300 women claiming to represent all Canadian women met on Parliament Hill in February to supposedly celebrate their work 25 years ago, which resulted in the inclusion of S.28 in the Charter of Rights. Section 28 guarantees that the Charter's provisions apply equally to male and female persons. Ironically, Section 28 of the Charter has turned out to be unused, unproven and without effect, according to the decisions brought down by the Supreme Court of Canada on the Charter.
This feminist meeting in Ottawa, true to form, was funded by the Status of Women and other government departments such as the Department of Justice, and government tax-supported agencies such as the National Film Board, Law Commission of Canada, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and International Development Research Centre (IRDC).
The conference was an all-party project, Liberals, NDP and red Tories, celebrating together. Former Liberal Minister of State for Public Health, Carolyn Bennett, booked Parliament's ballroom for this grand occasion. All the old-time feminist agitators were there. Doris Anderson, former editor of Chatelaine magazine when it was in its feminist prime, Beverley Baines from Queen's University who was involved with the feminist constitutional committee meetings 25 years ago, and who currently is one of the lesbian authors of the Status of Women\Justice funded paper which recommended that polygamy cease to be a criminal offense. Lesbian Senator Nancy Ruth [Jackman], generous funder of all things feminist such as the legal arm of the feminist movement LEAF [Women's Legal Educational Action Fund], feminist journalist Michele Landsberg and wife of UN gadabout, Stephen Lewis, and Flora MacDonald who recalled that it was Joe Clark who moved the inclusion of Section 28 in the Charter of Rights which motion she seconded. Flora MacDonald was the inspiration of the political phenomenon known as the "Flora Factor" whereby delegates in a leadership campaign pledge support for a candidate but which does not translate into votes for the candidate. At the 1976 Tory leadership race, in which Flora MacDonald was a candidate, she made the phenomenal blunder of requesting that every Canadian woman send in $5 to support her campaign. Probably she doesn't even understand today, blinded by her feminist blinkers, that women (and men) do not vote on the basis of anatomy. By this request, Ms. McDonald offended the majority of thoughtful, intelligent women across the country by the implication that she should be supported simply because she was female. She equally offended men for the same reason - all of which easily explains the "Flora Factor". Others in attendance at this feminist fest were former Liberal Cabinet Ministers Elinor Caplan, Sheila Finestone, Hedy Fry and Senator Lillian Dyck. Current members of Parliament included Liberal Parliamentary Leader Bill Graham (Rosedale) and Liberal MP's Anita Neville (Winnipeg South Centre, Manitoba) who is the former chairwoman of the House of Commons feminist Standing Committee on the Status of Woman [FEWO]. (See Reality Jan/Feb 2006), Bonnie Brown (Oakville, Ontario) and NDP leader Jack Layton (Toronto-Danforth, Ontario) and his wife, Olivia Chow (Trinity-Spadina, Ontario), former NDP leader and MP Alexa McDonough (Halifax, Nova Scotia), former NDP MP Margaret Mitchell and former president of the National Action Committee on the Status of Women and former MP Lyn MacDonald.
The new Tory "girls" on the block present at the conference were recently elected Joseé Verner, (Louis-Saint-Laurent, Quebec) the current Minister of International Cooperation and La Francophonie and Official Languages, Bev Oda (Durham, Ontario), (Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women) and MP Lynn Yelich (Blackstrap, Saskatchewan) a member of the previous House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women (FEWO).
The conference was advertised widely, but approximately only 300 women mustered the energy to attend when the feminists had expected well over 1000 participants. These meager numbers were directed to sit in the front rows, "we want this to look as packed as possible", as CPAC (Canadian Parliamentary Channel) was taping the proceedings to be run over and over again in the coming months - just as though this feminist gathering had significance.
All in all the old gang of feminists were there for three main purposes:
- push for national day care;
- push for a proportional representation electoral system with quotas for females; and
- revive the dead, or at least, dying feminist movement in Canada.
The feminists had issued a clarion call for women to attend their conference funded mainly by several departments and agencies referred to above, administrated under the former Liberal Government, but also it was financially supported by the three major political parties, Liberal, Conservative and NDP, the Canadian Medical Association Public Policy Forum, BMO Financial Group, and the Ontario Elementary Teachers Federation among others.
Quotas for Female Politicians
In May, 2001, the feminists formed an organization called "Equal Voice" to try to get more women elected to Parliament by way of a quota system which they plan to have integrated in the proportional representation electoral system (See Reality Jan/Feb 2005). They propose to do this in two steps (so as not to alarm the natives!) The first step is to build consensus for a referendum on changing the electoral system from first past the post to proportional representation, and then to ensure that such a system includes a quota for females. The Advisory Board of Equal Voice includes, former MP's Kim Campbell, Sheila Copps, Marion Dewar, Judy Erola, as well as Barbara Hall (former mayor of Toronto and now Chairwoman of the Ontario Human Rights Commission), former NDP leaders Audrey McLaughlin, Alexa McDonough, Lyn MacLeod (former Ontario Liberal leader), Flora MacDonald, MP Anita Neville and Senator Lucie Pepin.
Doris Anderson lamented the lack of female MP's at the conference. She said, "It's got to be changed! … It's worse than ever. We were 43rd in the world and now we're 45th and going down fast. It's a priority of this conference along with day care!" Bonnie Diamond, Governor General's Persons Award winner, past executive director of National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL), now executive director of MATCH International, warned that we are living in "urgent political times." We are facing global fundamental forces such as the "US, Vatican, Islamist agenda" and there's also "Focus on the Family, well funded, living in Ottawa and circling Parliament Hill." Demonstrating the hypocrisy of feminist support for equality, she stated, "I disagree that we need more women regardless of the belief system of women. We need women in all parties but only women who steadfastly commit to uphold women's equality. We don't need women who will go forward and speak publicly against the gains that women have already made." To loud applause she declared "I urge women who have power to form a sisterhood in all the legislatures to help offset the male bias until we hit that critical mass."
Jean Crowder, NDP MP (Nanaimo-Cowichan, British Columbia) stated that "without incentives like quotas the system doesn't significantly change." Judy Erola stated that political parties are outdated, "we have to change the way the parties function." While Conservative MP Lynn Yelich suggested that the job has to be number one when you are a member of parliament, others pressed for a global quota strategy at all levels, a quota for every position in the party structure. Some wanted quotas to include not only gender but disability, sex diversity, First Nations and other disadvantaged groups, and female quotas at the Cabinet level.
Equal Voice recommends a massive effort at "education" at the Federal, Provincial and Municipal levels as well as outreach into schools from the elementary to secondary level. Michele Landsberg recommended a course in "Women's Studies" be mandated in every high school in Canada.
Feminist Entertainment
A feminist gathering is not complete without a hootenanny.
A 1960's style sing song was popular, complete with feminist irreverence as Linda Palmer Nye quoted anarcho-communist Emma Goldman "If I can't dance I don't want to be a part of your revolution." She sang the following to the tune of Faith of our Fathers:
Faith in first ministers, living still
Trading our rights against our will
O would we could but abort them all
Guilty they'd be of such chauvinist gall
Faith of our rights and equality
First ministers, a blight on thee. Oh men.
Hoots of laughter and cheers emanated from former and sitting parliamentarians in the audience. There was derision of "our Harper Valley Parliament Hill" (peals of laughter), loud applause for NDP luminaries, and annoyance with cutting the deficit which was labeled "economic fundamentalism"- another new form of patriarchy
And the Conservative party supported this conference?
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