A new provincial policy allowing transgender inmates to be dealt with based on their own gender identity instead of sexual characteristics is getting some positive reviews. Windsor Pride Volunteer and transgender woman Lorraine Sayell calls the new policy a good sign. "It is a good first step, but it needs to be broadened out and it needs to percolate both up to the federal level and down to the local level," says Sayell. Ontario Corrections Division Chair with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union Monte Vieselmeyer says the policy should make life easier for staff. "Having clarity for our staff helps us do our job more effectively and gives us the tone that we need to help deal with those issues," says Vieselmeyer, adding the new policy should mean a safer environment for transgender inmates. "Probably from a safety standpoint, probably would assist those individuals and probably limit, to some degree, some forms of harassment." According to the ministry of community safety and correctional services, there were 25 inmates in the province identifying as transgender in 2014.
Male segregation unit at the South West Detention Centre. (Photo by Maureen Revait)
