Canadian Court Rules Misgendering is a Human Rights Violation
Four years ago, Canada passed the legally unprecedented C-16 bill, meant to protect people who are transgender and gender-nonconforming from discrimination based on identity. Last week, the bill was tested for the first time. During an employment dispute, the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal ruled in favor of Jessie Nelson, a gender-fluid restaurant worker who filed a complaint against their manager for purposefully misgendering them. The court ruled that deliberate misgendering in the workplace is a human rights violation, ordering the restaurant to pay Nelson damages. Pronouns are “a fundamental part of a person’s identity,” writes Tribunal representative Devyn Cousineau in the ruling. “Using the correct pronouns validates and affirms they are a person equally deserving of respect.” Learn more about this significant step in the right direction at Them.
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