Some are for the new law which supports parents’ rights to approve a name or pronoun change for their child under 16, and other young people are against the new Saskatchewan Parents’ Bill of Rights.
MyLloydminsterNow spoke to three teens attending local high schools. They expressed a cross-section of views, but favoured overall support for kids under 16 affected by the law. They noted an increase in bullying at school since the law has been in place.
Ife favours the new law on Christian and moral grounds, but faces up to the conflict it presents at school.
“There’s some bashing of heads, but I feel for the most part it’s pretty calm. A lot of the people who are affected by the law are not the ones to speak up. The people who strongly agree are just waiting for someone to disagree with them. I feel it’s not too big of a problem right now, but I feel in the coming months there may be a few arguments.”
She recognizes the sensitivity of the situation and does not want to invalidate anyone. However, she wants everyone to be civil about the new law “and not cause conflict at school as that is not the main reason for school. She favours young people handling these issues outside of the school environment.
Cam, by contrast “strongly disagrees” with the new law. They had their pronouns changed long before the law was a thought on the minds of Saskatchewan lawmakers.
Cam says kids should be allowed to explore their identities and if they don’t have supportive parents then they should at least be safe at school. They feel uncertain as to what level of bullying has gone on since the law took effect, but see the difficulty faced by kids under-16 who lack supportive parents on this issue.
“The kids younger than me would probably enter a very dark place mentally and emotionally, and I don’t want to see that happen. I think those kids shouldn’t change their name or pronouns if they don’t have supportive parents, but I believe it would be fine if they could get their friends or people they trust to call them by that name and pronouns.”
In recognizing the challenges going forward, Maheen says she will support anyone who is being bullied. She favours the new law and supports full parental involvement in the decision-making.
“I think parents have the right to know. And I feel that parents should be able to have that conversation with their kids. The school is not the only group of people who are supporting the kid in their decision, because it’s such a huge decision to change your gender identity.”
The new law was passed on Oct. 20 and is protected from challenges under the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code. It was passed using the notwithstanding clause, and cannot be challenged for five-years.
