They were a hundred citizens in the pouring rain, Saturday, in front of Moncton City Hall. Their message: Policy 713 is essential to ensure the safety and well-being of young people from the community LGBTQ+ and should not be revised.
What is Policy 713?
Effective August 2020, Policy 713 (New window) establishes minimum requirements for public schools to be safe environments for all LGBTQ+ students. In particular, this policy ensures that students have the right to use the pronoun of their choice, such as he, She Or hey (for non-binary people), and the presence of a gender-neutral bathroom in all schools. It also ensures that parents are not automatically notified if their child uses a first name or pronoun that reflects their gender identity.
The demonstrators on the spot also challenged the recent refusal of the Ministry of Education to fund the group Pride in Education, an organization LGBTQ+ non-profit made up of educators who work in schools across the province.
This rally was organized by Moncton Rivière De Fierté. Many politicians were present, including Robert Gauvin, Benoît Bourque, Jacques LeBlanc, Richard Losier and Rob McKee.
Every child, every teenager and every person deserves a safe and welcoming environment where they can grow, learn and be themselves. Policy 713 represents a crucial step towards realizing this vision and should not be weakened.
said the MP for Moncton Centre, Rob McKee.
Other protests against the revised Policy 713 have taken place in recent weeks, including in Fredericton on May 14.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Mia Urquhart / CBC
June is International Pride Month. A flag-raising ceremony took place earlier in the day in the nearby city of Dieppe.
Parents want the status quo
The Francophone parents’ association of New Brunswick met in Pointe-Verte, in the Chaleur region, on Saturday. Among the concerns was the issue of Policy 713.
Éric Demers, member of the board of directors of the Association francophone des parents du Nouveau-Brunswick, says that the majority of this association wants the status quo on policy 713.
We believe that she does the job that she must do
he said. Yes, there may be improvements to be made, but you always have to bring these improvements upwards. Once again, it is a question of protecting these minorities.
Éric Demers argues that parents have reported an upsurge in cases of bullying at school and on social media since the beginning of the debates surrounding the review of policy 713. He deplores this situation.
Policy 713 at the heart of the AGM of RFNB
During the 16th AGM of the Regroupement féministe du Nouveau-Brunswick (RFNB), which also took place on Saturday, a special motion concerning policy 713 was adopted.
More than 40 members voted unanimously to support the protection of Policy 713 and to denounce the rise of anti-LGBTQ+ in the province.
It is very worrying to see that the government tolerates these discourses and gives them room to develop. 2SLGBTQIA+ communities are facing a bbacklash more and more organized
proclaims the president of the RFNBGeneviève L. Latour.
Geneviève Latour is the president of the board of directors of the Regroupement féministe du Nouveau-Brunswick.
Photo: Radio-Canada
THE RFNB urges the provincial government to make transparent all next steps related to the review of Policy 713, if it takes place.
In addition, several organizations LGBTQ+ in New Brunswick denounce the refusal, so far, of Minister Hogan to consult them on the changes to be made to policy 713.
The minister declined to comment. His team would not say who the minister consulted.
With information from Serge Bouchard and Marie Andrée Leblond
