We are here because we were asked, but not just that. I think we were asked because we've spoken out. We are here to talk about the very real impact that this seemingly extremely arbitrary decision has made in our small community. That is why we are here today.
We honestly felt we had nothing to lose. Status of Women is our primary source of funding, and when we don't have that, we have to scramble to try to meet the needs in our community. We don't have anything to lose by at least pointing out that this was perhaps not a very well thought out decision and that it could potentially be revisited. That's why we're here.
We owe it to the women that we speak up for, that we serve; we owe it to the women's movement in Alberta, which is increasingly small. We don't have a status of women ministry in Alberta; we don't have an advisory council. We are the only province for whom that is the case, so we owe it to the people we represent, to our constituency, just like you have constituencies, to speak out and to stand up. It is our duty in a democracy, and if there is fear of criticism or retribution, well then I guess we'll have to wait for that to come. But I should hope that we rise a little bit above that if we purport to call ourselves a democracy.