IT'S TIME TO #DROPTHEDEADNAME.
A STATEMENT FROM THE TRANS, BISEXUAL, LESBIAN, GAY, ASEXUAL @ YORKBeing denied insurance coverage, months of humiliation from administrative offices, stricter policies than the government itself, broken websites and promises: this is what York University is putting transgender students through with its outdated and apathetic name change program.
YorkU’s Name and Gender Identity Profile Change form and Student Name Change Request Form are both frequently broken, and for many take several months to be processed. From there, students must manually chase down each individual YorkU office, including their email accounts and student cards. Oftentimes, they’re met with untrained staff who force them to advocate for themselves, a stress many young trans people are unprepared for and disheartened by. Even when students manage to track down the necessary people, they’re faced with unnecessarily strict requirements. Many places outside the university require only a name change certificate and single form of ID to change a name, yet York demands two pieces. For students without a Driver’s License and passport, which includes many international students, they’re barred completely from this process.
The proof requirements are incredible. My Change of Name Certificate was all they asked for at ServiceOntario, at the bank, and at the CRA. Which makes sense because that is what a Change of Name Certificate is for. I do not understand why York asks for one or even two pieces of photo ID (which can take months to get!) on top of the official Government of Canada certificate.
Students who use the voluntary name change form (a service meant for those who have not yet legally changed their name) face an equal amount of strain. Once a student declares their chosen name, the university effectively scrubs their legal name from the records. This means that legal documents needed to acquire healthcare, file taxes, or appeal immigration appear under the student’s chosen name, making essential services practically inaccessible. We know York University has the ability to issue documents with legal names, too: trans students’ diplomas are still printed and, in an act of public humiliation, announced by their legal names.
This meant that I could have either my legal name on file, or my preferred name. Consequentially having my preferred name on file would result in problems getting loans from OSAP, and dealing with other legal entities to confirm my enrollment as a full-time student.
I, alongside many other students, rely on OSAP to attend York University. My parents refuse to pay for my post-secondary education specifically because of the fact that I am transgender, and this feels like a slap in the face, as I thought I would have a place that would accept me.
Other Toronto universities, like the University of Toronto, have streamlined processes that retain legal documentation, don’t put extra stress on students, and don’t require higher standards of proof than the government itself. Several students have had their mental health and academic performance ruined by the strain of York’s process — why must trans students, already dealing with an increasingly difficult environment for them, take on this burden simply because of the administration’s apathy?
This shows a reprehensible lack of care and understanding towards trans students and how they navigate the already nebulous legal world. We don’t ask the administration to have all the answers, but we do ask them to listen when we tell them what must change. This is that answer.
We demand:
- A functioning, transparent, and swift name change process, including one-step changes to digital accounts like Passport York, Google, Outlook, and eClass.
- Differentiation or toggleable options between chosen and legal names inside YorkU’s system, allowing students to receive documentation that matches their identification.
- Reasonable standards of proof: a name change certificate and one piece of ID should be enough.
- Training about the name change process in YorkU offices.
- An on-going commitment to listening to trans students.
TBLGAY
tblgayinternal at yfs.ca
