On November 1, Haldimand Norfolk MP Leslyn Lewis took to social media to express frustration with a recently passed bill that changes Canada’s Sex Offender Registry since the Supreme Court of Canada struck down certain provisions that they consider inconsistent with section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Lewis’ post read, “Protecting our children, our most vulnerable & our future as a nation, is vitally important.”
Advocating for child safety is certainly laudable. However, Lewis’ silence following the 1 Million March 4 Children protests that took place on September 20 and October 21 across the country, including in communities close to home, sends a clouded message on her overall stance for child safety.
The protest organizers state on their website that they advocate for the “elimination of the sexual orientation and gender identity curriculum, pronouns, gender ideology, and mixed bathrooms in schools.”
The website also shows video footage of a child in a dance leotard with a skirt dancing and lip syncing to a song in front of a rainbow backdrop. It reads, “This is NOT okay. A 9-year-old boy performing a provocative dance and collecting money for his performance at a drag/pride event. This is not the child’s fault. This can’t continue.”
‘The Right to Know’ is a central issue of the ongoing protests. They want schools to be required to report to parents when a student approaches a staff member about sensitive issues, such as their gender identity.
Lewis’ only public acknowledgment of the protests was a re-posting of a tweet by Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre: “Justin Trudeau always divides to distract from all he has broken. This time, he is demonizing concerned parents. Parents should be the final authority on the values and lessons that are taught to children. Trudeau should butt out and let parents raise their kids.”
Lewis, like all Conservative MPs, was directed by Poilievre not to comment on the protests and to ignore requests for comment, according to a leaked memo obtained by The Canadian Press.
A Haldimand Press request for comment on October 5 asked Lewis for a statement to the youth in Haldimand who feel targeted or attacked because of their gender identity, including by these protests.
Silence was her chosen response.
Less silent were various school boards across the province. Following the September protest, several school boards flew the Pride flag. The Toronto District School Board put out a statement “to make it unequivocally clear” that they support the 2SLGBTQI+ community and “everyone’s human rights and expression of gender.”
The Waterloo Region District School Board stated, “Underlying some of the motivations behind these demonstrations are hate and inaccuracies about what is happening in schools.… We have also heard from some members of our community that they are concerned that the protests may increase acts of hate in the region. To all students and families: we are listening and want to reassure you that we denounce all forms of hate.”
In contrast, Poilievre is quoted in an August 24, 2023 article from the Epoch Times as saying that parents should be the “final authority on the values and the lessons that are taught to children.”
By re-posting Poilievre’s message, our MP is, in this humble reporter’s opinion, taking the following stance: advocation for the removal of a critical lifeline for vulnerable youth in the community.
Of course, hatred is not in the heart of every 1 Million March protester. But the reality is there was some hatred on display at those protests. The underlying cause has prejudice baked into its very concept.
Do Poilievre, and by extension Lewis, fail to see the risk here? By refusing to denounce the protests and reinforcing the ‘parents first’ ideology behind them, they are fanning the flames driving this concerning trend.
When it comes to protecting children, we need a child first ideology. A parent’s feelings should always come second to a child’s needs.
Lewis has commented on how members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community are impacted by intolerance at home, stating in a 2020 CBC article, “When I look at the struggles of some of my gay friends, being estranged from your parents from coming out – I wouldn’t think that they would choose that themselves.… I witnessed the pain that they’ve gone through.”
And if our MP has followed The Press, she will have seen examples of not only that hate and intolerance toward the Pride community right here in Haldimand, but the resilient and brave response of many residents to counter it. Perhaps our MP should take her lead from those residents instead of Poilievre. Perhaps she should sit down with our Pride community and ask them what they think about those protests, and the issue of child safety at the centre of it all.
Or perhaps our MP could look at a study posted last year in the Journal of Gay & Lesbian Mental Health, which studied the impacts of family violence before and during the pandemic on 2SLGBTQ youths from the Greater Toronto Area experiencing or at-risk of homelessness. A Public Health Ontario (PHO) review of that study shares:
Survey participants left their home due to verbal and emotional abuse (68% pre-pandemic, 72% during) and physical abuse (31% pre-pandemic, 39% during)
Due to forced isolation at home with intolerant family members during the pandemic, participants reported: increased severe anxiety (78%), attempted suicide (33%), problematic alcohol and substance abuse (55%), and a deterioration in family relationships (48%).
The evidence is clear: the risk of violence in the home for 2SLGBTQ+ youth is real, and it is not a trivial matter. When a child isn’t ready to share their gender or sexuality with their parents, there may be a legitimate concern for their safety in that decision. In my opinion, turning a teacher from a safe confidant into a parent informer is a disservice to our youth. It puts them at risk and gives them fewer avenues of support.
Parents concerned that their child may be hiding feelings shouldn’t look for vulnerabilities to suss out their secrets – they should look to build their child’s trust and be that safe space to talk.
So, if MP Lewis wishes to advocate for child safety, I would respectfully submit that she advocates for ALL child safety and sends a clear message to vulnerable youth in our community by offering a pledge to stand behind them with the same level of conviction found in her own words: “Protecting our children, our most vulnerable & our future as a nation, is vitally important.”
The floor is yours, Leslyn.
