As media attention shines on the phenomenon of Quebec masculinist influencers with the release of the documentary Alphas, people worry about the impact these men with their conservative rhetoric will have on women's rights.
In the shadows, this week sees the start of the trial of Mohamed Al Ballouz, who now identifies himself as a woman named Levana Ballouz, is accused of the second-degree murders of his wife Synthia Bussières and the first-degree murders of their children Zac, 2, and Eliam, 5.
Ballouz stabbed his wife 23 times, leaving her dead in a pool of blood in the bathroom. He then murdered his little boys. At the time of writing, the cause of death of the boys was not yet known. Three murders committed in cold blood by a deranged man. This despicable crime made the headlines in 2022, and the death of Synthia Bussières is one of Quebec's most sad feminicides.
Female gender identity
This violent murderer of women and children is currently incarcerated at Leclerc Prison, a provincial prison for women. Ballouz suddenly discovered a female gender identity in June 2024 after deciding to represent himself at his trial. This story is reminiscent of the case of dangerous sex offender Jody Matthew Burke, who claimed to be a woman in order to obtain a more lenient sentence and hoped to be transferred to a federal prison for women.
Since 2022, a Canadian policy has allowed all prisoners with a gender identity that does not correspond to the sex recorded at birth to be transferred to a prison in line with their feminine feelings. Prison authorities have no way of assessing whether the person actually suffers from gender dysphoria, so we rely on the offender's word.
44% of transgender inmates in federal penitentiaries have been convicted of crimes of a sexual nature, and 41% are serving sentences for homicide. In the majority of cases, the victims were women and children. Federal women's prisons have mother-child units, allowing mothers to keep their children with them up to the age of 4. No one has taken the time to assess the impact of these transfers on the prison population of women and their infants.
An inclusive society
In Quebec, we pride ourselves on being an inclusive and deeply feminist society. We have no problem denouncing rape culture, sexual assault, masculinists, misogyny, feminicide and the list goes on. We even have a specialized court for victims of sexual assault, and we're well on the way to criminalizing coercive violence!
And yet, these men accused of the most despicable crimes against women and children have the opportunity, with all the benevolence of our institutions going out of their way to validate their gender identity, to serve their sentences surrounded by women and children in more lenient conditions than in men's prisons.
How many women do we have to sacrifice to validate the gender identities of dangerous men?
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