Trans Ontarians experience high rates of unemployment, workplace discrimination, and poverty which can make them more vulnerable to incarceration. Approximately one-quarter of trans people in Ontario report being harassed by police because they are trans, while about a quarter of racialized, and a third of Aboriginal, trans people report police harassment because of their race or ethnicity. The limited research conducted on the prison experiences of trans people in Canada suggests that trans people who live in poverty, who are sex workers, and who use drugs frequently report police harassment, and may constitute the majority of trans people who are arrested and imprisoned. We also know that Aboriginal and Black people are over-represented in Canadian prisons.

Reference: Scheim A, Cherian M, Bauer G, Zong X. Joint Effort: Prison Experiences of  Trans PULSE Participants and Recommendations for Change. Trans PULSE e-Bulletin, 22 April, 2013. 3(3). Downloadable in English or French at https://www.transpulseproject.ca .