Yes.
Evidence of meeting #138 for Status of Women in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was students.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #138 for Status of Women in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was students.
A recording is available from Parliament.
NDP
Leah Gazan NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
How has that made a difference? In what ways do you think parents who maybe aren't like your mom could be supported to be more like your mom?
As an Individual
My mom is amazing and my dad is. I think a way you could make your child feel more safe to come out to you is to be inviting. Don't randomly say, “Oh, don't become trans” and that random stuff, because that's not inviting at all.
When I came out, I first told my mom because she showed me somebody who was non-binary who she thought reminded her of me, and that invited me to come out.
I think that you should just be with your child as they go through stuff. Just be with them as they do their growing up.
NDP
Leah Gazan NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
It seems really simple, but it's really hard for a lot of folks, isn't it?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Shelby Kramp-Neuman
Thank you.
Ms. Vien, you have the floor for five minutes.
Conservative
Dominique Vien Conservative Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC
Thank you.
There's a mother sitting at the back, and I have to say that her eyes tell us a lot.
Madam, you don't understand French, but you should know one thing.
Your body language tells a lot. Yes, I would appreciate hearing about your experience as well.
Ms. de Repentigny‑Corbeil, isn't this entire situation the result of ignorance and misunderstanding? As someone said, there's a lot of violence, especially on social media, where it's hellish.
As you said yourself, it's open season on everyone, and you have to have a clear understanding of the LGBTQ community.
It's all well and good to introduce policies, but that takes time. There are a lot of community organizations on the ground, and Mr. Tremblay represents some of them.
How should we go about combating ignorance and incomprehension?
Co-Chair, Conseil québécois LGBT
I fundamentally believe that ignorance and gaps in education remain.
Countering ignorance requires a three‑pronged approach. First, we need to promote the spread of quality information. People must have access to straightforward and sound content and reliable data. Most people act in good faith.
Second, we need to run awareness campaigns and talk to people. We must have a collective discussion on this issue. We must overcome the echo chambers, where we talk only to people who share our opinion. We must talk to everyone, in general.
Third, we need to talk about education for both young people and the general public. We need to provide access to training in digital literacy, sex education and the concepts of gender and sexual identity. We also need to provide ways to counter misinformation and recognize platforms that provide unbiased information. This would help curb the current rise of hate.
Conservative
Dominique Vien Conservative Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC
Thank you, Ms. de Repentigny‑Corbeil. Sorry, but my time is quickly running out.
Mr. Tremblay, I would like to talk about the workplace. I'm happy to have tabled the very short Bill C‑378. I encourage you to read it. The purpose of this bill is to give former employees under federal jurisdiction more time to file a complaint in cases of harassment or violence in the workplace. I did the same thing in Quebec City, when I was the labour minister.
Someone told us at our meeting last Monday that nothing was simple in the workplace and that workplaces aren't immune to issues of this nature.
What are your thoughts on this? Are these issues also becoming more prevalent in the workplace?
Director, Alliance Arc-en-ciel de Québec
You're right to raise this issue. The Alliance has received funding from the office to counter homophobia and transphobia, which specifically focuses on employers and workplaces, to help us address these issues next year. A conference is planned. A number of employers will get together to talk about their positive experiences.
For some people, the transition is going well. However, I also hear about cases where people lost their jobs. When I worked at the human rights and youth rights commission in Quebec City, I investigated cases of discrimination where people lost their jobs for administrative reasons. The employer told them that it was too difficult to change their name, or that colleagues refused to use a new name, for example. Rather than punish people who failed to respect employee rights, the employer dismissed these employees. The employer told them that it was too complicated to speak to them, that their employee number couldn't be changed, and so on.
There are also issues with customer service. The situation is very much a reality in companies. These issues must be addressed.
It's good to extend the deadline for filing a complaint. We've also been saying all along that the key lies in education and raising awareness.
Conservative
Dominique Vien Conservative Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC
Ms. de Repentigny‑Corbeil, I would like to ask you a quick question.
You represent a group of 80 organizations, which are probably community organizations.
When you heard that CSIS issued a warning about a risk, what did you tell the members of your organizations?
How did you prepare them for this? What did you recommend that they do in the immediate future to help their members in their communities?
Co-Chair, Conseil québécois LGBT
We were expecting it. It wasn't new to us. We didn't need to meet. We already knew that this rise of hate was happening. We had already had to deal with it.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Shelby Kramp-Neuman
Thank you.
Emmanuella, you have the floor for five minutes.
Liberal
Emmanuella Lambropoulos Liberal Saint-Laurent, QC
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you to all of our witnesses.
I'll begin by saying, Zipp, that I think you're extremely brave. Thank you so much for sharing.
I was also a high school teacher. I taught sec I—grade 7—so you remind me of my students. I'm very proud of you for being here today.
I have a question for you, actually. You mentioned in your testimony that this hate that the 2SLGBTQI+ community is facing is a distraction; you said that it's being used as a distraction more than anything, and I'm curious to see if you can elaborate a little bit on that point.
As an Individual
Yes. What I mean by that is that we honestly shouldn't be discussing this—hear me out—because it should just be our rights. That's basically it. Inflation has been getting bad, and all of that stuff has been getting really bad, and then they start basically putting it onto the queer communities.
Liberal
Emmanuella Lambropoulos Liberal Saint-Laurent, QC
That's very wise of you to say. Actually, there are a lot of instances in history when the same thing has happened, like an economic crisis, and people not feeling secure in their own homes or in their own lives have begun to use a scapegoat. It can be a different community—it's not always the same people who are being targeted—but right now, this community is one of the main targets.
Usually, unfortunately, certain political parties, even historically, have used this hatred to their advantage and have used this in order to gain points. Unfortunately, that has been the case in this country as well.
What would you like to say to those politicians who have used that, such as, let's say, the Leader of the Opposition, who refused to go to the flag-raising ceremony last year and who literally came out saying that there shouldn't be gender-neutral washrooms? What would you say to a leader like that who is inciting this kind of hate?
As an Individual
That is a really good question. I just need a second to think.
As an Individual
If some leader, like him, in my opinion, is saying that there should be no gender-neutral bathrooms, that is the equivalent of saying that there should be no men's bathrooms, that there should be no women's bathrooms. My saying that is problematic, in that people would get upset with it, but at the same time, they are saying that there shouldn't be gender-neutral bathrooms.
It's really where you're comfortable, and it shouldn't be such a harsh debate. It's just being comfortable.
December 11th, 2024 / 5:50 p.m.
Liberal
Emmanuella Lambropoulos Liberal Saint-Laurent, QC
Thank you for sharing that.
My next question is for Ms. Krause.
You spoke about creating safe spaces generally, whether it's in schools, online, etc., and I'd like to pick your brain on the online portion of that. What does that look like? How can the federal government help make those spaces safer?
President and Chief Executive Officer, Centre for Sexuality
I think the really important thing is to recognize that Canadians live in small and large places, some that have more access to services and some that don't. For us, providing support online has really been a way to make sure that youth who live in more rural or remote areas are included in getting the support they need. It then gives us an ability to look out to the community to see what might be there or to see the gaps that exist.
I think that one of the biggest themes I'm picking up from today is that isolation is also deadly. People not feeling connected is a really big deal, so I will say that the national action plan and providing LGBTQ organizations with funding were really important.
An LGBTQ organization in Nunavut received that funding. That's important, because as we've seen, and in listening to people like Zipp, we know that a lot of people operate in a very grassroots way in the community and are not seeking intervention services. How do we really provide those opportunities for support, whether it's through peers...? I know there has been some really good work happening around mental health and peer support in more rural and remote communities. It's really about looking at the people who struggle the most to get the support.
As well, I think there is a big role for government in trying to help find the people who can fill those gaps. I think it's actually essential, because the more we do in smaller centres, the more we recognize that the education isn't necessarily there and, most importantly, that the supports and services really do not exist.
Conservative