April 16th, 2026

Coming Up Next Week!

IRCC response to the Manitoba Ombudsman Office's claim that IRCC advised them to restrict legal name changes for immigrants.


April 9th, 2026

Full Episode Download

Dallas Denny presents "Ariadne Kane: Unsung Pioneer"

Elvis Bakaitis presents "The Philanthropic Activism of Reed Erickson"


Events:

📆 Saturday April 11th 🕑 2:30-6:30pm

 📍 Mount Pleasant Neighbourhood House, 

800 East Broadway


Featuring:

✂️ Haircuts

👚 Clothing Swap

🌱 Tiny Terrarium Making

🎨 Craft Station

🩵 CWHWC

🏳️‍🌈 Queer Inclusion


Weekly News Rundown

Court hearings in the murder trial of Korey Muskett continued this week for the murder of local trans person Markella Roasa (they/she) on November 28th, 2025.  

Months after Muskett's arrest and initial appearances, disclosures from the crown continue. 


Next hearing is April 30th for a pre-trial inquiry, where we may find out whether VPD informed prosecutors that they suspected this murder was a hate crime (or not) or whether Muskett was known to harass trans people in the Downtown East Side, as is being reported by DTES community members.


BC Premier David Eby has said that his bill to suspend the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act will be a confidence vote. 


The BC NDP have a single seat majority and 3 First Nations MLAs, one of whom has called Eby's desire to suspend DIRPA to be an "absolute betrayal" 


The BC Conservative Party has stated their MLAs will vote against the suspension and will only vote for a repeal. The Green Party pulled out of a governing accord with the BC NDP in February.


If a confidence vote fails, the government collapses and sends BC to an election.


Jas Johal reports on BC political party finances 

Total Political Contributions raised in 2025

NDP $3,986,941.28

Conservative Party $2,346,337.59

OneBC - $178,338


Reported Assets minus Liabilities

NDP - $5,470,987

Conservative Party -$1,571,447 (negative as a result of a large loan taken out under Rustad)

OneBC - $142,497


Wednesday, April 8th - The BC Conservative Party leadership debate was hosted. 


One question was whether candidates would follow in Alberta's footsteps and ban transition for trans youth, every candidate agreed, holding up signs with “yes” printed on them. 


BC Conservative leadership hopeful Caroline Elliot did not attend the debate, but the substack that she founded features a piece from Dr. Roy Eappen, the doctor cited in Alberta's announcement for conversion therapy centres for trans youth.


The debate is pretty much what you expected, most candidates vow to abolish the BC Human Rights Tribunal entirely, Parental rights - just not for affirming parents and even a portion of the evening on making sure the BC conservative party stay conservative and doesn’t turn into a BC liberal party 2.0


Fundraising emails went out this week from BC Conservative leadership hopefuls targeting grandparents opposed to their grandchildren transitioning. 


In maybe the only bit of good news for trans people in BC political news this week, BC Conservative hardliner Yuri Fulmer who has previously stated he wants to repeal SOGI and  trans people from appropriate bathrooms reported that his survey showed “64% of Conservatives agreed” he won the debate. 


Who was given access to the survey? It appears it was only sent to his email list and he had 868 responses. 


Yuri joins Dallas Brodie for a town hall - Sunday April 12th 3pm at the George Preston Recreation Centre, 20699 42nd Ave in Langley Township. 

The usual local anti trans activists are expected to show up.


The Alberta United Conservative Party are claiming this bill would restrict youth (those 15 years of age and younger) access to "sexually graphic images" in public libraries. The UCP claims this is not a book ban and parents could grant access to books. 


In fact, the bill does not specify "sexually graphic images", include the age or mention anything about parental consent - everything is left to regulation. 


Section 40 is amended by adding the following after clause (b): (b.1) respecting the access to and the use and borrowing of public library property by members of the public, including regulations restricting access, use and borrowing based on age;  NOTE: (3) Adds regulation-making authority. 


The text of the bill allows any book or class of books for any age to be "restricted" and using the powers granted by this bill could arbitrarily set the age limit to 90 


As powers are left entirely to regulation without any restrictions in the bill, no hearing, no debate in the legislature will take place before whatever orders are passed. 


The UCP's initial book ban in public schools targeted any 2SLGBTQIA+ content and books such as The Handmaid's Tale and The Color Purple. The government later retracted this to "graphic" depictions 


Notably, the UCP's official statement on the bill makes no mention of the specifics, they only gave details to the media, but left themselves the ability to put in place far more harsh restrictions based solely on the opinion of the Minister. 


Worryingly, it appears no major media outlet actually read the text of the bill before taking the UCP's statements at face value and publishing stories that uncritically parrot the UCP's statements. 


Prime Minister Mark Carney has welcomed MP Marilyn Gladu to the liberal party after she crossed the aisle from the conservatives. 


MP Gladu has a long history, ranging from;

“There are many people in this country who do not believe that a transgendered lifestyle is God's plan or that it is medically beneficial"


MP Gladu is Chair of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women.


In the UK, official government psychology textbooks are now promoting conversion therapy for trans people. They use examples - from 1974 - of trans people who were “cured” but predictably leave out that the trans person used as part of their example committed suicide after their “care”


For the moment, UK textbooks are still not promoting exorcisms to "cure" trans people even if that paper was published several years after the example they use.




April 2nd, 2026

Full Episode Download


Weekly News Rundown

Manitoba is denying a trans refugee's request for name change because it won't accept her ID


Martha Hozha appealed the denial to the Manitoba Ombudsman, who issued a decision this week stating that it would allow the name change ban to continue because "provincial officials were advised by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada that changing names based on refugee protection ID could create opportunities for people to commit fraud" 


Lenny Emson, director of development with KyivPride Canada says the issue is broader and that he's seen similar cases to Hozha's in Ontario. "with changes in immigration policy and long wait times for processing, there's no guarantee Hozha will get the documentation she needs any time soon."



Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi mocked the bill.

"This government with its $9.4-billion deficit, its inability to spend any money correctly, is now building a team of library inspectors . . . Can you imagine? What do they wear? What are their uniforms? Do they read every book? Are they librarians? . . . it's taking away the ability of people to make their own decisions. . . This government doesn't believe in human rights," he added. "It believes in dictating what people read, what people see, what people think."

Another one of Armstrong's "Thursday Bills", the "Transparency of Advocacy Organizations Act" was tabled and passed first reading with a voice vote. No "Nays" were heard in the legislature, a marked departure from the response to MLA Armstrong's previous bills.  


Bill M-240 is explicitly ideological.


"advocacy organization" means a corporation, society, partnership, trust or other organization, whether incorporated or unincorporated and whether operated for profit or not, that


(a) provides public education, advocacy or public communications in the Province, or communicates with or attempts to influence a government body or public office holder, in relation to

(i) 2SLGBTQIA+ identities, communities or interests,

(ii) Indigenous peoples or the rights of Indigenous peoples,

(iii) environmental protection or conservation,

(iv) drug use or harm reduction, homelessness or poverty, or

(v) any other issue or category of issues prescribed by regulation, or


(b) provides financial or material support to an entity that carries out an activity described in paragraph (a) where the value of that support in a fiscal year equals or exceeds the lesser of

(i) $10 000, or

(ii) 10% of the supporting organization's total annual revenue;


Bill M-240 is also "cleverly" designed to force these organizations off social media by requiring requiring a long string of text and a hyperlink on "any" social media pages, it just doesn't fit on most platforms.


Whether this is a lack of understanding of social media or a deliberate attempt to require something that is impossible is unknown. 


Bill M240 will face second reading in the legislature on Monday April 13th, 2026

Hansard