March 31st is Two Spirit and Transgender day of visibility! Here's a great post from the Canadian Museum of Human Rights about the parental rights movement and how it's harming gender diverse youth.
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Over the last few years, the "parental rights" movement has been growing in Canada, which aims to deny 2SLGBTQI+ youth their fundamental rights.
While many groups claim they are simply trying to protect their children, the policies they advocate for are often rooted in transphobia and homophobia and can have very harmful consequences.
March 31 is International Transgender Day of Visibility, which in Manitoba is known as Two-Spirit and Transgender Day of Visibility. Today, we're confronting four myths surrounding the parental rights movement, so that we can all help protect 2SLGBTQIA+ youth.
Confronting 4 myths about the parental rights movement
What is the "parental rights" movement?
Throughout Canada, groups of people are targeting 2SLGBTQI+ students in an effort to remove their rights. In some cases, they have been successful under the guise of "parental rights".
The methods vary by province, but often the parental rights movement tries to:
Force teachers to notify parents if a student changes their pronouns or asks to go by another name
Make sex-ed less accessible to students
Remove books from school and libraries that contain 2SLGBTQI+ content
"Parents should have full control over the lives of their children."
Children are not property.
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms does not explicitly mention "parental rights", but rather guarantees the rights of all - including children.
While the Charter does give everyone the freedom of religion and conscience, this does not overrule children's right to freedom of expression.
Young v Young (1993) determined that "the best interest of the child" supersedes any parental beliefs and preferences.
While determining the "best interest of the child" can be complicated, the Convention on the Rights of the Child states that the "best interest" is directly linked to:
Children having the right to form and express their own views
Children being included in the discussion of their rights
In 2017, "gender identity or expression" became protected grounds in the Canadian Human Rights Act.
Forcing teachers to inform parents that a student has chosen to change their names or pronouns can have very harmful consequences.
Students who are misgendered face higher risks of anxiety, depression, and thoughts of suicide. When students are forced to come out to their family, they risk family conflict, violence, rejection and homelessness.
"There are only two genders."
For as long as humans have existed, there have been more than two genders.
Many Indigenous peoples in Canada have always recognized what are now known as Two-Spirit people. Many other cultures around the world have recognized and celebrated people who don't fit into the gender binary.
These policies specifically target 2SLGBTQI+ students, as cisgender* students typically can go by any name they want without parental notice or approval.
"Schools are indoctrinating our kids."
Indoctrination noun: the process of teaching a person or group to accept a set of beliefs uncritically.
Curriculums that have included information about the diversity of genders throughout history and in various places are accused of being instruments of indoctrination.
However, by excluding such information about gender identity, sexual health and other related topics, the parental rights movement is imposing their own system of indoctrination on children rather than encouraging critical thinking.
Claims that there are widespread efforts by teachers encouraging students to change their pronouns are unfounded, and have dangerous consequences.
(*Cisgender - A person who identifies with the gender they were assigned at birth.)
"We're just protecting our children."
Often, people try to justify homophobic and transphobic hate speech under the guise of "protecting" their children. These views are often based on their false belief that people from 2SLGBTQI+ communities are inherently dangerous.
In an attempt to vilify 2SLGBTQI+ communities and their allies, the slurs "pedophile" and "groomer" are often used in a process known as "othering".
Othering is intended to create an "us versus them" mentality to legitimize the oppression of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. The same process has been used to justify atrocities around the world.
Courts are recognizing the harm these slurs can have. In 2025, an Ontario court ordered a person to pay $380,000 in damages after making Facebook posts calling two drag performers "groomers" and "pedophiles."
"When you show up as your authentic self, whatever that may be, you allow others to do the same, creating the world we all deserve."
-Shanna Katz Kattari (they/them), professor, sexuality educator and activist