Youth Parliament experience exceeds expectations

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This article was published 10/01/2023 (863 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The second year of attending youth parliament was far different than the first for Steinbach native Trinity Sperling.

A graduate of SRSS, and current University of Manitoba student, Sperling took part in the 101st session of Youth Parliament of Manitoba, her second time participating, but the first in person.

Last years event, while initially planned for in-person participation, ended up changing to remote participation after rising COVID counts prompted new restrictions.

Just being there with fellow participants, in the daily activities and staying overnight at Kelvin High School made it a more fulfilling experience according to Sperling.

“We get up at 7:30 in the morning and we would be together until 3 a.m. when we went to sleep,” she said. “You’re spending every minute of the day with people, so you really form those close connections.”

Youth Parliament of Manitoba gives young people 16-20 years-old, the opportunity to engage in a non-partisan, non-denominational mock parliament.

Participants craft bills, hold committee meetings and debate in question period. They also meet with Manitoba politicians and other guests.

For Sperling one highlight was having the opportunity to learn from an Indigenous elder, traditional knowledge keeper Grandma Shingoose.

“It was something really cool to have an Indigenous elder in a colonial space,” she said. “To have an Indigenous elder lead us in conversation in a room like that, it was so interesting and powerful.”

Lunch with the Manitoba Metis Federation and meetings with representatives of NDP and PC parties added to the variety.

Being able to attend in person made the debate more personal.

“I think people were also more respectful because the person is right there and you can see them and you know them and you eat lunch and dinner and breakfast with them and hang out with them after,” she said. “You see people more as people and less as the idea of what they’ve written about.”

Sperling had the opportunity to write a bill working with others to push the private members bill that would see government establish homeless shelters and warming areas in Winnipeg.

“I live in downtown Winnipeg, so I see a lot of homelessness and I see a lot of people sleeping in bus shelters and on the streets,” she said. “Most homeless shelters or warming areas are made by non-government organizations. A lot of the time it’s religious organizations, which is great, but is not always a comfortable space for some people.”

The bill sought to establish spaces inclusive for everybody but with culturally relevant programming and extended resources.

Ultimately the bill was defeated, but Sperling said that was likely because the group of people who crafted it inserted many different ideas.

“I think there were some conflicting ideas in the bill that made it a little confusing, but it was a fun process to go through all that,” she said.

Other bills that Sperling highlighted included the Safe Sex Work Act which supported the idea of decriminalizing sex work to create a framework that safeguards the human rights of sex workers.

“It was really just about protecting sex workers,” she said.

The Red Dress Act, focussed on educating all civil servants on missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, was something that Sperling said was important because many don’t know the sheer magnitude of the crisis.

“It passed unanimously which I think was really great,” she said. “I think it also raised a lot of awareness within the members.”

The experience also gave Sperling the opportunity to meet with PC caucus members including Steinbach MLA Kelvin Goertzen, newly elected Kirkfield Park MLA Kevin Klein and Lac du Bonnet MLA Wayne Ewasko. NDP caucus members included leader Wab Kinew, Wolseley MLA Lisa Naylor, Fort Garry MLA Mark Wasyliw and Transcona MLA Nello Altomare.

Sperling said it was interesting to watch her fellow participants grill both parties.

“There was definitely a lot of pointed questions with the youth,” she said. “Youth Parliament as an organization is non-partisan but that doesn’t necessarily mean the members are. There are some people that have very strong political affiliations in the organization which is quite interesting to see.”

In many ways Sperling said the items that get debated in youth parliament foreshadow future debates in the legislature.

“It’s a very progressive organization and they have a lot of ideas that are too crazy, too radical for actual politics, but 20 years later it’s something that get’s done,” she said.

In her first year of university, Sperling is unsure where life will take her or if it will be feasible to take part in the annual tradition once again.

“I would definitely like to be a part of the organization for a long time,” she said.