a gender-affirming care ban for trans youth.
The notwithstanding clause has been used to target religious minorities in Quebec, striking workers in Ontario and Alberta, and trans youth in Saskatchewan. We are all less safe when politicians can willfully infringe on the fundamental rights protected in the Charter.
You can sign a petition to Alberta’s government – www.stop-smith.ca/
Learn more about:
- The notwithstanding clause – egale.ca/awareness/egale-explains-notwithstanding-clause/
- The anti-trans laws and gender-affirming care in Alberta – hthc.ca/whats-happening-in-alberta-2-0/
TDOR events happening in Hamilton – hthc.ca/tdor/