It seems to be an annual tradition that October is the month that an event or a cause gets Chachi On Acid off their overripe asses and onto a stage. This year, they are doing it to support trans youth.

Gay-Ass Productions is presenting Stonewall 2: Fundraiser Boogaloo at the Simcoe Hotel in Barrie on October 15. Money raised will support transgender youth through Trans Wellness Ontario. This organization provides counselling, resources and peer support for Trans Youth in Ontario at a time when anti-2SLGBTQIA rhetoric is on the rise.

On September 20, protests were held nationwide under the misnomer 1millionmarch4children. It was a misnomer for several reasons, the biggest of which was the underwhelming turnout. In most communities, the protesters were overwhelmingly outnumbered by pro-2SLGBTQIA+ counter-protesters who stood up for the mental health and well-being of trans and nonbinary children.

These anti-2SLGBTQIA+ protests were aimed mainly at the needs of youth who fall under the umbrella of transgender, which includes a wide range of gender identities and expressions of people who do not fully or partially identify with the gender associated with their assigned sex at birth.

According to a study shared by the Canadian Medical Association Journal in June 2022 that included 6800 adolescents aged 15–17 years, 1130 indicated some degree of same-gender attraction, 265 were unsure of their attraction, and 50 reported a transgender identity. Compared with cisgender, heterosexual adolescents,  the transgender adolescents in the study showed five times the risk of suicidal ideation and 7.6 times the risk of suicide attempts.

According to the Mental Health Commission of Canada, several factors put transgender people at risk of suicide and can strain one’s mental health. Two of the five listed on its website directly affect whether parent’s rights should be placed before their children’s. The first is institutional prejudice manifesting as laws and policies which create inequalities and fail to protect children from discrimination. The second is a lack of support from parents and other family members.

On the flip side, the Mental Health Commission of Canada lists supportive and strong relationships with family and friends, access to gender-affirming health care (which does not mean completed medical transition as it is often not even desired by trans people) and having one’s name and pronouns accepted as proven ways to reduce risk of suicidal thoughts or attempts.

In the town where Chachi On Acid was conceived, the pro-2SLGBTQIA+ community was outnumbered by the hate-filled protesters who carried signs left over from their Freedom Convoy marches. The slurs being yelled at people in Listowel were not limited to transphobia but also directed at gay and lesbian members of the community.

The protesters claimed they were showing up as concerned family members. Yet, the language they and their supporters yelled from passing vehicles contained abusive homophobic and transphobic slurs, even with young children present.

“The rise of this hatred and bigotry which spreading because of ignorance goes beyond concern for family,” Chachi On Acid vocalist Nib Arcola pointed out. “It’s dangerous, and I’m stepping up to confront it, not only because this rhetoric threatens members of my family and close friends but also because we see backsliding in how we treat each other. Racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia – they are all becoming normalized, and all I have to say about that is fuck that.”

“Let’s show Trans Youth they are loved and supported in this community,” wrote promoter Earl Wyvern on the Facebook event page. “Trans youth aren’t hurting anyone; ignorance is.”

Six bands are on the bill: Morel, Chachi On Acid, Earl Wyvern with Spare Parts, Mercy, Speed Humps, and Not So Gentle at the Simcoe Hotel, 31 Bayfield St. Barrie, On for $15. It’s 19+, and the doors open at 7 p.m. sharp. The bands will be playing shortly after, and it will run like clockwork.

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