The Distant Librarian

Google Scholar PDF Reader

I use Firefox these days, so this wasn't a priority. I've had this tucked away since it was announced about a month ago, but only now got around to trying it out, and I like it! Last month, Google introduced the Google Scholar PDF Reader. I thought about making a quick screencast, but of course someone else has already done a nice job, so here you go. I had a little trouble getting it to read local PDFs until I realized I could just drag them on to the browser.

With whom did Danielle Smith actually consult on her transgender rights policy?

In January 2024, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced "sweeping changes to Alberta's student gender identity, sports and surgery policies" aimed at the province's transgender community. According to news reports, "Alberta’s premier says she’s had many conversations with members of the trans community before and since drafting a suite of policy proposals dealing with transgender rights." I could find no mentions from members of the transgender community of such consultations, so I submitted a FOIP request to the government. My first request was, apparently, too narrow, so upon advice from several readers I resubmitted the following request, which yielded a result:

Several news sites, but specifically CTV at https://globalnews.ca/news/10281751/alberta-says-it-consulted-widely-in-drafting-controversial-transgender-rights-policy/ have reported that Premier Danielle Smith "consulted widely" before announcing policy changes affecting transgender and non-binary youth and adults on January 31, 2024.

I am seeking all documents, including correspondence, that describe or make reference to the planning of that consultation, including but not limited to references to parties, organizations and individuals with whom the Premier met on this issue, including dates, locations and how long each meeting lasted.

Timeframe: May 29, 2023 to Feb 16, 2024

Attached is the response, which shows a single, 30-minute meeting, with one person whose name has been redacted.

EC000-2024-G-12 Applicant Copy (PDF)

As mentioned in that CTV report, Premier Smith also said,

“It’s not a single voice and it’s not a single perspective.” Danielle Smith said during a Feb. 5 press conference in Ottawa. But it was one individual’s experience in particular, Smith says, that prompted the province to take action.

Yet my FOIP request suggests it was, in fact, a single voice that persuaded Danielle Smith to announce this ideological policy.

Can anyone shed light on that Organizer: MDS Final line? Is that an Outlook thing, or is it possibly related to the meeting? It looks like the former, but Google doesn't seem to think so...

#TRAHR