Sask. labour groups hold rally over pronoun policy as rush legislative session begins

Hundreds of people gathered outside the Saskatchewan legislative building on Tuesday to protest the government’s plan to invoke the notwithstanding clause and legislate its parental consent policy.

Saskatchewan labour groups hosted a rally at the legislative building on Tuesday, as provincial lawmakers gathered two weeks early to pass a controversial piece of legislation.

“These folks know it doesn’t matter who the person is that’s getting their rights threatened this time. It will be another group of people the next time,” said Kent Peterson, secretary-treasurer for the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour.

Several trans rights advocates took to the podium, including high school student Memphis Hartman, who came out as trans when he was 10 years old. Hartman, now 17, believes teachers play an essential role in students’ coming out journeys.

“My identity is not all that I am, but yet I have to come forward in front of legislation and act as if it is,” he said.

“Being at school, like I said in my speech, I had the opportunity to experiment who I was. I had support in my teachers. That was a safe space.”

Premier Scott Moe vowed to invoke the notwithstanding clause after a King’s Bench judge ordered a temporary injunction of an educational policy that would require students under 16 years old to seek parental consent before changing their pronouns or preferred names in a school setting.

Critics including the provincial children’s advocate, Saskatchewan lawyers, Canada’s justice minister, and LGTBQ2S+ groups have said the policy would be in violation of children’s Charter rights.

Moe described the injunction, enacted until the court could rule on the Charter issues raised in a lawsuit by a University of Regina Pride organization, as “judicial overreach of the court.”

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In an event posted to the SGEU’s website, the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour asked the public to meet them on the steps of the legislative building from 12 p.m. until 2 p.m. on Tuesday to “protest this irresponsible and unnecessary use of the notwithstanding clause.”

“Premier Scott Moe's use of this clause is a dangerous move that threatens the rights of all Canadians,” SGEU writes.

“If the premier sincerely believed his policy was right, he would allow it to be deliberated through the courts.”

The labour unions’ protest was met with a counter-rally of people in favour of the policy.

Police were on scene and intervened at times, but no arrests were made, according to the Regina Police Service.

On both sides of the issue were parents who want the best for their children.

“As a parent of a trans child, we feel it’s important that trans people, especially trans youth, have a safe space in schools, if they don’t feel safe at home,” said protester Adam Booker.

Tonie Wells organized the counter-rally. She said inappropriate, graphic sex education material in her kids’ Lumsden classrooms highlighted what she called a long-standing issue of parents not knowing what is being taught in schools.

““This is stuff that they can’t unsee. They don’t understand it. This isn’t about hating the other side. This isn’t about the division that the government has made it to be,” Wells said.

“This is about loving our kids where we’re at. Being parents, knowing what is going on with our kids is an absolute must.”

Sunny Chhina is a Sikh community leader in Regina. He encouraged many members of the Sikh community to join the rally and express their support for the parental consent policy.

“All the immigrants come from different countries in search of a better lifestyle. We don’t come here to assimilate and adapt to something our belief system doesn’t align with,” he said.

Chhina called it culturally inappropriate for his kids to learn about certain gender fluidity lessons in sexual education at school.

“That’s something that we don’t teach our kids in our homes and we don’t want the school system to be teaching that,” Chhina said, adding if his adult son or daughter came out as part of the LGBTQ2S+ community he would accept them.

“Until 18 (years old), they are kids. They are vulnerable. They are very influenced at what’s being taught in the school system.”

Moe believes the policy has the support of most parents.

A constitutional challenge of the pronoun policy will be heard in court in November. The government plans to use the notwithstanding clause in the constitution to override any challenges.

Hundreds rally outside the legislative building in opposition and support for the government's parental rights policy. (AllisonBamford/CTVNews)

With files from Rory MacLean and Wayne Mantyka