The Maple Monitor 3: Trans Policy, Free Speech, and Media Bias
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): A Further Inquiry
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2025/09/21
Irina Tsukerman is a human rights and national security attorney based in New York and Connecticut. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in National and Intercultural Studies and Middle East Studies from Fordham University in 2006, followed by a Juris Doctor from Fordham University School of Law in 2009. She operates a boutique national security law practice. She serves as President of Scarab Rising, Inc., a media and security strategic advisory firm. Additionally, she is the Editor-in-Chief of The Washington Outsider, which focuses on foreign policy, geopolitics, security, and human rights. She is actively involved in several professional organizations, including the American Bar Association’s Energy, Environment, and Science and Technology Sections, where she serves as Program Vice Chair in the Oil and Gas Committee. She is also a member of the New York City Bar Association. She serves on the Middle East and North Africa Affairs Committee and affiliates with the Foreign and Comparative Law Committee.
In this interview with Scott Douglas Jacobsen, Tsukerman discusses Canadian trans policy debates, fairness in women’s sports, and why pronoun legislation is hard to justify. She notes evidence on youth gender-affirming care, urges balance between inclusion and competitive equity, and contrasts this with HIV progress and ACT’s wind-down. Tsukerman and interviewer Scott Douglas Jacobsen address a Nova Scotia abuse case, media antisemitism, and the difference between protected speech and defamation. The conversation stresses proportionate responses—education before firing—and warns against conspiracy thinking. It also examines how identity accusations chill dissent while extremists exploit them, undermining human rights, pluralism, and sober policy.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Helen Kennedy, executive director of Egale Canada, said that using the notwithstanding clause is “an unconscionable attack on 2SLGBTQI people and a horrific example of state-sponsored transphobia.” On one hand, the premier is using a tool to target three laws that affect transgender people specifically. If there were only one law, that might be different, but having three shows clear targeting. On the other hand, critics point to transphobia. What are your thoughts?
Irina Tsukerman: One of the laws concerns healthcare for children, specifically restrictions on gender-related medical care for minors. The state does have a legitimate interest in safeguarding minors until they are mature enough to make serious healthcare decisions. For interventions involving hormones, surgeries, or medically irreversible procedures, many experts consider it reasonable to limit such options for minors.
Research from Canada (the Stories of Gender-Affirming Care study) involving youth aged about 9-17 who accessed gender-affirming care (puberty blockers, hormone therapy, or surgery) found that while some experienced side effects, delays in care, and doubts, none of the participants expressed regret about having started those interventions.
On pronoun usage, the issue is less clear. Everyone has a right to self-identify, and using a person’s chosen pronoun does not infringe on the rights of others. State intervention in pronoun usage is more complex to justify unless there is coercion or a legal necessity; absent that, legislation is questionable.
The third law concerns transgender athletes in female amateur sports. There are ongoing debates about competitive fairness—some physical advantages may persist despite hormone treatment, depending on timing, physiology, and the type of sport. In contexts where strength, size, speed, or other sex-related physiological differences confer advantage, there may be legitimacy in having rules or categories that attempt to ensure fairness.
Do I think transgender athletes should be excluded from competition entirely? No. Do I think there should be alternate paths to compete (for example, in different divisions or under specific eligibility criteria)? Yes. Transgender individuals should not be forced into policies that deny them meaningful participation, especially if they have taken steps (like hormone therapy) that affect their physical appearance. A balanced approach is necessary to protect both inclusivity and fairness; if a rule set tilts too heavily toward one side, it can undermine women’s sports or create systematic exclusion, which is also unjust.
Jacobsen: This issue is more ambiguous. The AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT), which has been operating for over 40 years, announced that it will wind down its operations by March 31, 2026, due to financial challenges, declining numbers of service users, and changes in the broader healthcare context. It is unclear whether pressure or external political interference is the cause, although some interpret broader social shifts as contributing factors.
Tsukerman: I am not an HIV specialist, but treatments today allow most people living with HIV to have near-normal lifespans, provided they have consistent access to antiretroviral therapy and medical care. Transmission risk becomes extremely low when the viral load is “undetectable = untransmittable.” Serious illness and death have dropped substantially in many places. However, HIV has not been eradicated, and ongoing issues remain, including access inequities, social stigma, comorbidities, aging-related concerns, housing, and mental health.
Jacobsen: Another matter: a former swim instructor in Nova Scotia has faced dozens of sexual abuse charges. This mirrors other large abuse scandals like the Larry Nassar case in the U.S. I am glad that many are coming forward. Large numbers of accusations tend to make it more likely that there are systemic issues rather than isolated misunderstandings. Abuse in contexts of power—especially with vulnerable youth—is sadly not rare, and many jurisdictions and institutions have historically failed to prevent it or respond adequately.
Tsukerman: It seems very likely that there is a serious issue here. Hopefully, there will be a transparent and thorough investigation. Assuming this is not a conspiracy, the accused will have to face justice if the allegations are proven true.
Jacobsen: This connects to the first topic we covered in the series. A Radio-Canada reporter was placed on leave after using antisemitic language on television. The reporter reportedly said that Jewish people finance American politics, run U.S. cities, and control Hollywood.
Tsukerman: The correspondent, Elissa Serret, was reporting from Washington on U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Israel. This came after Israeli forces launched strikes on Hamas targets. When asked why the U.S. had not distanced itself from Israel, Serret said in French: “The Israelis-in fact, the Jews—finance a lot of American politics” and “control a big machine” in America’s major cities and Hollywood.
Jacobsen: That reminds me of Dave Chappelle’s joke: there are many Black people in Chicago, but that does not mean they run Chicago. Likewise, there are Jewish people in Hollywood, but that does not mean they run Hollywood.
Tsukerman: In fact, there are fewer today than in earlier decades. These are not only harmful stereotypes, but they are also outdated mid-twentieth-century stereotypes.
This reporter missed the memo. With AI, they could at least update their prejudices to more “contemporary” conspiracy theories, like COVID disinformation. But seriously, it is sad that crude generalizations persist even in modern, educated, democratic societies. Canada is not an isolated place with limited access to information. Yet people still embrace tribalist, antiquated streams of disinformation.
I can understand if a child absorbs disinformation from family or community. But as an adult, to hold on to such crude perceptions of entire groups without questioning them shows willful ignorance. At a minimum, people should recognize stereotypes and do basic research. The fact that some choose to embrace them reveals much about how people construct their own information environment.
Jacobsen: What would real education look like?
Tsukerman: It depends on how she arrived at those conclusions. Was she repeating what she always heard, simply lacking critical thinking, or did real animus drive it? A lot depends on further conversation. There is no single path for everyone. If she embraces the opportunity, it could be a success story—she could even become an ambassador for educating others. But if she rejects it or cynically manipulates the situation to regain her job while continuing to spread conspiracy theories, that should not be tolerated. In such cases, dismissal is appropriate.
There is also a distinction with Jimmy Kimmel. I do not believe he perpetuated stereotypes or caused hatred. He criticized a political movement, and that falls under legitimate free expression. There is a difference between disagreeable comments and defamatory speech. What the reporter engaged in was defamatory, and defamation is not protected in free speech frameworks, unlike simple insults or political critique.
Jacobsen: Thank you for the opportunity and your time, Irina.
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