Transgender London

Unification For Rights

We in the transgender community cannot afford to become smug in our objections to intolerance. In Canada, our battle is just beginning. We must avoid the mistakes made in the United States and other countries. We must stand united against the assaults on ours and others Human Rights.

The failure of ENDA in the United States is a glaring testament to not standing united. Transgender was stripped out of the document in a political maneuver that defies all logic except for a lack of commitment by HRC (Human Rights Campaign) to be all inclusive. This was and remains unacceptable to most. It has also yielded some breakaway groups devoted specifically to transgender rights. They are reinventing the wheel instead of restructuring HRC to be all inclusive. HRC cant have it both ways; soliciting funds from and having the trans community working for it then ignore our needs in their lobbying efforts.

Still, despite the failure of ENDA and passage of Proposition 8, the battle continues in the USA. Canadians can learn from these failures. Still, we are behind.

Canadians in the transgender community are supposedly protected by the Charter Rights defined by sex but as I have pointed out before, narrow interpretations of law have equally failed to protect us from discrimination. In that the transgender community is unprotected. Equally disturbing is the Conservative Party of Canada's 2008 policy convention and its thrust toward limiting Human Rights.

The socially conservative agenda of Canada's governing party should be a major concern to every Canadian. This party is perhaps the most right wing in our history and their assault is relentless. For the LGBT community this means continued activism and forging alliances with Members of Parliament and political parties sympathetic to our causes. To do so, we must be united nationally.

Given the resistance of the Federal Government toward forwarding human rights one would think the provincial governments would be receptive. This is not the case as province by province, legislation is stymied or refused that would promote LGBT rights. Why?

Our problem is a lack of vision where all groups in Canada are united behind a single spokesperson for our needs. Perhaps the frontrunner poised to do this is EGALE Canada. However, in order to come to terms with our common needs, regional organizations are going to have to support EGALE.

Unification of Canada's LGBT communities is critical to combat the growing organization of the Conservative and Christian Right in this country. To not do so is to invite a decline in human rights instead of promotion of those rights.

But the buck doesn't stop with us in the LGBT community. What we cannot allow is for Human Rights to be placed to a majority rules vote at any time whether in a referendum or in parliament. To allow this kind of action is to place all rights on the table and pick or choose which ones are wanted. What rights should we remove first? Should it be equal rights for women? How about the right to vote for women? Perhaps we can remove the right to religious freedom and replace it with a single fundamental Christian church? What about the rights of children to not be abused? or the elderly? The list can go on and on.

It is up to the Supreme Court of Canada to have the final say on Human Rights in this country and no one else. Expansion of those rights should always be an option, but to acquire constitutional amendment does require majority vote in parliament then with provincial agreement. The other option is for the court to specifically and unequivocally state that transgender rights are fully protected by sex and no narrow interpretation may subvert those rulings. In the present climate that will not happen.

It is up to us to write our MP's, Members of the Provincial Legislatures, Media and inform through education why Human Rights have to be equal for all and not only why but how they are under the threat of being repealed by special interest.

WHICH OF YOUR RIGHTS WOULD YOU FIRST LIKE TO GIVE UP?

My answer is simple: They are not up for negotiation at any price or for any reason.

This site was last updated 08/11/10