LGBTQ2S+ groups ask federal parties to defend human rights, access to transgender care

Counter-protesters hold LGBTQ+ flags as a rally against sexual orientation and gender identity programs in schools takes place in Ottawa, on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

CALGARY — LGBTQ2S+ Canadians are calling on federal parties to affirm their rights during this election campaign as they face a rising tide of hate crimes.

“It’s important that leaders from all parties speak up for the rights of trans folks and queer folks,” said Fae Johnstone, head of the advocacy group Queer Momentum.

While she said she’s grateful that LGBTQ2S+ issues haven’t become a culture war flashpoint in the election campaign, she said federal leaders have been allowed to largely ignore those issues while campaigning.

“This is a tumultuous political time. Hate is rising and we don’t want a showdown on those issues, because it’s not in the best interest of Canadians,” she said.

Johnstone’s group is among 200 organizations behind a March 31 open letter urging party leaders to oppose any reversal to “human rights victories, including marriage equality, Canada’s conversion therapy ban, and transgender rights legislation.”

The letter also calls on the federal government to be “a global leader on equality and human rights for queer and trans people around the world, including refugees,” and to continue funding LGBTQ2S+ organizations.

The letter cites a rise in hate crimes in Canada targeting LGBTQ2S+ people. U.S. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has declared that there are only two genders and has rebranded a federal monument to remove references to transgender people.

Johnstone said she is particularly worried about Bill 26, an Alberta law that made the province the first to bar LGBTQ2S+ youth from receiving gender-affirming medical care.

The United Conservative Party government passed the law last year but it hasn’t fully come into effect. It would prevent youth under 16 from receiving hormone therapy and puberty blockers.

The law is being challenged by groups representing transgender youth arguing it violates the Charter of Rights. Government lawyers say the legislation is grounded in science and is meant to keep children safe.

Courts are considering whether to temporarily suspend the law pending a hearing on its constitutionality. A judge reserved her decision on that question last month.

The Alberta government has said it will use the Charter’s notwithstanding clause if the legislation is successfully challenged.

On Wednesday, when asked whether the Liberals would use the Canada Health Act to ensure transgender youth in Alberta have access to health care, leader Mark Carney said his party will defend minority rights generally.

“Access to health care in Canada is not a business, it is a fundamental right, and we will defend it for all Canadians — for all Canadians, without exception,” he said at a campaign stop in Calgary.

“One of the great strengths of this country is recognizing that people can be who they are, they can love who they love. It’s fundamentally important that the federal government is the defender of those rights (and the) defender of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”

The NDP did not say whether it would incorporate health services for transgender people into the Canada Health Act, while the Conservatives did not respond when asked.

“New Democrats are committed to providing permanent, stable federal funding for grassroots 2SLGBTQI+ organizations, including those without charitable status,” wrote party official Anne McGrath, noting that those groups provide housing, health services and safety.

She added the NDP would help with affordable housing and access to doctors, saying these are issues that disproportionately affect LGBTQ2S+ people.

When asked Wednesday whether her coalition was satisfied with Carney’s response, Johnstone said generally that parties need to speak up.

“Canadians believe in equality and human rights and want leaders who uphold those values and defend them,” she said.

Former prime minister Justin Trudeau made human rights a central part of his public messaging and often participated in LGBTQ2S+ events.

Activists praised his government for officially apologizing for the purge of LGBTQ2S+ people from the military and federal public service, and for implementing gender-neutral passports. But they also criticized Trudeau over restrictions that still bar most gay men from donating blood and for temporarily pausing private refugee sponsorships.

Queer Momentum is organizing a virtual town hall and has invited representatives of the main political parties to speak about LGBTQ2S+ issues on April 23.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 14, 2025.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press