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After Australia, the UK, India, and Bangladesh, Canada may allow a third gender category on passports, according to a briefing note from Passport Canada. Québec’s Justice Ministry may also reconsider its requirements for gender designation change on birth certificates.

A year after election that saw the federal Conservatives obtain parliamentary majority, the country is less and less recognizable from its former self. Measures to increase criminalization, reduce refugee access, and sweeping cuts to social programme funding have been the order of the day. A demo is planned tonight (May 2) in Montréal’s Parc Émilie-Gamelin to “stop” Harper, however symbolically.

Pairing young activists with Members of Parliament to live a day in the life of an elected official isn’t a new idea. Unless you’re pairing LGBT youth with out MP’s, as Dany Morin did for today’s Rainbow Day on the Hill (Journée Arc-en-ciel sur la colline)…

The Harper government has decided to appeal the landmark decision made by the Ontario Supreme Court last month, which determined that provisions in the law prohibiting brothels or “bawdy houses” and living from the profit of prostitution were unconstitutional. The Conservatives have appealed the case to the Supreme Court of Canada, whose decision on the issue would apply throughout the country.

Currently in its second reading in the House of Commons, the Conservative Bill C-31 claims to be about “Protecting Canada’s Immigration System.” The mounting criticism against C-31 from refugee rights groups including Montréal’s ADA and AGIR have taken the form on an online video, and a demonstration (April 20 11:30am) against Immigration Minister Jason Kenney.

Statistics Canada released data last week that show that hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation are on the rise, with a total of 218 reported in 2010. The rate of violence in these crimes is strikingly high compared to other categories, with an average of six out of every ten incidents involving violence.

Pink was the colour of the evening. Various shades of it dotted the ties, shirts and skirts of volunteers, students, teachers, parents and politicians who streamed into Tabaret Hall at the University of Ottawa on Wed 11 April to celebrate Jer’s Vision’s, Day Of Pink Gala.

Organizers of Miss Universe Canada beauty pageant just eliminated Jenna Talackova from the competition. The young transgendered woman had been previously selected to be part of the 65 finalists. She intends to fight the decision.

In a decision described varyingly as a “partial victory” and “a step in the right direction”, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled in favour of a claim made by three Ontario sex work advocates that banning brothels is unconstitutional. While “soliciting” can remain criminalized under the constitution, sex work advocates and legal observers are hailing the 148-page decision revealed today after weeks of heightened anticipation.

It was all planned out. Perhaps inspired by Leafs coach Patrick Burke’s recent public awareness campaign “You Can Play”, which promotes gay acceptance in sport, the intermission event was met with roaring applause: Christina, a Senators, got down on one knee and proposed to her Leafs fan girlfriend Alicia at Ottawa’s Scotiabank Place on Sat night.