Gender Affirming Care

From: John Ames Birch Sent: Friday, May 14, 2021 4:52:50 PM To: justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca <justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca>; Chrystia.Freeland@parl.gc.ca <Chrystia.Freeland@parl.gc.ca>; dujarric@un.org <dujarric@un.org>; antonio.ferrari@un.org <antonio.ferrari@un.org>; Rota, Anthony - Riding 1 <Anthony.Rota.C1@parl.gc.ca>; ANKRA-Consular@international.gc.ca <ANKRA-Consular@international.gc.ca>; accredit@gov.ru <accredit@gov.ru>; actso@naacpnet.org <actso@naacpnet.org>; Naacp <washingtonbureau@naacpnet.org>; america@aljazeera.net <america@aljazeera.net>; Blanchet, Yves-François - Député <Yves-Francois.Blanchet@parl.gc.ca>; beril.aktas@hurriyet.com.tr <beril.aktas@hurriyet.com.tr>; Kate Brown For Oregon Information <info@katebrownfororegon.com>; bgantz@knesset.gov.il <bgantz@knesset.gov.il>; contact.nbcnews@nbcuni.com <contact.nbcnews@nbcuni.com>; ctvottawa@ctv.ca <ctvottawa@ctv.ca>; correspondence@council.nyc.gov <correspondence@council.nyc.gov>; contactus@newfoundlandlabrador.com <contactus@newfoundlandlabrador.com>; dir_enq@cso.gov.hk <dir_enq@cso.gov.hk>; doug.fordco@pc.ola.org <doug.fordco@pc.ola.org>; david.penberthy@news.com.au <david.penberthy@news.com.au>; dan@jpost.com <dan@jpost.com>; English@mail.gov.cn <English@mail.gov.cn>; education@nasa.gov <education@nasa.gov>; edumitru@amnesty.ca <edumitru@amnesty.ca>; edpubs@edpubs.ed.gov <edpubs@edpubs.ed.gov>; Francois-Philippe.Champagne@parl.gc.ca <Francois-Philippe.Champagne@parl.gc.ca>; Francois.Legault.ASSO@assnat.qc.ca <Francois.Legault.ASSO@assnat.qc.ca>; fkalmbach@theadvocate.com <fkalmbach@theadvocate.com>; FEMA-News-Desk@fema.dhs.gov <FEMA-News-Desk@fema.dhs.gov>; Fisher, Gordon <gfisher@postmedia.com>; GlobalOttawa@globalnews.ca <GlobalOttawa@globalnews.ca>; govsec@nanoq.gl <govsec@nanoq.gl>; govpress@la.gov <govpress@la.gov>; HaveYourSay <haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk>; harjit.sajjan@parl.gc.ca <harjit.sajjan@parl.gc.ca>; Garneau, Marc - Député <marc.garneau@parl.gc.ca>; health@ctv.ca <health@ctv.ca>; info@bnn.ca <info@bnn.ca>; Info@hc-sc.gc.ca <Info@hc-sc.gc.ca>; Info@PMOindia.gov.in <Info@PMOindia.gov.in>; jedmiston@nationalpost.com <jedmiston@nationalpost.com>; Jagmeet.Singh@parl.gc.ca <Jagmeet.Singh@parl.gc.ca>; jason.kenney@parl.gc.ca <jason.kenney@parl.gc.ca>; jsavikataaq@gov.nu.ca <jsavikataaq@gov.nu.ca>; kdundar@hdn.com.tr <kdundar@hdn.com.tr>; Kate Brown For Oregon Information <info@katebrownfororegon.com>; KathyCrawford@house.mi.gov <KathyCrawford@house.mi.gov>; letters@jpost.com <letters@jpost.com>; letters@theaustralian.com.au <letters@theaustralian.com.au>; letters@lasvegassun.com <letters@lasvegassun.com>; letters@lasvegassun.com <letters@lasvegassun.com>; lansing@mlive.com <lansing@mlive.com>; media@sputniknews.com <media@sputniknews.com>; media@gatesfoundation.org <media@gatesfoundation.org>; minister.edu@ontario.ca <minister.edu@ontario.ca>; matt.eldredge@kolotv.com <matt.eldredge@kolotv.com>; news@skynews.com <news@skynews.com>; nytnews@nytimes.com <nytnews@nytimes.com>; newsonline@ctv.ca <newsonline@ctv.ca>; news@thelocal.se <news@thelocal.se>; News@KelownaNow.com <News@KelownaNow.com>; Oprah@oprah.com <Oprah@oprah.com>; osd.pentagonpressbadges@mail.mil <osd.pentagonpressbadges@mail.mil>; online@theaustralian.com.au <online@theaustralian.com.au>; premier@gov.pe.ca <premier@gov.pe.ca>; pm_eng@pmo.gov.il <pm_eng@pmo.gov.il>; Robert.g.daniels@cbp.dhs.gov <Robert.g.daniels@cbp.dhs.gov>; Sky.Today <Sky.Today@sky.uk>; Secretary@HHS.gov <Secretary@HHS.gov>; submit@calgaryherald.com <submit@calgaryherald.com>; tips@GlobalTVBC.com <tips@GlobalTVBC.com>; tracy.mcphee@gov.yk.ca <tracy.mcphee@gov.yk.ca>; media@aclu.org <media@aclu.org> Cc: aclupreferences@aclu.org <aclupreferences@aclu.org> Subject: Gender Affirming Care (Opinion)

Hey everyone, I was reading a story about how Arkansas has passed a law prohibiting Gender affirming care for youth. The story talked about how some who are in the middle of their transition might need to move out of state to continue their journey of self discovery. Identity is not something that anyone gets a say in, this is a personal journey of self discovery not a collective one. Every year trans children take their own lives because they fear other peoples hate, this is wrong. They claim this bill is to protect their children from harm when it only protects them from their fear of the unknown. They cannot understand gender or identity so they hide their fear behind what they claim is protection. In reality by preventing them from realizing who they are you are in fact causing more harm then good. People are complex, we are more then some word or statement. Gender is a spectrum not a simple equation of two. No one is fully Male or fully female but we all fall on different point of the spectrum. For me I am more feminine at times and other days I'm masculine, I'm still figuring out who I am because I was never given the chance to early on. Think about gender for a second and our rigid system of one or the other. Are you telking me that you have formulated your identity off words that were defined for you. Limiting your potential to a series or dos and do nots. Using that word to define you regardless it fits or not. Growing up I was bombarded with slogans and suppositions about my potential before I could even realize it myself. Being limited by this outdated definition of who I was supposed to be, how I was supposed to dress and what I was supposed to look like. Told I couldn't be a nurse, a teacher or a caregiver because I was a male. Told that men do this and do that but never this. Having my potential squeezed and conformed to a word that never truly fit who I was. This is a danger to us as a society as it limits our potential. It is in essence censorship of the soul, it is wrong. Our soul determines who we are not biology and certainly not some word and outdated persona that limits the potential of our people. I know this censorship comes from a place of fear but there is nothing to fear from trans people. Please I beg of you to search your souls to find the truth of the human condition. We are more than some word or definition and identity will always take precidence over biology. I behoove you, please rethink this bill and stand proud in your identity. In the interim I feel an injunction should be allowed to continue gender affirming care for those already in transition until this bill can be reviewed in its entirety. Trans rights are human rights, period. All for one and one for all. Stay safe, stay sanitized and stay supportive, John Ames Birch @johneames2