Safety concerns in P.E.I.'s transgender community as anti-trans sentiment surges

The P.E.I. Transgender Network is holding a rally for trans rights on April 2nd. 

The group says the rally is being planned in reaction to "ongoing and increased public displays of transphobia/anti-trans movements occurring across P.E.I." 

Lucky Fusca is the executive director of the group. They say that at the same time they are planning the rally, they have moved a health-care panel discussion from in-person to online because of safety concerns. 

"With the anti-trans rhetoric and movements happening globally and specifically on Prince Edward Island, there was a question from one of our panelists around safety," Fusca said. 

"And this is a shared sentiment with several other people involved. So we decided to move the event to a closed online meeting earlier in the week, and in its place we decided to launch 'Let's Get Loud,' which is going to be, for lack of a better word right now, a rally."

Fusca said the group's intention — as a community which includes allies and stakeholders — is to organize in a more formal way, as the number of anti-trans incidents and comments on the Island grows. 

Fusca points to the postponement of a drag storytime event planned for the Kings Playhouse in Georgetown, P.E.I., after it was the target of online attacks. The event has now been rescheduled for April 15th. 

As well, harmful comments were shared on social media after someone raised concerns about a drag performance at a Canada Games bingo event.

A city spokesperson told CBC on Wednesday that no police report was filed in the matter, and there was no incident at the event in question.

Still, the P.E.I. Transgender Network put out a call to action, asking that the original person who posted the comments be held accountable. 

"This is really just the start," said Fusca. "Allyship is a verb, and we're hoping to be able to give some folks some direction by providing a 'how to be an ally to the trans community 101' and some follow up with some actionable, tangible things that people can put into place in their lives to advocate for the trans community."

Hearing about and seeing anti-trans actions is terrifying, Fusca said.

"I think the mental health toll that all of this is taking on our community is pretty profound, including myself," they said.

Fusca said there is nowhere they can feel safe at the moment.