NDP leader Jagmeet Singh stands in the centre alongside union leaders holding a large Pride flag.
Union leaders, politicians and community leaders came out to Parliament Hill to counter protest on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Credit: Fred Hahn / X Credit: Fred Hahn / X

Unions, communities, activists and individuals rallied on Wednesday in opposition to anti-2SLGBTQIA+ demonstrations that were planned to take place across the country.

The rallies were held in response to the so-called “1 Million March 4 Children” campaign which sought to remove Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) curriculum and policies from Canadian schools.

According to the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, the marches were being organized by virulently anti-2SLGBTQIA+ groups including Hands Off Our Kids and Family Freedom.

Both groups have used hateful slurs against the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, including false accusations of grooming and pedophilia, meanwhile they have celebrated men like Andrew Tate, who is facing charges of rape and human trafficking in Romania.

A portion of these groups are made up of conservative Muslim activists and Christian Nationalists who have found common cause in attempting to erase 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals from public life.

“Specifically, they do not want their kids learning the message that it is ok to be queer,” said Evan Balgord, executive director of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network in an interview with rabble.ca.

“They don’t want anybody’s children to learn that,” Balgord added. “That’s what we’re talking about when they want to ban certain books in schools. They are trying to erase queer people from education.”

Recent months have seen some provincial premiers side with pro-hate groups by enacting policies that would put 2SLGBTQIA+ students in danger by requiring parental permission to have their correct pronouns used in schools.

READ MORE: Saskatchewan implements anti-trans school policies, endangering youth

The National Institute of Health in the US conducted a study which found that trans youth who were addressed with their correct pronouns had a significant reduction in suicidal behaviour and ideation.

A national response to national hate movement

Balgord said that he had heard reports that 77 such anti-queer events were being organized across the country; however, unions and grassroots organizations used their power to counterprotest these rallies, especially in Canada’s major cities.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL), the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF), the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) and many other organizations issued messages of support for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and attended counter protests.

Counter protests took place in cities such as Ottawa, Toronto, Halifax and Vancouver with the hate groups being outnumbered every time.

In Ottawa, one member of the 1 Million March 4 Children stated that the protest on Parliament Hill was not able to leave due to being surrounded by counter protesters.

Members of the Muslim community also made a statement opposing the 1 Million March 4 Children in an open letter.

“This campaign of misinformation is placing 2SLGBTQIA+ students at risk, especially as a population that is already at higher risk for depression and suicide. It is also placing Muslim students at risk of facing increased Islamophobia,” the letter reads. “We call upon our community leaders to speak out against this protest and the potential harm it will bring to children both from the 2SLGBTQIA+ and Muslim communities, and the children who identify as being part of both communities.”

‘Parental rights’ a false rallying cry

The members of the 1 Million March 4 Children claim that they are protecting “parental rights” and that anyone opposing them is opposing a parent’s rights over their children.

“When they talk about parental rights it is the right to not have their kid be taught health and human rights education about queer people,” said Belgord.

In an op-ed for rabble.ca trans rights activist Mercedes Allen explained that it is not hard to see the true motivations and influences behind the cry for “parental rights.”

“If you want to look specifically at the issue of parental rights (which, it should be noted, shifts the discussion away from the kids’ rights, even though the intent is to override them or even pretend that any rights independent of the parents’ simply don’t exist), it’s not hard to see where this debate goes,” Allen writes, pointing out that south of the border in the US in states like Florida, the call for “parental rights” has been used to ban books and to restrict rights and healthcare for trans youth.

Refusing to lose hope and give in to hate

Trans rights activist Fae Johnstone issued a powerful statement on X (formerly Twitter) prior to the rallies.

“Hatemongers think they can force us back in the closet. They think they can use fear and misinformation to roll back our rights. Here’s what they don’t understand: We’ve been through and overcame adversity they’ll never understand. We aren’t going backwards. We will win,” Johnstone’s statement reads. “Have hope. Refuse to let hope die. Bask in queer joy. Bask in the progress we have made. Love yourself, for all your existence gives to this world. This fight won’t be easy, but when have our battles ever been easy? We. Will. Persevere. As we have before. And we will triumph.”

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Nick Seebruch

Nick Seebruch has been the editor of rabble.ca since April 2022. He believes that fearless independent journalism is key for the survival of a healthy democracy. An OCNA award-winning journalist, for...