© yourNewsFlyers distributed in Manitoba highlight Canadian government-backed proposals to allow mentally ill children to choose assisted suicide without parental approval.
Jasmin Laine, host of the podcast Over Opinionated, posted an image of the flyers on , criticizing what she described as a state-sponsored push to encourage vulnerable youth to end their lives under the guise of mental health support.
© twitter.com/JasminLaineX Post by @Jasmine Laine
Laine, who has personally endured suicidal trauma and the loss of her partner, called the government-backed policy "pure evil."
The flyer, reportedly backed by officials advising Health Canada, states: "A mature minor is a child or teen who is deemed capable of making a decision for MAID. This would essentially remove the minimum age of eligibility." It further reveals that parents may not be consulted and wouldn't need to consent to their child's death via MAID.
Despite claiming that "children are uniquely vulnerable," the flyer promotes physician-assisted suicide as a practical solution — often faster than receiving treatment. "One in 10 people will wait more than 4 months for counselling. The waiting period for MAID is only 3 months," the flyer states. "We are already hearing about people asking for MAID because they do not have the support needed to live."
Canada's MAID law, which currently limits eligibility to individuals aged 18 and older, is set to expand in March 2027 to include those suffering from mental illness. The flyer promotes the idea that adolescents diagnosed with psychiatric conditions like depression or PTSD should be permitted to request MAID, even when hope remains for recovery through therapy or medication.
On its website, Dying With Dignity Canada confirms its support for expanding euthanasia access to "mature minors." The organization states, "In many jurisdictions across Canada, mature minors already have the right to make important decisions regarding their health care," and argues they should also have the right to choose MAID.
The website cites a 2023 Ipsos poll claiming that 71% of Canadians support allowing mature minors to request euthanasia under strict eligibility criteria.
Still, critics see the proposal as a disturbing development in a country where rising mental illness among youth already strains the public health system. The notion of prioritizing access to assisted suicide over therapy, housing, or timely medical care has sparked alarm from faith leaders, parents, and mental health advocates alike.
As the 2027 expansion deadline approaches, debate over the ethics, risks, and consequences of MAID for minors is poised to intensify both in Canada and globally.
It figures the pamphlets would be issued in Manitoba, a province with a very high rate of fetal alcohol syndrome, unemployment and depression among the great many Indigenous people there.
When the latest Manitoba Premier, Wab Kinew was (s)elected I knew things were not going to go well because although being touted as 'the first Indigenous Premier' in Canada, he and his parents are very much part of the white intelligentsia. I call him an apple.
It would be nice to have Manitoba as part of a more sovereign Western Canada but not with the current government in place.