Toronto: Canada has warned LGBTQ travellers of the risks of visiting the United States.
Ottawa’s latest travel advisory released on Tuesday warns people who identify as 2SLGBTQI+ – referring to two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning or intersex – to check the laws of the state they are visiting.
“Some states have enacted laws and policies that may affect 2SLGBTQI+ persons,” Global Affairs Canada said in its advisory. “Check relevant state and local laws.”
Asked by reporters about the updated advice, Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said the government has experts on hand to “monitor whether there are particular dangers to particular groups of Canadians”.
“Every Canadian government … needs to put at the centre of everything we do, the interest and the safety of every single Canadian and every single group of Canadians,” Freeland added. “That’s what we’re doing now”.
Asked about Canada’s updated travel advisory, a US State Department spokesperson said: “The United States is committed to promoting tolerance, inclusion, justice, and dignity while helping to advance the equality and human rights of LGBTQI+ persons. We all must continue to do this work with our like-minded partners not only in the United States, not only in Canada, but throughout the world.”
Dozens of US states have recently passed laws that advocates say curtail LGBTQ rights, including restrictions on gender transitions for minors, prohibitions on transgender people participating in women’s sport and bans on drag shows in public.
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