Fierté Canada Pride Defends 2SLGBTQIA+ Students in Saskatchewan Following Push to Standardise Pronoun and Naming Policy

AUGUST 23 2023 | VANCOUVER, BC - Saskatchewan’s Education Minister Dustin Duncan unveiled yesterday the province’s “Parental Inclusion and Consent Policies” to standardise pronoun and naming policies across all school divisions. This new policy will require teachers to receive parental consent for children and youth under 16 who want to change their name or pronouns at school. The policy states “that students must feel that they are respected and free to express themselves within a safe and welcoming school environment,” and “The policy is intended to support students who wish to change their pronouns and/or preferred first name to align with their gender identity.”

However, the policy follows on the heels of New Brunswick’s heavily criticised Policy 713 revisions, which require parental consent for students under 16 to change their pronouns in New Brunswick schools. Identical in practice, New Brunswick’s Office of the Child and Youth Advocate describes it as a violation of children’s rights.

In a June 2023 statement, Fierté Canada Pride affirmed discrimination against 2SLGBTQIA+ students on the basis of gender identity and gender expression places harmful and undue burden on trans and gender diverse students. We maintain that belief for this new policy as a clear violation of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code, the Canadian Human Rights Act, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. FCP challenges Education Minister Dustin Duncan to demonstrate how demanding schools disclose or ‘out’ a student’s gender identity to their family creates a safe and welcoming environment.

FCP is calling for:

Within 24 hours - An immediate pause or reversal on the policies.

Within 72 hours - Invite and arrange for consultations with the province’s 2SLGBTQIA+ community through its front line service organisations, Pride organisations, school GSAs, and all other interested parties to discuss the state of the policy.

We call on all our members and allies to join the fight and stop this rollback of human rights in Saskatchewan.

Email Education Minister Dustin Duncan (minister.edu@gov.sk.ca) to express your concerns of this Policy change and show your support for Saskatchewan’s 2SLGBTQIA+ students. We strongly encourage that you email Premier Scott Moe as well premier@gov.sk.ca

Read our full Statement of Support in English and in French.