Poilievre’s comments on trans people show he is taking cues from far-right and PPC factions, observers say
One Tory insider says while the vast majority of conservatives might agree with him, Poilievre risks coming off as ‘uncaring,’ and that’s a ‘dangerous part of his persona.’
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s remarks last week that trans women—or, as he described them, “biological males”—should be banned from women’s spaces such as changerooms, bathrooms, and women’s sport demonstrate that Poilievre continues to take cues from factions of the far right, observers say.
“I think he’s very much aligned with those groups of voters. That’s who he is. He wants those people because they’re his people,” said a senior Conservative insider, whom The Hill Times agreed not to identify so they could give their candid opinion.
“I think it’s risky because it could turn off a lot of centrist voters,” they said. “I think there is some arrogance setting in. [The Conservatives are] taking big risks right now to keep the far right happy. Maybe they don’t need to be doing that, or shouldn’t be doing that.”
Evan Balgord, the executive director of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, said he can draw a link between factions of the far right—including Christian nationalists, and folks involved in and supportive of far-right movements like the Freedom Convoy, the yellow vests movement, and the People’s Party of Canada—and the anti-trans rhetoric now being employed by Poilievre (Carleton, Ont.).
“There’s an open door, it seems, between some people in the Conservative Party and some people who are part of this far-right movement that is targeting any education that sends the message that it’s OK to be queer,” Balgord told
The Hill Times.
Anti-trans rhetoric and policy has been growing in Canada in recent months, and has entered mainstream Conservative circles.
The conservative governments of Saskatchewan and New Brunswick implemented new gender pronoun policies requiring schools to notify parents if a child wants to change their pronouns or the name they go by in class.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith recently announced her government’s intention to legislate restrictions on health care for trans kids under the age of 18, including a blanket ban on gender-affirming surgeries for youth under age 17, and a ban on hormonal treatment and puberty blockers for children 15 years old and younger. “Bottom” surgery is already not offered to children under the age of 18, and “top” surgery was only offered to those aged 16 and older, and only with parental consent.
“Female spaces should be exclusively for females, not for biological males. You asked if I would introduce legislation on that. A lot of the spaces you described are provincially and municipally controlled,” Poilievre said during a Feb. 21 press conference in Kitchener, Ont. “So, it is unclear … what reach federal legislation would have to change them. But obviously female sports, female changerooms, female bathrooms should be for females, not for biological males.”
Balgord said there is a clear link between how similar discussions have played out amongst conservatives in the United States, and the discourse now in Canada.
“Conservatives really have to do some soul searching and decide whether they want to play politics around this kind of an issue, whether they want to embrace the darkest parts of their base and play with this material, because it’s dangerous stuff,” Balgord said.
Fae Johnstone, a trans woman and advocate for her community, also said she sees Poilievre wading into this debate as a way to connect with his social conservative base.
Poilievre had a lightning rod to connect with social conservatives and far-right supporters when the pandemic was still an overarching presence in Canadian politics. But now, two years after the Freedom Convoy left Ottawa, he might be looking for other ways to signal to them that he is still their guy, Johnstone said.
“It’s very clear that Poilievre’s approach in the upcoming election is going to be channeling the anger of the public,” Johnstone said. “He needs the social issues to keep his base riled up, and I think these are opportunities for him to lean in further to spread that anger and that division.”
Johnstone said Poilievre’s remarks, which he made in response to a question from David Menzies of the far-right organization
Rebel News, did not come out of the blue.
“Social conservatives have been waiting for their moment, and they’ve been planning and strategizing on how to get here,” Johnstone said.
Trans rights activist Fae Johnstone says ‘social conservatives have been … planning and strategizing on how to get here.’
Johnstone and Balgord pointed to an ecosystem of right-wing groups that are aligned on this issue. Balgord said he has seen some of the same people from the Freedom Convoy at protests for so-called “parental rights”—demands for parents to have control of their child’s decisions and education around their gender and sexual identity.
Anti-trans rhetoric is something that’s seen in social conservative and Christian nationalist circles, where any sort of sex education at all—even when it’s done for the purpose of protecting kids against sexual abuse, giving them the tools to understand when something they are experiencing is wrong, and to seek help—is seen as morally wrong, Balgord said.
It’s also an issue that’s been taken up by far-right influencers like Andrew Tate and Jordan Peterson, Johnstone said, who are “breaking new ground, or new rhetorical space,” for this discussion as they help bring it into the mainstream.
“After the lockdowns lifted, they needed a new issue, and I think they latched onto trans issues as a wedge to help them stay relevant, and also to further their social conservative goals, which are restrictions on women’s rights, restrictions on the rights and dignity of queer and trans people,” Johnstone said.
These restrictions, as Johnstone and Balgord both noted, are “dangerous.”
Johnstone said her message to the current government and anyone trying to protect trans rights: “Don’t underestimate this.”
She said Poilievre’s remarks, as well as policies like Alberta’s, open the door for American-style moral panics to take hold in Canada.
“It leads to America, where we have [former president Donald] Trump, where we have queer and trans people’s rights being restricted. Where bomb threats are coming into children’s hospitals, and drag events have to have bodyguards out front. That is where this gets to, and everyone is underestimating the fight,” she said.
Political observers divided over how issue will be received by Canadians
Liberal and Conservative politicos each think their own perspective on the status of trans people in society is shared by the majority of Canadians.
Anthony Koch, who was a spokesperson for Poilievre during his leadership campaign,
said on X (formerly Twitter) on Feb. 21 that “anyone who thinks this [Poilievre’s position on trans women] is a losing position is simply out of touch with what the median Canadian thinks.”
Meanwhile, former Liberal staffer Greg MacEachern told
The Hill Times “the reality is the actual number of Canadians who would fall into this category is incredibly small.”
Former Liberal ministerial staffer Greg MacEachern thinks Poilievre is only making these comments so he can ‘win back votes from Maxime Bernier’s party.’
“You are reducing people’s lives to a point where you think you can win on it, and it’s not even just that you can win on it, it’s so that you can win back votes from Maxime Bernier’s party,” he said, referring to the People’s Party leader.
Tory commentator Yaroslav Baran said Poilievre “reflected the conventional and traditional view that’s been normal and common and common sense” for the first 160 years of Canada’s existence.
“Maybe it’s time to update our norms on these kinds of questions. Great. Let’s have the discussion,” Baran said in a text message.
“But without a public discussion, there will be dissenters who feel it’s being rammed through, and that can breed resentment and recoil. And potentially anger,” he said.
Ultimately, Baran said he wants culture wars about this issue to be avoided.
The senior Conservative insider speaking on background agreed with Koch that “most Canadians seem to agree with [Poilievre].”
The source also said they understood why Poilievre spoke on this issue as a way to motivate social conservatives.
“Social conservatives are not just the typical conservative voter. There’s lots of social conservatives in the Muslim community that never voted Conservative before that. He’s been trying, working very hard to make inroads in [that community] and they are very fired up about transgender issues,” the source said.
Tory Yaroslav Baran says he thinks Poilievre is reflecting the views of most Canadians.
However, the tone Poilievre takes when engaging in these conversations could be where the danger lies, the Conservative insider suggested.
“That’s one of the things where people are just scratching their heads. Because we’ve all been told, ‘don’t speak on this issue. Don’t go near it.’ But he’s out there,” the source said.
“It’s just we’ve got our main points. Why aren’t we just talking about our main points? We veer off and go into these sorts of messages. It’s not helpful to many people, and particularly the concern is tone.”
On X on Feb. 21, pollster David Coletto posted about Poilievre once again attacking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Papineau, Que.) about his use of Blackface.
“I don’t see why Poilievre needs to do this. He’s ahead by 19 [points in the polls]. The PM is as weak as he’s ever been. At some point enough Canadians might decide Poilievre is someone who kicks people when they are down, [and] decide he’s not the safe alternative they want,” wrote Coletto, who was unavailable for an interview with
The Hill Times.
The source said that same sentiment applies to his comments on trans issues, too.
“The concern is the tone he’s taken. He comes across as uncaring, and it’s a dangerous part of his persona if he’s coming across as a bully or unlikable. That just takes away from all the good work that he’s been doing.”
One Tory insider says while the vast majority of conservatives might agree with him, Poilievre risks coming off as ‘uncaring,’ and that’s a ‘dangerous part of his persona.’
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