Dear Member of Parliament,

To ensure Canadians’ freedoms, Canada's laws must uphold the rights and liberties of all individuals as guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

LGBTQ+ communities' freedoms and liberties must be protected. Children must be protected. Every member of Canada's diverse community must be protected. Indeed, infringing upon the rights of any group compromises the rights of all. Freedom cannot exist where it is not universal. 

We affirm that Conversion Therapy, defined as physical and psychological abuse or torture, is wrong and should be dealt with according to the provisions of the Criminal Code as it stands today.

Consequently, we also affirm that counselling, gentle psychotherapy, information-rich spiritual counsel, professional guidance, personal advice, voluntary prayer, free or guided meditation, and other forms of self-discovery do not constitute in and of themselves physical and psychological abuse or torture.

We ask that during the Third Reading of Bill C-6 you reject this Bill on the basis that the proposed legislation undermines the rights and liberties of Canadians as guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

We believe that it is dangerous to give the state permission to electronically tap into family communications, to regulate speech, and to unduly restrict fair parental discretion, all things permissible under the new Bill. These unwarranted powers erode the foundational pillars of free societies. Turning back, if possible, is arduous.

The core flaw of Bill C-6 is that it criminalizes what are insufficiently defined acts of Conversion Therapy. This lack of precision will potentially result in false accusations, and the unjust fining or imprisonment of individuals, including parents and health professionals who are performing their duties in a fair, just, and equitable way, but who are falsely deemed as practicing Conversion Therapy.

By creating situations in which parents may go to prison for seeking to guide their children according to their best judgment, this Bill may very well cause these same children to lose their sense of self and security, and their physical and emotional safety. Their world may be irremediably altered, causing untold woes to society in after years. Moreover, these potential errors will cause a strain on an already imperfect fostering system. The mere fear of unjust criminalization would tend to destabilize families, the bedrock of society.

We believe that you agree with us that parents have the responsibility to educate, instruct, and guide their children until the age of maturity, and that doctors, psychiatrists, nurse practitioners, psychologists, spiritual leaders, and teachers have the right and responsibility to do their job, that is, to give counsel, prescriptions, indications, lessons, and advice that their conscientious and educated judgment dictates within the reasonable scope of their profession.

We also uphold that no one has the right to stop an adult from making his or her choice of sexual orientation or sexual or gender expression, and that the freedom to choose presupposes that traditional sexual expressions and orientations can be valued as well as others.

Please do not miss this opportunity to firmly steer Canada towards a future where equality reigns.

Respectfully yours,

Claudine Belhomme
Conference Interpreter
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Please click here to read the second version of Bill C-6: 

https://parl.ca/DocumentViewer/en/43-2/bill/C-6/second-reading