On Sept. 20, a nation-wide walk-out named the "1 Million March 4 Children" occurred across Canada. At around 9 a.m., protesters gathered on George Street North in front of Peterborough City Hall.
The goal of "1 Million March 4 Children," according to their website, was to advocate “for the elimination of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) curriculum, pronouns, gender ideology and mixed bathrooms in schools.”
On the other side of the street, there was a gathering of counter-protesters who feel that the actions proposed by the 1 Million March 4 Children walkout are harmful to the 2SLGBTQ+ community, and advocate for taking away the rights of trans kids.
Following the events on Sept. 20, Trent Radio spoke to one of Wednesday’s counter protesters, Stephanie Young, an active ally and advocate for the 2SLGBTQ+ community, and a parent to a gender-diverse Peterborough high school student.
In recent years, Young has been attending the majority of counter-protests in Peterborough that are related to the queer community. Most of the protests Young has attended have been in support of Betty Baker’s Drag Queen Storytime, at the Peterborough Public Library.
“Drag queen story time protests seem to be very specific, the protest on [Wednesday] seemed to be very broad, going after the whole education system. It is really frightening and it worries me what the ultimate agenda is,” says Young.
“I’m really concerned as a parent, and just as a member of the community.”
Young observed that among the signs and statements of the 1 Million March 4 Children protesters, a common saying was “leave our kids alone;” which, to Young, is also her goal as a counter-protester:
“Leave the kids alone to be who they are, and let them feel safe,” says Young.
Young describes the importance of having a “safe space” at school for kids exploring queerness: “kids are freer at school than they are at home,” says Young.
“Providing a safe space for kids is always the better choice.”
Young believes that the elimination of SOGI education is taking away that “safe space” from kids.
Listen to Trent Radio’s interview with Stephanie Young to learn about her concerns about protests trying to remove queer education from school curriculums.