Maëlys McArdle

  • I’m 36. If I had had a kid when I turned 18, they’d now be an adult themselves. I’m older than my mom when she had me. This puts things in a different perspective. So much of my adulthood has…

  • 18 years ago, I wrote: Okay, just completed the blog part of my website. I was planning to add the previous entries of my “real” blog, and am still considering it. However, it would require alot of editing, so I…

  • There was another anti-trans protest in Ottawa this week. It was organized by a group whose foundational beliefs are labeled trans-exclusive radical feminism (TERFs) or “gender critical”, depending who is doing the naming. This follows an incident a week ago…

  • If anyone ever wanted to study attitudes on gender nonconformity in Canada during in this period in history, I’d point them to opinion writer Barbara Kay. Her prominence is fading now that newspapers and books are losing ground to competing…

  • The makeup of trans and non-binary people is rapidly changing. In 2019, the median income of trans and non-binary Ontarians was approximately $30,000. While that’s still significantly short of the $50,000 that the median over 16 made in the province,…

  • On September 22nd, I’ll be participating in a panel called Safe(r) cities for trans folks. From the description: Trans, gender diverse and 2SLGBTQ+ communities are subjected to experience significant violence in Ottawa and across Canada. Despite progress on 2SLGBTQ+ rights,…

  • Trans and non-binary people are the latest targets for those struggling with the visibility of the world’s beautiful diversity. Seeking a return to the homogeneity that only lived in the precipices of their ignorance, they’ve singled out gender diverse individuals…

  • Since 2019, organizations devoted to opposing rights for trans people have emerged across the world sharing these characteristics: Their name includes the words ‘female’, ‘women’, ‘gender’, ‘sex’ or ‘gay’ …but they disregard all issues faced by these groups …their messaging…

  • This past week, my partner Jamie and I have been visiting the northern half of the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland. We landed in St John’s where we procured a rental car and stayed in a cute Airbnb.

  • A year ago, I dreamed about the future. I spoke of wrapping up my life in Ottawa within months, finishing off my sleeve tattoo, going on road trips to Newfoundland and the United-States, and moving to New Zealand. We were…