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A day after a majority of Progressive Conservative MLAs refused to stand in the House following a statement recognizing Transgender Day of Remembrance, the backlash reverberated across the legislature, with government MLAs repeatedly criticizing the Tories and the Prime Minister calling the PC leader a “bigot”.
The governing NDP spent much of Friday's question period condemning the Tories for remaining seated after the speech, calling it a harmful act against transgender people.
Meanwhile, PC leader Obbi Khan said he remained seated because the speech was political in nature and addressed issues other than honoring and celebrating the transgender community.
“If this was about the lives lost and the suffering of transgender people and the marginalized community, I would support it 100 percent,” Khan told reporters.
“It wasn't. It was politically charged and motivated, exactly what the NDP government wanted to do.”
The speech on Thursday was read by Kirkfield Park MP Logan Oxenham, First openly transgender elected to the Manitoba legislature.
He began by recognizing Transgender Day of Remembrance as “a solemn day dedicated to honoring the lives of transgender and gender diverse people who have lost their lives to violence, discrimination and despair.”
Oxenham then said transgender people continue to face “targeted political attacks,” referring to Alberta's decision invoke the notwithstanding clause protect three bills affecting transgender youth and adults from legal challenges. Oxenham called the move “horrible and harmful”.
Alberta government challenges bills protect the welfare of children and young people and increase parents' access to information and decision-making power over children, while critics argue that they violate rights based on misinformation.
Oxenham added that Manitoba has “chosen a different path” that supports the trans community.
“Today I call on every political leader in this province and country to take a stand and condemn the abuse of the notwithstanding clause to strip away Charter rights.
“We must protect the right of every transgender person—especially every transgender child—to live, thrive, and be free,” he concluded.
“Cowardly display”: Kinyev
All NDP MLAs, as well as two Independent and Liberal MLAs, stood and applauded the speech, along with seven of the 16 Tory MLAs present.
The rest of the Tories, including Khan, remained seated, live footage of the legislature showed.
On Friday, Prime Minister Wab Kinew called the Tories' actions a “cowardly display”.
He specifically targeted Khan for refusing to accept Oxenham's statement.
“He comes here and pats himself on the back: 'the first Muslim MLA ever elected', but when it comes time to honor another community? No, they draw the line. Why?” Kinew said about the opposition leader during question period.
“It’s such a strange worldview from a PC perspective, where human rights are important to some but not to all.”
The Prime Minister later said that the Tories tend to be hateful towards the trans community.
He referred to the party's 2023 election promise: expand parental rightswhich Kinew called “anti-trans”, and four Tory MPs who broke with the faction in 2024 and voted against a bill to establish Two-Spirit and Transgender Day of Visibility.
“He's not a leader, he's a fanatic,” Kinew said of the Tory leader on Friday.
Attempting to 'divide Manitobans': Khan
Khan said this after the NDP tried to score political points with the statement.
There was no mention of members of the transgender community who were in the Legislative gallery or a request for a moment of silence to honor the victims, he said.
“This was a very politically motivated statement aimed at dividing Manitobans. That's why I didn't applaud or support him,” he said.
Khan would not comment on the use of the notwithstanding clause in Alberta, saying it is not his province.
He also said Kinew's position was unclear regarding a provision in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that allows legislation to be passed that overrides certain sections of the Charter for a five-year period.
While Kinew was article critic, he also said he supported other prime ministers who condemned the recent decision of the Supreme Court resolution about child pornography and demanded the application of this paragraph to overturn the decision.
Khan added that he was not surprised that the Prime Minister accused him of bigotry, which he vehemently denied, although he believed the Speaker of the House should have declared the language “unparliamentary”.
