Transgender minors should be allowed to change their sex, Quebec private member's bill proposes

Québec Solidaire MNA Manon Massé tabled a private member's bill today in the National Assembly that, if passed, would make it possible for minors in Quebec to legally change their sex.

The province currently allows minors to change their name, but if they want to change their sex they have to wait until they're 18 to do so.

Under the bill, minors would be able to change their gender designation on their birth certificate, but children under 14 would still need their parents' permission.

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Massé hopes the change would offer transgender youth the support that they need to make the transition to a new identity with fewer roadblocks.

"We already know it's a long process. Children who are transgender – it's a not a decision they made yesterday.… It's time to rectify the situation."

Quebec wouldn't be the first province to move forward with this kind of legislation. In British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, it is possible for minors to change their sex.

"I think what we need is to listen to these children and these parents," Massé said. "They live, they feel, they experience a lot of discrimination."

Change for schools

Quebec's Education Ministry has a permanent code for every student, which represents the student's name and sex. It can only be modified by the ministry – not by a school.

The bureaucratic red tape can make it difficult to ensure a smooth transition for transgender students.

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David James Lazure, a 14-year-old from McMasterville, opted for home-schooling after he was being misgendered by staff at his high school.

"The principal had told me that she couldn't change the name on the list, so whenever a teacher would call out the name on the list, there would be my birth name. So I really didn't know what to say," Lazure said.

"It got to a point where I had to stop school. I had too much anxiety and too much depression because there were people misgendering me all the time."

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Lazure was present when the bill was tabled Thursday, and Massé hopes it will be adopted before the fall.

"I wish profoundly for all kids to go back to school next year with the right gender on their permanent code," Massé said.