Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good afternoon. ladies and gentlemen.
I represent Espace féminin arabe, an organization whose mission is the social and economic integration of immigrant women of Arab origin.
Our mandate is to support women from the Maghreb, the Near East and the Middle East, whatever their religion, be they Muslim, Christian or Jewish. We try to offer a space where women can talk and help each other out. Basically, we want to help women join the work force because we consider that depriving them of the possibility of working with dignity is an act of social violence against women.
The current statistics indicate a high rate of unemployment in the Arab community, at 33%. It seems to us that steps need to be taken urgently to counter this problem. Women of Arab origin are one of the two ethnocultural groups that have particular trouble finding employment because of direct discrimination. I'm referring here to Muslim Arabs and black persons. This is a conclusion taken from a study done by the Table de concertation des organismes au service des personnes réfugiées et immigrantes.
The discrimination against them takes the following forms: people refuse to accept the resumes of persons of Arab origin, or those of Islamic people; there are threats and negative comments about symbols of Islam, such as the headscarf, for instance; people are fired for having expressed a political opinion, most often on some issue regarding the Middle East, or for having refused to remove some article of clothing that is a visible sign of their religion.
And yet, when they arrive, the women are looking forward to the opportunities for social and economic advancement promised by Quebec society, a feeling that is reinforced by a society that promotes values of equality between men and women, democratic openness and multiculturalism. The ensuing frustration is very acute and they have a burning desire to have their own work. To deprive them of the opportunity to work and earn a living with dignity is a serious instance of violence against women.
Indeed, in the heading of my presentation I included a quote from Simone de Beauvoir, taken from her book The Second Sex: she says this: “It is through work that women have in large measure bridged the gap that separated them from men; only work can guarantee their concrete freedom.”
And yet, these women have work experience. Often they are criticized for their attitude regarding the workplace. They are considered docile and passive. Even when immigrant women, especially of Arab origin, have a job, a sort of sexual imagination means that they are perceived as sexual objects, even by people in the host society. They are considered docile and ignorant. They are victims of harassment from employers and colleagues. Even in mixed marriages, the immigrant man or woman, the spouse of a Canadian man or woman, is considered minor, and abused.
Moreover, intervenors generally do not understand the issues these women are dealing with. They make it their mission to liberate them, with a very feminist vision in mind, rather than working with them from an intercultural perspective. Women of Arab origin reject this perspective intervenors have, one that puts them in a miserable, abused light. They feel strong. They were often the ones who initiated immigration. They are independent and ambitious. They have real employment possibilities in some sectors, basically in the service and support fields. They have to meet the needs of their families, especially when their husband is looking for a job that corresponds to his training, because the women will often accept jobs that are more menial than the ones that their training and skills would qualify them for.
This leads them to experience the same difficulties that men do in integrating the workplace, and leads to a critical perspective on the intervention, and the same goes for men as well. Many intervenors adopt a negative representation of these women. To them, their unemployment is proof that they cannot adapt to the workplace, and they conclude that the women are responsible for the fact that they don't have jobs.
There is thus a considerable disconnect in the representation of the characteristics and needs of both the male and female clientele. This influences both the perception of these women who are looking for a job, and the explanations about their issues around joining the workforce; and one has to wonder about the relevance of the feminist approach systematically adopted by intervenors, to the detriment of an intercultural approach. That approach adds to the discrimination against these women.
The government has to act quickly to put an end to this social violence toward Arab communities, and respond to the imminent labour shortage in this country.
I would also like to remind you that the unemployment rate in populations from Arab countries is 33%, whereas it is 40% among women from Arab countries. These are very high numbers.
Nor should we forget the consequences of unemployment and the non-employability of women. This causes family tensions and mental health problems. After the elderly, immigrant populations are the most affected by mental health issues.
The women from Arab countries are highly educated, as compared to the host society.
Moreover, there is family violence, but also social violence. I talked about social violence. We have to find ways of giving women back their dignity because that is where the solution lies. When they do not have an income, it is the spouse who holds all the economic power and can demand certain behaviours from them. There are some quite significant consequences on the health of these women and on their suffering. They come here with high hopes of living in a country where equality between men and women is a given. They think that they will be able to express themselves here and realize their potential freely and with dignity.
I am going to go from soup to nuts, and I apologize. I wonder about young veiled girls and young Hasidic Jewish boys who wear very visible religious symbols—conspicuous is the word that is very popular in Quebec right now. Would it be possible to prohibit wearing these religious symbols before the age of 16? Is that realistic? To my mind, this is equivalent to mistreating minors.
Thank you.