2SLGBTQIA+ advocate frustrated as gov’t prepares pronoun law

While members of the Sask. Party government prepare to start moving the policy around students names and pronouns into law on Tuesday, advocates are watching, frustrated over what they see as a battle over their community’s rights.

Jacq Brasseur is a local business owner in Regina and identifies as nonbinary and part of the queer and trans community.

“As an LGBTQ person I’m interested in this fight because it impacts me and my ability to choose to raise a family here in this province,” they said.

They hold a masters degree in education and are also a registered social worker. They said the pronoun policy goes against everything they’ve learned about how to protect children.

Brasseur said we need to listen to the experts and that they’re there for a reason.

“They are experts that do not have a religious affiliation, they are not speaking from a political ideology, they are looking at science. They are looking at best practices and evidence,” they said.

They said Scott Moe’s use of the notwithstanding clause was shocking.

“When we look to the notwithstanding clause, we need to listen to what constitutional experts are telling us, which we’ve heard from the CCLA, is there’s a potential big impact here. It’s going to start here but it’s not going to end here,” they said.

They think this use of the clause was unheard of, others said it was historic, and not in a good way.

“When I talked to friends and colleagues, in the United States and around the world, they’re baffled by the fact that a premier can make a choice like this to limit the human rights of children in our province,” they said.

Brasseur said they often think about moving away from Saskatchewan, but they also feel an obligation to help others.

“I think a lot of people who maybe support anti-LGBT ideas would encourage me to leave the province. But then I see the young LGBT children, particularly trans kids, trans people in poverty, and two-spirit people in our province who cannot leave. And who also do not have the energy or safety to speak up against a government that harms them. And in those moments, I feel like I need to stay,” they said.

A rally is being planned for Tuesday to oppose the Saskatchewan Government’s pronoun policy, expected to start at noon in front of the legislative building.

Hundreds of people are expected to gather in front of the legislature today.