Gender Ideology Has Finally Become a Mainstream Political Conversation in Canada

I genuinely doubted this day would ever come

Protesters against the changes to Policy 712 outside the New Brunswick Legislature. (Radio-Canada)

Pride month is a terrible time for Canadians who don’t buy into gender ideology and queer theory (and it’s actually a pride season up here, so we aren’t even through it yet), but this year did see some interesting developments which might give us a reason to hope.

In early June, New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs surprised everyone by announcing that it would no longer be mandatory for teachers to use the preferred names and pronouns of students under 16. In fact, Higgs said that student names and pronouns could not be changed without parental consent (even though the policy itself wasn’t that explicit).

Readers might be thinking, “Wait, it used to be mandatory to use a student’s ‘preferred’ name and pronouns?” Yes indeed! In August 2020, New Brunswick passed Policy 713, the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity policy, which mandated just that.

Then, in early May 2023, Blaine Higgs' Progressive Conservative party confirmed that the policy was under review. A section of the policy regarding student participation in extracurricular activities on the basis of “gender identity” was also amended. This change has been less publicized but is highly significant, as it applies to activities like sports.

According to the CBC, Higgs undertook the review because he believes that gender dysphoria “has become popular and trendy, especially among young people.”

It’s pretty difficult to argue with him after reading another CBC headline that proclaims, “New Brunswick high school students who identify as non-binary may exceed 1,000.”

As shown in the province’s Department of Education surveys, the number of students identifying as non-binary has quadrupled since 2019, growing to a rate of one in 29.

Even with the reality of social contagion staring them right in the face, former New Brunswick education minister Dominic Cardy and Fredericton psychologist Amy Otteson both chalked these ridiculous numbers up to increased “tolerance” and greater “comfort” that students feel disclosing their special gender identities.

Turning schools into gender affirmation centers has clearly been a disaster, and this is exactly what Higgs is seeking to change. According to the CBC:

The premier has said that the changes reflect the government's desire to ensure parents play a role in the "formative years" of their children. "Families are the foundation of our society," he recently told the legislature. "And what we're seeing is that erosion of the family role in children's upbringing."

To see an elected Canadian politician speak this way is, quite frankly, shocking. I didn’t think this day would come for at least another year or two. Credit must be given to Maxime Bernier, the leader of the federal People’s Party of Canada, who has been talking about gender ideology for years. Unfortunately, the party does not have any elected representatives.

Predictably, Higgs has faced considerable backlash for his very reasonable stance and policy changes, even from within his own cabinet. Two ministers resigned and two more were removed after a cabinet reshuffle.

The New Brunswick Association of School Psychologists has also filed two grievances with the New Brunswick government over the policy changes, which they say they will refuse to participate in:

"Misgendering transgender and gender diverse people increases risk of self-harm, suicidal ideation, and other mental health concerns," the association said Friday in a statement.

"School psychologists will not be complicit in creating harm by deadnaming and misgendering the students with whom we work."

Teachers are likewise wringing their hands. After the policy changes came into effect on July 1, the president of the New Brunswick Teachers Association Connie Keating told CBC, “It's unsettling. We don't know where we're going to be come fall.”

The whole situation has caused much consternation among gender activists across the country as well. Edmonton’s Kristopher Wells, the Canada Research Chair for the Public Understanding of Sexual and Gender Minority Youth (yes, that’s a real thing), told CBC that the New Brunswick policy changes could cause "attacks against the transgender and the non-binary community" elsewhere in Canada.

Helen Kennedy, of Egale Canada, one of the country’s most prominent “LGBTQ” advocacy organizations, also worries about a ripple effect in other provinces. One can only hope.

In late June, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association even threatened the New Brunswick government with a lawsuit unless the policy changes are reversed.

"I am here ... to deliver a final message to the government of New Brunswick," said Harini Sivalingam, the association’s director of equality. "Canadians from all across the country are watching."

"It is unfortunate that it may take a legal interpretation to determine the role parents play in their children's lives and education," Higgs responded.

But his highest-profile detractor has been none other than Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. At a pride event in June, Trudeau said:

Right now, trans kids in New Brunswick are being told they don’t have the right to be their true selves, that they need to ask permission. Well, trans kids need to feel safe, not targeted by politicians. We have to stand against this. We have to stand up for the freedoms we believe in and continue our work of letting love be louder than hate.

The fact that the Canadian Prime Minister can give a speech about kids having the “freedom” to transition into their “true selves” (a process that would require extreme medical intervention), while invoking love, no less, should be utterly shocking to everyone. Sadly, we’ve grown so numb to such mindless virtue signaling that, instead, his speech received cheers and applause.

And actually, Justin, the only people who now need to ask “permission” in New Brunswick regarding “trans kids” are the teachers who can no longer socially transition kids on a whim.

Surprisingly, Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been disappointingly silent on the issue, piped up as well, telling Trudeau to “butt out and let provinces run schools and let parents raise kids.”

Poilievre had previously tried to keep this issue at arm’s length by saying, “I’ll let provinces make decisions about their education system.” A slightly stronger stance in favor of parents still feels like too little too late, but it is welcome.

With the nascent state of the gender ideology debate in Canada, we have unfortunately been left collecting and cherishing such crumbs. Premier Higgs, at least, has given us a significant win to celebrate. It is preposterous that schools were allowed to change a child’s name and pronouns in the first place, but undoing that absurdity, even if in just one province, will hopefully encourage some more of the country’s politicians to find their spines.

I’m praying that my own provincial premier, Danielle Smith, is next.