Thousands of Canadians showed up to protests across the country. The protest at the Hamilton public school board office comes after the board released a new “gender identity and gender expression procedure” in the lead-up to the 2023-24 school year. Photo credit: Getty Images
Thousands of Canadians showed up to protests across the country on Wednesday, September 20 as part of the One Million March for Children.
According to the group’s website, their purpose is “advocating for the elimination of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) curriculum, pronouns, gender ideology, and mixed bathrooms in schools.”
The protests were organized to take place at various locations across the country, with the Hamilton protest staged outside the local public school board office on Upper Wentworth Street across from Lime Ridge Mall.
The protest was also met by counter-protesters who were generally of the belief that the protests were rooted in “hate.”
There was a heavy Hamilton Police response in order to keep the two sides separated. Police also announced via social media that police drones were in use in order to monitor the situation.
Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath issued a statement in advance of the protest, saying that “the promotion of hateful rhetoric that shames, denies, and erases members of our community will never be welcomed or tolerated here in this city.”
Six Hamilton City Councillors also released a joint statement on X (formerly Twitter) in advance of the protest, saying that they “stand with hundreds of thousands of our neighbours in affirming the human rights of trans, non-binary, and queer youth.”
The letter was signed by Councillors Maureen Wilson (Ward 1 – Chedoke-Cootes-Westdale), Cameron Kroetsch (Ward 2 – Downtown Hamilton), Nrinder Nann (Ward 3 – East Hamilton Centre), Tammy Hwang (Ward 4 – Hamilton East), Craig Cassar (Ward 12 – Ancaster-West Flamborough), and Alex Wilson (Ward 13 – Dundas-Central Flamborough).
Nevertheless, the One Million March for Children website says that they are not “anti-2SLGBTQIA+,” they simply believe that “discussions on gender ideology should be approached at age-appropriate times.”
The website adds that they “oppose any form of violence and hatred.”
“Our concern is that certain decisions, especially those that have permanent, life-changing consequences, should be made when an individual is mature enough to fully grasp their implications,” the site continues.
The protest at the Hamilton public school board office comes after the board released a new “gender identity and gender expression procedure” in the lead-up to the 2023-24 school year.
The procedure states that students are allowed to use whichever bathrooms and change rooms correspond to a student’s “lived gender identity” and compete on whichever sports team corresponds to their “lived gender identity.”
The protest also comes after the board hired controversial teacher Kayla Lemieux, a transgender teacher known for donning large prosthetic breasts.
There have also been debates across the country recently over whether or not students should be allowed to change their pronouns at school without their parents knowing.
The Saskatchewan government recently introduced a policy that would require parental consent if a child under 16 decides to change their name or pronouns at school.
A recent poll of Canadians found that 43 per cent believe parents should be informed and must give consent if a child wants to change their name or pronouns.
A total of 35 per cent say parents should be informed of any changes in how their child identifies, but the changes should not require parental consent.
Only 14 per cent of Canadians polled say that parents should not be involved at all in the decision. The remaining eight per cent were undecided.
The poll was conducted by Angus Reid in an online survey from July 26 to July 31 with a sample size of 3,016 Canadian adults.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.5 percentage points, 95 times out of 100.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
