TESA launches federal equality campaign, #transrights NOT #trashrights
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE--March 4, 2015--ALBERTA
Canadians from all walks of life are urged to write their Members of Parliament and Senators to condemn proposed changes that would entrench inequality into law for some Canadians. The Trans Equality Society of Alberta (TESA) notes that inequality is bad for everyone.
"Canada has a lot of bad history. In the past, Canada has chosen to disrespect and outright trash the rights of Canadians many times," says TESA president Jan Buterman. "Aboriginal families torn apart for forced residential schooling, Canadians of Ukrainian and Japanese descent sent to internment camps during wartime, Quebecois arrested without due process. The list goes on."
Despite a will in later years to attempt to reconcile these tragedies with Canada as modern democracy, a handful of Canadian senators have now chosen to amend a federal bill in a way that would strip trans* Canadians of their existing equality rights. On February 25, 2015, majority members of the Senate's Legal and Constitutional Affairs committee voted in favour of an amendment to a trans*-rights' bill that would eviscerate existing equality rights under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
"The majority senators sitting the Legal and Constitutional Affairs committee have signalled their intent to create more bad history," says Buterman. "No Canadian should rest easy over such a decision. What can be taken away from one group can be taken away from any group."
TESA's campaign, #transrights NOT #trashrights encourages people to write their Members of Parliament (MPs) and Senators to rescind this amendment and defend the equality rights of all Canadians.
"TESA also hopes to help all Canadians, including trans* Canadians, understand that trans* people already have rights," Buterman says, noting that many people falsely believe Bill C-279, an act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code to add "gender identity" would grant trans* Canadians rights for the first time.
TESA's mission is to be a witness and a voice for matters concerning trans* Albertans. As changes to the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code both have implications for Albertans, TESA considers Bill C-279 to fall within its mandate.
"In fact, all Canadians have rights equally affirmed under Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The trouble is, sometimes people believe trans* people do not have rights," Buterman says. "The Trans Equality Society of Alberta has supported Bill C-279 on the basis of helping clarify that the 'everyone' and 'every individual' mentioned in the Charter includes trans* people."
This lack of clarity has meant that many trans* people have first had to prove that their existence is legitimate before being able to have the actual issue that brings them before a tribunal or court of law addressed. Clarifying trans* inclusion in Canadian law would have addressed this systemic failing, as well as reduce attempts to de-legitimise the existence of trans* people before the law.
Buterman notes that all too often, even trans* people are unaware of already having rights. "All Canadians have rights, without exception. In the larger context of human rights, the only qualification to having human rights is to be a human. However, even experts with substantial knowledge of Canada's constitution have noted that the lack of explicit enumeration poses problems for trans* people being able to enjoy their equality rights."
The LaForest Report was released 15 years ago, in 2000. In this report, the Canadian Human Rights Act Review Panel recommended "that gender identity be added to the list of prohibited grounds of discrimination in the [Canadian Human Rights] Act,"[1] further noting that "We agree with the view that transgendered individuals are already protected from discrimination on the ground of sex or the combined grounds of sex and disability. However, to leave the law as it stands would fail to acknowledge the situation of transgendered individuals and allow the issues to remain invisible."[2]
TESA has insisted that allowing the issues to remain invisible is untenable and unreasonable. TESA further asserts that these latest amendments to Bill C-279 cannot stand.
"At the very least, the attempt to enshrine inequality in Canadian law is an affront to human dignity," says Buterman. "But it's more than that: it's a decision that flies in the face of everything Canada claims about itself. Allowing our nation to legalise arbitrary and capricious discrimination against one identifiable group cannot possibly set a good precedent for the rights of other Canadians in years to come."
Citations:
[1] Annex C, Summary of Recommendations #123--La Forest, G., Black, W.W., Dupuis, R., & Jain, H.C. Promoting Equality: A New Vision [report by the Canadian Human Rights Act Review Panel; "LaForest Report"]. Ontario, Canada: Attorney General of Canada. Retrieved from http://publications.gc.ca/collections/Collection/J2-168-2000E.pdf
[2] Ibid.--Chapter 17(d)
For further information, please see:
TESA -- Campaign > #transrights NOT #trashrights (Bill C-279)
More information about TESA can be found at www.tesaonline.org
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Canadians from all walks of life are urged to write their Members of Parliament and Senators to condemn proposed changes that would entrench inequality into law for some Canadians. The Trans Equality Society of Alberta (TESA) notes that inequality is bad for everyone.
"Canada has a lot of bad history. In the past, Canada has chosen to disrespect and outright trash the rights of Canadians many times," says TESA president Jan Buterman. "Aboriginal families torn apart for forced residential schooling, Canadians of Ukrainian and Japanese descent sent to internment camps during wartime, Quebecois arrested without due process. The list goes on."
Despite a will in later years to attempt to reconcile these tragedies with Canada as modern democracy, a handful of Canadian senators have now chosen to amend a federal bill in a way that would strip trans* Canadians of their existing equality rights. On February 25, 2015, majority members of the Senate's Legal and Constitutional Affairs committee voted in favour of an amendment to a trans*-rights' bill that would eviscerate existing equality rights under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
"The majority senators sitting the Legal and Constitutional Affairs committee have signalled their intent to create more bad history," says Buterman. "No Canadian should rest easy over such a decision. What can be taken away from one group can be taken away from any group."
TESA's campaign, #transrights NOT #trashrights encourages people to write their Members of Parliament (MPs) and Senators to rescind this amendment and defend the equality rights of all Canadians.
"TESA also hopes to help all Canadians, including trans* Canadians, understand that trans* people already have rights," Buterman says, noting that many people falsely believe Bill C-279, an act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code to add "gender identity" would grant trans* Canadians rights for the first time.
TESA's mission is to be a witness and a voice for matters concerning trans* Albertans. As changes to the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code both have implications for Albertans, TESA considers Bill C-279 to fall within its mandate.
"In fact, all Canadians have rights equally affirmed under Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The trouble is, sometimes people believe trans* people do not have rights," Buterman says. "The Trans Equality Society of Alberta has supported Bill C-279 on the basis of helping clarify that the 'everyone' and 'every individual' mentioned in the Charter includes trans* people."
This lack of clarity has meant that many trans* people have first had to prove that their existence is legitimate before being able to have the actual issue that brings them before a tribunal or court of law addressed. Clarifying trans* inclusion in Canadian law would have addressed this systemic failing, as well as reduce attempts to de-legitimise the existence of trans* people before the law.
Buterman notes that all too often, even trans* people are unaware of already having rights. "All Canadians have rights, without exception. In the larger context of human rights, the only qualification to having human rights is to be a human. However, even experts with substantial knowledge of Canada's constitution have noted that the lack of explicit enumeration poses problems for trans* people being able to enjoy their equality rights."
The LaForest Report was released 15 years ago, in 2000. In this report, the Canadian Human Rights Act Review Panel recommended "that gender identity be added to the list of prohibited grounds of discrimination in the [Canadian Human Rights] Act,"[1] further noting that "We agree with the view that transgendered individuals are already protected from discrimination on the ground of sex or the combined grounds of sex and disability. However, to leave the law as it stands would fail to acknowledge the situation of transgendered individuals and allow the issues to remain invisible."[2]
TESA has insisted that allowing the issues to remain invisible is untenable and unreasonable. TESA further asserts that these latest amendments to Bill C-279 cannot stand.
"At the very least, the attempt to enshrine inequality in Canadian law is an affront to human dignity," says Buterman. "But it's more than that: it's a decision that flies in the face of everything Canada claims about itself. Allowing our nation to legalise arbitrary and capricious discrimination against one identifiable group cannot possibly set a good precedent for the rights of other Canadians in years to come."
Citations:
[1] Annex C, Summary of Recommendations #123--La Forest, G., Black, W.W., Dupuis, R., & Jain, H.C. Promoting Equality: A New Vision [report by the Canadian Human Rights Act Review Panel; "LaForest Report"]. Ontario, Canada: Attorney General of Canada. Retrieved from http://publications.gc.ca/collections/Collection/J2-168-2000E.pdf
[2] Ibid.--Chapter 17(d)
For further information, please see:
TESA -- Campaign > #transrights NOT #trashrights (Bill C-279)
More information about TESA can be found at www.tesaonline.org
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