Hon. Duncan Wilson: Honourable senators, I proudly rise in this chamber today during International Pride Month to join the debate on Bill S-218.

I’d like to thank our colleague, Senator Harder, for bringing forward this very important piece of legislation at such a critical moment in Canada’s history.

Colleagues, those of you who know me will know I’m passionate about the need for Canada to realize its full economic potential. I’m particularly seized with the need to act boldly to meet the moment, a sentiment I share with not only our Prime Minister but also Canadians across the country. As such, I envisioned my first speech in this place to be about the economy. Instead, I am compelled to speak on another issue that is important not only to me but to all of us: our protected rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and our duty as senators to safeguard those rights for minority groups and all Canadians.

Human rights should be table stakes for our country, but in recent times, we have seen such rights eroded around the world as well as here in Canada. We have seen that increased political polarization and the rise of single-issue voting has, in some cases, turned the “notwithstanding” clause into a weapon used for political gain at the provincial level. We have now heard talk of this approach at the federal level as well. While I recognize that Bill S-218 will not dictate any provincial government’s use of this clause, I rise today to support the intent of Senator Harder’s bill: that we in this chamber might serve to guide and inspire future governments in its measured use.

Therefore, colleagues, I congratulate Senator Harder for being bold, being provocative and introducing Bill S-218 to enshrine overdue legislative safeguards that will ensure that any future use of the “notwithstanding” clause happens, as we would all hope, only in the most exceptional circumstances, with robust consultation, written justification and only after a Supreme Court ruling so justifies — never pre-emptively.

These protections will help safeguard minorities and marginalized populations. In fact, by protecting minorities, we protect the vast diversity that’s central to our Canadian identity and that strengthens our ties to the international community.

I’m going to take a slightly different approach from our colleagues who have spoken to this legislation already and maybe share a bit more of a human perspective in terms of what it might mean. Colleagues, today, I’m going to pull on just one thread of this magnificent tapestry of diversity in our country. In doing so, I hope to provide some rationale as to why the “notwithstanding” clause should be used only as a tool of last resort — and even then only with an exceptional level of transparency and oversight.

Today, this one thread of our tapestry that I will give voice to regards the stories of just a few members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. In my view, these stories demonstrate how far we have come but also how current challenges continue to bear a striking similarity to those of the past.

Honourable senators, I would like to give forewarning that some of what follows may be difficult to hear and for me to say.

In 1982, the same year that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms came into effect, a young teenaged boy struggled with the realization that he was attracted to men. He felt ashamed as he fought, unsuccessfully, to deny his feelings. Self-hate and thoughts of self-harm were part of his daily life. He lived in fear that this information might get out and lead to ridicule, bullying and, almost certainly, violence. Given the duress this youth lived under, it is sad to think he was safer in some ways back then than some kids are today, over 40 years later. In those days, no province was pushing through legislation that would require his teachers to disclose his identity to his parents or to anyone to whom he did not want it disclosed.

So he kept his secret safely hidden throughout his high school days, until the time came when he felt comfortable sharing this part of his identity with his family and friends. A decade later, that same young man emerged confident. Long free of the terror of being found out, he’d come to embrace his difference and, indeed, had taken on a leadership position in his community, championing queer rights among other things. He believed that the world was changing for the better.

Then one night in December 1996, that confidence was shaken. As he was walking home from the pub with some friends, a car screeched to a halt and three male teenagers leaped out of the vehicle. “You are going to die, faggot” was among the slurs shouted as one of the teenagers fractured the face of the young man with a tire iron. The reconstructive surgery that followed was the easy part. What took much longer to heal was the confidence necessary to walk down the street holding hands with another man. The police refused to characterize this as a hate crime, instead recording it as a traffic incident. Fortunately, I doubt that would be tolerated today.

As some of you may have guessed, that once-young man now stands before you in the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.

Senator Wilson: As I look back and reflect on those periods of my life, I often ask myself where I would be today had things been different, had I been outed in high school and bullied or even attacked back then, had I not been kept safe or had my rights not been respected. Sadly, we see today that many young people are at risk of losing those rights. We see time and again the intolerance that led to my attack is alive and well and, indeed, growing again in our country, fuelled by politics of division that are putting minority communities at risk.

Colleagues, let’s now move to 20 years after the Charter was proclaimed. In 2002, in a small southern Manitoba town, a young teenager had his head wrapped in tape and pounded against the wall while his tormenters chanted homophobic slurs I will not repeat in this chamber. Meanwhile, teachers stood by and pretended not to see.

When that same boy returned to school for the first day of Grade 9, he was greeted by classmates throwing garbage at him and taunting him with more homophobic slurs. What a terrible environment for a young person to try to learn and thrive in.

We would hope that those are relics and sentiments of the past, and that we have moved on from them as a society. However, only two years ago, some parents in that same Manitoba community tried to have books that referenced 2SLGBTQIA+ themes banned from the public library. I can only imagine how a young person who identifies as queer might feel in such an environment.

Also two years ago, in British Columbia, a non-binary child was sobbing while they watched the news with their father. Saskatchewan was invoking the “notwithstanding” clause to block legal challenges to a law forcing teachers to disclose students’ chosen pronouns.

The clause was used preemptively, despite a judge warning that the law could cause “irreparable harm” to vulnerable students. The teenager watching from another province saw the warning signal clearly: It could happen to them next.

Honourable senators, as I was preparing these remarks, I had the opportunity to have a discussion with the mother of a young transgender girl. To protect the family, I will just say they live somewhere in Canada. Here is what she said to me:

We didn’t ask for a transgender child. Nobody hopes for a more difficult life for their child. The lives of transgender children are debated in legislatures around the world . . . governments decide on a whim whether our child is allowed or not allowed to exist. Some party leaders and candidates running to be elected to political office are willing to sacrifice transgender children in a vain attempt to win votes from constituents. Our child is like any other — she wants to play, learn and grow. We didn’t ask for a transgender child, but our lives are brighter, richer and more fulfilled because of it. She is exactly who she is meant to be.

This family, whom I know personally, lives in fear that a future government may well invoke the “notwithstanding” clause to target the trans community for political gain. Can you imagine living in fear of democracy in Canada?

Honourable senators, although those stories are upsetting and distressing to hear, they represent merely a tiny sliver of what is happening in Canada right now and are just those from my own direct experience and those of people close to me.

They are a reminder of the human consequences of discrimination. Sadly, in many of these cases, it is young people who are suffering the consequences.

Although provincial governments of all stripes have used the “notwithstanding” clause since the enactment of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982, as Senator Harder remarked, more recently, populist governments have championed it for very specific and targeted groups. This is inarguable.

Given the diversity in this chamber, I know as I look around that many of you have similar stories of having faced discrimination in your own lives. Maybe they are based on gender, race or cultural backgrounds, but I know many of you have these stories.

I would encourage all of us to share these experiences, and those of our loved ones, and maybe even to include them in your own comments on this bill. It is from that seed of understanding and empathy that we will collectively grow to do better and to be better.

Although implementing a framework governing the use of the notwithstanding clause in a federal context has no direct impact on decisions by provinces that choose a different path, it offers an opportunity for Canada, and for us, here, to lead by example. In time, one province, then two, and then others might follow.

We only need to look south of the border to be reminded how democracy can be weaponized. Many are being deported from the United States because they have tried to provide a better life and — in many cases — a safer life for themselves and their children.

We must not pretend that Canada is immune. We see early signs of populism threatening minority rights here too.

Honourable senators, the bill before us is of the utmost importance. I encourage each of you to support this bill and ensure its swift passage by this chamber.

In doing so, we will be sending the strongest signal possible that this chamber stands behind the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as the values and beliefs with which this country has become synonymous, both domestically and abroad.

Maybe one day, that transgender girl will stand here as a senator, and her first speech will be about the economy.

Thank you.

Some Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.