Fighting for Faith in Trudeau’s Canada

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RENFREW, Ontario (ChurchMilitant.com) - Facing persecution, a Canadian high school student is standing up for Christian values — and sanity.

Josh Alexander, a student at St. Joseph's High School in Renfrew, Ontario, was suspended in late 2022 for insisting there are only two genders.

A volunteer for Liberty Coalition Canada (LCC), which is sponsoring the legal organization supporting Alexander, told Church Militant, "The right of Canadians to speak their mind and hold opinions contrary to the state is disappearing. This is especially true if those opinions align with the Bible."

The 16-year-old was allowed back into school on Jan. 9, 2023, but with three big caveats. According to an attorney acting on his behalf, Josh must:

• limit his contact with two so-called transgender students
• not use the "dead name" (the name the transgender person no longer uses) of any transgender students 
• not attend two of his four daily classes because two transgender students attend those classes

Alexander's persecution began with a social media post in which he criticized the school system's anti-Christian agenda.

"It is time to expose the perverted agenda in our educated system," it stated. "Males do not belong in female washrooms. Protect the girls from this evil narrative. Stop depriving our students of a healthy and natural environment. 'God made them male and female: Mark 10:6.'"

During class debates, Alexander expressed his conviction that students cannot switch genders and that male students should not be permitted in the girls' bathroom.

The Liberty Defense Fund (LDF), which is legally assisting Alexander, critiqued the basis for his suspension by the "woke gender activists" now pervading the school system: 

Under the guise of "safety", as that term has been revised by woke gender activists now pervasive in public institutions, Josh has been penalized for expressing his Christian beliefs regarding gender and modesty, beliefs which also happen to align with both objective truth and actual safety.

The LDF added, "Josh not only has a right to express himself during class discussions and through public forums, he also has a right to not be discriminated against by his school for his sincere religious beliefs. Being suspended and excluded from classes is the height of discrimination."

Many think Alexander is headed for an uphill battle. Religious practice and expression are noted in Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms; however, the country's website notes "the rights and freedoms in the Charter are not absolute. They can be limited to protect other rights or important national values." 

Plus, Canada's prime minister, Justin Trudeau, is a radical transgender activist who advances transgender ideology as a core Canadian value. In May 2022 he declared:

Today, on the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, we join members of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Two-Spirit (LGBTQ2) communities in Canada and around the world to reaffirm our commitment to ensuring everyone can feel safe and be themselves, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.

Alexander, however, is not backing down. According to the LDF, "He will continue to courageously stand for his beliefs, for truth, and for girls whose voices of concern over their real safety are being drowned out by the outraged nonsense of the woke mob."

The LDF asks the public to support the young man's fight and recommends these particular ways: 

• peacefully protesting on public property near St. Joseph's High School
• respectfully but boldly expressing disapproval of Alexander's unjust treatment to school and school board officials
• expressing concern, both in public and private settings, about the myth that young people can choose their gender
• voicing disapproval of boys and men infiltrating girls' and women's spaces

Donations can also be made to the Liberty Defense Fund, which is providing its legal representation at no cost to Alexander.

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