Manitoba teen under fire for trying to start a gay-straight alliance school group

All 16-year-old Evan Wiens wanted was to start a gay-straight alliance at his high school in Steinbach, Manitoba. He didn’t think he would spark an outcry of opposition from religious leaders and political figures.

Wiens, a Grade 11 student at Steinbach Regional Secondary School, says he’s the only gay student at his school, and he wanted to start a group to encourage others to come forward.

"Steinbach's a very religious, conservative community, and I'm really concerned about what these students are feeling like in their homes … that they feel that they really can't come out," Wiens tells CBC.

"I just want to be able to at least have a place at school that they feel safe."

After the high-profile suicide of B.C. teenager Amanda Todd, the government of Manitoba introduced Bill 18, a bill that advocates for a “safe and inclusive learning environment.”

At first, the bill garnered little attention, but lately, it’s become a hot topic of debate amongst critics who say it threatens religious freedom by broadly defining bullying and defending gay-straight alliances, but not mentioning religious groups.

The backlash to Bill 18 is especially noticeable in Steinbach, where local MP and cabinet minister Vic Toews has joined other members of legislative assembly and religious officials in speaking out against the bill.

In a recent letter to constituents, Toews writes he believes Bill 18 represents an “unconstitutional infringement upon the freedom of religion.” Ray Duerksen, a Steinbach pastor calls Bill 18 “the biggest challenge the Canadian church has ever faced.”

And Wiens has become the public face of the bill.

When he speaks to the public, he’s often met with hostile people and slurs. But the teenager tries to brush it up, and says he’s speaking up for those who can’t.

“I thought about it, and I thought if a church is allowed to vocally oppose a bill, what’s so bad about me standing up for my rights?” he tells the Globe and Mail.

Wiens says that his school has approved the gay-straight alliance, and school superintendant Randy Dueck tells The Globe and Mail that the school’s current policy already allows gay-straight alliances, something Bill 18 wouldn’t change.

Manitoba isn’t the only province to debate gay-straight alliances. Last year, the Ontario government squared off with the Toronto Catholic District School Board, and this month, a school in Whitehorse, Yukon was blasted for declaring on its website that homosexuality is a “great depravity.”

As for Wiens, he’s not afraid of the big guns opposing him. “People never expect a youth to challenge the government, or challenge what your local MLA’s stance is on something,” he tells the Globe and Mail.

“I’ve gone through a lot of hard times, but I’ve grown as a person. I want them to know that it’s not a bad thing to be yourself, and you don’t have to be ashamed to walk down the hallway and say, ‘Hey, this is who I am.’”