barbara findlay Q.C.
  • Home
  • About barbara
    • Awards and Honours
  • Services
    • Family Law >
      • Cohabitation Agreements
      • Poly families
      • Separation Agreements
      • Divorce
      • Adoptions
    • Donor Insemination Agreements
    • Immigration for Lesbians and Gay Men
    • Estates
    • Employment Law and Wrongful Dismissal
    • Equality and Human Rights >
      • Transgender Issues: a Work in Progress
    • What We Don't Do
  • Out/Law Legal Guides
  • Case Chronology
  • Unlearning Oppression
  • Blog
  • Resources
    • Articles
  • Contact

Vital Statistics Responds to Human Rights Complaint

11/10/2015

1 Comment

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 10, 2015

“The government claims the right to be wrong, knowing it is trans and intersex people who have to bear the burden of their mistake,” says Kori Doty, one of eight trans and intersex complainants in a human rights case to have birth certificates issued without “m” or “f”.

Yesterday, the BC government filed a response in the case of Cunningham v Vital Statistics Agency.  In their Response, the Ministry of Health is stating that putting gender markers on birth certificates, is not discriminatory.

"The government knows that the current system of designating gender at birth for a document that follows you throughout life is predictably incorrect for many trans and intersex people. The government knows exactly how much hardship and danger these systems can cause in our lives. It is thoroughly disappointing that they are choosing to ignore this, while fully aware of the risk of harm that this choice leaves on those impacted" says Doty.

Doctors assign the sex of a baby as “m” or “f” based on an inspection of the baby’s genitals at birth.  This assigned sex is recorded in the birth registry of the Vital Statistics Agency.  When a Birth Certificate is issued, it contains the gender marker “m” or “f”. Science now knows that one’s gender is determined by one’s innate sense of themselves.  That is called ‘gender identity’.  One’s gender identity may or may not “match” one’s genitalia. and one’s gender identity does not develop for years after birth. Some people have a gender identity that is neither “m” nor “f”.  Some people labelled “m” identify as female; and some labelled “f” identify as male.

So: the doctor assigning “m” or “f” is sometimes wrong.  

The birth certificate based on the doctor’s guess is also sometimes wrong.

Misgendering identity documents contributes to the severe mistreatment and discrimination that trans and intersex people experience.

“We’re not saying we want gender taken off all ID. What we are saying is that when you assign sex at birth, you will get it wrong in some of the cases. Until you can ask someone what their gender is, you cannot know it. Getting it wrong discriminates against trans and intersex people” says Felix Gilliland, one of the Complainants. The Complaints say that putting “m” or f” on birth certificates is a violation of privacy and inexcusably exposes trans and intersex people to harm.

Milan Halikowski, a 13 year old Complainant says “Having a gender marker on my birth certificate has directly impacted my life in a negative way. It has caused my exclusion and bullying in sports, school and in my daily life. I thought the government’s job was to help keep kids safe and the current policy puts us at risk.” 

The Complainants are now waiting on the BC Human Rights Tribunal to set a date for Hearing.

-30-

To Arrange Interviews contact:
barbara findlay, QC and Raquel Park - 604-251-4356
The Law Office of barbara findlay QC

​
20151110_for_immediate_release_final2.pdf
File Size: 126 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

1 Comment
cathie
11/10/2015 03:13:06 pm

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Subscribe to our blog

    Archives

    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    February 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012

    Categories

    All
    Aboriginal
    Access
    Accountability
    Adoption
    Aids
    Alberta
    Amnesty International
    Apology
    Appeal
    Assisted Human Reproduction Technology
    Bathrooms
    Birth Certificate
    Bisexual
    Board Of Education
    Breast Cancer
    British Columbia
    Broadcast
    Bullying
    Canadian Human Rights Tribunal
    Catholic
    Charter Of Rights
    Charter Of Values
    Child Protection
    Children
    Child Support
    Child Welfare
    Christian
    Citizenship
    Civil Rights
    Civil Union
    Coca Cola
    Colonialism
    Comedy
    Common Law
    Confidentiality
    Courts
    Criminal Law
    Custody
    Depilation
    Disability
    Discrimination
    Divorce
    Donor Insemination
    Education
    Egg Donor
    Egypt
    Employment
    Equality Rights
    Ethnic Origin
    Family Law
    Family Law Act
    Family Relations Act
    Federal Court
    Feminist
    First Nations
    Freedom Of Conscience
    Freedom Of Expression
    Freedom Of Religion
    Freedom Of Speech
    Gay
    Gay Straight Alliance
    Gender Expression
    Gender Identity
    Gender Marker
    Genderqueer
    Genetic
    Genetic Testing
    Greyson
    Harassment
    Harper
    Hate Speech
    Health
    Hiv
    Holocaust
    Homophobia
    Homosexual
    Homosexuality
    House Of Commons
    Human Rights
    Idaho
    Immigration
    International
    Intersex
    Jail
    Jewish
    John Baird
    Judge
    Kansas
    Kenya
    Kris Wells
    Kuwait
    Law
    Law Society Of Bc
    Law Society Of Ontario
    Leaflet
    Lesbian
    Loubani
    Malaysia
    Marriage
    Mary Bryson
    Medical Plan
    Minority
    Music
    Muslim
    Nepal
    Obama
    Ontario
    Pansexual
    Parenting
    Passport
    Power Of Attorney
    Prejudice
    Pride
    Prison
    Property
    Publication
    Public Opinion
    Quebec
    Queer
    Race
    Racism
    Rae Spoon
    Refugee
    Registered Domestic Partnership
    Religion
    Representation Agreement
    Reproductive Technology
    Research
    Retirement Home
    Russia
    Same Sex
    Same Sex Marriage
    Saskatchewan
    School
    Schools
    Seniors
    Sexism
    Sex Reassignment Surgery
    Sexual Assault
    Sexual Orientation
    Sharia Law
    Sikhism
    Slander
    Social Assistance
    South Carolina
    South Dakota
    Speaking Out
    Special General Meeting
    Sperm Donor
    Spousal Sponsorship
    Spousal Support
    Sun Dance
    Supreme Court Of Canada
    Surrogacy
    Surrogate Mother
    Tarek Loubani
    Tenancy
    Tennessee
    Three Parents
    Trans Alliance Society
    Transgender
    Transition
    Transsexual
    Trinity Western University
    Tweet
    TWU
    Uganda
    United States
    Viet Nam
    Visa
    Voice Therapy
    Washroom
    Wills

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photos used under Creative Commons from phalinn, quinn.anya, tedeytan, ToGa Wanderings, Jason Spaceman, Tim Reckmann | a59.de, Enokson, Abulic Monkey, Nina Matthews Photography, _DarkGuru_, Gribiche, whiteafrican, Sweet One, jk+too, Stephane Gaudry, DonkeyHotey, Moon Wolfe