Embedded Files
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Cabrillo Community College, Aptos
Art Photography & Media, Lesley Louden
December 2021
Measuring Social Change Regarding Trans Awareness, Trans-equality and Trans-rights, with a Focus on Trans Youth and Gender Creative Kids
How much Social Change regarding Trans Rights has been drive by Gender Creative Kids, if there has been any change?
How much Social Change regarding Trans Rights has been drive by Gender Creative Kids, if there has been any change?
Check out Gender Creative Kids' website by clicking on the button!
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Mission:
Gender Creative Kids’ mission is to advocate and fight for, empower and educate trans, non-binary, and gender-fluid youth. GCK also aims to be a provider of resources for families, schools, allies, and communities.
GCK is trying to eliminate transphobia that produces the systemic violence and discrimination endured by trans folks in the public, political, academic, familial, etc. spheres of life. They hope to spread awareness of the ins and outs of being transgender and/or nonbinary in our current cisheteropatriarchy.
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Who is Gender Creative Kids?
Who is Gender Creative Kids?
Gender Creative Kids (GCK) is an organization that started out in the summer of 2010. A group of four Canadian parents were concerned with the lack of community resources and support for trans and non- binary youth and their families. Loosely founded by Annie Pullen Sansfaçon, Akiko Asano, Katia Giannikakis, and Kimberley Manning, they wanted to build an innovative and safe structure for youth, especially their own children, to explore their gender identity freely. They also hoped to provide resources and support to families of questioning, trans, or non-binary youth as they accompany their children in this life.
GCK was furthered with the help of other parents after a social work action research project that ran from 2011 to 2013. In the midst, Sansfaçon and Manning organized the “National Workshop of Gender Creative Kids" conference as its first legitimate meeting in 2012. Shortly after in 2013, Gender Creative Kids was officially launched and became an immediate success for youths as well as parents and allies.
The website is very kid friendly and totally gender free/neutral. When one first opens it, most of the space is used for a moving visual. This visual consists of stylized humans with smiling heart-shaped faces and walking legs. These beings are not gendered in any way promoting gender neutrality and genderlessness. I really liked this visual because it’s so simple yet forces out an emotion of content and warmth. It also promotes the normality and naturality of gender queerness, equating it to cisgenderness.
GCK Confronts These Social Issues:
Trans-phobia: the fear, dislike, and ignorance of trans realities in our current world due to prejudice and stereotypes
Laws discriminating against and/or not protecting the lives, rights, and dignity of trans people
The resulting violent, inappropriate, or discriminating behavior and actions against trans youth and individuals
GCK Advocates For:
A safe and trans-affirmative environment in schools, homes, and the public for underage trans, non binary, gender queer, and gender questioning/curious youth (specifically in Quebec and the larger Canadian region)
The passing, implementation, and enforcement of policies improving the situation of trans individuals, especially trans youth
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Who is Gender Creative Kids For?
Who is Gender Creative Kids For?
The central audience of Gender Creative Kids (GCK) are trans and non-binary youth. GCK also attends to the needs and incorporates parents of children in the LGBTQ+ community. They are also targeting allies, especially those who believe in trans-rights and gender exploration.
GCK aims to help all trans, non-binary, and gender-fluid youth. They work to create a trans-affirmative and safe space for gender exploration in all spheres of life including school and family home . A trans-affirmative environment is one that acknowledges gender exploration and protects from discrimination based on gender and sexual identity. This kind of context promotes positive "gender health [which] is defined as a child's opportunity to live in the gender that feels most real or comfortable to that child and to express that gender with freedom from restriction, aspersion, or rejection" (Hidalgo).
Although this project focuses mainly on trans youth, any child can benefit from GCK’s work and is encouraged to explore how they present their gender identity to themselves as well as to the world. GCK wants to promote the non-enforcement of gender roles on children and destigmatize expressing their gender however they want to whether cisgender or transgender. The French name of the organization was actually recently changed from Enfants Transgenres Canada (Transgender Kids Canada) to Jeunes Identités Créatives (Gender Creative Kids) to be more inclusive of all youth affected by gender, gender identity, and gender norms/roles.
There is no explicit age limit on the website, however the association clearly states its focus is on trans youth. It is possible the legislation GCK fights for or against may benefit older trans people along the way. Additionally, the programs, activities, resources, service providers, events, conferences/committees, and support links provided by GCK mainly target youth but can be utilized by anyone of any age unless otherwise specified.
Gender Creative Kids' Advocacy
Gender Creative Kids' Advocacy
Their website is extremely interactive, includes extensive detail and explanation, and offers support for youth, parents, and allies!
GCK offers programs, activities and projects, educational/medical/legal/community/recreational resources, and service providers for therapy in the general Quebec and Canada areas. **
GCK also offers support meetings, trainings, committee works, and conferences that brings diverse individuals to work together to support trans youth. **
GCK encourages workers, members, and students to participate at governmental assemblies involving trans rights to protect them.
GCK also promotes attending gender related conferences, marches, demonstrations, and protests for trans and gender rights
** most of their support has moved online since the COVID-19 pandemic
Gender Creative Kids is still a charity based organization and relies on donations from individuals. GCK uses the donations to provide "art therapy workshops, meetings for parents, provide gender-affirming gear, educational tools, as well as to advocate for trans and non-binary youth in the public and media space."
CGK is an organization that encourages both activism and advocacy. Because their activism is relevant within the government (laws and policies), it is slow and takes a lot of time. To use their time with efficacy and to invite the public to help in any way they are comfortable with, CGK also advocates for trans-rights and LGBTQ+ awareness through trainings, programs, interactive or online activities, and attending conferences and governmental assemblies.
Please get involved and donate, if you are able, to any organization advocating for the LGBTQ+ community.
CGK often partners with organizations like Famijeunes and Pflag Canada, and its subsectipn Pflag Quebec.
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Changing Minds
Changing Minds
Gender Creative Kids is an organization trying to empower trans-youth and create a safe gender creative environment for children. It wants to do this especially within the government to counteract discriminatory, transphobic laws and implement fair and protecting policies in Quebec, Canada. These policies are often their own designed trans-affirmative policies that protect trans-rights.
In 2016, members of GCK testified at the Quebec National Assembly to ensure the implementation of Bill 103, one that would increase the fight against transphobia and further aid underage trans people. Many more came to help “raise awareness around trans children’s realities” (CGK).
However, changing or implementing policies may take extremely long. Because of this, GCK is also constantly trying to raise awareness to the extra attention required by trans-youth. To change legislation, GCK must also work to change the public's beliefs and attitudes regarding sexual and gender queerness amongst our normalized cisheteropatriarchy. They want to change attitudes to new, open ones that accept and provide equitably for LGBTQ+ youth.
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Changing Behaviors
Changing Behaviors
CGK encourages its members and other members of society to participate in governmental assemblies involving trans involving trans rights to protect them. They also encourage their members to show up at gender related conferences, marches and protests for trans and gender rights. Finally, they encourage to get involved in and donate to any organization advocating for the LGBTQ+ community. CGK often partners with organizations like Famijeunes and Pflag Montreal, organizations dedicated to support the LGBTQ+ community and young families. CGK has also collaborated with MU, an art organization, to paint a mural in Quebec.
Their website itself is extremely interactive with its extensive detail and explanation, and support for youth, parents, and allies!
TD (Toronto-Dominion) Bank and creative agency Ig2 got actively involved with CGK in 2017 to finalize a big project. They worked together to create Sam from The You Inside, “the first transgender educational tool," to help with demystification programs and trainings (CGK).
Measuring the Social Change since the launch of Gender Creative Kids
Measuring the Social Change since the launch of Gender Creative Kids
On top of providing resources, definitions, and knowledge for trans youth and allies which creates a trans-affirmative and safe space for gender exploration in all spheres of life, Gender Creative Kids is actively engaged in political decisions that affect transgender people, especially youth.
* Concepts and Ideas to Remember
The data in Canada on transgender people is scarce and oftentimes underrepresentative of many subgroups within the transgender community, especially among those who identify as women and those with disabilities.
“Advocates say transgender women are being left out of the conversation on violence against women,” due to being excluded from the very definition of ‘woman’ (Taylor, Brooke).
Until June of 2017 (after implementation of Bill C-16), Canada had no government statistics or “information about the rates of murder, violence, poverty, or homelessness faced by trans Canadians” because gender identity was not listed in the Criminal Code of Canada (Paling).
Because this happened post launch of CGK, there are not governmental statistics of HATE crimes against trans individuals since “acts of violence targeting trans people [weren’t] officially considered hate crimes” (Paling).
It is extremely important for conclusions about positive/negative social change to be kept at a minimum when viewing the data because the statistics, numbers, and graphs are most likely majorly under representative.
I will be including 3 baseline measurements prior to project publication in 2013, in Canada:
The measurement of Trans Murder Monitoring
The measurement of inclusivity in the government policy and public spaces regarding the LGBTQ+ community
The measurement of LGBTQ+ safety in the government policy and public spaces
Egale Canada is an organization focused on the advancement of equality for LGBTQ+ people. Prior to 2017 and governmental statistics, Egale organized the surveys and conclusions regarding the verbal, emotional, and physical violence against trans and nonbinary individuals. Their surveys and those of whom they partnered with are the reason Canadian advocates believed trans people faced higher rates of violence than other groups. This is why they will be used here to describe the trans social situation at the time of Gender Creative Kids' official launch in 2013.
There is very little information on the number of Canadian murders with anti-trans intentions, especially during the time before the government started recognizing hate crimes against trans and gender nonconforming individuals.
There are only three confirmed crimes against a trans person in Canada prior to and including 2013. One in 2008, 2012, and 2013.
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Inclusivity prior to 2013
Inclusivity prior to 2013
Inclusivity for LGBTQ+ individuals includes acceptance of name change and/or legal gender marker (sex) change, protection against hate crime and violence, equal treatment, and addressing the statistics regarding hate crimes against them.
The OECD's "The Road to LGBT Inclusion" Report reminds:
1977 - "Quebec became the first jurisdiction in the world to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation."
2005 - The Civil Marriage Act of 2005 opened equal access to civil marriage to couples of the same sex across Canada
**The image to the left represents LGBTQIA+ Flags and Symbols. These represent sexual identity, which has four components: biological sex, gender identity, social sex-role, and sexual orientation. It important to remember the difference between these.
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LGBTQ+ safety prior to 2013
LGBTQ+ safety prior to 2013
The 2007 U.S. Climate Survey reports on LGBTQ+ students:
Physical Harassment
44.1% for being LGBTQ+
30.4% for their gender expression
Severe Assault (punched, kicked, injured with a weapon)
22.1% for being LGBTQ+
14.2% for their gender expression
Any kind of physical assault for being LGBTQ+ : 66.2%
Any kind of physical assault b/c of gender expression: 44.6%
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LGBTQ+ students are six times more likely to experience verbal harassment about their sexual orientation than non-LGBTQ+ students (50.8% compared to 8.0%)
The 2007 McCreary Study found that in grades 7-12:
Verbal Harrasment for LGBTQ+:
61% of gay students (identifies as a boy)
66% of lesbian students (identifies as a girl)
Verbal Harrasmaent for non-LGBTQ+:
29% heterosexual boys
37% heterosexual girls
I will be including 3 baseline measurements post to project publication in 2013, in Canada:
The measurement of Trans Murder Monitoring
The measurement of inclusivity in the government policy and public spaces regarding the LGBTQ+ community
The measurement of LGBTQ+ safety in the government policy and public spaces
There is still little information on the number of Canadian murders with anti-trans intentions even after the government started recognizing hate crimes against trans and gender nonconforming individuals.
There are six confirmed crimes against a trans person in Canada post to 2013 and since. One in 2014 and 2015, and two in 2017 and 2019.
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Inclusivity post to 2013
Inclusivity post to 2013
Inclusivity for LGBTQ+ individuals includes acceptance of name change and/or legal gender marker (sex) change, protection against hate crime and violence, equal treatment, and addressing the statistics regarding hate crimes against them.
The OECD's "The Road to LGBT Inclusion" Report reminds:
2017 - "the Canadian Human Rights Act and Penal Code were amended in order to also explicitly protect transgender and intersex individuals against discrimination, hate crime and hate speech"
2019 - Canada introduced an ‘X’ option for ‘Another Gender’ on its passports, citizenship certificates, and permanent resident cards
The 2019 Being Safe, Being Me Survey reports:
66% of trans and nonbinary youth attend school (high school & university & vocational schools)
Of these:
59% feel like they are a part of their school
64% are happy with their school
84% feel their teachers treat them fairly
LGBTQ+ safety post to 2013
LGBTQ+ safety post to 2013
The 2016 Issue Brief on Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity by Egale reports :
Skipping School due to feeling unsafe there or on the way:
LGBTQ students - 30%+
non-LGBTQ students - 11%
Skipping School 10+ days b/c of feeling unsafe:
Trans students - 15%
LGB students - 5%
non-LGBTQ - 1%
TRANS Specific
TRANS Specific
The 2016 Issue Brief on Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity by Egale reports :
49% of trans students have been sexually harassed in school within the past year
37% of trans students have been physically harassed or assaulted because of their gender expression
(Saewya 2015)
(Saewya, 2015)
The 2019 Being Safe, Being Me Survey reports on Canadian youth:
75% feel safe at home
17% of Quebec trans youth live alone (highest percentage of any other Canadian province)
74% avoid "public washrooms for fear of being harassed, being seen as trans, or being outed."
43% did not get physical health care and 71% did not get mental health care because "they thought or hoped the concern would go away, that they were afraid of what the doctor would say or do, and that they had a previous negative experience."
Experienced Sexual Harassment:
Verbal - 63%
Physical Sexual - 34%
Sexual Abuse - 46%
Experienced Sexual Assault (form of Severe Assault):
2014 - 23%
2019 - 28%
Experienced Discrimination because of:
Sexual Orientation - 51%
Sex (legal gender marker) - 53%
Physical appearance - 45%
Canadian Trans & Non-Binary Youth Health Survey 2019 - Quebec Specific
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Conclusions
Has there been social change regarding the inclusivity and safety of trans youth? What does Gender Creative Kids have to do with it?
The creation of Gender Creative Kids in Quebec, Canada has been a positive win all around. Members show up to change or implement trans affirmative laws and at governmental assemblies to support trans rights. GCK also provide programs, resources, definitions, and inclusive language for trans youth, parents of trans youth, and allies. This activist and advocate organization work to create a trans-affirmative and safe space for gender exploration for youth in all spheres of life, starting in Quebec.
It is clear equality, justice, representation, and inclusivity in homes, government, schools, public places, etc. has majorly increased since the launch of Gender Creative Kids in 2013. Youths are more comfortable being their truer selves with family and friends and slowly, at school. There has been an increase in the passing of trans affirmative law and policies with the governmental sector such as name changes, marriage equality, and gender affirming surgeries and hormones for youth.
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However, a lot of the surveys, statistics, graphs, etc. show somewhat of an increase in the reported aggressive, inappropriate, and violent behavior against trans youth since the launch of Gender Creative Kids in 2013. There are two things to remember when witnessing this increase in reports:
The information available on LGBTQ+ individuals, especially trans, are majorly under representative and always have been, before and after 2013. This means the statistics and numbers shown here are likely much lower than the real amount cases of hate crimes against trans youth. Because many fear repercussions, they do not speak up on the discrimination, hate, disrespect, and abuse that they repeatedly experience. Trans phobia continues to be widespread systematically disabling trans individuals from speaking out.
It is crucial to address these issues even if the data is mostly inaccurate and majorly underrepresentative because the fact there is so little information on the high adversity trans people experience proves attention is needed. Having the numbers being (likely) lower in these surveys means they're probably HIGHER in reality!
Because of the increased inclusivity described above, it is expected that a higher amount of trans individuals would feel strong, comfortable, and safe enough to indicate their negative experiences causing an increase in the reported violent behavior trans individuals experience.
Therefore, it is unknown whether the increased amount of reported cases of aggressive, inappropriate, and violent behavior against trans youth since 2013 is because of an actual increase of crimes against trans youth or because of a higher number of individuals sharing their story. It could be either, both, or neither and it is almost impossible to know because of the such limited amount of information on trans, nonbinary, or gender nonconforming individuals, especially youth. In any case, it is still shocking how much inclusivity, safety, and empowerment trans youth still lack. Many are continually disrespected, harassed, assaulted, and discriminated against and having organizations like Gender Creative Kids supporting and protecting trans youth is crucial to change beliefs and attitudes, and create positive social change.
Works Cited:
Egale. “Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.” Global News, Egale - Canada Human Rights Trust, Apr. 2016, globalnews.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/issue-brief-violence-based-on-sexual-orientation-and-gender-identity.pdf.
Hidalgo, Marco A., et al. “The Gender Affirmative Model: What We Know and What We Aim to Learn.” Human Development, vol. 56, no. 5, 2013, pp. 285–90, https://doi.org/10.1159/000355235.
Kosciw, Joseph, et al. “The 2007 National School Climate Survey.” Glsen.org, Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), 2007, www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/2007%20National%20School%20Climate%20Survey%20Full%20Report.pdf.
OECD. “Over the Rainbow? The Road to LGBTI Inclusion.” OECD.org, The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), June 2020, www.oecd.org/canada/OECD-LGBTI-2020-Over-The-Rainbow-CANADA.pdf.
Paling, Emma. “Trans Canadians Face ‘Constant’ Threat of Violence, Studies Find.” HuffPost, HufPost Canada, 19 Nov. 2017, www.huffpost.com/archive/ca/entry/transgender-canadians-violence-transgender-day-of-remembrance_a_23282367.
Saewye, Elizabeth. “Being Safe, Being Me: Results of the Canadian Trans and Non-Binary Youth Health Survey.” Saravyc.ubc.ca, Stigma and Resilience Among Vulnerable Youth Centre (SARAVYC), 2019, apsc-saravyc.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2020/12/Being-Safe-Being-Me-2019_SARAVYC_ENG_1.2.pdf.
---. “Being Safe, Being Me: Results of the Canadian Trans Youth Health Survey.” Saravyc.ubc.ca, Stigma and Resilience Among Vulnerable Youth Centre (SARAVYC), 2015, saravyc.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2015/05/SARAVYC_Trans-Youth-Health-Report_EN_Final_Print.pdf.
---. “Not yet Equal: The Health of Lesbian, Gay, & Bisexual Youth in BC.” Mcs.bc.ca, McCreary Centre Society, 2007, www.mcs.bc.ca/pdf/not_yet_equal_web.pdf.
Taylor, Brooke. “Trans Women Often Excluded from Conversation on Violence against Women.” CTVNews, 23 Mar. 2021, www.ctvnews.ca/canada/trans-women-often-excluded-from-conversation-on-violence-against-women-1.5358719.
Taylor, Catherine, and Tracey Peter. Every Class in Every School: Final Report on the First National Climate Survey on Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia in Canadian Schools. Egale Canada Human Rights Trust, 2011, file:///home/angele/Downloads/Climate%20Survey%20EgaleFinalReport-WEBc%20(1).pdf.
Transrespect Versus Transphobia Worldwide. “TMM Absolute Numbers.” TvT, Transgender Europe (TGEU), transrespect.org/en/map/trans-murder-monitoring/?submap=tmm_2012.
Photo Credits:
Bormotova, N. (2019). LGBT movement of young people wearing sweaters with their gender pronouns - she, he, them [Online graphic]. In iStock.
Eytan, T. (2017). Dance Protest Celebrating Trans Youth, Washington, DC [Camera Photo online]. In Flickr.
Gender Creative Kids. (2014). GCK group with PFlag Canada. In GenderCreativeKids.com.
---. (2013). GCK logo. In GenderCreativeKids.com.
Julia. (n.d.). Sexual identity pride flags set, LGBT symbols. [Online image]. In Adobe Stock.
OECD. (2020a). Figure 1: Legal inclusion of LGBTI people in Canada has consistently been above the OECD average and this relative advantage has kept growing over the past decade [Online graph]. In OECD Report on LBGTI Inclusion.
OECD. (2020b). Figure 2: How Canada compares [Online graph]. In OECD Report on LBGTI Inclusion.
Stigma and Resilience Among Vulnerable Youth Centre (SARAVYC). (2019). Quebec Fact Sheet from the Canadian Trans and Non-binary Youth Survey | Stigma and Resilience Among Vulnerable Youth Centre (SARAVYC). Www.saravyc.ubc.ca. https://www.saravyc.ubc.ca/2020/03/26/quebec-fact-sheet-from-the-canadian-trans-and-non-binary-youth-survey/
Taylor and Peter. (2011a). Figure 3 Verbal Harassment (LGBTQ/non-LGBTQ students) [Online graph].
Taylor and Peter. (2011b). Figure 7 Other Forms of Harassment (LGBTQ/non-LGBTQ students) [Online graph].
Teaching Tolerance. (n.d.). The Gender Spectrum [Online graphic]. In Pinterest.
The Crime Report. (2021). First trans solidarity rally and march, Washington, DC [Online]. In TheCrimeReport.org.
Ulve, K. (2020). Creating a Trans-Inclusive Workplace [Graphic illustration]. In Harvard Business Review.
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