(Jaimie Harmsen)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

help for trans and non-binary community

Transgender ID clinics now in Red Deer

Oct 7, 2019 | 1:15 PM

Locals who identify as transgender or non-binary are getting help in obtaining accurate pieces of identification.

Calgary-based Skipping Stone, in partnership with Red Deer’s Trans and Non-Binary Aid Society (TANAS), and the Central Alberta Community Legal Clinic, is hosting drop-in transgender ID clinics in Red Deer.

TANAS president Bobbi-Jo L’Hirondelle explains that the clinics assist people in getting the correct details on their drivers licences, passports, and Alberta health care cards, including a different gender marker and/or new name.

“This will help prevent ridicule when people are asked for their identification while living their day to day lives. It will help them get one step closer to being their authentic selves.”

Kathy Parsons, Executive Director at Central Alberta Community Legal Clinic, says the process of filling out paperwork can be tedious, which is where the clinics come in.

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“It’s a little bit overwhelming when you’re trying to figure out what part of the process you need to step into. There are a lot of pitfalls to making sure you’re doing this correctly,” she explains. “It’s understanding how to answer those forms correctly so that you don’t get bogged down in the system, and then they do require that they be notarized by a lawyer.”

Lawyers are present at the clinics to voluntarily complete that part of the process for clients.

“We know from our conversations with TANAS that there are a lot of people seeking this service, so I think it will continue to build,” Parsons adds. “Hopefully we’ll be able to have it as a regular service so that when people are ready or available, they can start the process.”

In June, the federal government announced that Canadians could identify with a permanent ‘X’ on their passport, as opposed to just male or female. There will be no fee for someone who wants to make that change from now until June 4, 2020.

In Alberta, drivers licences and other pieces of ID may have an ‘X,’ as of June 2018. Minors must receive parental consent, while any self-declaring adult is permitted.

The next clinics happening in Red Deer are on Nov. 6 and Dec. 4 at 5 p.m at the Community Legal Clinic (#106 – 4916 50 Street).