The City of Nanaimo is supporting the LGBTQ+ community as another march for \u201cparental rights\u201d is set to take place at City Hall on Saturday, Oct. 21.<\/p>\n
The Canadian Anti-Hate Network says that \u201canti-2SLGBTQ+ activists, cloaking themselves under the \u2018parental rights movement\u2019 are taking advantage of normal parental care and interest, in order to surreptitiously build numbers for their fight against the self-identification of transgender youth.\u201d<\/p>\n
A statement from the city says council \u201cstands in solidarity with the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and condemns all acts of hate and violence towards members of their community.\u201d<\/p>\n
The statement says that council recognizes that people in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community face \u201chatred, ignorance and bigotry.\u201d and that council wants to \u201cmake it clear that this is not okay. Diversity is the heartbeat of our city, and hate has no place here.\u201d<\/p>\n
The city also plans to raise the Pride flag at City Hall on Thursday where it will remain over the weekend.<\/p>\n
City Councillor Hilary Eastmure says that this came at the request of Nanaimo's LGBTQ+ community after the protests that took place on Sept. 20.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the queer community saw a lack of support from the city, a lack of solidarity, and really called for us to stand up and say that there is no space for hate in our community,\u201d she said. \u201cThere's no space for discrimination. The rights of trans people and the 2LGBTQIA+ community are not up for debate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nanaimo Pride Society vice president Natalie Stewart called the city\u2019s statement and flag raising a \u201cgood start\u201d but she would like to see the city organize a town hall for people in Nanaimo\u2019s LGBTQ+ community to communicate their concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it's a good gesture to show that they do support us,\u201d she said. \u201cI think we need to see tangible things to go along with that. There's a lot of difficulty in convincing people who aren't clear that a lot of the rhetoric that's going on is dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stewart says that the \u201cparental rights\u201d talking points mask latent homophobia and transphobia.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of it gets phrased as though it's just asking questions and just being concerned about kids, when so much of the statistics show that it's really not about protecting kids, it's about hiding queer people from society and we want the city to take that seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog says that the city has a long history of support for the LGBTQ+ community.<\/p>\n
\u201cI appreciate that the vice president referred to this as a good start. But candidly, this has been going on for a long time in this community, I would hardly describe it as a start,\u201d he said. \u201cIn fairness, this is simply a continuation of what this council and previous councils have done over the years.\u201d<\/p>\n
The statement by the city also noted that the city is prohibited from discriminating against anyone who wishes to use a public service or facility by the BC Human Rights Code which includes protection against discrimination based on \u201cgender identity or expression.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stewart, who is a woman of trans experience, says that she\u2019s afraid of transphobic harassment when using some city facilities.<\/p>\n
\u201cI'm terrified to take my kids to the aquatic center now, because of these protests,\u201d she said. \u201cI'm terrified to take my kids anywhere where someone might think I'm kidnapping them just because I fit a description of somebody who might have been assigned male at birth. It's terrifying, it's angering, I just want to be able to live my life and be a good mom to my kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eastmure says the city needs to ensure a safe space for everyone who uses city facilities.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really think we need to look at our policies and make sure that we have safe space policies in addition to code of conduct policies for city facilities, and to really ensure that our policies are upholding what we believe in when it comes to diversity and inclusion,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Krog says that the views of the people who are protesting against the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity programs in schools are misinformed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe suggestion that there is some level of indoctrination, or you're teaching kids to be gay \u2014 which is some of the allegations from the extreme elements \u2014 is simply baseless,\u201d he said. \u201cThe school district in our city is trying to ensure that students feel safe, that they get the knowledge and information that they need to make decisions about themselves and their own conduct and be able to enjoy the freedom to express themselves in our society.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stewart is calling on allies to attend the \u201cMarch for Inclusion\u201d on Saturday which starts at 1 p.m. in front of City Hall before marching to Maffeo Sutton Park. This is the same time and location as the planned march to \u201cprotect parental rights.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you're somebody who would like to show your allyship, please come out and help support us,\u201d she said. \u201cBe a shield to hate because queer people are going through a lot right now and we could really use the assistance. Now's not a time to be quiet. If you come to Pride, and enjoy Pride, help us out when it's hard too.\u201d<\/p>\n
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