LGBTQ Discrimination in British Columbia School Systems

Introduction

Definition of LGBTQ

LGBTQ is an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans/transgender/transsexual, queer or questioning. It is not a term used world wide and is a historically and cultural specific term that is used to identify sexual difference. The use of this term is to label sexual and gender identities and is very recent and has evolved from the gain of homosexuality rights.

Summary of LGBTQ Rights in Canada

There has been many changes across Canada concerning LGBT equality rights, in 1978 the majority of provinces and territories included sexual orientation to their Human Rights Codes. Below are some of the most significant dates concerning Canadian government bills and court decisions affecting federal laws:

Federal

1969: Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau states that "there is no place for the State in the bedrooms of the nation". This lead to Bill C-150 that decriminalized "gross indecency" and "buggery", if it was between two consenting adults over the age of 21.

1977: Changes to the Immigration Act to allow homosexuals to immigrate to Canada, which previously had been

1992: Parliament remove the barring against lesbians, gays and bisexuals serving in the military.

1996: Parliament made changes to the Canadian Human Rights Act, prohibiting the discrimination based on sexual orientation.

1996: Adoption act came into place enabling same-sex couples to be able to apply for adoption for the first time in Canada.

2001: The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was passed. It allowed the law to consider "common-law partners", including same-sex couples as members of the family class. Therefore same-sex partner of an LGBT Canadian can now immigrate to Canada.

Summary of LGBTQ Rights British Columbia

1992: BC changes its Human Rights legislation to include sexual orientation as a being prohibited from discrimination, including the workplace, medical benefits and government employees.

1997: BC altered the definition of "spouse" to accord the same custody, support rights and responsibilities to same-sex couples, as those of heterosexual couples in the Family Relations Act and the Family Maintenance Enforcement Act.

1998: BC became the first province to legislate pension benefits for same-sex partners for the public sector employees.

2000: Health Care (Consent) and Care Facility (Admission) Act granted lesbians, gays, bisexuals to make medical decision on behalf of a same-sex partner who is incapacitated.

2002: The final decision regarding the case of BC College of Teachers vs. Trinity Western University was released by the Supreme Court of Canada. Previously the Bc College of Teachers did not approved the private evangelical school's teacher training program because it required that students sign an anti-homosexual document. The Supreme Court of Canada eventually approved the program, stating that the graduates from the university are allowed to have their "sexist,racist or homophobic beliefs", but could not act on them.

2002: In the case of Chamberlain et al v. Surrey School board, in April 1997 the school board had prohibited the use of three children's books because they had topics concerning same-sex parents. The Supreme court made various decision along the years and ultimately resolved in December 2002 that the school board had been in the wrong to ban those books because of the use of same-sex content.

2007: Azmi Jubran was a victim of anti-gay bullying at the Handsworth Secondary School in North Vancouver and filed a complaint against the school that failed to protect him from the bullying. British Columbia's highest court overturned the lower court ruling that claimed that he could not sue the school because he was straight. The B.C. Court of Appeal stated that Handsworth Secondary School failed to stop the homophobic bullying from other students and Azmi was awarded a $4,500 set by human rights tribunal. It was also ruled that the North Vancouver School Board would pay for all his legal costs.

Discrimination in British Columbia Education Systems

LGBTQ rights has been a constant struggle throughout Canadian history and this is no exception today. Even with the legislations and bills put in place in British Columbia's history there is still constant discrimination, especially for youth.

Trinity Western University has been the subject of controversy and criticism as several former TWU graduates have come forward to share their experiences of the intolerance they experiences because of their LGBTQ identities. TWU is a school that claims to be driven to develop "Godly Christian Leaders", and to create an environment of "inspiring hearts and minds". However it seems that the exception to this is if the alumni identifies as or is in a non-heterosexual relationship.

Experience of Ashlee Davison

Ashlee contributed to TWU's first Canadian university championship in women's soccer but lost her scholarship and put "behavioural probation" because she was under investigation for being in a relationship with another woman. According to the university she broke the "community covenant agreement" that forbids "sexual intimacy that violates the sacredness of marriage between a man and a woman".

When Davison was disciplined for her non-heterosexual relationship, she remembers that the emphasis was made on figuring out that "the right way to be was with a guy" and not necessarily that she broke the schools covenant. She was eventually allowed to continue being a part of her soccer team but this experience altered how she was viewed.

Davison makes a good point that "if [TWU] is going to claim to be a diverse university, which they have several times in their posting online...then let's work to make the campus more inclusive".

Experience of Megan Jespersen

Megan lived with a secret for three years during her time at TWU, she was in a lesbian relationship were she constantly felt shame and fear of being outed. At some point she states that she "hated her heart", and many times she tried to "pray the gay away", because she felt betrayed by her feelings over her religious upbringing and beliefs. Megan also describe the attitude towards homosexuality at TWU as being intolerant, they considered Gay as a verb because it was not a fixed identity but a choice that can be controlled.

Response

Despite this uproar from courts and the media, there are still many Christian elementary and high schools that quietly share the same discriminating beliefs as TWU. This is because they are are part of the Society of Christian Schools in B.C. (SCSBC) and Canadian legal procedure protects the rights of religious schools to create their own policies.

While TWU administration is taking the recent storied from LGBTQ students seriously and willing to listen, their website still upholds the view that a relationship (and any sexual acts) should be between a married man and women.

References

1. Browne, Kath. "LGBTQ." Encyclopedia of Women in Today's World the Multimedia Encyclopedia of Women in Today's World. Ed. Catherine J. Nash. N.p.: Sage Publications, 2011. 1-6. Sage Knowledge. Web.

2. Lindsay, Bethany. "A University's Queer Covenant: Is TWU Controlling a Culture of Shame?" The Province. N.p., 27 Nov. 2016. Web.

3. "TIMELINE Same-sex Rights in Canada." CBC News Canada. N.p., 25 May 2015. Web.

4. "A Chronology of Advances in LGBT Rights in Canada, and in BC." BCTF100. BC Teachers Federation, n.d. Web.