Competing protests sprouted up in cities and communities across Canada on Wednesday, as opposing groups loudly clashed on how schools address issues of gender identity and how teachers refer to transgender youth.
Another arrest was reported in Vancouver — where more than 1,000 people were present between the protests and counter-protests on Wednesday — but police did not immediately provide further details.
Some parents and socially conservative groups are protesting LGBTQ-inclusive education policies in the classroom and in extracurricular settings under the banner of parental rights. Critics and researchers say the term “parental rights” is a misnomer because it doesn’t address the concerns of LGBTQ parents or parents of LGBTQ children.
Policies emerging across the country, including in New Brunswick and Saskatchewan, that require young people to get parental consent before teachers can use their preferred first names and pronouns are at the heart of these protests. Those opposed to parental consent rules say the policies are a violation of children’s rights and that transgender youth should not be outed to their parents by teachers.
Protesters, counter-protesters line Wellington Street over LGBTQ rights in schools
Hundreds demonstrated in front of Parliament Hill in Ottawa Wednesday morning, one of several similar events across the country.
In Ottawa, thousands of people faced off in front of Parliament Hill and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh led a group of counter-protesters down Wellington Street. The street was closed in both directions between Elgin and Bank streets as over 1,000 people gathered for demonstrations.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his support for LGBTQ people across Canada, via a statement on X, the former Twitter.
“We strongly condemn this hate and its manifestations,” wrote Trudeau, who was in New York to speak at the UN Climate Ambition Summit.
Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe posted on X an expression of support for LGBTQ children, saying the protests “will only cause harm to youth who are looking for our support and acceptance.”
‘We need to talk to people’
In downtown Montreal, activist Celeste Trianon helped lead a counter-protest outside the offices of Quebec Premier François Legault.
Demonstrators from pro-SOGI (sexual orientation and gender identity) protests grab an anti-SOGI protester near his family in Vancouver on Wednesday. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
“Trans people — they exist in society and they deserve inclusion, just like everyone else,” Trianon said.
“We need to talk to people, teach them the right vocabulary, the proper words, at an age-appropriate time, in order to explain that inclusion is a good thing. We need to make sure that their trans and queer peers at school feel welcome.”
In the Ontario cities of Ottawa, Toronto and its surrounding areas, Kitchener and Guelph, local school boards issued statements expressing support for LGBTQ students, staff and families.
Protesters share why they’re participating in demonstrations over gender curriculum, sexual identity in schools
Protests and counter-protests took place across Canada Wednesday over elements of sexual education curriculums, including teaching about gender identity. CBC spoke to two demonstrators at Toronto’s Queen’s Park about why they got involved.
“We do not tell students who they should be, but welcome them as they are,” school officials with the Toronto District School Board said in a statement issued Tuesday.
In Hamilton, protesters marched from a local mall toward the headquarters of the local school board. Several hundred people, a total including both those involved in the protest and counter-protest, were present, according to CBC Hamilton.
The exterior of another school board in London, Ont., was a site where hundreds of protesters and counter-protesters appeared Wednesday. The Thames Valley District School Board said the events amounted to “a challenging and painful day for many, especially the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Thames Valley and across the nation.”
The board also said it did not support “the harmful rhetoric and threats of violence used by some demonstrators.”
In Calgary, police said more than 1,000 people were involved in protests and a fraction of that in related counter-protests, occurring Wednesday. In Edmonton, police estimated that 1,200 people were involved in local protests and counter-protests in the provincial capital.
In Yukon, dozens of protesters and several hundred counter-protesters stood on opposite sides of a street from one another in downtown Whitehorse on Wednesday.
Protesters face off on either side of the road in Edmonton, one supporting LGBTQ education in schools and the other against it. (Travis McEwan/CBC)
Heated arguments, locked doors
In St. John’s, Grand Falls-Windsor and Corner Brook, N.L., protesters gathered at government buildings and parking lots. These gatherings saw tears and heated back-and-forth arguments.
The Newfoundland and Labrador English School District advised teachers and employees not to engage with any protesters present on school property and to keep school doors locked.
On Prince Edward Island, protesters gathered in downtown Charlottetown, where counter-protesters also made their presence known. A CBC News crew reported seeing a handful of skirmishes during the day’s events — including an occasion in which a person was knocked to the ground, before being surrounded by a protective cordon of people holding and wearing rainbow symbols.
Aside from the scenes in Victoria and Vancouver on Wednesday, British Columbia also saw protests and counter-protests in Kamloops and Kelowna, where hundreds of people from both sides met outside the courthouse and city hall, respectively, carrying signs and shouting slogans. Protests also occurred in Prince George and Surrey, B.C.
The province does not have a specific sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) curriculum in schools but students in B.C. learn about human rights, respecting diversity and responding to discrimination.
B.C. human rights commissioner Kasari Govender issued a statement Tuesday saying she’s “disturbed by news of hate-fuelled marches” and said erasing trans people from school curricula amounts to hate.
Protesters march down Elgin Street in Ottawa as they demonstrate against sexual orientation and gender identity programs in schools on Wednesday. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)
John Rustad, the leader of the Conservative Party of B.C., issued a statement Wednesday in support of the rallies against “gender ideology” in schools, stating he would end the inclusion of SOGI materials in classrooms if elected.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim issued a statement Wednesday morning expressing solidarity with the LGBTQ community and condemning discrimination.
“Today, we are being confronted by ignorance and bigotry, and we must always call it out and stand with those who are impacted. We can never allow ourselves to let hate win the day,” Sim said.
“So, to all 2SLGBTQI+ individuals, know this: we see you and we value you.”
Protesters and counter-protesters are shown outside city hall in Halifax. (Robert Short/CBC)
In Fredericton, New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs — whose government helped spark the national debate about gender policies in schools — told reporters Wednesday that parents must be informed if their children are questioning their gender identity.
Alex Harris, a transgender student and advocate in Riverview, N.B., said the protests and discourse is creating a scary and dangerous situation for queer students.
“I have had more slurs yelled at me in the hallway since I have gone back to school this September than I ever have previously, and I have been out at school as part of the LGBTQ community for probably five years now,” Harris said.
While Harris’s own parents have been supportive after he came out as trans, he knows several students who are scared to do the same and some would be “at risk of physical abuse … or they would be kicked out [of their home] if they came out to their parents.”
Protesters and counter-protesters are shown in Charlottetown. (Alex McIsaac/CBC)
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season and 32nd overall, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Monday night.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist and Anze Kopitar and Kevin Fiala also scored. The Kings have won two of their last three.
Juuse Saros made 24 saves for the Predators. They are 1-2-1 in their last four.
Kopitar opened the scoring with 6:36 remaining in the opening period. Saros denied the Kings captain’s first shot, but Kopitar collected the rebound below the goal line and banked it off the netminder’s skate.
Fiala, a former Predator, made it 2-0 35 seconds into the third.
The Kings held Nashville to just three third-period shots on goal, the first coming with 3:55 remaining and Saros pulled for an extra attacker.
Elsewhere in the NHL on Monday:
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DEVILS 3 OILERS 0
EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career, helping the New Jersey Devils close their western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored. The Devils improved to 8-5-2. They have won three of their last four after a four-game skid.
Calvin Pickard made 13 saves for Edmonton. The Oilers had won two straight.
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