Kayla Lemieux is a male schoolteacher in Ontario, Canada. He identifies as a transgender woman and, since last year, has attracted controversy for wearing prosthetic Z-cup breasts to class. Parents thought this was inappropriate. But the school defended Lemieux’s supposed gender expression.
After sustained pressure from parents, however, Lemieux was placed on paid leave. “While not currently on an active assignment, the teacher remains employed with the Halton District School Board,” a representative said. This may be their attempt at compromise. But he can’t stay on leave forever.
What appears to have triggered Lemieux’s suspension were recent pictures of him obtained by the New York Post showing him going about his daily life in men’s clothing, without the giant fake breasts and wig. It’s absurd that it is these images, and not the ones of him dressing so obviously inappropriately at school, that have prompted suspension. Still, it helps shatter the illusion that this is some bold expression of his true self. Indeed, it’s almost as if he might be a disturbed, attention-seeking man deriving sexual thrills from dressing this way in front of adolescents.