‘We’ll be moving’: Alberta transgender children, families brace for legal changes

October 13, 2025

‘We’ll be moving’: Alberta transgender children, families brace for legal changes

Football decals plaster the walls of his bedroom. A San Francisco 49ers bedspread and a binder full of trading cards make it clear the seven-year-old loves sports.

His mother says teachers know him to be kind, and kids in his class gravitate toward him. He wants to be an accountant.

He is also transgender and has identified as a boy since he could speak.

Because his family lives in Alberta, where Premier Danielle Smith is expected to invoke the notwithstanding clause to ban gender-affirming care for children like him, he’ll be forced to go through female puberty.

“We’ll be moving if she enacts that. For the safety of our child,” says his mother.

The family is an applicant in a lawsuit challenging Alberta’s legislation. Four other families involved in the claim as unnamed applicants or witnesses also spoke with The Canadian Press.

They all asked not to be identified for their safety. A court order protects the witnesses, and an affidavit from a psychiatrist says they’ll face isolation, bullying and even violence if identified.

Last year, Alberta became the first province to pass legislation banning doctors from prescribing puberty blockers or hormone therapy to children under 16.