Manitoba legislature marks its first Two-Spirit and Transgender Day of Visibility

The Manitoba government celebrated the first official Two Spirit and Transgender Day of Visibility.

The transgender flag was flown at Memorial Park Monday, as the province marked its first official Two-Spirit and Transgender Day of Visibility.

While the occasion has been marked by the 2SLGBTQIA+ community for years, the province officially recognized the day thanks to the passage of Bill 208 last year.

The legislation was spearheaded by Logan Oxenham, who became Manitoba’s first openly transgender MLA when he was elected in Kirkfield Park in 2023.

Oxenham said it is meaningful to officially recognize the day in Manitoba as the trans community deals with a very different reality in other parts of the world.

“I’ve gotten personally, emails from folks outside the country who are looking for safety and for that space and they’ve heard about Manitoba, so I’m really, really proud that we are a beacon for folks,” said Oxenham.

The province noted it had earmarked $150,000 in funding for 2Spirit Manitoba Inc., $473,000 in previously announced funding to Shared Health’s Gender Diversity and Affirming Action for Youth program, and $1.03 million to Trans Health Klinic.

Still, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said more is still needed to support trans Manitobans.

“We’ve taken steps as a government to make sure more and more experts and practitioners can now provide direct care to the folks who need gender-affirming health care, but we’re actively working with our clinical leads and other doctors to recruit folks to Manitoba,” they said.

“What we’ve seen recently, I have to say, is an increased interest from doctors to come to Manitoba and provide this really important care.

- With files from CTV’s Glenn Pismenny