The Alberta Legislature erupted in controversy Tuesday after United Conservative Party MLA Shane Getson compared gender-affirming surgeries to castrating farm animals, drawing immediate condemnation from opposition parties and LGBTQ+ advocates across the province.
During debate on Bill 17, Getson told the assembly that gender-affirming procedures reminded him of his experience castrating livestock. “I used to do that to the bulls… we’d turn them into steers,” the Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland representative stated, suggesting transgender healthcare represents “genital mutilation.”
The comments left many legislators visibly shocked. NDP Opposition Leader Naheed Nenshi quickly denounced the remarks as “dehumanizing” and demanded Premier Danielle Smith take immediate action against her caucus member.
“When elected officials compare Albertans to farm animals, it crosses a fundamental line of human dignity,” Nenshi told reporters outside the legislature. “This isn’t about political differences. This is about basic respect.”
For Marni Panas, a transgender advocate in Edmonton, the comparison hit particularly hard. “These aren’t just words,” she explained during a hastily organized press conference. “Comments like these from our elected officials directly fuel harassment and violence against trans Albertans just trying to live their lives.”
Bill 17, officially titled the “Parental Rights in Education Act,” represents the latest in a series of controversial UCP policies affecting LGBTQ+ Albertans. The legislation would require parental notification if students under 15 want to change their names or pronouns at school.
Premier Smith, who was not present for Getson’s remarks, issued a statement through her press secretary Wednesday morning describing the comments as “unfortunate” but stopped short of disciplinary action. “The Premier believes every debate should respect the dignity of all Albertans,” the statement read.
Political scientist Melanee Thomas from the University of Calgary suggests this response falls far short of what the moment demands. “When a government MLA dehumanizes vulnerable Albertans and the Premier’s response is essentially ‘that’s unfortunate,’ it sends a troubling signal about which citizens deserve full protection under this government,” Thomas said.
Getson’s comments arrive amid rising tensions over transgender rights across Canada. Alberta’s UCP government has implemented some of the country’s most restrictive policies affecting transgender youth, including banning gender-affirming surgeries for minors and restricting hormone therapy.
Medical experts have consistently challenged the government’s approach. Dr. Ted Jablonski, who has worked with transgender patients in Calgary for over a decade, expressed frustration with how political rhetoric distorts medical reality. “Gender-affirming care is evidence-based medicine endorsed by every major medical association in Canada,” Jablonski noted. “To compare it to livestock procedures demonstrates profound misunderstanding of both the medicine and the lived experiences of transgender people.”
Despite calls for his removal from caucus, Getson issued a statement Wednesday claiming his words were “taken out of context” and that he was simply expressing concerns about surgical procedures for minors – though the debate at that moment wasn’t specifically about minors.
Outside the legislature, about three dozen protesters gathered with signs reading “Trans Rights Are Human Rights” and “Hate Has No Home in Alberta.” Amanda Ryan, who organized the impromptu demonstration, said Albertans are tired of the escalating rhetoric.
“Every time we think the discourse can’t get more degrading, the bar gets lowered,” Ryan said. “We’re talking about real Albertans – our neighbors, colleagues, and family members. They deserve better from their government.”
The incident has also renewed focus on the UCP’s broader policy direction under Premier Smith. Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta leader Rajan Sawhney, representing one of the few remaining centrist alternatives in the province, said the controversy reflects deeper issues within the current government.
“When elected officials feel comfortable making these comparisons on the floor of the legislature, it suggests a troubling culture has taken root,” Sawhney said. “Albertans expect their government to represent all citizens with dignity regardless of political differences.”
For transgender Albertans like Jordan Ledoux, a 26-year-old retail worker in Red Deer, the political debate feels increasingly disconnected from reality. “Politicians talk about us like theoretical problems to solve instead of citizens they represent,” Ledoux said. “I just want to live my life without my healthcare and identity being debated like it’s some abstract concept.”
As opposition parties consider formal ethics complaints, the controversy shows little sign of fading. Political analysts suggest it may further erode the UCP’s standing with moderate voters who have grown uncomfortable with the party’s rightward shift under Smith’s leadership.
Meanwhile, transgender Albertans and their allies continue pushing back against rhetoric they see as harmful to an already vulnerable community. As one protester’s sign outside the legislature read: “We’re your neighbors, not your political talking points.”
