Parents’ Bill of Rights
Passed in Saskatchewan on October 20th of this year, Bill 137, otherwise known as the Parents’ Bill of Rights, is and will continue to make an impact on those under the age of 16. Not only does the bill advocate for parents’ right to know what is being taught in the classroom, but, as stated by Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill, it is “an inclusionary policy that ensures that parents are at the forefront of every important decision in their child’s life.” At first glance, this may seem harmless, but when looking further into what this means for youth, it could very well have detrimental impacts.
Bill 137 requires that a teacher must inform the parent of any changes the child wishes to clarify about their gender identity (change of name, pronouns, etc.) and requires parental consent prior to seeing out the child’s wishes. Within the bill there is a section stating that no legal action or proceeding shall be brought against the government, school boards, independent schools, or employees of such. This means that if any harm should occur as a result of this bill, they are essentially denying legal responsibility.
For instance, let us say a child who comes from an abusive home discusses with a trusted teacher their wish to go by a different set of pronouns. Even if the teacher suspects abuse in the home, or has any reason as to why asking the child’s parent for consent (to refer to the child via different pronouns) may prove unsafe for the child, they are obligated to ask. This could bring about higher rates of child maltreatment while also creating a less supportive environment for that child as they now have less people to discuss these very personal matters with. Under this bill, given the child wants to keep this information from their parents, they also cannot tell any of their teachers, and must find a way to access someone bound by confidentiality. This could either be a school counsellor or a counsellor not affiliated with the school. In Saskatchewan, the counsellor does not have to inform the parents if they deem it appropriate to do so or if the child request their parents are not informed. As easy as it may be to make an appointment with a school counsellor, it is harder to keep private than just having a talk with your teacher. Especially in small towns, people talk. If a child talks to their teacher and their friend asks what they talked about it is easy to say, “Oh, just the assignment due tomorrow.” If a child makes an appointment with the guidance counsellor they have to walk to the office after possibly being called down on the intercom or being pulled out of class by a school employee, in front of their peers. All this to say, whether or not the counselling appointment is to talk about anything regarding gender identity, word can easily make its way back to the parents. This can then, in turn, cause suspicion and possibly escalate an already uncomfortable or unsafe home situation.
Following the passing of this bill in Saskatchewan the likelihood of a similar bill coming into place in Manitoba is increased. Furthermore, confidentiality between counsellors and their clients under the age of 16 may also be at risk in the future. Currently, if a child requests it, their parent(s) do not need to be informed that they are attending counselling and information about such will not reach the parents. But this could change. Naturally, if this changes for school counsellors, the next step for a child may be to find a private counsellor. However, many families do not have insurance and are not supportive of counselling, leaving their children in a significantly disadvantaged spot.
All of this is not to say that having parents be uninformed about what is happening inside their children’s school is bad, because it isn’t. Having informed parents is a fundamental part of encouraging their engagement in their children’s lives. Especially in these times, many children grow distanced from their parents as a result of different beliefs, parental over- and under-involvement, and a general lack of understanding of issues like mental health and gender identity, which may have been less stressed in the parents’ youth. All of these are reasons why it is currently important for children to have access to people they can talk to comfortably and confidentially. In an ideal world, this would be the parents, but that is not realistic, so there needs to be outside resources available for youths.
Taking all of this into account, what I would like to bring to light is that while it is important to encourage parental involvement, there are situations in which it is unsafe to inform a child’s parents of wishes to express their gender identity in a different way. While the bill does have some positive aspects, it also makes an already anxiety-inducing time in a child’s life more stressful, as they may need to go through more hoops in order to conserve their own mental health and wellbeing. While a parent should be supportive of their child in this time, some may become defensive and overly strict in an attempt to bring the child back to their beliefs. Parents need to be understanding of their children and provide a safe environment for them. It is not their job to agree with everything their children do, but it is their job to take care of them and raise them as best they can. Coming-of-age is a stressful time in itself - children do not know who they are and are desperately trying to find out. Why would anyone want to introduce legislation to complicate this?
References:
The information for this article came from the Saskatchewan government, CBC News, the Regina Leader Post article “Parents' rights bill wording anticipates harm, LGBTQ+ advocate says”, The Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association, and saskschoolsprivacy.com.