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13 · Wednesday, June 23, 2010 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com Forum urges women to get into politics By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Women make up 52 per cent of Canada's population, yet only 20 per cent of the country's elected officials are female. It was with this knowledge that a panel of professional women in Oakville urged all women to get involved in politics and discussed ways to do it last week. "Where are women in politics? What will it take to get them involved?" asked moderator Maria Robinson before a gathering at St. Aidan's Anglican Church. The event, hosted by the Oakville-based Canadians Advocating Political Participation, included speakers Barbara Cameron, former Oakville MP Bonnie Brown and Shaila Kibria. All three speakers said women need to get involved in politics and social issues, if women's issues are going to be funded by governments. "We have to be the top priority, the top notch, be it organization or issue, where it cannot be cut from the federal budget, where it cannot be cut from the provincial budget," said Kibria, a political human rights activist and former provincial candidate. "We have to not be a specialized, left-wing organization." She said women need alliances between all women, whether racial groups or otherwise and women must go out and vote for women and they must volunteer. "If you look at the corporate tax credits. Those corporations getting those tax breaks would pay for childcare for every child in Canada," she said. "Tuition would be 25 per cent less." Cameron, a professor of Canadian Political Science and Women's Studies at York University, spoke on the importance of non-government organizations to women. "Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been a very important way that women participated in politics and made their voic- es heard," she said. She said problems arise for NGOs that go against the government's ideals. Public funding is cut from those organizations. "What I've seen over the last couple of years as a result of the withdrawal of funding is a lot of the capacity and contributions by these organizations have been lost," she said. Brown, former Liberal MP in Oakville, town councillor and school board trustee, talked about the loss of funding to women's issues during the current government's reign. "How do women do under the government budget and legislation?" she asked. "Not too well. They lost the national childcare initiative that has been signed onto by all provinces, but instead we get a cheque once a month, which essentially is semiallowance. "Women watched as gender equality was erased from all government documents and websites," she added. "People in the further regions lost 12 of the 16 status of women offices. They were closed when the budget for status of women was cut." She also mentioned the loss of a court challenges program. "It's a program that helps poor women, women of colour and immigrant women take their human rights cases to court." She added, "Women lost the effective gun control laws they worked so hard to achieve." Brown went on to mention other issues that have been lost recently. She said women have to become equal members of a marriage at home, before they can expect to become equal members in politics. She cited things such as there being an equal distribution of money and housework between the man and woman. "You can ask yourself if you have a democratic marriage. Do you know precisely what your husband's annual take-home pay is? There are be a shift in politics, that immigrant women. Whether network of supporters doing political parties aren't we're aboriginal. We have to it. She participated in society. going to be of the greatest come together and make our She then ran for school board trustee and then for councilimportance anymore, but it issues the priority." will be the issues that will A woman in the audience lor before she got involved in get the priority in elections. asked how can a woman, like federal politics. Shaila Kibria, "To come out of nowhere "What we have to do is herself, get involved in polipolitical activist strategize, mobilize every tics municipally and run and run against the mayor, I women's group out there against an incumbent mayor. don't know if you would be that was mentioned, to Brown said that she wasn't the smartest woman in come together in solidari- elected simply by running in town, but you need to build many women that this is ty," Kibria said. "Whether an election. She first helped your skills and your netkept a secret from. You have we're immigrant or not others campaign and built a work," she said. to know that to even know if you're getting your fair share," she said. Another reason why marriages have to be equal at home is that if women work full-time like their husbands and then do 90 per cent of the housework then they will never have time to get involved in politics. "Our votes are not representative of our rights," Kibria said. "Women represent a larger proportion in Canada, yet our government doesn't reflect that population." She added, "Our first and only female prime minister was not elected and, to my opinion, is still perceived as not respected. Women are seen as weak and emotional." Kibria talked about the struggle that women faced in order to be allowed to vote and that struggle is being forgotten by younger generations. "In this municipal election, right now, 18 year olds will have no recollection of the struggle women went through to have a right to vote." Kibria, a Muslim woman, · Qualified buyers at your fingertips, eager to learn said she comes from a com& ready to buy. munity of people that didn't support women getting · Brides & Grooms looking for expert advice & involved in politics. She said inspiration. that is changing now, but there are many barriers for · Make personal 3D contact right from the start. women to get involved. She said during her cam· Showcase your products or services, pass out paigns she met a white samples, pick up leads. woman, Canadian for 16 generations, who said she · Cost effective targeted marketing. didn't feel Canada was ready for a female leader. 2 FASHION SHOWS! PRIZES! PRESTIGIOUS LOCATION! "I was shocked," she said. $25,000 MARKETING PLAN! "There are pockets in our communities of women saying that about our women leaders. I would urge for all For more information, contact of us to mobilize and get out 905 to vote." 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