Counter protestors met the other group at city hall and again on the way to the school division office. (Susan McNeil/paNOW Staff)

By Susan McNeil

Pronoun rallies

Year in Review: Local rallies target provincial ban on pronoun choice

Dec 31, 2023 | 5:00 PM

As 2023 draws to a close, paNOW is taking a look back on the most important and impactful stories of the year, as selected by our reporters and editorial staff.

Prince Albert was no exception when it came to resistance against a decision by the province to ban allowing youth under 16 from choosing their own name or preferred pronouns.

Rallies for and against the ban happened in Prince Albert, including one at a fundraiser dinner held by the Sask. Party at the Exhibition Centre.

Organizer Troy Parenteau said Premier Scott Moe miscalculated the reaction to the decision.

“It’s not going to go away,” said Parenteau. “I think one thing he under-estimated is that the people who actually have teeth in the game – the people he didn’t actually consult with – they’re the ones out here tonight and they’re the ones talking.”

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The Moe government was invested enough in the issue that it recalled the Legislature early in order to enact the ban before school started and used the notwithstanding clause of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in order to skirt the rights of youth to self-expression.

READ MORE: Anti-SOGI protests come to Prince Albert

The changes prevent any youth under 16 from using the name of their choice or their preferred pronouns without parental consent.

Advocates responded that forcing trans youth to remain in the closet or alternatively, forcing themselves to out themselves before they are ready would cause real harm.

Critics also said that the speed with which the legislation was created and enacted was concerning.

Months earlier, controversy erupted in Southern Saskatchewan when a student accessed documents from a Planned Parenthood educator in Lumsden with sexual health messages.

Education Minister Dustin Duncan acted on what turned out to be 18 letters from concerned people and banned Planned Parenthood from being part of sexual health education anywhere in Saskatchewan, despite significant concern over the long-term impacts of the decision.

A legal challenge from UR Pride followed and is still ongoing and the provincial Human Rights Commissioner resigned.

In November, Moe said it would be left to school boards to discipline teachers or school staff who do not follow the new rules.

In Prince Albert, a walk was held to protest SOGI with participants holding signs that read “Hands off our Children” and “Teach geography not pornography”.

SOGI is a curriculum that emphasizes teaching in a manner that all children feel included and is particularly aimed at sexual orientation and gender identity.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com