Bill 27: Undermining Inclusivity in Schools and Damaging Albertan LGBTQ+ Students Mental Health

In September 2023, a protest called the “One Million March for Children” brought parents from several major Canadian cities to protest against SOGI 123, a cross-provincial initiative to create more LGBTQ+ inclusive curriculums [1][2]. The anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment present in these protests has since been reflected in Canadian policy– particularly in prairie provinces. Most recently, in December 2024, the Education Amendment Act (Bill 27) achieved royal assent in Alberta [3]. Contrary to SOGI 123 initiatives, Bill 27 proposes a policy that will limit students’ access to education about sexual orientation, gender identity and human sexuality, and mandates parental notification if a student under 18 requests a name or pronoun change [4][5]. Using the life course perspective, cumulative inequality theory and stigma power, this paper argues that Bill 27 represents a regressive step in education policy with dire consequences for Albertan LGBTQ+ students’ mental health.