Alberta introduces bills affecting transgender people, pronouns at school

EDMONTON — Alberta has introduced a trio of bills focusing on transgender people and students using preferred pronouns.

Premier Danielle Smith’s government proposed Thursday one bill that would require children under 16 to have parental consent if they want to change their names or pronouns at school.

Moments after the legislation was introduced in the legislature, LGBTQ+ organizations Egale and Skipping Stone Foundation announced they will be taking legal action, calling it discriminatory.

A similar law is on the books in Saskatchewan, where the government invoked the notwithstanding clause, a measure that allows governments to override certain Charter rights for up to five years.

Smith told reporters she believes the Charter allows for limits on rights and that her government’s restrictions are reasonable.

“We have all kinds of restrictions on the ability of minors to make decisions. And we do that because we want to make sure that they are at full capacity to be able to make decisions that are going to be consequential to them,” she said.

The bill would also require parents to opt in for their children to be taught about sexual orientation and sexual and gender identity at school.

Smith said parents need to know what’s going on with their children.

Bennett Jensen, director of legal at Egale – one of two groups that also took the Saskatchewan government to court – told The Canadian Press none of the policies are reasonable or balanced, and run counter to the expert consensus and evidence.

“It violates the Charter rights of Albertans and will cause devastating harm,” he said.

Jensen said the courts have been clear that children and young people have rights, and governments cannot focus on a specific subset of young people and deny them rights.

When asked how the rules would be enforced in schools, Smith said the Alberta Teaching Profession Commission has the ability to discipline teachers if they defy the government’s direction.

The requirements would not apply in First Nations schools, but two-spirit Indigenous students in provincially run schools would be subject to them.

The second bill would prohibit doctors from treating those under 16 seeking transgender treatments, such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy.

Currently, national policy restricts bottom surgery across Canada to those 18 and over, and such procedures don’t take place in Alberta.

The bill would also ban regulated health professionals from performing any gender-affirming surgery, including top surgery, on minors.

Jensen said the legislation singles out transgender youth, while still allowing non-transgender youth to get top surgery or to receive hormone therapy and puberty blockers for medical reasons.

“That’s discriminatory, and it’s based in bias,” he said.

Government officials said top surgery is very rare. Smith said the government doesn’t know how many minors are accessing puberty blockers or hormone therapy.

“We just want to make sure that it’s very clear that those are adult decisions to be made by adults,” she said.

Kellie-Lynn Pirie, who underwent a transition before reverting back to her birth sex, is the founder of DeTrans Alliance Canada. She said at a government news conference that she wasn’t ready to make the life-altering decision even as an adult.

“This is simply not a decision we can expect children to make,” she said.

The third bill would ban transgender athletes from competing in female amateur sports and require school and sports organizations to report eligibility complaints.

The government said it’s aiming to protect fairness and safety in sports.

Sport Minister Joseph Schow said sex registration at birth would determine competitive eligibility. Such documentation is accessible through provincial authorities.

Smith said she wants to see sports leagues create mixed-gender divisions to ensure all athletes can compete.

Many organizations have spoken out against the policies, first announced nine months ago, including Amnesty International Canada, the Canadian Medical Association and the Alberta Teachers’ Association.

The proposed legislation comes days before members of Smith’s United Conservative Party are set to vote in her leadership review Saturday.

Speaking to reporters Thursday, NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said Smith’s government is “picking on vulnerable people” to pander to her party’s base.

He said he’s heard from some 4,500 Albertans “deeply hurt” by the policies in just the past week.

Asked about the premier’s position that the legislation is in line with the Charter, he said he suspects most courts would disagree. He urged Smith to let the courts decide.

Nenshi said his party wants every Albertan, including those in the LGBTQ+ community, to not have to worry about whether their rights will be stripped.

Janis Irwin, an openly gay NDP MLA, said she’s heard from thousands of people who feel they “don’t have a place” in Alberta.

Marni Panas, a transgender woman, said there is a lot of misinformation and lies about transgender people and gender-affirming care.

“If you get to know us … you would start to understand that we’re nothing to be afraid of,” she said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2024.

— With files from Aaron Sousa

Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press