2026 Letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney asking for protections for transgender youth in Alberta
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada
K1A 0A6
Dear Prime Minister Mark Carney,
I am writing today, on behalf of myself and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Toronto, with an urgent call to action for the Government of Canada to address the restriction of healthcare for transgender and gender diverse youth in Alberta and to commit to upholding the ability of transgender and gender diverse youth to access gender affirming healthcare throughout Canada.
In December 2025, the Alberta Provincial Government passed the Protecting Alberta's Children Statutes Amendment Act which invoked the notwithstanding clause to override Charter challenges to its laws that prohibit gender affirming hormone treatments, including the use of puberty blockers, and gender affirming surgeries of youth under 16 years old. Invoking the notwithstanding clause in response to Charter challenges acknowledges that Canadians’ rights are and will continue to be infringed by these unjust laws.
A petition presented to your government in December 2025 called for your government to amend the Canada Health Act to ensure transgender persons received timely healthcare. In response, your government asserted that "[i]t is up to the provinces and territories, in consultation with the medical profession, to make the difficult decisions in determining how to allocate health dollars and which health services are to be considered medically necessary". Your government went on to acknowledge the World Professional Association for Transgender Heath (WPATH) guidelines, called Standards of Care, which provide guidance concerning effective pathways to care for transgender persons.
This response is wholly inadequate. The WPATH Standards of Care clearly recommend that youth receive gender affirming care, including puberty blockers, hormones, and surgery in rare cases, if their doctors deem it medically necessary. The Alberta legislation does not allow for this and imposes penalties that range from fines to jail time for doctors who are following the guidelines that your own government deems to be appropriate care. This legislation overrules the bodily autonomy of the patient, often the wishes of the parents, and the opinion of medical experts. It is legislation that is based on moral considerations and not on medical expertise. It relies on the Cass review which was prepared by a non-expert using a process designed to provide a particular result. The Cass review has been repeatedly discredited by numerous studies since it's publication. Few jurisdictions rely on it for authorizing care.
A provincial or territorial government must not be able to deem what is and what is not medically necessary without input of qualified medical professionals and without regard for the individual needs of the patient. It also must not use dubious and discredited research to deem what is medically necessary. The legislation criminalizes doctors who seek to provide the best care for their transgender and gender diverse patients. As with R. v. Morgentaler, the Alberta legislation seeks to target specific services for transgender youth based on what it considers socially undesirable conduct - every reputable medical expert recommends that these services be available for transgender youth. This clearly violates the separation of powers in the Constitution which reserves criminal matters to the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal government. The severity of the consequences, which includes jail time, also reinforces this view. Two organizations, Skipping Stone and Egale, are bringing suit against the Alberta government asserting that these laws are akin to criminal laws.
The Tyee reported that the mental health of transgender and gender diverse teens in Alberta has declined since the ban on gender affirming care was announced. Parents reported an increase in anxiety, school absenteeism, self-harm and suicidal ideation. They also reported an increase in bullying and harassment as well as a decrease in community support. Almost 100% of parents attribute these results to the Alberta legislation. A recent study found that risk of suicide attempts in transgender and gender diverse youth increased by up to 72% in US jurisdictions that had enacted anti-trans laws.
We call on your government to:
We must put a stop to this legislation and anything similar immediately. The mental and physical health of our transgender and gender diverse children are at stake. It is disgusting to ignore the suffering of one of the most marginalized populations in the country. Your government must act immediately.
Sincerely,
(your name)
2025 Letter to Canadian MPs asking for protections for vulnerable people in the United States
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada
K1A 0A6
Dear (MP name)
I am writing today, on behalf of myself and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Toronto, with an urgent call to action for the Government of Canada to address the actions of the US President and his regime that threaten 2SLGBTQIA+ US citizens, residents, and asylum seekers and their families. We additionally seek an updated travel advisory for travel to the US for Canadian travellers outlining the dangers 2SLGBTQIA+ people face in entering the US and ensure 2SLGBTQIA+ people cannot be arrested at the border under s 38 of the Preclearance Act based on their identity.
Asylum Seekers: The US President suspended the U.S. Refugee Admission Program, halting the processing of all refugees already approved for resettlement - including 2SLGBTQIA+ refugees, leaving displaced queer and trans individuals stranded in precarious conditions awaiting resettlement. The situation is also dangerous for 2SLGBTQIA+ asylum seekers within the US. ICE, backed by the US President and Department of Justice, has been arresting and trafficking asylum seekers to prisons in third countries without opportunity to challenge their removal in court. These arrests have occurred regardless of the person’s legal status and lack of criminal record in the US.
The Canada-US Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) is an arrangement between Canada and the U.S. requiring refugees to seek asylum in the first country they enter, unless they qualify for an exemption. The STCA has enabled Canada to return refugees to the US who arrive at land border crossings and attempt to enter Canada, but do not meet one of the limited exemptions. Canada must create an exception for these asylum seekers to ensure their safety.
US Citizens and Residents: The dangers to 2SLGBTQIA+ people, especially those trans and gender diverse, in the US does not end with asylum seekers. The US President has issued Executive Orders and directives that decree that there are only two genders, that intersex and trans people essentially do not exist, that trans gender affirming care for minors is child abuse, that have stripped funding and support for LGBTQIA+ organizations, sought to ban trans women from bathrooms and sports, that have stripped them of accurate ID, among other things. Additionally, the most recent budget bill in the US seeks to remove all Medicaid funding for trans gender affirming care.
Dangers to US permanent residents is doubly so given that ICE is also arresting legal permanent residents for dubious reasons and holding them in immigration jails under deplorable conditions for months on end. Canada must provide a path for temporary Canadian residency for trans and gender diverse US citizens and residents and their families given the imminent danger they face under the current US regime. This can be done through a temporary immigration program.
Canadian Citizens and Residents: The recent update to the travel advisory for travel to the US is insufficient. It fails to outline the dangers trans and gender diverse people face entering the US. This is especially true given that recent guidance from the Secretary of State indicates that visa applicants must state their assigned sex at birth on applications. Failure to do so is considered fraud or misrepresentation. This is a danger for Canadian residents and Canadians wishing to stay for a duration that requires a visa.
Additionally, US border officers have been detaining Canadian travellers for minor paperwork issues. Trans and gender diverse people run the risk of being detained at the border for presenting accurate ID or simply for existing. The same is true for preclearance areas within Canada. Under s 38 of the Preclearance Act 2016, a preclearance officer may detain an individual for refusing to answer questions, even after stating their wish to withdraw from preclearance.
Together, we are calling on the Government of Canada to:
People in Canada have long prided ourselves on our inclusivity and commitment to human rights at home and around the world. As we bear witness to rising discrimination in the US, we must act - and act decisively - to protect queer communities in Canada and around the world.
We hope you will join us in recognizing the urgency of this matter.
Sincerely,
(your name)
2025 Letter to Canadian MPs asking for protections for transgender youth in Alberta
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada
K1A 0A6
Dear (MP name)
I am writing today, on behalf of myself and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Toronto, with an urgent call to action for the Government of Canada to address the restriction of healthcare for transgender and gender diverse youth in Alberta and to commit to upholding the ability of transgender and gender diverse youth to access gender affirming healthcare throughout Canada.
In December 2024, the Alberta Provincial Government passed the Health Statutes Amendment Act which prohibits gender affirming hormone treatments, including the use of puberty blockers, and gender affirming surgeries for minors — those under 18 years old. The operative section, s 9, has not yet come into force and organizations such as Egale and Skipping Stone are seeking an injunction against it while mounting a Charter challenge to block this part of the legislation altogether. They argue that this legislation is a clear violation of the constitutional rights of transgender and gender diverse youth in Alberta, specifically their sections 7, 12 and 15 Charter rights, which protect 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; the right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment; and the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
The Alberta Government argued in court that there is no constitutional right for transgender and gender diverse youth to receive gender affirming care — that gender affirming care is “not medically necessary.” This is a misguided and very dangerous position. All reputable medical associations, including the Canadian Paediatric Society, agree that gender affirming care is medically necessary and often lifesaving. Unsupported transgender and gender diverse youth are three to five times more at risk for suicidal ideation compared to their peers. Researchers have found that being able to access medical transition, if desired, is linked to a variety of mental health benefits for transgender and gender diverse people, including a reduction in suicidal ideation. Whether this healthcare is medically necessary should NOT be decided by politicians but by patients, their caregivers, and their doctors.
Youth need the support of medical professionals who they can trust, not to have medically necessary healthcare withheld from them. As such, we are asking you to enforce the Canada Health Act to ensure transgender and gender diverse youth in Alberta can access appropriate medical care. The primary objective of the Canada Health Act is to "to protect, promote and restore the physical and mental well-being of residents of Canada and to facilitate reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers.” The previous Liberal government wrote to the provinces earlier this year to ensure Canadians could receive medically necessary healthcare without extra billing. Certainly Canadians should not be restricted from such care altogether.
There is also the risk that other provinces will follow Alberta’s lead in restricting medically necessary care for transgender and gender diverse youth. This issue seems to be the one provincial governments run to when they want to distract voters from problems with their governance. Therefore, we also propose your government appoint Federal Health Transfer Enforcement Officers & Federal Health Care Act Ministers to oversee compliance of the Canada Health Act in each province. Such officers and ministers would be tasked with ensuring Canadians are not denied treatments deemed medically necessary by their doctors by recommending and enforcing sanctions under the Canada Health Act when necessary.
A recent study shows that anti-transgender legislation causes up to a 72% increase in suicide attempts among transgender and gender diverse youth. As such, we call on you and your government to do all that it can to block such legislation from coming into force in Alberta and to ensure no other province enacts similar legislation. We need you and your government to speak out forcefully against this and other anti-2SLGBTQIA+ legislation in Canada.
Together, we are calling on the Government of Canada to:
People in Canada have long prided ourselves on our inclusivity and commitment to human rights. As we bear witness to these attacks on transgender and gender diverse youth, we ask you to act — and act decisively — to protect queer communities in Canada.
We hope you will join us in recognizing the urgency of this matter.
Sincerely,
(your name)