Transgender teacher Kayla Lemieux has been at the center of a heated debate in Ontario, Canada after parents complained about her size-Z prosthetic breasts. Lemieux, an industrial arts teacher at Oakville Trafalgar High School, has maintained that the breasts are real and that she suffers from a rare condition called gigantomastia.
The controversy began last year when it emerged she was teaching classes in a wig and tight top showing Z-cup breasts with protruding nipples. In the wake of such appearances, parents complained that her attire was inappropriate for children, leading to heated school board meetings and even bomb threats at the school.
Last month, the New York Post photographed what the newspaper claimed was Ms Lemieux dressed as a man, and without breasts, walking down a street. In an interview with the New York Post, Lemieux said she began hormone replacement therapy in 2021 and was “in transition”. She said that gigantomastia had been brought on by hormone therapy and that she was “not a transgendered person” having been born “intersex”.
In a statement, the Halton District School Board said gender identity and gender expression are protected grounds under the Ontario Human Rights Code. In January, the school board agreed to come up with a policy for teachers to have an “appropriate and professional” appearance.
However, Hadeon MacKillop, a pupil at the school, told CBC Toronto there should be a dress code for teachers. He said: “If students have to follow those rules, I think teachers should as well. That’s what I think the main problem is, not anything to do with [transgender] issues, it’s just the dress code.”
The case of Kayla Lemieux has brought the debate around the rights of transgender people and their place in the workplace to the forefront. While many parents feel her attire is not appropriate for a teacher, Lemieux has maintained that she is simply expressing her identity and that she should still be allowed to teach in her chosen attire. The story of Kayla Lemieux serves as a reminder that the rights of transgender people must be respected and that they should be entitled to the same freedoms as everyone else.
