Transgender Day of Visibility marked in Niagara with flag raising

Every year on this day, a global celebration is held to mark the contributions and resilience of transgender, non-binary, and gender diverse people.

On Tuesday, a flag was raised in Niagara to mark the occasion with one advocate questioning city hall’s priorities.

“Walking on the street, I don’t know if I’m going to get attacked — I don’t know where’s a safe space and who’s not,” said Kristeen Sprague, an advocate for transgender people.

This is why Sprague says it’s so important to see a flag raised on Transgender Day of Visibility, as seen at the Niagara Region Headquarters in Thorold.

It helps her and others in the community feel seen and heard — the idea of not seeing one raised, is disappointing.

“The way to do it is we talk to people like me and if we’re not going to pay attention to the signs, then why are you saying ‘we’re a positive space for bathroom issues’, or ‘we’re a positive space for this’,” said Sprague.

“Transgender people know who they are, generally from a very young age,” said Colleen McTigue, the facilitator at Transgender Niagara Peer Support.

McTigue knew at eight years old who she was, but did not start her transition until she was in her 50s, fearing for her safety.

Now at 70-years-old, she’s living life to the fullest and remembers how it all started.

“So I was waiting for access to a change room and just at that moment the song (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman came over the speakers and I thought ‘yes — that’s obviously the right song to be playing’,” said McTigue.

Organizers say that one of the biggest misconceptions about someone going through the transgender experience, is gender-affirming care and what that looks like.

“People are frightened by gender-affirming care, because we seek to change our bodies and there’s a lot of hand-wringing around, ‘what about the children?’,” said McTigue. “If you are under 18, the most you will get are puberty blockers, which simply delay puberty and give you time to figure out what you want to do.”

There are many resources in our region to help transgender people and others in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

One of those is PFLAG, an organization which also provides support to parents and family members looking to be the best ally they can be.

“Rather than putting the burden of education on your trans loved one, there’s a lot of resources available and folks that are available to help,” said Kim Ansell, the Chapter Lead at PFLAG Niagara.

If you would like more information on supports and allyship in our region, here are a few websites to help: