'Hateful and mean': LGBTQ+ advocates slam Sask. Party's proposed change room policy
Blake Tait says he’s still healing from being outed by his school’s guidance counsellor when he was 14.
Feeling safe at his school in Saskatoon, he started telling people he was transgender. But he felt uneasy when his guidance counsellor set up a meeting for Tait to tell his family.
His parents were supportive. His mom’s ex-husband, whom they lived with at the time, was not, leading to four years of emotional abuse that manifested in alcoholism, drug misuse and a suicide attempt.
"He kicked me out right after I was discharged from the psych ward," said Tait, 24.
On Thursday, Saskatchewan Party Leader Scott Moe said banning “biological boys” from sharing change rooms with “biological girls" would be his party's first order of business if it's re-elected on Oct. 28.
Tait is one of many LGBTQ+ advocates who say the campaign promise is hateful and puts transgender youth at risk.
"If this legislation had existed when I was a kid, I would not have survived high school and that’s the fact of the matter," he said. "School was my one safe space, the only place where I felt I could be authentic."
Moe has said the promise for a change room policy came in response to a complaint that two biological males had changed for gym class with girls at a school in southeast Saskatchewan.
NDP Leader Carla Beck accused Moe of stoking fear and division with voters and making vulnerable kids more at risk.
Moe’s promise also comes one year after the Saskatchewan Party government passed a law requiring parental consent for children under 16 to use different names or pronouns at school.
Beck told reporters this week her party would repeal the law if it wins the provincial election, a move Moe said would take away parents' rights to be involved in their children’s lives and allow teachers to "keep secrets from parents."
Most kids don’t want to hide from their parents, Tait said, but those who do typically have a reason.
"It is entirely out of safety and safety concerns," he said. "It’s a rare story, but it’s a story that still happens.
“It’s a harmful narrative to say that kids want to hide from their parents and it’s a harmful narrative to say that schools are keeping things from parents purposefully."
Heather Kuttai, the mother of a gender-diverse child and a former commissioner with the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission, said Moe is targeting transgender children to bring in voters because they are an "easy target."
"He did it before, and he’s just doing it again," she said. "It’s a direct attack on the rights of trans adults and children.
"When they hear this kind of rhetoric, even just the talking about it, it’s harmful. It sounds hateful and mean, like you’re not valued, like you don’t matter."
Prince Albert Pride posted on social media that organizers feel “saddened, fearful and frustrated” by the proposed change room directive and that the group was not consulted.
It said transgender youth are being treated as "political pawns."
“Forcing trans girls to change with teenage boys will not keep anyone safe," it said.
"It will put trans and two-spirit youth in harm’s way, and at greater risk of assault, sexual assault and bullying."
Tait said a change room policy is a distraction from real election issues like health care, and it could have a long-lasting impact on gender-diverse youth and their ability to exist “in their most authentic form," Tait said.
“(We) need queer and trans folks,” said Tait.
“We bring light, we bring joy. And to me, it feels like we have a government that is trying to erase us.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2024.
Get the CTV News app for Saskatchewan breaking news alerts and top stories
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
N.B. Liberals will form majority government; Holt to become province's first female premier
CTV News is projecting the New Brunswick Liberals will form a majority government in the province, returning to power for the first time since 2018. Leader Susan Holt will become the first female premier of the province.
Major Toronto hospital network reinstates masking requirement
The University Health Network is making masks mandatory as respiratory illness season ramps up.
Investigation ongoing into death of 19-year-old Walmart employee in Halifax
The investigation into the sudden death of a 19-year-old Walmart employee over the weekend is ongoing in Halifax.
2 plead guilty to B.C. murder of former Air India suspect Ripudaman Singh Malik
Two men charged in the killing of former Air India bombing suspect Ripudaman Singh Malik have pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in a British Columbia court.
Former B.C. premier Christy Clark wants to be 'part of the conversation' on Liberal party future
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faces growing pressure to step aside, former B.C. premier Christy Clark says she is open to 'returning to politics' should the position of Liberal leader become available.
Death toll from B.C. atmospheric river climbs as driver found dead, another presumed drowned
Mounties on Vancouver Island say one person is dead and another is presumed to have drowned after two vehicles were found submerged in a river following heavy rains that washed out roadways across British Columbia.
Are you a Canadian stuck in Cuba without power? We want to hear from you
Daily life in Cuba has been largely affected since an outage led to a nationwide blackout in the country, followed by Tropical Storm Oscar hitting the country's east coast. If you're a Canadian stuck in Cuba through this ordeal, CTV News wants to hear from you.
Alleged assassination target calls expelled Indian high commissioner 'less of a diplomat and more of a hypocrite'
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun — a dual Canada-United States citizen and the target of an alleged assassination attempt in New York City last year — says the expelled Indian High Commissioner to Canada, Sanjay Kumar Verma, is 'less of a diplomat, and more of a hypocrite.'
Teen in custody after 5 found dead in shooting at home in Washington state, police say
Law enforcement officials found five people killed in a shooting inside a home southeast of Seattle on Monday morning and took a teenager into custody, police said.