Women's Equality Branch
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All Issues | 2015 Issues

WOMEN FEMMES NB

IN THIS ISSUE:

Featured Article:
Daughters of the Vote 
 

Notices

Did You Know?

In the News:
    - Human Trafficking Victim Brings Her Story Back to Halifax
    - SDG 5: Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls
    - Media Collaboration      

Parting Thoughts

Daughters of the Vote

Join Equal Voice in a historic national initiative to mark the 100th anniversary of women’s formal political engagement in 2016 — along with Canada’s 150th birthday in 2017.

100 years ago, some women in three Canadian provinces (Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan) won the right to vote in provincial elections. A year later, that same right was extended to a limited number of women in federal elections.

Following these partial victories, it would take another 45 years for the majority of women living in Canada (over the age of 18), including indigenous women living on federal reserves, to win the right to vote.

Our invitation

Equal Voice is inviting young women from the ages of 18 to 23 to apply to be one of 338 who will take their seats in Parliament (from coast to coast to coast), literally. One young woman will be chosen from every federal riding in Canada to represent their community and to communicate their vision for Canada.

Our objective

To ensure that these 338 emerging young women leaders, among others, become familiar with Canada’s political institutions and those women and men serving in them– so that they are equipped and inspired to participate in the formal political sphere in the years and decades to come.

Our ultimate goal

To ensure that women are dynamic and equal participants at every political decision making table in the country.

http://www.daughtersofthevote.ca/

Deadline: Thursday, June 30, 2016 at midnight in the time zone from which you are applying. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Application Form

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NOTICES

The UNB Recreation Service is organizing a fundraising event, Sweat for a Cause, this Friday, June 3, 12:10pm to 1pm in Front of the UNB Richard J. Currie Centre.  Entry is by donation. All proceeds will go to the Multicultural Association of Fredericton Inc. in support of the Syrian families settling in our community. For more info: https://www.facebook.com/events/268586053494246/

The 6th Annual General Meeting (Business Meeting) of the Coalition Against Abuse in Relationships, Inc. will be held Friday June 17, 12:15 pm to 2:00 pm at the Dan Bohan Family Centre, 5 Fatima Dr., Riverview, N.B.

The DisAbled Women’s Network (DAWN) Canada and the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) are conducting collaborative research to determine the prevalence of violence against women with disabilities and Deaf women on college and university campuses in Canada. Data will be collected through an online survey from female students in higher education across Canada who identify as having a disability or being Deaf. Data will also be collected from campus-based service providers who provide support to students with disabilities who report sexual assault. Access to the survey can be found here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CNB8BRR. For more information, contact: Hanane Khales, Communications Coordinator, DAWN Canada, [email protected], 514-396-0009 Ext. 2505 or Frank Smith, National Coordinator, NEADS, [email protected], 613-380-8065 Ext. 201.

Women in PEI: A Statistical Review This is the third edition of Women in PEI: Statistical Review. As with the previous editions, this review is intended to provide a profile of women’s participation in education, business, government, and other aspects of community life. The chapters in this review cover a wide range of statistical information about the female population in PEI, and include data on education, work and income, health, justice, violence against women and women in leadership.
http://bit.ly/1sYXk8R    http://bit.ly/25yzjXi

Working with Families – Strategies for Engaging and Helping - Fredericton, June 7-8 (early rate deadline has passed). This workshop will review strategies for engaging and working with more than one person at a time and also ways to consider including the impact of family when working with individuals. Some of the topics covered: Systems Theory – Thinking in Circles and in Lines; Understanding Triangles, Boundaries and Power;     Maintaining Multiple Alliances; Working with Family Dynamics with One Person in the Room; and Rules, Roles and Communication Patterns. Registration Rate $420.

Support to Single Parents Programs, Moncton:
    ·    Helping the Family Thrive after Separation (5 Steps to prevent divorce abuse) $30,
         Wednesdays starting June 8, 6:30 – 8:30 pm. Facilitator: Debbie Melanson-Hebert This
         program will help parents become aware of how their actions may inadvertently harm their
         children, as well as provide parents with the skills they need to stay child-focused while
         minimizing poor choices amidst conflict and loss ($20 book optional).
    ·    The Messages of Anger. $30, Mondays, starting June 6, 9:30-am-11:30 pm. Facilitator:
         Debbie Melanson-Hebert. A 3-part program designed to aid participants in recognizing and
         understanding their anger as one of their many emotions. Learn how to develop healthy
         expressions and behaviors of anger.
No one will be refused service if they are unable to pay. Registration begins 3 weeks before start date. Call Nathalie at 506-858-1303 ext. 3301, Email: [email protected]. For more information on programs: www.supporttosingleparents.ca.

Women’s Experience of Abortion: A UQO master student in social work would like to conduct individual interviews with women who had an abortion. The purpose of the study is to describe and explore New Brunswick women’s experience of abortion. Participation is confidential and entirely voluntary. You can participate if you:
    ·    Had an abortion
    ·    Lived in New Brunswick at the time of abortion
    ·    Were aged 18 and over at the time of abortion
If you would like more information or if you are interested in participating in our study, please contact Sacha Cyr: 1-800-567-1283 #2396 or [email protected].  http://bit.ly/1TXk5T0

Workshop: Board Effectiveness for Women, Edmundston (in French) Wednesday, June 8, 1 - 4 pm, Edmundston Convention Centre, $30. Conducted by Aldéa Landry, the workshop targets women who are interested in enhancing their personal effectiveness as a board member by better understanding board relationships, assessing performance and exploring the benefits of gender diversity on boards. Contact: [email protected] or 506-473-9775. Seating is limited, reserve now!

PLEIS-NB’s (Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick) new mobile device friendly website – www.legal-info-legale.nb.ca.  Check out their new booklet called Family Law Matters for Immigrants in New Brunswick. 

Sexual Violence Prevention and Awareness Facilitation Training, June 14-16, Fredericton.  The Fredericton Sexual Assault Centre (FSAC) will be offering training on two of its toolkits: The Empowerment Project (TEP) to train facilitators to deliver self-protection and assertiveness workshops to women and girls; and Man to Man for delivering workshops to men and boys about reducing sexual assault.  Participants can be community educators, teachers, guidance counsellors, or other service providers who work youth, young adults, or adults in the area of preventing sexual violence against women and girls. Contact Jenn Richard at [email protected] . $175 registration fee includes the cost of one toolkit. Please register early as this training can fill up quickly.

Current Opportunities to Serve on New Brunswick Agencies, Boards and Commissions (ABCs):  Qualified women and men having the highest personal and professional integrity are invited to serve on New Brunswick agencies, boards and commissions (ABCs).  For more information, check out the following link:    ABC current opportunities

Voices of New Brunswick Women Consensus-Building Forum: Contact Us: Sartain MacDonald Building, 551 King Street, Suite 103, Fredericton NB E3B 1E7, T. 506.462.5179, 1-844-462-5179, F. 506.462.5069, E. [email protected], www.voixfemmesnb-voiceswomennb.ca.

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In the News:

Human Trafficking Victim Brings Her Story Back to Halifax

Jade Brooks wants to become the face of sexual exploitation survivors in Halifax because so many other victims remain in the shadows.

The 24-year-old woman doesn't shy away from talking about how she was trafficked from Halifax to Toronto when she was 17 years old. 

Brooks grew up in the Uniacke Square area of Halifax and says the road to being a victim of human trafficking starts at home. 

"A lot of these girls, and guys as well, they come from these dysfunctional families and their family isn't able to care for them and show them the love and support that they need. So in turn they end up turning to these guys who end up exploiting them," said Brooks. 

"Employment opportunities, self-esteem issues, bullying at school, things like that, things that I've had myself." 

Brooks moved to Toronto after she says she was groomed by her trafficker to believe she was in a healthy relationship with him. She started working in strip clubs, then moved to massage parlours in both Montreal and Toronto.

The stages of sexual exploitation

She says her pimp eventually tired of her and "let her go" in 2011. After she left the sex trade industry, she approached a mental health agency in Toronto about ways she could help other victims. 

She is now a peer support worker for sexual exploitation victims and helped create The Stages of Sexual Exploitation, a tool used to identify if people are being sexually exploited. 

The stages are luring, grooming, coercion and exploitation. Brooks says the grooming stage is what young women need to be aware of before falling victim to sexual exploitation. 

"That's what we call the honeymoon stage, basically treating you like a princess and doing everything he can for you and taking care of all your needs and it escalates from there." 

Continued: http://bit.ly/1TbqoUb

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SDG 5: Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls

The Sustainable Development Goals seek to change the course of the 21st century, addressing key challenges such as poverty, inequality, and violence against women. Women’s empowerment is a pre-condition for this.

Women have a critical role to play in all of the SDGs, with many targets specifically recognizing women’s equality and empowerment as both the objective, and as part of the solution. Goal 5 is known as the stand-alone gender goal because it is dedicated to achieving these ends.

Deep legal and legislative changes are needed to ensure women’s rights around the world. While a record 143 countries guaranteed equality between men and women in their Constitutions by 2014, another 52 had not taken this step. In many nations, gender discrimination is still woven through legal and social norms.

Stark gender disparities remain in economic and political realms. While there has been some progress over the decades, on average women in the labour market still earn 24 per cent less than men globally. As of August 2015, only 22 per cent of all national parliamentarians were female, a slow rise from 11.3 per cent in 1995.

Meanwhile, violence against women is a pandemic affecting all countries, even those that have made laudable progress in other areas. Worldwide, 35 per cent of women have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence. UN Women joined the voices of many global actors in pointing out that violence was absent from the Millennium Development Goals.

Women have a right to equality in all areas. It must be embedded across legal systems, upheld in both laws and legal practices, including proactive measures such as quotas. Since all areas of life relate to gender equality, efforts must be made to cut the roots of gender discrimination wherever they appear. (…)

Continued: http://bit.ly/1NLBGuT

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Media Collaboration

The media plays a significant role in perpetuating stereotypes as well as challenging social norms that condone discrimination or violence against women. UN Women collaborates closely with the media as a key ally in advancing women’s rights.

As part of the efforts around the 2030 Agenda, in 2016, UN Women launched the Step it Up for Gender Equality Media Compact in March 2016, which is calling on media outlets to play their part in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Agenda, with focus on gender equality and women’s rights issues on two fronts:

• In their reporting, disrupting stereotypes and biases, and
• In increasing the number of women in the media, including in leadership and decision-making roles.

Thirty-nine leading outlets signed on as founding members of the Step it Up for Gender Equality Media Compact. The Media Compact will function as an alliance of media organizations who are committed to playing an active role in advancing gender issues within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. The outlets will implement the compact by scaling-up the focus on women’s rights and gender equality issues through high-quality coverage, complemented by gender-sensitive corporate practices.

UN Women also facilitates in-depth media coverage on women’s rights issues continuously, undertakes and supports research on the portrayal of women in news media as well as the entertainment industry. The organization facilitates media networks and training of local journalists around the world on gender-sensitive reporting and diverse topics — including how to cover women in conflict and peacebuilding or violence against women, and how to ensure balance in elections coverage — and analyse codes of conduct used by journalists and media organizations across the world. (…)

Additionally, UN Women forges longer-term partnerships with media outlets at the international, regional and national levels as part of its advocacy campaigns, such as during the Beijing+20 campaign, which worked to increase and raise the profile of women in the news. (…)

Continued: http://bit.ly/1V7qUDZ

Parting Thoughts

“The best protection any woman can have … is courage.”

-Elizabeth Cady Stanton

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Women's Equality Branch | 551 King Street, Suite A | Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1