Unceded Coast Salish Territories (Burnaby, British Columbia) – Today, Prisoners’ Legal Services (PLS) filed a human rights complaint on behalf of Fallon Aubee, a transgender Indigenous woman, against Correctional Service Canada (CSC).
Ms. Aubee is a residential school survivor who is currently incarcerated at Fraser Valley Institution for Women. She previously spent sixteen years in institutions designated for men, where she experienced physical violence, harassment, and sexual violence due to her gender identity.
Finally being able to live with other women has been very important for Ms. Aubee. However, CSC still refuses to recognize her gender identity in its electronic systems because she has not had gender-affirming genital surgery. The Offender Management System (OMS) and her electronic medical records continue to categorize her sex as “male.”
Ms. Aubee is challenging a CSC policy called Commissioner’s Directive 100 – Gender Diverse Offenders which states that an individual’s “sex” will be solely determined “by their current genitalia.” The policy further states that a person’s “sex code in OMS will not change unless the offender undergoes gender-affirming surgery involving a change to their genitalia.” The OMS database is available to a large portion of CSC’s approximately 18,000 staff members. Many other agencies also have access to OMS.
While Ms. Aubee has been cleared for gender-affirming surgery, she has a heart condition that could impact her ability to proceed with it, especially given the long wait-times for surgery. She has changed the gender marker on her birth certificate and undergone a legal name change, but continues to be classified as “male” by CSC.
Ms. Aubee states: “Seeing CSC continue to classify me as ‘male’ makes me feel like they are erasing my identity as a woman. Those four letters are a constant reminder that CSC does not view me as an equal to other women. Classifying me as ‘male’ also violates my privacy and dignity, since it reveals intimate details about my body in a very public way. I am challenging this policy not just for myself but for all transgender people in CSC custody.”
Nicole Kief, legal advocate for Ms. Aubee, states: “CSC’s policy relies on the incorrect idea that trans women who have not had gender-affirming surgery are not ‘real’ women. The view that trans people are always – or should be – progressing toward surgery is based on outdated theories of gender that pathologized and stigmatized transgender people. The policy undermines the dignity of trans people and puts their safety at risk by ‘outing’ them as trans.”
Emilie Coyle, Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies, states: “The human rights of trans people were enshrined in our laws because there was a recognition that they must be protected. Ms. Aubee’s complaint helps us to understand how we can improve our practices to protect the rights of trans people who are incarcerated. Wherever we can evolve to better respect the dignity and humanity of some, the safer the world becomes for everyone. Ms. Aubee’s fight for dignity is a fight for the dignity of everyone.”
A copy of Ms. Aubee’s complaint can be found here.
Media Contacts:
Jessica Magonet
Staff Lawyer at Prisoners’ Legal Services
jmagonet@pls-bc.ca
604-636-0470
Nicole Kief
Legal Advocate at Prisoners’ Legal Services
nkief@pls-bc.ca
604-636-0470
Emilie Coyle
Executive Director at the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies (CAEFS)
ecoyle@caefs.ca
613-316-6785