Canada issues warning for LGBTQ travelers planning trips to the US amid foreign affairs minister Melanie Joly saying she’s keeping an eye on America

Canada has issued a warning to LGBTQ travelers planning travel to the US to consider how they may be affected by recently passed laws, citing a risk of potential dangers.

The cautionary message was added to the travel section of the Canadian government’s website — just days after the country’s foreign minister, Melanie Joly, said she was “watching” America as campaigns for the next election begin .

The warning was aimed at those who consider themselves bisexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, or intersex — or 2SLGBTQI+ for short.

While the advisory did not specify which U.S. states it was referring to, it wrote: “Some states have enacted laws and policies that may affect 2SLGBTQI+ individuals.

“Check relevant state and local laws.”

Anti-LGBTQ demonstrations in the United States grew 30 times the size of 2017 last year, and legal action to restrict LGBTQ rights is on the rise.

More than 520 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in state legislatures in 2023 alone, according to the Human Rights Campaign — mostly those with a Republican majority.

More than 220 of those bills specifically target transgender and non-binary people.

A record 70 anti-LGBTQ laws have been enacted in the US since the start of the year — with more expected to be finalized before 2024.

This includes laws banning gender-affirming care for trans youth, allowing the abuse of trans students, targeted drag performances, and censorship school curricula.

The US State Department said the United States is committed to “promoting tolerance, inclusion, justice and dignity” while advancing the rights of the LGBTQ community, willing to work with like-minded partners from around the world in doing so. whole world.

When asked why the advisory was updated, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said the Canadian government has brought in experts “to carefully look around the world and check whether there are any particular threats to particular groups of Canadians.”

She added, “Every Canadian government … must put the best interests and safety of every Canadian and every group of Canadians at the heart of everything we do. That’s what we’re doing now.”

She declined to say whether any talks were held with the Biden administration before the change was made.

The overall risk profile for the United States remains green, indicating a normal requirement for security measures.

The United States is the top travel destination for Canadians, and in June residents returned from about 2.8 million trips south of the border.

According to official data released last year, about 1 million people, 4 percent of Canada’s population aged 15 and older, are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or of a sexual orientation other than heterosexual.

The largest LGBTQ advocacy organization in the United States, the Human Rights Campaign, has declared a national emergency, citing the proliferation of legislation in state capitals aimed at regulating the lives of queer people.

At least three anti-LGBTQ laws passed this year in Ron DeSantis’ Florida: HB 1069, SB 254 and HB 1521.

They respectively expanded the “Don’t Say LGBTQ+ Law,” criminalized providers providing gender-affirming care, and criminalized transgender people not using the toilet of their sex assigned at birth.

Similarly, a number of anti-LGBTQ laws have been enacted in Montana, Nebraska, Tennessee, and Louisiana — from allowing gender abuse of students, banning gender-affirming care for children, and adopting anti-LGBTQ definitions of sex .

A slew of similar bills in Arizona, Ohio, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas are passing the chambers of their states. Many are in the final stages of legislatures or awaiting signatures from their governors.

Missouri’s SB 39 bill, which was signed into law, has banned transgender students from participating in school sports in recent months.

And Texas’ SB 14 bill will formally pass into law on Sept. 1, banning gender-affirming care for transgender youth.

In Iowa, SF 496 passed into law this year, formally banning all classroom discussion of LGBTQ+ topics in grades K-6.

The update comes just days after a Canadian lawmaker revealed that a “plan” is being drawn up on how to respond if the US becomes a far-right, authoritarian regime after the presidential election.

Secretary of State Melanie Joly says Canada is watching closely who will be America’s next leader, the National Post reports.

“We’re definitely working on screenplays,” Joly told a Montreal radio station during an interview in French this week.

“In general, there is our game plan, precisely to cope with a rather difficult situation.

“I’m going to work with my colleagues and with the mayors, the provincial premiers, with the business community, with the unions, with everyone in the country, so that whatever the election result, we’ll be ready.”

She is believed to be alluding to the possible re-election of former President Donald Trump, who will likely be the Republican nominee and face Joe Biden in a close race.

During the same discussion, she said there is a broader look at how Canada is preventing the growth of the far right.

“The other aspect of the question is more about knowing how we as a democracy can thwart the growth of the far right in our country, because it’s happening in the United States, it’s happening in Europe,” she said.

Joly added, ‘So you can’t be naive here, Patrick; it is happening with us now, there is, we know that there is certainly a radicalization of the (Canadian) Conservative Party.’

In April, a Florida LGBTQ group came under fire for issuing a “travel advisory” urging members of the gay community to avoid the Sunshine State because of recent laws restricting their “health, safety and freedom.”

The Equality Florida campaign group made headlines for saying that Republican administration Ron DeSantis’ “extremist policies” made the state more dangerous for LGBTQ Americans to live, work and study.

DeSantis has spearheaded a populist “anti-woke” agenda aimed at limiting sex reassignment treatments for trans children and teaching sex, race and gender in schools and colleges.

The DeSantis office dismissed the false travel advice as a “political stunt.”

Critics attacked Equality Florida, saying the civil rights group was not really operating in the best interests of LGBTQ people, especially younger Floridans struggling with their identity.