I’m a sixteen year old genderqueer high school student. When I came out, my family and friends were accepting, but I know people who aren’t so lucky. I have friends who know themselves and deserve to express themselves, but don’t feel safe to do so because of the anti-trans legislation in Alberta. They are afraid of being outed to their families, which could put them in unsafe situations. I’m starting to make plans for university, but I’m afraid to study in Alberta, because it’s been made clear to me that the provincial government doesn’t care about the safety, comfort, or health of gender diverse people like me.

My name is Teddy. I’m a 21-year-old transmasculine, nonbinary person, born and raised in Grande Prairie, Alberta. I’ve known who I am since I was 12, but it took years to find the courage to live as myself openly. When I first came out at 16, I had hopes of finding support and understanding, but the reality was much harsher. Facing fear, judgment, and stigma, I made the painful choice to detransition at 18, not because I’d changed but because it felt too dangerous to be myself. An unfortunate reality for many people who have detransitioned. At 20, with renewed support, I found the strength to retransition and work toward self-acceptance. This journey to feeling comfortable in my own skin has been anything but easy, but it’s been essential. Self-acceptance has brought a peace I never imagined possible, and it’s heartbreaking to see young trans people being denied that same freedom. With this recent anti-trans legislation, trans youth today have fewer rights and less access to life-saving care than I did just a few years ago. This isn’t just policy; it’s a dangerous overreach that dictates what people can do with their own bodies, disregarding their needs and well-being. To the trans youth of Alberta: you deserve to live authentically and safely, and there are people who will always stand up for you. I’ll keep sharing my story in the hope that it brings some comfort and shows you that you’re not alone.

My name is Lincoln. I'm 23, born and raised in Calgary, and I've been out and proud as a trans person for the last eight years. I'm lucky. My family and friends were all receptive and understanding to my coming out. For the most part, I was not the target of transphobic remarks. I was surrounded by love and care and many, many other trans people who supported me through my self-discoveries and decisions to transition. I've put a lot of thought, time, and energy into learning about myself and what I feel it means to be trans. And here's the thing, the thing I don't think those opposed to trans healthcare understand: this is about more than us. Stripping away our access to gender affirming care isn't just stripping away trans people's chances to feel comfortable in their bodies -- it is potentially stripping everyone of feeling comfortable in their bodies. It is enforcing strict ideas of who people are and what they should look like and removing personal autonomy on who gets to make those decisions. No one should get to dictate how to feel at home in your skin except for you. No one is you and therefore no one will understand what you need as well as you. Please, stand-up for trans people's rights to self-determination. Because our autonomy is your autonomy. And we all deserve to feel at home in our skin.

I’m a 27 year old transgender woman born and raised in Calgary. I have been on hormone replacement therapy for almost 3 years now and it saved my life. Before I started transitioning I struggled with severe anxiety and depression since being a young kid. I can confidently say that receiving gender affirming care and being able to transition socially and medically is the best most positive thing that has ever happened to me. Whether or not gender affirming care is the right course of action for an individual that should be decided between the kid, their parents, and their medical professionals. The government should not be forcing youth through an unwanted puberty, if I was able to transition in my teenage years and didn’t have to go through male puberty my transition from male to female would of been immensely easier. Removing transgender youths access to gender affirming will take lives that could have been saved and bettered. Denying them the right to the proper treatment they need will do no good whatsoever and will only hinder the individuals growth and progression. Taking away gender affirming care for youth is the wrong thing to do and will have this UCP government remembered for all of the wrong reasons because they will have certainly been on the wrong side of history and done far more bad then good for marginalized communities such as the LGBTQ+.

I’m 67 years old. I grew up in the 1970s when it was just not possible to come out as gay or gender nonconforming. As a matter of sheer survival you learn to hide your true identity and conform to the role that society expects of you. I’ve spent my whole life pretending to be a straight cis male. At my age now, I’m no longer so concerned about what other people think, and I’m finally emerging. Society has changed and become more accepting of gender diversity. I often wonder where I would be today if the same resources had been available when I was a teenager. There are forces attempting to turn the clock back to a darker time. We cannot let that happen and reverse the gains we have made. That is why I have become active in the gender diverse community.

Just through small words and actions, teachers have been some of the biggest sources of security in my life. Learning to be open as a gnc teenager is difficult, and my teachers' active support for me and my trans peers was so, so needed to get me through my High School experience and graduate. To think that this relationship between teachers and students could be broken by legislation? They don't want this. My teachers have only ever shown me that they want us to feel secure. My teachers have only ever shown me that they value the unique source of support that they're able to provide to the youth they work with, especially knowing the danger and exhaustion that some kids can face at home. How could we even think of outlawing this source of human kindness?

As a 25-year-old trans woman 2.5 years into hormones, I can say with confidence that gender affirming medical interventions have saved my life. The only thing I regret is not doing this 14 years ago if only I knew this were an option. There was so much transmisogyny, queer hatred, and ignorance in the atmosphere of popular culture I grew up in which made me repress who I was in that time. It was the objective of that ridicule: to keep trans and queer people in the periphery of confusing, freakish, and repulsive. The people who hate me as a man in a dress interloping the property of brittle women are the same hateful people who partly pilot the government. They have no business getting between me and the medicine I need to survive. Being trans is not anyone else's opinion. Ignorance is not an excuse for maltreatment. Disgust is not an excuse for maltreatment. I hope to one day earn a society where transgender people can be proud of how beautiful and special it is to go through this transformation. Instead we hope for enough luck to be invisible, and dread a fate where all we are to others and ourselves is a man in a dress. It's a statistical fact that more people will kill themselves if the government restricts access to gender affirming care-- all for the sake of entertaining the prejudiced disgust of hateful people. This would not be the Alberta I want to be a part of. Self-righteous hateful ignorance cannot be allowed to win.

It has taken me a few decades to figure out who I am. I spent that time trying to understand gender and my place in this framework, experimenting with variations on conformity. For a long time, nothing really fit, but I didn’t understand why. I had no words to describe the way I felt, no examples in media to identify with. I just knew that queerness was vilified, so I didn’t want to be that. Learning about gender and sexuality in my adult years was both an exiting breakthrough and a frustrating experience, as I wished I could have understood myself all those years ago and not spent so much time searching and trying to conform. It breaks my heart to think that kids in Alberta may have the chance to learn and to be celebrated for who they are taken away from them. Kids deserve quality education and respect from the adults around them. They deserve compassionate care from health care professionals guided by science. Gender affirming care is life saving. Having a gender-affirming hysterectomy was one of the best decisions of my life, and I want everyone to be able to make that same decision for themselves should they wish to. I fear what the future holds for our community, as our rights and access to supports is being eroded. And the impacts do not stop with the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. As an RN working in sexual health, I see the impacts of sexual health education (good or bad) in every shift. Governmental restrictions on education, access to life saving medical care, and bodily autonomy affect us all.

I am a 19 year old trans man, I had just turned 19 this past Wednesday, October 23rd. My entire life, since I was 13 years old, has just been a battle with my mental health. The only thing that turned my life around was making the changes I desperately needed, changing my name, how I presented myself, etc. Gender affirming healthcare saved my life. No one wants to go through this, no one wants to be seen as a “freak”, no one wants the experience of feeling alienated for something you can’t even control. If I could snap my fingers right now and decide whether I was transgender or not, I would choose to not be. It’s a life full of hardships and experiences not everyone will understand, but it’s my life. As difficult as it is, I do what I can to live it to the fullest. Why would you take this away from us? It doesn’t affect anyone negatively. You understand going through with these plans will literally KILL people, do you want that much blood on your hands?

I am a 12 year old trans girl, and early access to gender affirming care has positively impacted my life. This gives me the opportunity to not have puberty I don’t desire. The thought of puberty of my sex assigned at birth going forward makes me feel not right and uncomfortable. I feel everyone who doesn’t feel right about their body or gender should have the decision to go on puberty blockers if they wish. I also know I am very fortunate to have already started my puberty blockers. I feel really sad for everyone that hasn’t gotten to start. They shouldn’t have to deal with gender or body dysmorphia.

I support the right to bodily autonomy because you should be able to decide what does and doesn’t happen to your body. If my sibling didn’t have access to gender affirming care they wouldn’t have felt comfortable in their own skin. I would worry about their mental health and well being.

title? i was born in 1980. i've pretty much always known that i was neither a girl nor a boy, but as a child i was dealing with some pretty intense abuse. so my house was not a safe place to talk about that. i just needed to escape and school offered me that sanctuary. but there wasn't time to ask more complicated questions and i just thought maybe elementary school wasn't the place. surely in high school it would come up. nope. then i went off to art school. surely there would appear my magic place for voicing my alienness to society. nope. so i just put my head down and continued 'doing the things you are supposed to' until my whole life just fell apart and i couldn't leave my house anymore. now i had the time to sift through so many things. why i self harmed, why i hate food, why i have a hard time talking to people. and that if i wasn't going to brave enough to start using the pronoun (xhe) i had wanted since i was 8, then never was anyone going to offer me that opportunity. i really hate being perceived - because the world we have created people try and interact with you as one of the two binaries and i'm just not. there is generally not a toilet for me to use (weird world we've created where gas stations are the best place to go because there's only one toilet) and no fashion for me. and so i watch the disappointing slide towards curtailing rights for humans instead of expanding them and wonder how the future and coming problems in the environment will be solved by people who's imaginations have been squashed, by merely trying to survive.

I'm a trans guy born and raised in Alberta. I recently moved to Ontario to complete my Masters' degree and while I miss Alberta and hope to move back when I finish school, I worry that I will not be able to live here again if I am unable to access the healthcare I need. I transitioned as an adult and can say from experience that gender-affirming care is not very easy to access. To get hormones I had to get a referral from my therapist (paid for out of pocket) as well as my family doctor (thankfully I am one of the few people who still has one) so I could see a specialist doctor who could give me the prescription, a process that took over a year. For top surgery I opted to pay for it privately because I was told the waitlist for a consultation was over three years. This was incredibly expensive and used up most of the money I had saved from working over the past 4 years. I am grateful that I had the resources to make this decision, as I know most people simply could not afford it. This is all to say that if anything, gender-affirming care needs to be easier to access, not harder. Despite the challenges, transitioning was one of the best decisions I ever made. I'm more confident and sociable now that I don't hate the sound of my own voice, and I am thankful every single day I get to experience the joy of not wearing a bra or binder. I am happier and more comfortable in my body than I ever imagined I could be, and I'm a better friend, partner, and coworker to the people in my life because of it. Alberta's youth deserve to feel this happy and successful too. Allowing access to gender-affirming care is a small action that means the world to trans people and those who love them.

My trans child came out late in life. When she was growing up ( born 1981) trans was not talked about only ridiculed on trashy talk shows. Four years ago she came out because she had hit a wall and could no longer live an inauthentic existence. She had hidden this part of herself for so long. I’m a baby boomer Mom aged 71 and I had to educate myself as to what being trans meant. From the day she said she was trans our family began a journey as her transition process began. We all made mistakes (eg: saying a wrong pronoun, etc) however we navigated the transition because we held our love and respect for her as a person and honoured her choices. Before the transition I had a child who was successful yet led a somewhat tumultuous life which is not uncommon for a trans person who can’t live their authentic self. Since transitioning I have a grounded, balanced and most importantly a very happy daughter. It’s been a 360 degree turn. I am so happy that being trans is in the open, being trans is talked about, there is scientific evidence and we have health officials whose care of the trans population is evidence based. The Alberta and Saskatchewan (New NB govt are going to reverse policies) governments are harming trans kids and their families all for political fodder. Pollievre will also go after the trans population. I write weekly letters asking where their ethics and humanitarian values are. These are our trans kids and we love each and everyone of you. I’m overwhelmed when I witness how brave you trans people are to navigate a society where a group disdain you. Know you have allies and know we are with you. We will continue to fight for you. Terry B

As a trans youth, school has been a massive source of support for me. Knowing my teachers wouldn't dream of outing me to my parents and would dedicate themselves to providing a safe space for me and trusting my decisions has made it infinitely easier to get up in the mornings. Everything from schoolwork to making friends became easier, as crazy as that sounds, all because I didn't feel so scared anymore and I felt supported for my true self. Having that forcefully taken away because of "parental rights" would be a nightmare, not just for me, but for other children who are going through the same thing; I have never met a transgender youth who refuses to come out to their parents for any reason other than a fear of violence or vehement rejection, so forcing a child to be outed to their parents would only cause even more disasters in the lives of an already vulnerable population. Transgender youth need support and access to help, but this choice of legislation will not provide any support at all, and will instead simply increase barriers to support, further harming the community.

My only grandchild grew up in Texas, and was the sweetest gentlest boy. Not interested in playing with cars and other typical boy toys, but that was ok, we are not a family that puts emphasis on gender expectations. He enjoyed school where his chosen playmates were often girls. Then middle school and puberty happened and the confident happy child turned awkward and shy. The early teens were painful to see, and extremely worrying for his family. Isolated socially except for one or two friends who were also high school misfits, he rarely emerged from his bedroom and confided to a parent that he didn’t see any point in living. Any suggestion of suicidal thoughts in a child is terrifying to parents, and every kind of counselling was tried. We couldn’t understand what was wrong, and thought he might be depressed. Perhaps medication was needed? Antidepressants might have been tried. I don’t know, but nothing helped much. In due course he graduated high school and applied to a University in Canada. We all saw him settled in a fairly pleasant dorm room on campus. It was a boys’ dorm of course, though he didn’t have to share a room. We hoped that he’d enjoy college when he got to know a few people. By Christmas, he came out to his Mom that he was not comfortable being a boy and wanted to transition. This was a bombshell to all of us at first, but very quickly we felt happy about this because now we understood the source of all his unhappiness! Perhaps living with other boys brought on emotional clarity? I will switch pronoun now. She was able to find a doctor at home that started her hormone treatments - since she had already passed puberty, her voice had deepened somewhat and facial hair had emerged. Fortunately she is fair haired and not very hirsute. Shaving is minimal. So far she has no plans for surgery. Seeing her now, you would never mistake her for a boy. Over the following years, I have witnessed a transformation in her, a return of joy. It’s wonderful! If only she could have been helped sooner! I think of how much happier she could have been. Which is why I believe its a good thing for sex education in school to include gender diversity. It’s not a question of sex, really its a question of identity and self acceptance. Talking about these things in a school environment promotes acceptance of difference and so helps prevent bullying. Children that are comfortable in their gender are never going to choose to transition. That is a myth to scare parents, and would be laughable if it wasn’t so dangerous.

When I came out as ftm trans at 16, school became my safe place with supportive teachers and students. At home it became what amongst my family is still referred to as a war. The people that called me mentally ill and in every way they could, tried to convince me not to be trans or that I am not trans, are the same people who support the legislation proposed. It is being presented as protecting kids but as someone who is the trans child of people who support these policies, I can say that listening to, supporting and loving is not included in their side of the conversation. The nuances of being trans are dismissed or ignored. These policies are damaging and will do nothing but further isolate kids who need people around them to give them the space and time to find confidence in who they are. Gender affirming care gave me comfort in my body that I otherwise wouldn’t have. It is personal and private and the government should not be dictating who does and does not have access.

I am a transmasculine, non-binary, genderqueer Edmontonian. I had grown up in a household, a church community, and a province that wouldn’t believe I am who I say I am. When I came out to my parents, they made me get an MRI to see if something was wrong. I knew there was nothing wrong. When I came out at church, I was asked to step down from leading worship. I knew I was still loved and included by God. School was my only safe haven, where I was able to express myself as I am. I personally know the life-saving value in being able to use my correct names and pronouns and getting gender-affirming care when I needed it.

I am a parent of a transgender youth. I want to decide what is best for my child, with the input of experts. I do not want an ill-informed government to make that decision for me. My right as a parent to care for my child will be taken from me. My right to access medical care for my child will be taken from me. I hate it that my child lives in a province where they're not supported.

As the friend of a trans child's family, I can see the direct impact on her, when she has whole hearted support from her family friends and everyone around her. She is thriving, happy and confident in who she is. Also, we hear about not safe people and interactions. I just can't understand how people can be so closed minded and often rude. Dealing with bullies and out of touch people would be difficult for anyone, let alone a child. These children and youth deserve respect and support in all of their atmospheres. Please be a safe person.

I am not a trans individual, nor are the members of my immediate family. But I have worked with children and youth, my passion is for creating community spaces that foster growth and learning. I fear that the province is turning down a dark path with this legislation, a path that historically led to terrible abuses and deaths. Targetting vulnerable youths with policy is despicable, as minors are not able to retaliate politically. It is up to advocates and 'bystanders' to defend them.

I am a trans man. I am a boy. And I've never had the access to things like HRT and puberty blockers, on behalf of my family and difficulties in coming out. I have always dreamed of having the voice and body that fits me, looks the way that makes me happy, and helps me to be me. I dreamt of the moment I turned 18; where I could get top surgery, and start to finally dress the way I want (tight fitting tshirts, tank tops, very David Bowie). I can finally express what I want. And be the prettiest boy. The kind that inspires others. I'm not yet 18. But I want to help others to have what I aspire for. I want others to get the care when they need it, and I want them to be just as happy as I plan to be. I don't doubt that puberty blockers, or hrt would have changed my life, and circumvented a lot of the problems, the dysphoria, the misgendering and the dissonance. It would have changed everything. But, I want others to have that, when I couldn't have. This isn't me being sad. Its hopeful. And warm. I want others to have what I wasnt able to have.

I'm scared for my future as a trans teen, I want to be able to have access to gender-affirming care to make me feel seen and like I'm in a body that matches how I feel. If we don't do anything, I might not get to have that future, and it scares me to death to think of that.

Since I started accessing gender affirming care earlier this year I have started having more hope for the future. Everything doesn't feel so doomed anymore.

I have been socially transitioning for a decade, and medically for 6 years. I can wholeheartedly say that I am the happiest I have ever been; my confidence and love for myself and the world around me only grows every year. I feel so good in my body now in a way I never had before. I'm living a modest life but a truly wonderful one, surrounded by people I love and who love me, succeeding in my career and personal goals. If I hadn't had access to the medical care I have had - some private, some public - I can honestly say that I would be a shell of my current self. Transitioning medically alongside socially has allowed me to flourish in a way I didn't use to think was possible, and it would be so tragic for anyone else in my position to be denied the care I recieved.

I have several trans and non-binary friends, and for all of them, gender-affirming care has been life-changing if not life-saving. Gender-affirming care makes people healthier and happier. Who wouldn't want that?

I am the Auntie to one trans and three gender non-conforming teens. I have watched closely as my family navigates the intricate challenges of supporting these kids through what is a very difficult time for all of us- puberty and the teen years. Not only do these kids have had to deal with the emotional turmoil of navigating basic human relationships, but they also now have to deal with adults who either refuse to acknowledge their identify or outright believe that they don't know who they are and therefore don't deserve appropriate care to reflect that. My trans nephew was able to begin on puberty blockers at exactly the right time to stop menstruating and halt any additional physical development. This gave him time to access therapy and really understand his identity. From my perspective, this was essential and I have watched him grow into a teen who is secure in who he his, confident and proud. If he had not been able to access puberty-blockers, I fear he would have withdrawn further from his peers, teachers and even his family. Given the statistics on suicide and self-harm among trans youth, I shudder to imagine what could have happened without that health care, despite all of the support he has from his family. This health care was not simply handed out without question. My nephew, with the support of his parents, went through extensive consultation with various healthcare professionals, including mental health practitioners. The UN says, “Human rights are indivisible. Whether they relate to civil, cultural, economic, political or social issues, human rights are inherent to the dignity of every human person. Consequently, all human rights have equal status, and cannot be positioned in a hierarchical order.” The so-called rights of the parents cannot exist when they interfere with the rights of the child to education, health and non-discrimination. Parents don’t need protection, children do.

My wife came out to me 5 years ago as a trans woman. We are good, hard-working, well-educated people, and we are happy. We welcomed our daughter into the world 2 years ago thanks to modern medicine. She is biologically both of ours, though she has two moms. When we had her, diverse families were represented in the classroom, pronouns were being asked, and teachers were being appropriately trained. Now, due to American politics causing discriminatory policies in Alberta, we fear that our daughter will never hear about kids like her in any of her books or from her teachers. We worry that her teachers will not know how to make her feel comfortable or know how to talk about her family. We worry that although she is being raised to be strong, smart, hard-working and kind - she will be shamed and ridiculed for the fact that she has two moms. Without access to LGBTQ knowledge and proper sex education, the other students and adults in her life will be ignorant, and ignorance breeds hate. She is not LGBTQ (yet), and she does not deserve the broader negative impacts of these anti-LGBTQ+ policies.

Gender-affirming care has helped me feel seen. It’s lifted me out of dark places and makes me feel human.

I came out as trans/nonbinary when I was 23 or 24, so about 6 or 7 years ago. I have always struggled with dysphoria and mental health issues. I hated my body, I hated myself, and I wasn't too fond of life. When I came across options for gender-affirming care, I immediately knew that was what I needed. I told my loved ones that I was going to get top surgery, and most were supportive and some were confused. The day I came home from surgery was the first day I truly saw myself. I felt at home in my body. It felt right. I wanted to live my life for the first time that I can remember, and I'm not the only one who noticed the change. Once my loved ones saw the bright energy exuding from me, they were no longer confused. They saw that it was right for me. The support that I received from some, especially my companion, made the wait for surgery worthwhile, though sooner would have been better. Support is so important when you come out. It can be the difference between life and death for some. Gender-affirming care is no different. When a cis person gets their eyebrows done, breast implants, or piercings, they are receiving gender-affirming care. We, trans folks, deserve to feel the same joy and we deserve to feel at home in our bodies. Love your trans family/friends and support them wholeheartedly, because it will mean everything to them.

My names Oliver myslef (I'm not trans ) but I have so many friends and a girlfriend that is trans and I am doing everything I possibly can to help out not just for them for every other trans youth and adults I believe that we all should be seen as equal trans or not what and how they are treating them isn't right I am highly against transphobia and I will do anything to help them out :] 🩵🩵🩷🩷🤍🤍🩷🩷🩵🩵 trans lives matters

I started experiencing gender dysphoria when I was 13 and was depressed all throughout high school because of it. My self esteem had never been lower and I’ve been told that I’m showing symptoms of anxiety by my high school counselor and that it sounded like I had passive suicidal ideation by someone else. I didn’t have access to any gender affirming care or binders and I felt so alone and scared for years. It breaks my heart that the government is considering restricting our rights to healthcare when it’s already so difficult to find help as trans people. As someone who has thought about harming myself, I may have actually done some if this was happening now. I already felt so hopeless back then. We aren’t just some fantastical creature you hear about on the news. We are your siblings, your children and friends who are often times too scared to tell you and our blood will be shed if you force us to live in a body that we feel uncomfortable and ashamed in. We know what’s best for ourselves. The government doesn’t even know our names. They shouldn’t be aloud to make decisions that are going to kill us. I feel like people forget but this is discrimination. The charter is supposed to protect us but the government is letting us down, making us feel ashamed and unsafe and scared. As a trans youth when this proposed law was announced, I was terrified. If I had been able to access gender affirming care when I was younger, I wouldn’t have been so stressed out or depressed and would’ve been supported and loved Instead of feeling like sleep was mercy because I didn’t have to be conscious of how much pain I was in. I am someone’s child, someone’s siblings and friend. I am a human being that doesn’t deserve to suffer.

My name is Kelsey R., and I grew up in a small town in northern Alberta. From a young age, I felt out of place but didn’t have the language or awareness to understand why. By the time I reached Grade 7, I was already struggling with depression and dissociation, unable to connect with myself or the world around me. Despite these deep struggles, I was never given the tools or knowledge to explore my identity, leaving me to navigate a confusing and isolating experience that lasted well into adulthood. It wasn’t until later in life that I realized I was transgender, finally making sense of the inner turmoil I had lived with for so long. Gender-affirming care was life-saving for me. After starting hormone therapy in 2022, my depression began to lift, and for the first time in years, I felt hope and excitement about the future. I was finally becoming the person I was always meant to be. However, none of this would have been possible without the support of my family and the access to care that allowed me to transition safely and with dignity. I oppose the Alberta government’s plan to interfere with access to gender-affirming care and the doctor/patient relationship. Such interference takes away bodily autonomy and undermines the well-being of trans and gender-diverse people. I believe every person deserves the right to make decisions about their own body, and removing that right is a direct attack on our humanity. The support I received during my transition helped me rebuild my life, find meaningful employment, and reclaim my joy. Trans people deserve the same access to life-saving care without interference from those who don’t understand our experiences. I stand against any legislation that seeks to restrict these rights and advocate for the protection of all trans and gender-diverse individuals.

I did not have knowledge about or access to gender affirming language, identity, or care until I was in my mid twenties. This was due to An extremely religious upbringing. It didn’t change who I was inside or what I wanted. But because I wasn’t given proper terms proper understanding and acceptance my inner needs manifested inappropriately and made me feel like a horrible person. I didn’t know someone could be trans/non-binary. And get a chest binder or top surgery. My poor adolescent brain started to envy women who had been through double mastectomy’s and had no hair from chemo. I felt like the lowest specie of scum! Who envies people with cancer!?! My mental health absolutely tanked. My body was developing in a way I hated. It was a very rough few years till after university I met some lovely humans who stated educating me about the queer community. The grin on my face when I got my first chest binder! Or when after being on T for awhile I noticed I didn’t hate the sound of my own voice anymore! Gender affirming care changed my life! I am mentally better, happier, more comfortable with myself. Gender affirming care showed me that there is a place I fit in the world, I’m not crazy or perverted, and that my needs and wants do matter. I wouldn’t wish having to wait for that on anyone! Early access to gender affirming care is vital for youth today!

As a transgender woman myself, it both terrifies me and saddens me to see the direction our government is taking. I wish only to live my life and be happy in the province I love. I, along with every other trans, individual deserves that right alongside everyone else.

I did not have access to gender affirming care as a child and it had severe negative impacts on my mental health, which in turn negatively impacted my physical and social well-being. Being denied the care I needed made me feel hopeless, and no amount of alternative psychiatric care was able to alleviate that feeling. I tried to end my life several times and used substances to cope with the discomfort. At 18 I was finally able to access gender affirming care and I can quite honestly say that it saved my life. Today I am happy, healthy, and able to comfortably participate in society. If I had not been able to access gender affirming care, I would not be here today. This government is endangering lives with their ignorance and bigotry, as removing access to care will prevent people who need help from getting it. Where I failed to end my life due to the intervention of those around me, others will doubtlessly succeed. The choices this government is making are needlessly cruel and are based on fiction. Real studies and real testimonies show that gender affirming care saves lives. By preventing access to care this government is blatantly declaring that they value fake stories that align with their own feelings over the lives of real flesh and blood people who live within this province.

I'm trans. I knew when I was in grade 9. I didn't have access to hormones, puberty blockers, or even knowledge about any of this being an option, and that didn't keep me from being trans. Instead it made me miserable, ruined relationships, and kept me from living my life. You can't legislate trans people away. We'll always be here. Choose love. Choose kindness. Choose to support us instead of hurting and killing us.

I provide gender affirming care in the province of Alberta. Every week I meet with folks who need gender affirming care to affirm and validate their existence to the people around them. It’s a fundamental part of the health care experience, no matter the person’s age. It is essential to support trans and gender diverse individuals in health care. Everyone deserves the right to health care that affirms who they are and allows them to authentically be themselves. Everyone should have the ability to do that without the fear of any government interfering with them and their health care provider, health journey, and health decisions. Licensed health care providers are bound to a code of conduct and ethics decided upon by experts in their specialty fields and we are entrusted to provide care according to those ethics. We have specialty training that allows us to provide gender affirming care. We have governing bodies that hold us to a set of standards to ensure we act in our patients’ best interests. The government does not have a place in the patient and health provider relationship.

I'm a trans woman, and I survived puberty. Witnessing the body horror of going through the wrong puberty from a first person perspective was not fun. Puberty started hitting hard when I was 12. I was several inches taller than my older sister and mother by 13. By 14, I had a full beard and my head hair was starting to noticeably thin. Every change was a punch in the gut, and my mental health never really recovered. I never told anyone how I felt at the time. Even though they never said anything explicitly transphobic when I was a teenager, my parents told me that they would have kicked me out of the house if I had come out to them then. At 13, when things were at their worst, I could have really used someone to talk to, but I didn't, and I now know that doing so would have meant becoming homeless. Now, I'm a teacher. I interact with trans teenagers every day. My provincial government wants me to out them to their parents. My provincial government wants to make it impossible for them to access the health care that might just save their life. I care for my students, and I don't want them to suffer through what I had to suffer through and more.

Throughout my childhood, I secretly thought of myself as hideous. I was too ashamed to tell anyone, for fear that they would confirm that there was something wrong with me. This was in the 90s and early 2000s, and I lived in a small community without any trans representation. Through my teen years, I stopped looking in mirrors. I didn’t look at myself except for very close up so that I could do my makeup. I wore makeup everyday, sure that it would help me seem like a normal woman and that no one would know my secret, that I wasn’t actually a woman at all. It wasn’t until my late twenties that I realized that I was trans. I had been passively suicidal since puberty, but my suicidal urges were getting stronger and more real. I met a trans man (someone who was raised as a girl and sought medical care to transition to being read as a man). He looked so masculine now, with a big beard. I stayed up late one night and looked at his Facebook, clicking back in time through the pictures until he started to look like me. I realized that transitioning was something possible for me. I sobbed with fear and relief. Thankfully, I knew of a doctor at the university who was knowledgeable about trans healthcare. She helped me get on testosterone. It took a few appointments and I was nervous - there is no way to know for sure how you’ll feel about hormone therapy until you try it. No thought experiment can fully prepare you for the way hormones can change your body. But the changes are gradual, and many reversible, so I told myself I would keep taking testosterone until I stopped liking it. After seven years, I’m still at it! My mental health immediately started to improve when I started hormones. I felt like I had finally figured out what felt so wrong when I was a child. People started seeing me as a man, and that felt really good. There are some things about it that suck - the men’s bathroom is gross and male pattern baldness is annoying - but overall this feels like the right path for me. I was grateful for my access to hormone therapy because it helped me stay mentally well as I waited four years to access top surgery (a double mastectomy). Through this time, I wore a tight chest binder every day to minimize the appearance of my breasts. Binders are painful and, after many years of wearing them, I developed back and neck issues that I am still going to physiotherapy for. If our healthcare system provided timely access to gender affirming surgery, I would have been spared these costly, painful issues. All that said, though, having top surgery provided relief I never could’ve imagined. It was like a load off my chest… literally. It changed my life. Wearing a binder made it hard to breathe, which was a big problem for exercise, and I couldn’t go to the pool or gym because I didn’t feel safe in either change room. Now, I have the best mental health of my life. I’m no longer suicidal. I can go out in the world without having to wear a tight garment to hide my chest. I feel so happy whenever I get called he/him or am recognized as a man. Gender affirming healthcare saved my life. When I think about this legislation, I think about how youth will be affected. I would do anything to spare youth the experience I had, lying awake crying, feeling like a freak and an imposter, and considering taking my life. The rationale for this legislation demonstrates that this government fundamentally disrespects transgender people, as much as their messaging purports that they care about trans youth. They are so committed to impeding bodily autonomy and the freedom of trans people and parents, that they’re willing to violate rights and interfere with the relationship between doctors and patients. This legislation is just the beginning and I’m certain more limitations to bodily autonomy are on the way. This scares me. Research has demonstrated time and again that gender affirming healthcare saves lives. Recent research has shown that anti-trans legislation results in youth suicide attempts. It is not hyperbolic to say that this legislation will result in the unnecessary deaths of vulnerable youth. This legislation will kill youth. Providing gender affirming care to trans youth and adults creates happy, healthy futures.

I'm almost 50 years old. During school years there was no understanding or let alone acceptance of gender diversity. I grew up bullied for being emotionally and socially different. So I was left feeling like I needed to hide my true self and try to appease my peers and parents. This led to a loss of my sense of self. I became so afraid of being exposed that I simply just shut down. I went from high grades and involvement in hobbies etc... to self destruction and detachment. This continued into my adult life. I faced the crippling reality of depression and anxiety that resulted in substance abuse and eventually much worse abuses of myself. I obviously am still here to tell the stories but these stories could have been much less traumatic had there been more understanding and resources available.

My name is Cameron. My name has been Cameron for almost three years now, since I came out as non-binary. Since coming out I have faced a crazy amount of social pressure to detransition, and “go back to being a girl” in my small town school I have daily battles of micro aggressions and straight up slurs being yelled at me that teachers turn a blind eye to. I have been ridiculed, bullied, and harassed by many individuals for trying to be myself. I believe I should have the right to be who I want to be both mentally and physically, but others think the government should make decisions for my body. I do not stand for that, I stand for all LGBTQ people who are all fighting to personally, socially and physically transition, because who we are should be reflected by the way we can present.

My name is Jolene. I am a 42 year old trans woman. I have known I was not a man since the age of 8, but growing up in the 80s and 90s, the language just wasn't there for me to understand what it was I was experiencing. But even though I didn't know why I felt different from everyone else, society sure made sure I was punished for it. I started my transition in 2017, started hrt in 2019, had "the surgery" (TM) in 2022, and another surgery this past April. Every step forward was life changing in how freeing it was. Every step forward was shedding decades of shame and guilt and all the negative stereotypes I internalized for 30+ years. Every step forward was a step towards being a whole, functioning individual. Before my transition, I was depressed, an addict, suicidal. Hopeless, I was a shell of a human being. Life was an endless slog of getting through the day just so I would be one day closer to not waking up again. But now? I'm sober. I'm a student. I'm a volunteer. I'm an advocate. I've dedicated my life giving back to my community so that they never have to know the hell that is 3 decades of existing just to survive. I support bodily autonomy in all instances because I trust people enough to know who they are. I support maintaining the integrity of the doctor patient relationship because no one else's opinions or politics matters. I support the ability for families to work with doctors to make those decisions as they are the only people informed enough to have opinions that matter. I support my community, as it has supported me. I support the right for trans people to participate in society, to have unfettered access to medical care, to be able to try to build lived worth living. No one deserves to go through what I had to, and I will do everything in my power to make sure no one ever has to again.

When I was four or five, I asked my mother if I could be a boy. She said no, I had to be a girl; that was how my body was, so that was how I had to be. When I was little, that didn't make too much of a difference, but as I grew up, I started hating my body but I didn't know why, so that led to me to start hating myself, too. Breasts grew, and I wanted to hurt them. My period started, and I wanted to die. I owe my life to my cat during those long years, and it wasn't until I moved away from home and discovered the word 'transgender' that I really started to live. If I had had access to gender affirming care in my early years, I would have been able to avoid almost a decade of self-disgust and body dysphoria. Removing that from kids now would force them to go through what I did, and no one who claims to care about kids would do that. It puts their lives in danger to remove such essential supports; no one needs to suffer so much from something that's so easily fixed. I know that if I lost access to my gender affirming care now, I would be risking severe mental health trauma if not outright suicide. For a child, that is so much worse, because, like me when I was a child, they have little enough bodily autonomy. They have a right to choose. Let them choose.

Starting testosterone made me not want to die anymore. I actually started liking myself and wanting to watch myself grow. The Alberta government has no place in trans Healthcare, and shouldn't ever.

I am a mother of a non-binary youth. I cannot imagine the strength it took to come to me, I cannot imagine a child not having a support system in their life. If their parents are not supportive in this area, school should be a safe place. This policy robs children of that safe place and people to trust in times of uncertainty and change.

I am a proud ally!

I am trans and I am a human.

My son had to move to Vancouver to get the professional support he needed to transition ... Many of his friends do not have that opportunity & feel persecuted living in Alberta. They self harm or try to end their lives ... because they are not able to live with the support of medical professionals in this Province. It is cruel to treat our youth this way!

I am a survivor.

I am a proud mother of a transgender son. I have genuinely seen the struggles these kids go through. Government has no place in having power over the child and their family’s decision in relation to an individual’s personal healthcare.

As someone who loves many different trans people, I want their rights to remain safe and secure

as a gay person i owe my rights to trans people cause they were there for us when we fought for are rights in the 60s i may have only been born in 99 so if we have to well make this another stonewall movement

As an non-binary, young adult who's access to gender affirming medical resources saved my life, i cannot imagine the immense damage and harm these policies will do to youth who desperately need to be seen, accepted, protected and cared for. It is both disgusting and disheartening to witness the rights of lgbt youth and children even put into question.

As a trans adult it deeply saddens me to see so much hatred and discrimination targeted at some of our most vulnerable youth. These horrible policies have no place in today's world.

I am trans myself and grew up in an unsupportive family. The trauma I had to endure still affects me to this day. Trans youth deserve a chance to flourish and develop into healthy adults without having to live in fear.

The first friend I lost to suicide was 12 years old, questioning gender, and would have had even less of a chance of surviving in the world these changes are creating. My brother is trans, he is likely going to need surgery that wouldn't have been necessary had my mother been more educated. These changes will cost lives and taxpayer money.

As a teacher for 23 years I know how vital, in fact, how life-saving support for trans youth is. I have seen it firsthand truly save lives.

I am a teacher who cares about all my students and wants them to learn about the real world they live in and how it is important to consistently act with kindness.

I was always a 2SLGBTQIA+ advocate, and recently found out I am a late-blooming lesbian. I know dozens of queer people and have met many people who have also come out as queer later in life. As acceptance for us grows, so do our numbers and so does the support for us. Everyone knows someone who is gender-diverse and any reversal of our rights is anti-Canadian.

As a cis-gendered, straight-presenting woman, I can't imagine how it would feel to not "be me" in my body, and it is unconscionable that this government is dictating against medical best practices, who has the right to feel comfortable in their own bodies. Additionally, removing children's abilities to decide for themselves with whom and when they want to share their feelings about their bodies is inhumane and unjust. 

I am a trans gender adult who wouldn’t have made it this far without gender affirming care. It saved my life and how dare you rip that opportunity from other trans people.

As a transgender individual myself I want to advocate for the people of my community and fight for fair and equal rights. We are all human and deserve love

I’m a health care provider that has seen gender-affirming care save lives.

My son is trans gender and is awesome. His rights should be no different than mine.

My kid has never conformed to gender norms. Let people be themselves.

I am an RN in Alberta. I believe in and practice evidence based health care for all Albertans. The latest ruling goes against all evidence based care for trans youth, and could cause harm to Albertans. This is not right. We must stand up for science and best practices in this province. We risk being left behind and ridiculed for our ignorance of best practices.

As a trangender individual myself, I can fully say that these policies put young lives at risk unnecessarily. They target a subaltern community who are unable to defend themselves, and yet are the targets of constant hate. Targets th premier and her policies have helped paint. I ran away from a hateful household. I hid myself and who I was for decades because I was never allowed to feel comfortable in my own skin because of attitudes like the premier's. I had suffered on-and-off homelessness for three years, not knowing if the next day might be my last. During this time I was assaulted, sexually and physically, I was demeaned, and made to feel less again, and again, and again by people who turned me away because I refused to suffocate in a body that didn't belong to me. Eight years later and I'm finally on the road to graduating. The scars that I have been left with will likely never recover. Please, help me stop stories like mine. Help me stop so many others from never being told. Please.

One regret I'll have for the rest of my life is that I transitioned so late in my life, only because I had no idea what the feelings I had growing up were, but now kids who will have those very same feelings, and more understanding of them then I did, are being FORCED, through conservative legislation, to not be their true selves, and that it not something anyone should stand for.

I am a supporter because I have a trans son...but was a supporter long before he came out. Walking with him on his journey taught me a great deal about the challenges trans people face. Government does not need to make it harder. To judge people as 'bad' because of who they are denies the God who made them.

I am a 32 year old trans woman. Lately, the political climate around my existance and my validity as a person and as a trans woman has been under scrutiny. It makes it tough and even frightening to go out alone and feel safe on my own even in public spaces. The calls to create separate sports leagues for people who do play sports doesn't give us a meaningful place in sport, it vibe us a secluded corner where we don't have to be seen. Nobody is taking into account the permanent changes trans people suffer without care before the age of 17 and how it impacts people like me long term.

I am a parent, and advocate for welcoming, safe communities. I do not accept fear mongering policies which breed mistrust and allow people to use political rhetoric to exclude and shame.

I work with the LGBTQ+ population as a physician and I know what harms can come to these youth if these policies are passed. We need to continue to protect diversity and work with the experts in the field to ensure proper policies that support this population. Ignorance should not be tolerated.

As a trans teen I'm concerned for my future, I may have supportive family but I am also scared for many other trans teens and people

As a Calgarian, a teacher, a sister of a trans woman, and a human rights advocate all of these policies and the goals of our current government as of late are direct violations of the human rights awarded to every Canadian, every Calgarian, and every person on our planet. As a history teacher, this is a terrifying time and makes teaching to grade 11 high school students about human rights and extreme nationalism so much more important (and heart breaking to do). As our own provincial government lacks the education and human decency to ensure the equality and safety of the children of Alberta. As they completely disregard the Convention on the Rights of a Child and all licensed professional research and advise on how to help kids at risk. So much more of my job has been working to undue this harm and others to young Albertans, to convince them they deserve to be here, are wanted and valued, that their lives are worth living - that someone cares, because some of their parents/families love comes with extreme conditions or is withheld entirely. Parental Rights exist in the best interest of the child in conjunction with the rights a child has to protection from harm, discrimination, abuse, those rights don’t start at 18. Parental rights don’t supersede this and are regularly restricted or revoked when parents do not have their child’s best interest at heart - this is what child protective services is for. This is a gross misuse of the law to allow parents to force particular beliefs onto their children and allow for parents to have the awareness to know when to target, harm, bully, or abuse their own kids to further their own agenda - not in their child’s best interest or aligned with the multitudes of research surrounding youth mental or physical health. This won’t stop here and a stand needs to be made to prevent further violations to human rights in Alberta, before we become the next cautionary tale of stepping in to late in the Grade 11 textbook on extremism and ultra-nationalist actions.

My partner is transgender. Watching her try to access gender affirming care and the affect it's had on her mental health, nmboth negatively when access has been limited (funding cuts to programs like the wellness center) and positively (when she was able to access hormones, and therapy through the gender program) has been eye opening. This care saves lives. And inability to access it, can absolutely end them. These policies will be devastating to a community that already suffers greatly.

I am LGBTQ, my siblings are LGBTQ and my cousin is LGBTQ. But it's not about us. It's about the kids I work with every day at school that need positive reinforcement, not this dangerous rhetoric. It's about the kids have told me that their parents have already said they'd kick them out if they were part of the LGBTQ community in any way, kids who are 10, 11, or younger. Kids who should be able to count on their families to love them no matter what.

I am a trans adult who was shamed so often for not being who I was 'supposed to be' as a kid, and I didn't have the option to be who I really was. I spent too long afraid. I don't want todays trans youth to feel that fear, especially when there are options to help and to reduce suicide rates, that this government is trying to take away.

As a nonbinary individual who was able to find support within my community at a young age, these bills are reductive and attack issues that do not exist along with actively harm youth who need support. In my experience government policies affecting gender identities do not aim to help children but instead enact personal senses of normality versus abnormality that has no positive impact and only succeeds in ostracizing and isolation. Children deserve community, belonging, and acceptance not scrutinization and fear.

As someone who is part of the 2SLGBTQ+ community myself with many transgender and nonbinary friends my reason for supporting this may be obvious. But even if I didn’t have such a personal stake in this situation, I’d still find these policies to be completely immoral. Not only is it immoral but these new policies completely disregards what medical professionals and research has been saying about transgender and nonbinary treatment. These policies treads on the human rights, safety, and quality of life for transgender and nonbinary people.

I am the proud parent of an amazing trans child!!!

I am a junior high teacher who works with high risk youth. Many of these youth additionally have identity complexities where many of them are discovering courage to share who they really are with their community. School is often the first step in feeling safe to share their identity. Support school GSAs.

I myself am non-binary and it's so hard for youth to learn who they are already. It took me years and years to learn who I am and I'm still learning. It's terrible to take that very important opportunity away from young individuals. We need to keep eachother safe and to look out for eachother. Specially in the trans community.

I am a physician who works in the area of child and adolescent mental health. These proposed policies do more to harm children than they purport to protect. Medical decisions need to remain between doctors and patients, independent of government interference.

As an older trans woman I can't stand seeing the next generation of trans youth be treated this way. Trans youth have a right to bodily autonomy and self determination.

I am an Anglican priest and it is important that the Church stands up for and beside those who are being persecuted by Government.

I'm a Straight Canadian who supports LGBTQ2/Transgender rights.

I was a trans youth who got to become a trans adult because I was supported in school to self identify without permission from my parents, which allowed me to come out when when I felt safe and comfortable doing so. And because I could get on waitlists and see trans specialists as a minor. Having access to these resources and places where I felt safe to express myself was extremely important to me and gave me the ability to become more comfortable and happy on a day to day basis.

As a mental health therapist for children and teens and young adults I see every day the trauma caused by discrimination bigotry and hate to queer and gender diverse humans. The DSM says that best practice treatment for gender Dysphoria is gender, affirming care. Politicians are not health professionals, We need to stay in our lane of expertise and training or else we cause harm. Your policy Will directly harm to vulnerable humans I provide services to and will fuel the Marginalization and discrimination even more than it already is in this province that normalizes gender inequality and hate for queer and gender diverse Albertans.

My sibling is queer and non-binary. They started their journey toward being "out" in their teenage years, and it hasn't been an easy path. They continue to frequently face discrimination and prejudice in a world where many people see them in a negative light, before getting to know them or understand who they are as a person. The government has no right to put up more barriers and reinforce negative narratives about citizens' identities and life choices. If a child growing up queer or trans today was given a more supportive environment, including appropriate access to medical support, I believe their quality of life and overall wellbeing would be substantially improved. Removing the options for timely medical interventions (with appropriate counselling and assessment) will only harm the children and supportive families who want and need them.

I am standing alongside and supporting trans and nonbinary youth because I believe in prioritizing their well-being and maintaining their access to trans-affirming care. Having access to trans-affirming care is truly life-saving for folks and needs to be a priority.

I am the very proud mom of a non-binary child. My child had a safe and supportive home life, but I'm fully aware many do not, and some have very unsafe homes.

As an employee who works in mental health specifically with youth and knowing the statics of LGBTQ+ youth and suicide it is unethical, cruel, abusive and inhumane to impose laws that restrict youth’s autonomy and tell them they aren’t worthy of being accepted for who they are. And as a queer person I can’t sit by and let people in my community be devalued and abused.

I am trans and I grew up in a conservative environment I didn't get on puberty blockers as a result I am a woman with a deep voice, and a beard I have to shave, it's wrong to subject children and the adult they'll grow up to be. puberty blockers do no permanent damage if the kid changes their mind they can stop taking it and puberty resumes

As a psychologist in Alberta I work with transgender clients often and see the terribly harmful impact these policies would make. Furthermore, the information these policies are based on is inaccurate and not scientifically valid. The risk of suicide and child abuse that will result from these policies is scientifically evident, dangerous, and unethical. Transgender individuals are note “created”, “influenced”, or need to be “cured”, they are human beings, and if you allow them to be themselves you will discover a beautiful person, inclusion, and joy. These policies are all based in control and hate. Choose joy.

I am a CIS gendered straight male who has spent his entire life in this province (50+ years) on the outside looking in. I remember the casual racism and homophobia of the 70's and the 80's and I know the scattershot damage that causes people when simple minds with no ability for empathy direct that hatefulness at anyone and everyone who doesn't fit their narrow worldview ... regardless of whether or not they were gay, or from a different diaspora. You are pandering to the worst people in the province, and are actively making us the worst province in Confederation. Stop it ... NOW!

As another human being, I want us all to support the healthy growth, learning and acceptance of all of our children and peers. And, as a parent, I hope my children know they are loved and are comfortable to discuss these matters with me, or their friends and role models in education. It's feels so hurtful that our wonderful youth are having their dignity picked on by bullies with legislative powers. This is just so harmful and unnecessary. We shouldn't have to be fighting against such pathetic hatred anymore. There is just no excuse for these unnecessary politics.