I worked as a school secretary for a number of years and there were kids here and there who were trying on different genders, and it was a topic I thought we treated well and I think the parents felt supported. But honestly it was the least of our worries. Our biggest worry was lack of school funding. Starting with Brad Wall- we’d lose an EA one year, or funding for equipment another year, but the worst was growing class sizes where teachers could barely move around in amongst all the desks and coats and bodies. It was just too much emotionally when I left- we didn’t have enough time or resources or space to support the kids adequately, it felt like we were chickens running around with our heads cut off, putting out a fire here one minute, then running to put out another one down the hall. And what is the conservative government in Saskatchewan is hyper-fixated on? Trans kids. What a colossal waste of government money going into this conversation. Yes, it’s hard having a kid who thinks they’re the wrong gender inside. We had a fairly liberal school and it was not an easy conversation for any parent to navigate, I don’t care what your political stripe is, it’s never easy on the parents, and I call out any conservative who claims liberals are enthusiastically forcing this on their kids. Parents want to support their kids, and make sure school is a safe place for their questioning.
But you know who does have a long and storied history of forcing gender roles on others? Yes. Christians. The Christians behind this attempt at a board takeover are trying to create this monstrous caricature of what it means to be transgender because gender is so juicy and adjacent to sex, it’s too easy to make it seem threatening. I know thoughtful Christians and this isn’t thoughtful. Thoughtful Christians know that sexuality is always developing (even as adults!), that it’s complex, nuanced, and kids figure themselves out at various paces in life, and that being inclusive won’t ruin their own family. Please remember to vote this election and keep religion out of public schools.