International Women's Day 2025

In February of this year, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order, called "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports," that prohibited transgender athletes from participating in girls' and women's sports. Meant to be a continuation or extension of a previously signed executive order called, "Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government," this new order threatens to rescind funds from educational programs that "deny women an equal opportunity to participate in sports." In other words, educational programs that recognize transgender identities and expressions would find themselves devoid of federal funding.

With eyes on the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028, President Trump instructed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to declare emphatically to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) the stance of the host government, stating that "America categorically rejects transgender lunacy." Taking it to a further extreme, Secretary Rubio then issued a memo, directing American consulates and immigration offices to ban trans visa applicants under the Immigration and Nationality Act section 212(a)(6)(C)(i), or the “permanent fraud bar". This section of the Act may lead to a lifetime ban from the United States for fraud.

Today is International Women's Day. This is the day when we recognize, support and celebrate the contributions and attributes of all women. This year's United Nations theme for International Women's Day is "For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment." and the all-caps for ALL is not an accident. The purpose of this year's theme is to call for action to break barriers to equal rights and opportunities for anyone who identifies and expresses as a woman. Gender is a deeply personal definition that is not up to a third party to impose on an individual, and rights and freedoms should be available to everyone in equal measure, regardless of how they define themselves based on gender.

Gender-based violence is not just about physical violence, nor is it only about harm that may leave bruises or broken bones. Gender-based violence can be about bullying, harassment, or any barriers where harm is caused to individuals based on their gender identity or expression. Make no mistake about it: this executive order declaring a trans individual fraudulent and threatening a permanent ban on visas into the United States is nothing less than gender-based violence. To threaten a person with the possibility of not being able to see their families again if they refuse to deny their own gender expression is gender-based violence. Accusing someone of committing fraud unless they reject their own identity is gender-based violence. This abuse of power by misapplying legislation in order to further marginalize a specific gender group is gender-based violence. The American government is broadly and openly committing gender-based violence.

As the Critic for Intergovernmental Affairs, Women and Gender for the Green Party of Canada, I am obliged to speak out against this heinous and outrageous misrepresentation and misuse of the law to subjugate and punish individuals who have committed no crime, unless you consider embracing your identity and true self as a crime. I deliberately waited to post this statement on International Women's Day to demonstrate my readiness to support, recognize and amplify ALL who identify and express themselves as women, regardless of their biological label at birth. This is demeaning and degrading to women period. Not trans women, not cis women - women are women and deserve rights, equality and empowerment. On this day, International Women's Day, I ask everyone to recognize the gender-based violence for what it is and stand with me to uplift, support and empower all women everywhere.