Each year on March 31, the world observes Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) to raise awareness about transgender people. It is a day to celebrate the lives of transgender people, empowering them to live authentically, while still acknowledging that due to discrimination, not every trans person can be (or wants to be) visible.
Although much has been accomplished since the beginning of the new millennium, including the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2005, and the protection of gender expression and identity in the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code in 2017, challenges and discrimination persist.
In the last five years, we have seen a rise in dangerous rhetoric attacking the trans community, as well as a spike in policy decisions that limit access to gender-affirming care for trans children and youth. As a paediatric service provider, this worries Grandview Kids.
Our sector’s leading organizations recently wrote to Ontario’s Premier and Minister of Health, sharing our stance that, “gender-affirming healthcare for children and youth must remain as decisions between the patient/client, their parents/caregivers, and their clinicians – without intrusion by government.”
Policies aimed at fostering inclusion and representation and honouring the human rights of 2SLGBTQ+ children and youth in all settings are not only critical to their overall health and wellbeing, they are life saving. We all must continue to work together to combat discrimination and violence toward trans children, youth and adults, further advocating for the protection and promotion of the human rights of trans and gender-diverse people in Canada. The human rights of all people are universal and indivisible, regardless of their sexual orientation and their gender identity and expression.
In 2018, approximately 75,000 people in Canada were transgender or non-binary, representing 0.24% of the Canadian population aged 15 and older. In 2018, lesbian, gay, bisexual and other sexual minority people in Canada were twice as likely as heterosexual people to report experiencing unwanted sexual behaviours in public (57% versus 22%) or at work (44% versus 22%), as well as online harassment (37% versus 15%), over the previous 12 months. Transgender people in Canada were more likely to report their mental health as poor or fair than their cisgender counterparts, more likely to have seriously contemplated suicide in their lifetimes, and more likely to have been diagnosed with a mood or anxiety disorder.
These statistics demonstrate the challenges, and are likely an under-reported sample, considering many people are not open about their gender or sexual orientation for many reasons, including fear of scrutiny or discrimination.
Join us in addressing these challenges and barriers by becoming a Trans Ally this International Day of Trans Visibility. PFLAG, the first and largest organization dedicated to supporting, educating and advocating for LGBTQ+ people and their families, assembled some excellent tools and resources to help you get started.
Resources
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