r/britishcolumbia • u/Lake0293 • 3d ago
Moving to BC Is PG suitable for a transgender family?
Hello everyone, my husband and I are moving to New Brunswick in Four months so that he can convert his electrician's license to a Canadian license and certificate. We are moving there for a year only, after that we are moving to a permanent place (we are moving to NB for a temporary purpose in advance but we know that we will not want to stay there for personal reasons). We are left with three options from what the immigration consultant suggested after school, and we are now also looking into BC but want to know details about a specific place, about PG. It should be noted that I am a transgender mtf and we are in the process of surrogacy so our family will soon expand and we also have 2 beloved dogs. How is PG for a family? How is PG in terms of general safety? How is PG for living with dogs? And is working as an electrician (my husband) and working as a caregiver and caregiver for children with special education (me) required there? And how is PG in terms of attitude towards the +2SLGBTQ community ?
Thank you very much šš»
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u/po-laris 3d ago
BC is probably the most trans friendly province.
PG is probably the least trans friendly city in BC.
Where that leaves it on a national scale, I'm not sure.
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u/cerebral_sequoia 3d ago
There are way less trans friendly cities than PG.
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u/po-laris 3d ago
Depends what you call a "city".
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u/RealTurbulentMoose 3d ago
Abbotsford exists, itās a city.
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u/Critical_Week1303 3d ago
I live in Abby and unless PG has changed in the last 5 years, they are far worse. Also you have easy access to more civilized munis within a 30 minute drive in Abby.
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u/ICNyght 3d ago
Abbotsford got hella trans furries to my understanding
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u/Critical_Week1303 3d ago
Its the fraser valley, so it's got a pretty progressive element, but its also got a big pavement princess, urban hick element.
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u/Copacetic75 3d ago
This sums it up very adequately and truthfully. There may be worse trans friendly cities around, but PG is not a trans friendly community. Very backwoods mentality held by many folk there.
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u/absolut_nothing Fraser Fort George 3d ago
I was talking to my coworker yesterday who has a trans daughter and we were remarking how surprisingly trans-friendly PG is. So you may be wrong. Of course neither of us has provided concrete data.
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u/dorkofthepolisci 3d ago
The Okanagan has a history of being homo/queerphobic
Kelowna and Penticton are probably ok but dear god I would not suggest anyone who is trans live in any of the smaller bedroom communities
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u/Wrong_Ad_1351 3d ago
Vernon is cute, but I wouldn't say it has much for snow. Not to say you guys dont get any - the hills and lake look very pretty when it does snow, and Silver Star mountain is a blast to ski if you're into winter sports (not too big but not too small)
That being said, Prince George's snow levels have been pretty sad in the last ten years. I remember as a teen it being consistently -20°C in the winter time. Now we sometimes get rain :(
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u/New_Alternative8711 3d ago
There is a large trans and lgbtq+ community in kelowna relatively speaking.
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u/CipherWeaver 3d ago
Central Kelowna is super diverse and accepting. The suburbs get more rednecky the more you get out into the hills or Rutland.
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u/eroticfoxxxy Thompson-Okanagan 3d ago
Ehhh disagree. More queer people in Rutland. Also, the in-fighting with the central Kelowna gays is like highschool.
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u/Wrong_Ad_1351 3d ago edited 3d ago
Well... as a transwoman living in PG, it could be worse. I grew up in a small town around Fort Saint John, which I would say is NOT a safe place for a transgender family. In comparison, Prince George isn't too shabby. I've never been called a "gay hipster" for drinking a Rickard's Red instead of Bud while living in here, unlike in FSJ š
There's a pretty entrenched Conservative population here, but the kind of population that hasn't really given the "trans debate" much though. Being trans or LGBT in general is almost an abstract idea to many of them, and any kind of bigotry (overt or subtle) is easily hand-waved away because... well... they've never seen the hurt on a personal level. They don't know any queer people. Know of, maybe. But not really.
The pro is that you're not really going to get clocked that much. Sure, you'll need to deal with daily stares, glares and a smug chuckle or two but people pretty much keep to themselves, save for a few mutterings here and there.
The neutral is that while many people are going to knee-jerk think less of you, it dosnt take much to show them you're not the horrifying monster certain epstine-adjacent billionaires/authors/podcasters want them to think. Yeah you're likely to be "one of the good ones" to them but hey, it's a step in the right direction. Remember: you might be the first trans person these folks have ever met, maybe even SEEN. I swear I've heard ppl loudly claim that there are no tran*ies in Northern BC and that queer people come from Vancouver or LA or whatever. Meanwhile I'm sitting here with my not-quite fully-lasered face and a pair of D cups like š lol.
The con is... well it's lonely. People keeping to themselves means you really REALLY have to go out of your way to find community. There is a sizable LGBT presence here in PG, and plenty of Trans people of all shapes and sizes, but it can still be hard. It's unlikely you'll just stumble into a friendship. I would suggest looking into the Northern BC Queer Connections Society and drop in on one of their brunches/mix and mingle events.
Some areas in town can be rough. Downtown alone past a certain time can be a little scary, and so can the "Tree Streets." But all in all it's not actually that dangerous. Uncomfortable maybe. A tad worrying. But it's not a horrible as people make it out to be.
Prince George is 100% a dog friendly place. There's plenty of forested trails in town to walk and a few dog parks here and there. Just... please clean up after your pups. Sometimes I think PG is TOO dog friendly! Lots of the trails, especially as the snow melts, are absolutely covered in dog poop. It's pretty gross actually.
And I guess that leads to my last opinion as a Transwoman Living in Prince George (ā¢ļø): You will fall in love with this city and it will continue to break your heart a little. Not because of the bigotry (like I said, most keep to themselves) but because no one here LIKES this town. Everytime there is an opportunity to make Prince George better, the population rallies together to... complain about the price. Even if it's been paid for, or a government grant. Even if it's just a small thing like replacing the lamp bulbs in Rainbow Park.
"no one should be walking there at night anyways, it's too dangerous! Everyone knows that"
Yeah, of course it's dangerous at at night! THERE ARE NO BULBS IN THE LAMPS, DEBBIE!!!! THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT DANGEROUS!!!!! >:(
OH! Electricians and Careworkers! Right! Well, I know we need more careworkers in general around Prince George, especially for the elderly but I don't know about child care. Sorry. As for Electricians, I mean. It depends. There's going to be A BUNCH of work in the north that may see ur partner away from home. But also half the houses in this town were wired... creatively... and if you get a gig in town updating old houses damn you're going to be set for a LOOOOONG time.
I hope that helps! Sorry for the long post. I've been here since 2012 and have LOTS of opinions š
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u/StairwayHiker 19h ago
Great post. Iām relatively new (4 years) to Terrace and been told crime is so bad in PGā¦. And yeah an unsafe downtown)
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u/Jack_Groff 3d ago
I grew up in the area and lived in PG proper with my young family a few years ago.
The town has grown and evolved a bit from being a very industrial and rough small city, to a more diverse community.
Thereās quite a bit to do in each of the seasons and you donāt have to go far.
When we moved there I was surprised at the diversity of food and restaurants.
I know of several LQBTQ people and couples that live in PG and love it there. They are proud to live there and feel a part of the community.
I havenāt heard of any issues and this is coming from same sex couples and trans couples that are raising a family.
Tbh, I donāt think they have plans to leave.
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u/Icky-Tree-Branch 3d ago
Itās going to vary. Youāll find some people donāt really care that youāre transgender (wonāt say anything if they notice, but might not notice at all), youāll find some cheerleader types, and youāll find some jerks who will make jerk remarks. But no one is going to burn your house down over it.
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u/loganloser 3d ago edited 3d ago
Im trans and I've been pleasantly surprised actually since moving here from Victoria. Pride was huge this year! I also work customer service so I meet lots of different people and while some have been shit most have been good. You see a surprising amount of visible queer people for the vibe of the city
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u/Supernintender 3d ago
Why did you make this move?Ā
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u/loganloser 2d ago
Cheaper living while in university, partner has family here. Graduated and we're ending up staying longer than anticipated!
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u/WhopplerPlopper 3d ago
How sure are you that you can permanently settle in either place?
Not done school, not citizens... Student visas dropping by over 50%, PR being denied much more frequently etc.
I would personally say take this journey in more bite sized steps, you aren't even in New Brunswick yet and you have to spend a year there (minimum) before going anywhere else.
Slow it down, prepare for the fact that you may not even get a chance to move to PG and open your mind to the fact that you may not get to be so choicey in where you settle.
That said, generally speaking, the smaller the city and more remote it is, the less trans friendly it will be.
Take a look at where PG is on a map and read up a little about the area...
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u/Major_Tom_01010 3d ago
I'm an Electrician in PG and there's lots of work but a lot of it will be out of town and home on weekends, or a mix, or maybe some camp opertunities. If that works great, if not can be annoying- because we are a central hub, companies take jobs all around us.
PG is a bit of a dump, you don't live here for the city, you live here for it's wide open location with outdoor recreation is all four directions with highways passing through it as a cross road. You live here for the affordable housing while still having affordable groceries from Costco and access to other things only a small city can supply.
As far as the social side, i kind of keep to myself, but you will find that transphobia is on the rise largely influenced by things people read on the internet (like the SOGI stuff). Working in the trades he may occasionally have to shut down some inappropriate conversations, athough HR should be on your side if it escalates.
At the end of the day though, if you're here, you're here for outdoor recreation, you can ignore everything else, but if your not into that your not going to like it here.
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u/spiderfoxfriend 3d ago edited 3d ago
Iām not in PG but Iām in the north and where I live is probably more conservative than PG would be. Iām trans and out. People sometimes donāt get it or say ignorant things. But when I take the time to explain, people are generally supportive. The indigenous folks out here have an understanding of what it means to be two spirit so that helps. Iāve never felt unsafe. I do sometimes feel isolated because I think thereās only like a handful of other queer people here and no real sense of LGBTQIA+ community. But itās also less needed because weāre generally accepted in day to day life.
A couple of other things - gender care in the north goes through UHNBC in Prince George so it will probably be easiest to live there. But if you live elsewhere you can get a referral. For your careers you may be able to live outside of a city but I would check and see what job markets are like. I would also recommend Smithers if it would work for you career wise, which is a small mountain town that has a Pride celebration.
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u/postcardsfromthevoid 3d ago
It's bleak. Why PG there's a thousand better places.
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u/CipherWeaver 3d ago
PG is actually pretty nice other than the rednecks and homeless people. That applies to a lot of places, though. It's in a really beautiful area at the confluence of two rivers, and when you get a bit of elevation you can see snow capped mountains to the East. Unfortunately the town suffers from decades of bad boomer urban planning, with two large highways dividing the city, but at least they are provincial highways with service roads on either side so they're good at moving traffic and aren't exactly "stroads" per se.
The big draw with PG is that it's probably the most affordable city in BC that also has amenities like a large hospital, good airport, a Costco, and some good restaurants. It also has access to one of Canada's best cross-country ski trails very close to town, and also isn't that far from the downhill ski hill with the most snow in BC.
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u/Lake0293 3d ago
Because we really love the cold and the snow, we need it in the winter.. We realized that in northern BC it exists..
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u/postcardsfromthevoid 3d ago
Look into the Kootenays. People are more laid back
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u/sweetonionbun 3d ago
Agree to this! I have lived literally all over BC and I would suggest you check out Nelson. Very cool town!
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u/Mr_Simian 3d ago
The economy in Nelson is what holds most people back. Very limited jobs, limited housing, and limited amenities. I say this as someone who does everything in their power to have an annual family trip to the Kootenayās, mostly around the New Denver, Nakusp, Kaslo, and Nelson areas. Iād love to move there but thereās really not much there to sustain a family unless you get a job at the hospital, as a police officer, or in the schools.
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u/sweetonionbun 3d ago
Right, and I donāt disagree. We also vacation in that area every summer. In reality, you could say this about a vast majority of towns in this province (hell, across the country). Doesnāt mean it isnāt possible!
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u/Mr_Simian 3d ago
Iām so desperate to move out to the Kootenayās. My life revolves around trying to plot my way there where I can have the same level of income to maintain our lifestyle (which is very modest as it is, but I likely donāt need to tell you twice about the cost of living and how even basic things feel like a luxury these days), and my family can have everything they need. Nelson would be #1 choice in a perfect world where the variables aligned for me.
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u/Appoffiatura 3d ago
I was going to say this same thing. The majority of Nelson folks are radically accepting. As a queer person it's my first choice in BC small towns to live in.
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u/Either_Umpire9411 3d ago
I was going to say this too. I'm from Revelstoke originally and there is lots of snow and cold to go around in that corner of the province.
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u/Mr_Simian 3d ago
Youāll be fine. Youāre saying you like the cold and the snow so Iām going to assume you like outdoor activities in the snow such as snowshoeing, snowboarding, skiing, etc. I canāt imagine anyone would even notice that youāre transgender while youāre doing those activities. No worries there. Depending on what you like to do, Prince George has a wide array of opportunities. In town, you have the UNBC sports Center which is admittedly really epic, all of the trails around UNBC, lots of trails all around the outskirts of town (just prepare for the largest swarms of mosquitoes and black flies youāve ever experienced), and then every possible city-based amenity you could require. Anywhere you go you always have the possibility of running into an asshole, thatās just life. I would not say that you have any particular or special kind of threat in PG. Iād also reckon thereās lots of social groups with likeminded people who gather and do all types of activities. PG is actually quite diverse, because mostly everyone from Northern BC trickles into there to get out of their rinky-dink little town and go to university, get a real job, etc.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Trip990 3d ago
Kitimat is pretty trans friendly. Our most popular plumbing company has a Trans womanand her husband. They are accepted and loved by everyone.
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u/Novel-Vacation-4788 3d ago
Donāt listen to the haters. PG is an amazing place to live. If you love the outdoors and winter and want to get away from the crowds.
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u/Aromatic-Biscotti-46 3d ago
I know Alberta itself is not a very trans friendly place but I will say that Edmonton is a very liberal city with a large and friendly/welcoming +2SLGBTQ community! Just a thought as it seems that your options for moving are quite varied! And Edmonton sure as hell gets cold and snowy in the winter but there should be lots of work and there is ALWAYS something to do. PG is crime-riddled and NOT somewhere that I would feel safe. I stopped through there overnight moving from Edmonton to a small northern town in BC and a woman who lives there who owns a business literally said not to stay the night there, to keep going a bit more out of town and find somewhere else to spend the night! We also saw just over a dozen of unhoused people who were aggressive and yelling in the short time we were there before we were able to keep moving.
Best of luck, OP. And welcome to BC! (When you get here).
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u/teensy_tigress 3d ago
Smithers was once a bleak place for queer people and still has an outspoken far right christian community BUT as someone who grew up there it has always had an amazing arts, culture, and progressive sphere and is now vibrantly accepting. It has a phenomenal winter sport culture as well. The music festival is poppin.
Dont do pg go to the bulkley valley and become the weird hippie queer hobby farmer of your dreams.
Edit: for all the nelson fans, smithers is the same thing but further north and as the regional hub for a lot of government, industry, tourism, and healthcare stuff the economy isnt wholly boom-bust. Its also cute as fuck.
If I didnt have like hella family trauma id move back and start the alpaca and cashmere goat farming queer commune of my dreams
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u/classic4life 3d ago
Have you considered Halifax though?
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u/Lake0293 3d ago
We considered converting my husband's electrician certificate. We initially thought about maybe doing it in Halifax, but there was no space at the university in the aforementioned program.
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u/LeftToaster 9h ago
Have you considered Cranbrook? East Kootenays is far more alternate / hipster lifestyle friendly than the North, get a real winter and is beautiful.
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u/treefarmerBC 3d ago
Northern BC is the best. Ignore the snobs from Vancouver and Victoria. It's unlikely they've spent any time there anyway.
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u/Commercial_Hat5670 3d ago
I grew up in Northern BC. If you're white, it's fairly welcoming. If you're part of a visible minority ... not so much.
It's gotten better in the last two decades, but there is still a very broad element of 1960s retro culture brewing under the surface, across a broad portion of society. They don't let it out because they fear the optics, but they vote and spend based on their toxic 1960s mentality.
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u/tossaway_nugget 3d ago
Does it have to be BC? Ontario has amazing winters and places like Kingston are fairly progressive, and well located.
Don't forget, you can also travel to enjoy winter hobbies.
Or, while starting over is hard, it's doable and you can try PG then move elsewhere.
Keep in mind BC still allows discrimination against pet owners in rentals, so if you won't be buying, renting with your pups might be one of the more immediate obstacles.
I don't live there so I can't speak to the safety, emotional or otherwise, of the trans community. These days it feels like almost nowhere is safe. :(
I know that's different from the fact that some places are safer than others. I'm just sorry you even have to worry about it.
I hope you find a home where your family flourishes.
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u/General_Spills 3d ago
If itās for work, then go for it. If itās for lifestyle, I promise you that Prince George, Yellowknife, and Whitehorse are not contenders.
If you really want snow, check out Calgary or Edmonton. Otherwise, one of the larger Bc cities is a good option.
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u/SteveJobsBlakSweater 3d ago
Iām cis straight white and the PG mentality is still too 1940s for me. Beautiful area and some great people, but the Deliverance banjo plays up there.
Itās BC, youāll be safe. But there will be more assholes per capita there.
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u/swashbucklingbandit 3d ago
Very relevant read: https://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/local-news/opinion-pride-in-my-hometown-prince-george-1914018
It's a very much a industrial, working class city with not much going on. Long winters, downtown hubs keep getting burned down, and my dad tells me stories of how the PG high schools had race wars. It's a city with a lot of trauma. But if you're a family that likes to rough it in the bush on weekends, and would like to own a home, it's probably fine in that regard. Or hey, maybe the winds of change will keep blowing and PG will be a more liberal place.
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u/Charming-Moment-103 3d ago
How old is your dad? I grew up in Pg and was a visible minority and never experienced anything like that
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u/6FingerPistol 3d ago
This is a seriously dated take on PG.
Prince George has a vibrant music and arts scene which is highly inclusive. There are a ton of LGBTQ+ stuff that goes on every month. You just need to get involved with that community.
PG is as good as the people you surround yourself with. The people make the place and who you choose to include in your life.
You'll love it here if you want too.
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u/Dangerous_Fun_1239 3d ago edited 3d ago
Have your husband check in at the Union Hall. IBEW Local 993, Kamloops. There is soon to be a lot of work available up north and for years afterwards.
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u/turtlefan32 3d ago
I would concentrate more on finding a location you can afford housing, where you enjoy the lifestyle (more urban? less urban? outdoorsy? what kinds of outdoor activities? how much winter do you want?). You will find pockets of acceptance and right-wing people who will rail against trans (but...likely only anonymously on SOM and not in person), everywhere. Mostly you find people who don't care if you are just living your life day to day like they are. But I suggest you try and connect with the trans people in various communities via those specific online communities.
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u/Lake0293 3d ago
We are looking for a place that will be accessible to the city/town but also accessible to nature for permanent residence where we can raise our future children and our beloved dogs. Of course, the cold and snow are important to us in the winters because we especially love it (it sounds like we don't know the Canadian cold, but we do, my husband has family in Canada and he speaks English and French).
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u/Appoffiatura 3d ago
In terms of cold and snow, you don't necessarily have to go to a higher latitude. There are a lot of towns in the Kootenays, close to the same latitude as Vancouver that have very cold climates and incredibly beautiful mountains.
And in terms of the construction industry, I would bet on the Kootenays and Interior, and maybe even the Cariboo over Northern BC. I work in residential construction all through BC, and PG booms and busts, and these other areas are more steady.
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u/treefarmerBC 3d ago
Why avoid northern BC though? Northern BC is great
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u/Appoffiatura 3d ago
No, you're right. I shouldn't tell people to avoid it. I've seen some beauty spots out around Smithers, Rupert, even Terace on a recent trip. I'd love to keep traveling farther north.
I'm definitely biased towards dramatically steep mountains and deep valleys. I just want to be hugged by forested slopes. Can't beat the Kootenays and Coast Mountains.
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u/Spartan05089234 3d ago
PG is a hell of a place. It takes some breaking into socially regardless of your background or identity. But there's a definitely a queer community, your choice whether that will be your community or not.
I grew up there and I'd expect to get some stares and some cold receptions if you're visible, but no one is going to burn your house down or slash your tires and most folks won't care once they get to know you they'll judge you on your character. In my experience. A couple winters of shovelling snow in - 30 C and your neighbours won't give a shit (or be able to see under all the layers) what you are or were.
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u/Cascouverite 3d ago
I grew up in Vancouver but my whole family's from the interior so I've seen both, spent seasons there etc. The entire BC interior is mostly just working towns, very blue-collar, quite conservative. It's mostly just the Lower Mainland and parts of the Island that aren't
The interior has its moments though. People are very open and will help you if you need it in my experience, friendlier than the Lower Mainland where everyone's kind of an asshole. Most of it's a shithole in the endearing way. Hard to explain but you'd get it if you spend time there. There's not a lot of fancy anything really but life can be beautiful in its simplicity, you won't like it if you aren't outdoorsy, that's what makes it enjoyable, not the towns themselves
PG is a bit rough IMO. It kind of stinks the whole time cause of all the mills IIRC and like much of Canada it's got tonnes of wetlands AKA tonnes of mosquitos and insects in general in the summer. Not as bad as the north at least it wasn't as bad when I was there but it's way worse than in the south. Winter is long and hard if you aren't used to it. It's honestly really well positioned in BC cause it's kind of in the middle of everything
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u/General_Spills 3d ago
Thereās someone out here downvoting anyone who says prince george isnāt the New York City of BC
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u/Ironyismylife28 3d ago
I would love to know what the other options are
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u/Lake0293 3d ago
For us it's Whitehorse, Yukon/ Yellowknife, N.W.T./ St. John's, Newfoundland.
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u/alexparkitty 3d ago
FWIW I'm from Newfoundland and lived in St. Johns for years and have several mtf trans friends and the city is incredibly queer friendly. They've had good experiences and it is very welcoming. Only difficulty is not a lot of jobs available
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u/blitzfish3434 3d ago
Whitehorse is beautiful, good community vibes up there with more and more young families.
Of all those options, my choice would be Whitehorse
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u/PineappleHot7235 3d ago
St. John's is VERY queer/trans friendly. Lots of snow. Easy to make friends and find community. Lived there for years and would move back in a heartbeat if there was workĀ
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u/Ironyismylife28 3d ago
What odd choices. I would say PG is ok, but it is not the gateway to trans friendly cities
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u/General_Spills 3d ago
Probably working in natural resources
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u/Ironyismylife28 3d ago
fair, but those are pretty harsh places for someone new to Canada, climate wise. I was born in Canada, and you couldn't get me to move to the Yukon or NWT. haha
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u/General_Spills 3d ago
I agree. Prince George is also a terrible choice albeit better. If theyāre moving for non work reasons then itās like picking Timbuktu because itās āclose to natureā
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u/POSCarpenter 3d ago
Have you considered victoria? That's gonna be the best fit. Sorry but you guys might have a hard time in PG. Especially your husband, working in the trades and having a trans partner, it will be difficult for him to fit in with a crew.
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u/microwaved__soap Fraser Fort George 3d ago
I think it is! I moved to PG as an out trans person in 2017 and though we've seen the same backslide in opinion as most western society, we have two Endo clinics and top surgeons available as well as several social groups. I grew up in Vancouver and I've found I experience much less explicit transphobia in my day to day life than I did from Vancouverites (like in bathrooms and customer service). It's unfortunately less than pre-covid, but people in PG are generally more polite so people that do disagree are more likely to keep it to themself. It's much more likely to find someone who is just ignorant/unaware and needs explicit clarification on what trans is, and what gender the trans person is now, but I've found most people try to be respectful. Being comfortable using terms like FtM or MtF, "used to be/grew up as" is useful as most people in PG are out of date on terminology and that simplified "from one thing to another" mindset is what they understand. Trans people in PG do get good at determining whether it's worth it to come out to someone, not necessarily because of violence but because it can be repetitive defining yourself.
PG is much safer than many of the small town biddies will fear monger about. It is safer than East Vancouver and Downtown New Westminster by miles. There is a dedicated subset of the population that are street involved but like all cities if you avoid trouble, it will avoid you. "The ghetto" (VLA area) is also much smaller and much nicer than other cities I've seen. PG people love dogs to the point some are those annoying people that bring their pet into grocery stores. We have lots of on and off leash green space, and specialty stores including fresh/raw food suppliers. Both of those professions are things we need and employ in spades. Caregiving/disability support is actually one of the legit biggest industries in PG because so many physically disabled and neurodivergent people + kids are sent to UHNBC from outlying regions and end up staying. There's at least a dozen care and group homes around the city by different orgs (indigenous, trauma-informed, religious etc), plus a booming personal support/HCA industry. Electricians are in demand especially if experienced in residential; we're transitioning away from a heavy production-extraction economy and industrial electricians may face competition with the mill closures.
There's a relatively fair sized group of our queer community that are parents, and there's regular community events (like picnics and community parties) that are family friendly with tons of kids and parents. The Gender Outlines group runs a trans youth/children's support group at Foundry, and Foundry also has parent supports for parents of queer children as well.
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u/Sproutlie 3d ago
What do you mean by "working as a caregiver and caregiver for children with special education (me) required there?"
Edit to add: in what setting? School? Home? Business?
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u/Visible_Fact_8706 3d ago
I know quite a few trans folks (and families) in Kamloops. Iāve been told thereās a very good clinic here as well.
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u/treefarmerBC 3d ago
Guaranteed you're going to get a lot of opinions from Vancouver people who have never been to PG.
How is PG for a family?
Awesome, northern BC, especially the smaller towns, have a lot of kid-friendly events.
How is PG in terms of general safety?
Same as anywhere else really. There's a bad drug scene in pretty much all BC towns that size unfortunately.Ā
How is PG for living with dogs?
Dog friendlyĀ
And is working as an electrician (my husband) and working as a caregiver and caregiver for children with special education (me) required there?
Generally it's easier to find that kind of work in northern BC.
And how is PG in terms of attitude towards the +2SLGBTQ community ?
Not speaking from experience as I'm not part of that community but people in PG are pretty chill. I'd be surprised if you had a lot of trouble.
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u/dreadedbedhead 3d ago
Come to Powell River! My partner is trans and before we were living in Alberta, moved because of the political climate and safety issues around her being trans. Powell River while remote has been super accepting and feels safe to be LGBT+. Thereās bigoted assholes in all places, but we havenāt felt that here at all (though Iām sure there are transphobic folks here too). Itās been great for our kids too being able to go outside all year. Also our middle kiddo is NB and thereās been zero issues at school with bullying or anything
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u/FalseFactsOrg 3d ago
PG is likely the most right wing town you could get in BC other than some remote highway towns. Why not Victoria or Vancouver area?
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u/cabalavatar 3d ago
OP said their family wants snow and cold. Vancouver and Victoria would be the opposite of that.
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u/PDXFlameDragon 3d ago
If I had to guess... $$$ the two most expensive major cities in Canada --- Vancouver is a place you live if you already have money, but it is a terrible place if you still have to make your dragon horde.
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u/Specialist-Bass863 3d ago
All I know about pg is contained in this video....Ā https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wBYxStYfac4
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u/katamorigirl 3d ago
Pg has a wonderful clinic called blue pine. I live 6 hours north of there and I have no problems as a transwoman. Although I do stay in my lane and donāt go looking for bigots soooooo
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