Evidence of meeting #49 for Status of Women in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was women.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Vice-Chair Liberal Pam Damoff
Well, I'm assuming that there is a question from the NDP, and Ms. May, are you going to ask questions?
Green
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
I would love to, with your permission; I definitely would like to ask questions.
NDP
Daniel Blaikie NDP Elmwood—Transcona, MB
Thank you very much.
Thank you all for being here, and thanks for your testimony. I know there's going to be a report to Parliament coming up on violence against young women and girls, and my NDP colleagues are drawing inspiration from your words here today.
I want to say a special thank you to Shania for representing so well Elmwood—Transcona, which is my home riding, and for your courage in sharing your personal story. I think it's important for all of us to hear. We often talk about these issues at the policy level, and it's a little sterile and a little distant from the impact such things have in people's lives. Thank you for taking the time to remind us just how important these things are and what they mean to people on the ground.
In the spirit of trying to bring back what we do here—which can be a little distant from people's everyday life, or be seen that way, anyway—to things on the ground, I wonder whether each of you may want to take a moment to say what you think, in terms of a concrete step....
We talk about issues, and they're big issues, and there are many issues that are connected, and it's hard to get a handle sometimes on just where we should start. What do you think, each of you, would be a useful action for government to take, just as a starting point, if we want to start getting something done and move towards a culture that's safer for women? How can we start doing that here in Ottawa? What are some first steps?
We could start with Alana and go down the line.
Thanks.
As an Individual
I think there are two really tangible things that government can support young advocates like ourselves with. One is making sure that post-secondary institutions have the means to support their students and proactively prevent sexual violence from occurring, so that there is effective response and effective prevention. There are wide discrepancies in what universities and colleges offer their students. Some offer nothing, and others offer very comprehensive services.
Another tangible item that I think government can support is creating full-service centres to which survivors can go for everything they need following an incident of sexual violence, whether it be legal assistance, counselling, financial planning—whatever the needs might be.
In Toronto, there's the Barbara Schlifer Clinic. It offers these services to women who've experienced sexual violence or who are fleeing domestic violence, all within one house. We don't see that anywhere else in the country. There are often sparse resources and strings on funding, but actually prioritizing that funding and making these services available to women coast to coast to coast is something that I think can offer beautiful implications and help us build a first generation free of violence against women.
As an Individual
I want to check in on her for a second, on the whole thing about having community safe houses and stuff for all women of all ages.
I don't remember whom I was talking to but somebody told me that the average age of sexual exploitation is 13. How many 11- and 12-year- olds made 13 the average age? To have services available to children from 11 to adult would be very helpful.
Also doing what we are doing now. We're invited to talk to you guys. We're all under 23 so it would be nice to hear from more under-23-year-olds and have the youth voice heard.
Liberal
The Vice-Chair Liberal Pam Damoff
Natasha, I'll ask you to keep it quick so we can give Ms. May a chance.
As an Individual
I was going to second what Alana has put forward. A lot of universities are now having to be mandated by provincial governments to create sexual violence policies, but not every university has them. Right now a lot of them are very sparse in their language and the kind of provisions they outline in those policies.
I think we definitely need to legislate and create standards that post-secondary institutions have to adhere to, to make sure they are consistently providing services to people on campus.
That's something I think the federal government can definitely step into.
Liberal
The Vice-Chair Liberal Pam Damoff
Thank you.
I know we only have until 11:45, and then we have more young ladies coming.
Over to you, Ms. May.
Green
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
First, I want to thank each of you for coming. I think it's wonderful that you applied for the Daughters of the Vote and that you were chosen. Natasha raised the issue of intersectionality, which is clear. The first-wave feminism of my generation tended to be women of privilege in the 1950s and 1960s, and now there's greater awareness that racialized and indigenous women are much more vulnerable to patterns of domination and exploitation. I think that's even evident in hearing from the three of you of indigenous backgrounds.
Shania, have you ever spoken publicly before about how you present yourself to the world and your feelings of vulnerability if you present more as the beautiful young woman you are?
As an Individual
The first person I told about the way I present myself was Alana last night, so I thought it would be great to tell you guys because I've been holding it in so much. Why not just put it out there? Somebody has to get the conversation started so the opportunity came, and I did it.
Liberal
The Vice-Chair Liberal Pam Damoff
Thank you all.
Shania, I can see why you didn't want to speak first, and I'm glad you did have to courage to share your story. To all three of you young ladies, what an amazing opportunity it is for all of us to hear from you. I think I speak for all of us in saying how grateful we are to you for taking the time to come to speak and how worthwhile it was for us to hear from you. Thank you very much.
We're going to switch over now. We have three other young ladies who are going to speak to us.
Liberal
The Vice-Chair Liberal Pam Damoff
I'm going to call the meeting back to order.
The next topic we're discussing is human rights. I want to thank all of our delegates for being here. You have three minutes each.
We'll start with you, Anne. We'll go left to right again if that's okay.
Anne Elizabeth Morin As an Individual
Thank you.
The majority of Canadians have truly enviable living conditions. In Canada, we have the best human rights models as regards civil and political rights. Yet, even in 2017, economic and social rights are truly secondary. They are not protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms or by any statute in Canada, and this includes the right to adequate housing. It is truly time for this to change and for the right to adequate housing to be accorded greater statutory if not constitutional protection.
Today, I would like to briefly address the issue of women and housing. The point I wish to stress is that access to adequate, safe, and stable housing is necessary for the growth and development of every Canadian woman, and for the advancement of the status of women. The fact is that 50% of women in Canada are renters. Two out of five of them spend more than 30% of their income on rent, which is staggering in a country as highly developed as Canada. Moreover, increasing access to housing will above all require increasing the number of social housing units right across Canada.
Given that women are more economically vulnerable, in particular as a result of the major cuts to provincial social assistance programs; given that the current shortage of decent and affordable housing is primarily due to gentrification—which reduces the number of housing units available—and above all the fact that, since the 2000s, the growth in the rental market in Canada has primarily been the result of the construction of high-end condos and not affordable housing for the people who need it; given the widespread discrimination in housing against single women with children, aboriginal women, and women on social assistance; given that these three factors often create obstacles that are in some cases insurmountable for women wishing to escape domestic violence, especially immigrant women who have a much more limited social safety net; given that these obstacles leave many women with no other choice than to return to or live in violent environments; given that otherwise, women are often left without adequate housing for themselves and their children; given the increase in the number of homeless women, especially among immigrants, aboriginal women and seniors, who often cannot afford to pay for housing; and finally, given that nearly 95% of women's housing agencies have in recent years been forced to turn away women due to lack of availability; I maintain that we need to establish a national housing strategy that addresses the specific challenges facing women, including gender-based analysis, and that responds to the urgent need to increase social housing for Canadian men and women.
Thank you.
Antu Hossain As an Individual
Thank you.
Hi, everyone. Thank you so much for your time today. My name is Antu Hossain and I represent the riding of Beaches—East York.
I want to speak about one of the most condemning human rights violations we have in Canada, which is migrant detention. I want to start with the story of Lucia Vega Jimenez. Lucia was a 42-year old Mexican refugee, who was detained by the Canada Border Services Agency, the CBSA, for not being from Canada. Even when Lucia showed CBSA officers her scars from past incidents of domestic violence, they proceeded with processing her for deportation. She was being held in immigration holding centres while awaiting deportation and in that time, she hung herself. This is not an uncommon story.
Between 2006 and 2014, the Canadian government has detained 87,317 migrants, the majority belonging to racialized groups. In Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, migrants are detained in medium-security immigration holding centres or maximum-security provincial jails if they pose a danger to the public, if their identity is unknown, or if they arrive without proper paperwork.
As you can imagine, with these general, categorical reasons, many migrants can be deemed dangerous. To worsen matters, many migrants are denied access to legal services. That prevents a fair judicial process from occurring and has led to migrants being detained more than 11 years in Canada. It is unsettling that migrants are the only population in Canada who are criminalized for immigration concerns that are clearly administrative.
Not only is that the issue, but Canada is the only OECD country that practises indefinite detention. There is no presumptive period in which migrants are let go, which means that again, they can be detained more than 11 years or indefinitely.
Since 2000, 15 detainees have died under CBSA custody, of whom three have died in Ontario provincial prisons. The most common cause of death is their having been denied health care, followed by suicide, both of which are often preventable and unexplained. The most vulnerable population who are suffering are single mothers, pregnant women, and children, and they are largely racialized. One in three is indigenous. Women with children have to choose between having their children in detention with them or being separated from their children. This has led to 232 children spending time in immigration holding centres.
The lack of knowledge about the end date for release has caused psychological illnesses, trauma, and depression, all of which are exacerbated for migrants who cannot be removed for legal or practical reasons.
In response to the three detainees' deaths under the new Liberal government at the time, there were three hunger strikes by migrants demanding an end to indefinite detention and poor prison conditions, which are unlawful. At that time, Minister Goodale announced his plan to reform Canada's immigration detention system by investing $138 million toward enhancing alternatives to detention and rebuilding immigration holding centres.
However, his proposal has been criticized for not addressing the root cause of migrant detention and, in turn, for the resulting increased capacity to criminalize more migrants. Advocates have called for a 90-day limit, as a lawful time to remain detained or otherwise to have migrants be released, and to further increase access to mental health services.
What we need is action to ensure that the health and human rights of migrants are recognized and upheld. This means adopting the presumptive period recommended by the United Nations, allocating access to mental health services, and ending the practice of mixing migrants with criminal populations.
Thank you.
Liberal
The Vice-Chair Liberal Pam Damoff
Thank you very much.
We're going to turn to you now. Is it Teanna?
As an Individual
[Witness speaks in her native language]
Good morning. My name is Teanna Ducharme. My traditional name is Aygadim Majagalee, and I come from the Nisga'a Nation, from the community of Gitwinksihlkw. Today I'm representing the riding of Skeena—Bulkley Valley.
Matriarchs, respected guests, fellow sisters, I stand before you not only as a Daughter of the Vote, but as a sister in solidarity as well. As an indigenous woman, it is an honour to be here, to be sitting amongst each of you. It is also an honour that carries a lot of responsibility, responsibility not only to my people, but to my community, to fellow indigenous peoples, to fellow Canadians, and to this land.
Instead of talking about the last 100 years of struggles, I'd like to shift the conversation. I want us to talk about and explore the next 100 years of possibility, the next 100 years of revolution. Let's take a moment to imagine this revolution being led by women. I envision a Canada that respects and honours the voices of all Canadians as equals, as partners. I envision a Canada that protects our women and that stands up for our women. I envision a Canada that is fierce in its leadership and shows how much every person is equal.
I want to talk to you today about the intersections between land empowerment and women's empowerment. It is a theory that I've been developing over the last few years as I started to question why there was so much violence happening to our women and so much violence happening in my community. When I looked out and started to observe, I saw all of the destruction that was happening to our land.
As you know, the land is a female entity. She is our mother, the earth. As long as Canada allows and permits violence against the land, that also gives way and gives permission for the perpetuation of violence against our women. We need to learn how to protect the earth, because when we protect the earth, we also protect our women.
One fierce way Canada can ensure that we are honouring not only the rights of indigenous peoples, but also the rights of the land, is by honouring the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. I know that Canada is making efforts in implementing this declaration, but we need to start really putting effort into this. When we talk about truth and reconciliation, we're not at reconciliation yet; we're at truth-telling. We're at a time when you allow space to welcome us here to tell you our truth, and through that we will reach reconciliation, but we're not there yet.
Therefore, I encourage you, each of you, to go back into your communities, to go back to your leaders, and to start asking them questions about how they, in their own roles, are contributing to the implementation of the UNDRIP, and how they are contributing to truth-telling and to reconciliation.
Thank you very much.
[Witness speaks in her native language]
Élisabeth Gendron As an Individual
First, I would like to thank the committee for welcoming us and thank Parliament for inviting us this week, we delegates from the Daughters of the Vote. I would also like to thank my colleagues for their testimony. Some very important issues have been identified.
My name is Élisabeth Gendron, and I am the delegate for Trois-Rivières. I am here to talk to you about access to justice. Access to justice is a concern in Canada, especially in Quebec. Access to justice is not equitable, especially when comparing people with money with those who have less. This inequality is also evident between men and women. Based on these findings, it makes no sense to say that our justice system is supposed to be the foundation for the protection of vulnerable members of society if it fails to serve its role owing to the complexity of the judicial process and the lack of resources for the underprivileged.
Inequality before the law is especially evident in family law, in the case of women who may be experiencing domestic abuse. The law is not designed to properly protect them and their children from violent former spouses. Similarly, in divorce proceedings, in many cases these women cannot afford a lawyer or the legal aid program is completely overloaded by the thousands of requests it receives every year.
In 2014, for instance, the legal aid clinic Juripop, which offers low-cost legal services, stated in its annual report that the majority of its family law clients were women who head single-parent families with one or two children. I observed this myself when I did a work term at the clinic.
Similarly, in 2016, the Commission des services juridiques du Québec noted that women accounted for 62% of its clients in family law, civil law and youth protection.
This is also a serious problem in the criminal justice system. The group that appeared recently spoke about that. Statistically speaking, women are more often the victims of crime than they are the accused. In Canada, in 2008, 83% of victims were women, more than two-thirds of them under 18 years of age. Let us also remember that approximately 88% of sex offences go unreported.
Criminal prosecutions are currently designed in a way that more often than not disregards the victim, treating her as a mere witness to the crime and not a central figure in the proceedings whose interests should always be considered in determining the sentence.
Similarly, it is unacceptable that women are not taken very seriously and that their credibility is constantly called into question by decision-makers and prosecutors. These two obstacles no doubt explain why many women are reluctant to report crimes in which they have been the victim. Criminal justice needs to change and be reconfigured to give a greater role to the victims, if they wish of course, so they feel heard to a greater extent. Moreover, the rules of evidence no doubt need to be changed so that victims' testimony in sexual assault cases is not systematically called into question.
In closing, I would say that women, especially poor women, are not well liked by the justice system. Although a number of initiatives have been taken in recent years to address the situation, it is essential that members from all parties turn their attention to this problem so we can work together to resolve it and ensure that our justice system truly represents and reflects the interests of all Canadians, including women.
Thank you.