And it's done

C-38 has passed. Huzzah!

With the removal of what I presume is the last great immediate obstacle to equality for the GBL community (let me know if there are others we should be focussing on), where does the equality movement go from here? Here are a few ideas for issues that are already before Parliament.

One possibility would be seeking to add to the core group of rights available to all. For example, the NDP's Peter Stoffer has put forward a bill to enshrine a right to housing in the Bill of Rights. Of course, that sort of line of discussion can go in an entirely different direction: see for example Conservative Scott Reid's proposal to enshrine property rights instead.

Another possibility is the more explicit protection of rights which, in principle, should already be available. See Dipper Libby Davies' bill to outlaw racial profiling, or Liberal Lloyd St. Amand's bill to investigate the treatment of elderly Canadians.

Then there's the possibility of recognizing added groups who are so far left out of existing human rights legislation. The NDP's Bill Siksay has proposed protecting against discrimination based on gender identity, which sounds to me like a natural next step.

It's a great day for equality. But there's still more work to be done, and the taste of victory on SSM (after a Commons vote going the other way just five years ago) should only make us more eager to push further in the right direction.