In support of Trans Visibility Day (31st of March), I, James Anderson (Interim Leader), attended an event hosted by Edmonton’s Evergreens GSA (Gender-Sexuality Alliance) Community, on behalf of the Green Party of Alberta (GPA). There, I met many great people from an array of communities and partners that came together to have fun and support Alberta’s transgender youth. This event was a heartwarming experience. Community organizations shared their efforts and initiatives that help to connect and empower transgender persons, such as myself, and more importantly, our youth. 

The first organization with whom I met was the host of the event, Evergreens. This organization has been working tirelessly to serve the community by creating a safe third space for 2SLGBTQI+ youth and allies who seek to organize events, engage in conversations, and simply have fun. As a young person, I am familiar with the challenges of trying to find safe third spaces, which is why I highly recommend reaching out to them if you are a transgender youth or a family caring for a youth who is seeking a safe space in which to meet new people.

I also met with the University of Alberta - FireFly Institute, which has worked to support the 2SLGBTQI+ community and its allies by being a resource for evidence-informed consulting, outreach, educational programming, advocacy, and research in Alberta. I know that the 2SLGBTQI+ community is all too familiar with issues like limited research, misinformation, and public unawareness. Which is why I believe the amazing work of organizations like FireFly, is important to building a future for Alberta that is both informed and caring of gender diverse persons.

One Tree Psychology and Therapeutic Services is another organization that I met with that offers not only gender affirming therapy, but also may provide services facilitated by gender diverse staff. It remains a challenge for diverse gender groups in Alberta to find gender affirming therapy, and it is even more rare to find experts who themselves are gender diverse. If anyone or someone in their family is gender diverse and is in need of mental health care, I recommend checking out their specialized services.

Finally, I would like to mention The Centre for Trauma Informed Fitness, an organization devoted to empowering people to achieve a sense of radical self-acceptance, as well as reconceptualizing health and wellness through fitness activities. Upon meeting the Executive Director I learned about their efforts to provide a safe space that encourages fitness for all and treats gender diverse persons with dignity. Should anyone in Edmonton with a gender diverse background wish to engage in physical fitness, but feels anxious about being judged, this may be a safe space for you.

These organizations and many more are doing wonderful work meeting the needs of gender diverse people. However, I also know that they work with resolve to address political challenges that they cannot advance on their own. This is why as a leader responsible for engaging in provincial politics, I want to make it clear that I personally recognize and understand the severe harm that our UCP government continues to force upon our transgender families, friends, and youth with no genuine regard for their wellbeing and rights. To affirm and clarify my personal stance on Albertan transgender issues refer to the following:

• Bill 9: Firstly with Bill 9 - Protecting Alberta’s Children Statues Amendment Act, 2025, despite its righteous sounding name, is one of the most egregious actions ever taken by any government in Canada. This bill has blatantly violated Alberta’s democratic norms by using the notwithstanding clause to circumvent the rights and freedoms of Albertans for the purpose of hindering future legal challenges of bills that directly impact transgender youth’s wellbeing. Furthermore, while the use of the notwithstanding clause is lawful under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Section 33), it is unconscionable for a government to use this for the purpose of restricting the ability of Albertans to defend themselves with the law, especially when such restrictions are only disproportionately targeted at a single identity.
• Bill 26: Secondly with the implementation of Bill 26 - Health Statues Amendment Act, 2024, it is clear that our government does not have genuine care for the mental and physical health of our vulnerable transgender youths. This bill has robbed our children under the age of 16 of the ability to access critical gender-affirming medical treatments which allow them to align their bodies with their internally-experienced identity. Such treatments have long been proven to be effective at improving the mental health of trangender persons and are widely recognized by accredited medical experts and institutions across Alberta. Yet, our UCP government still denies this treatment on the basis that children are not mature enough to make such decisions and that they must be protected from their own choices. This government conveniently ignores the fact that such treatments are not solely decided by children but require diagnosis by a medical expert and the authorization of the child’s parents. The UCP show blatant disregard for the following Canadian constitutional rights to: (1) “The right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice”; (2) “The right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment”; and (3) “The right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination on the basis of gender identity”. I firmly believe that this bill was not created in good faith to protect the wellbeing of our transgender youth, but instead has been used to weaponize healthcare as punishment to discourage our youngest transgender Albertans from living an authentic life in Albertan society.
• Bill 27: Thirdly, I see Bill 27 - Education Amendment Act, 2024 as a gross violation of Albertans’ freedom of expression and rights to life, liberty, and security. This bill has restricted transgender youths’ freedom to express their individual identity in schools by requiring the reporting of such activity to parents and placing our transgender youth at risk of reprisal (which could include abuse) by parents or others that disapprove of such expression. The enabling of such actions is disproportionately targeted at transgender youth and it ignores the right of all Albertans to be “equal before and under the law and the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination”. Because these actions put transgender youth at potential risk of reprisal, it effectively deprives them of the legal right to safety. I believe that this bill does nothing to serve our transgender youth, but instead functions to weaponize our education institutions for the purposes of instilling fear, eliminating trans visibility of youth in the community, and controlling transgender expression of identity.
• Bill 29: Finally for Bill 29 - Fairness and Safety in Sports Act its name sounds admirable on the surface, but Bill 29 has disproportionately targeted transgender persons and has subjected them to violations of both privacy and dignity. This bill requires that persons seeking to participate in women and girls sport divisions are required to verify their sex at birth by completing forms distributed by schools or sports organizations. The law is to be enforced through a complaint-based system. This means that not only all girls and women are now subject to having their bodies scrutinized by another adult, but it also means that institutions are obligated to publicize women that are transgender, placing this vulnerable population potentially in harm’s way. Furthermore, it disregards how the exclusion of transgender youth participation in sports disproportionately impacts their opportunities to experience teamwork and fitness lessons that are important to their development. While I recognize there are public concerns around fairness, this bill has sacrificed every girl and woman's right and freedom to dignity and privacy, while also placing transgender persons at risk and limiting their access to resources important to their development.

In conclusion, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to meet transgender community members, allies, and partners, who have embolden my desire to contribute and encourage politics that support the wellbeing of gender diverse Albertans. During my continued service as your Interim Leader for the Green Party of Alberta, I want it to be known that I will always work to uphold our Party’s green principle of respecting diversity and will remain obligated to supporting the wellbeing of all diverse groups, including gender diverse persons.

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James Anderson, Interim Leader