Full participation of women in our society is what we all want. The way the terms and conditions are written, they certainly confuse us as to how this can be accomplished with women's program funding.
Somehow, local women through local groups are going to be given something that enables them and enhances their ability for full participation. The cynics in us ask, what is that, a bus pass? That's very cynical, and I don't mean to be rude to you, but this is the kind of conversation we're having.
The full participation of women, and at the same time—and it's blazed in our brains—the prohibition of any domestic advocacy activities.... And I have to tell you, the use of the word “domestic” in that phrase put us all over the edge altogether. That's where we decided you were trying to send us back to the kitchen. Prohibiting “domestic advocacy activities”: we can say that in our sleep.
How on earth are women going to participate fully when we cannot go at the systemic discrimination? The rules of EI, maternity benefits, access to civil legal aid; we can name all of t4he issues. Women cannot access those, unless laws and policy and programs change, and that requires systemic advocacy.
I can't see how this balances out in this plan that is supposed to help individual women in individual communities, when the solutions are systemically based.