Vancouver’s Options for Sexual Health (Opt) recently honoured Ladner’s Tru Wilson as the first youth recipient of its Sexual Health Champion award.
The transgender rights advocate was presented with the award at Opt’s fourth annual Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) Day Breakfast on Feb. 16.
SRH Day is held annually and is national event intended to raise awareness of sexual and reproductive health issues.
“I was just amazed and honoured to be getting such an amazing award,” said the 13-year-old. “I do consider myself an advocate for the LGBTQ2 community. I try to do a lot of work and help spread the word about LGBTQ2 people and I try to help people understand that it is a normal thing and that it doesn’t have to be hated, we just have to be accepted.”
In 2013, Tru’s family made headlines when it launched a human rights complaint against Ladner’s Sacred Heart and Catholic Independent Schools Vancouver. As a result Catholic Independent Schools Vancouver crafted a policy around gender expression and gender dysphoria that states where a family makes a request for accommodation of gender dysphoria, the administration should respond “in a prompt and supportive manner.”
Four years after transitioning, Tru is happy that her outside, and how people see her, matches how she feels on the inside.
“I've become so courageous and I just love how much I've come out of my shell and it feels so good to stand up for myself,” said Tru.
In 2015, Tru was named one of Vancouver Magazine's 50 most powerful and influential people.
With continued love and support from her family, Tru has become a proud and dynamic speaker for trans rights. She continues to share her story to educate and inspire others and show support for members of society who feel excluded for any reason.
“I’ve gone to Victoria and spoken with the MLAs and done some work with the Out in Schools program,” she said. “They are an amazing group that reaches out to teens and I eventually want to be of that group one day.”
She called Opt a great organization and if called upon, would help advocate for it any way she could.
“Honestly, I was just happy to be there, to be in the room with so many influential people,” Tru said.
Next month, Tru and her family are off to New York for the Women’s Summit at the United Nations. According to her mom Michelle, Tru was invited as a guest after she made a connection at a recent Black History Month event.
Tru will also be part of G Day events in Vancouver in October.
“It’s fun to talk about these issues and to tell my story,” added Tru. “The more we talk about this, the more people will understand these issues and the less of an issue it becomes.”
