53
2015 GRAND MARSHAL
showed her the humour within gender and
taught her snappy comebacks.
Empowered by volunteering in the
community for causes such as Gio’s Cares,
the Rainbow Resource Centre and the
Transgender Day of Remembrance, Shandi
continues to advocate for trans awareness.
She has sat on panels to discuss trans
topics, participated in trans events and regularly appears in the media, most recently to
vocalize the dismay with the amendments
added to Bill C-279 by Senator Don Plett.
Shandi is against the amendments as they
will victimize those whom were to be
protected by the bill. The third amendment
to the bill indicates that people must use
gendered-facilities based upon the sex they
were assigned at birth. This essentially
means that pre-operative trans people, who
identify, and express, as their preferred
gender would be forced to use a washroom
based solely on their genitalia. Despite
having used a woman’s washroom with no
problems for nearly 20 years, Shandi is
infuriated at the risks this amendment would
pose on others in the community.
Shandi is optimistic though and wants
everyone to remain hopeful. People are
becoming more educated about trans
people and attitudes are evolving. She
encourages the LGBTTQ* community to
continue spreading awareness and
educating about the facts in order to destroy
the fabricated fear.
Shandi is a keynote speaker at the 2015
OUTShine Conference, is the Advocacy
Coordinator for Pride Winnipeg, is writing
her autobiography titled ‘Growing a Pair,’
and is looking to provide consultation to
employers regarding trans awareness in
the workplace.
THE GENDERBREAD PERSON:
woman
man
genderqueer
heterosexual
How you, in your head, think about
yourself. It’s the chemistry of you and
how you interpret it.
homosexual
bisexual
Sexual Orientation
It’s who you’re physically and
emotionally attracted to based on
their gender in relation to yours.
female
male
intersex
feminine
Gender Identity
Biological Sex
Refers to objectively measurable
organs, hormones, & chromosomes.
masculine
androgynous
Gender Expression
How you demonstrate your gender in the
ways you act, dress, behave, & interact.