Yes, Madam Chair.
With respect to your first question, I think what's really important is that when we talk about empowerment we often talk about women. I think something that often gets neglected in the conversation, especially at the political level, is the intersectionality of women. All three of us sitting here on this panel are of indigenous descent. I think when we talk about the intersectionality of women we need to talk about how these issues impact women on different levels: indigenous women, women of colour, LGBTQ, and two-spirit women. All these different elements that pertain to women come together and diverge. When we talk about trying to instill empowerment in women, those efforts have different effects for those different levels of intersectionality. That's one thing that's really important. When we talk about individualizing cases, we can't lump people together but we also can't individualize cases. I think it's a very complicated issue, which is why I think this committee is very important.
With respect to mentorship, I'm really fortunate to have had women in politics who have mentored me over the past few years. One of my biggest mentors has been my MLA in Alberta, Mrs. Leela Sharon Aheer. She has been one of the most amazing people who has been behind this campaign from the get-go, and I'm so grateful for her support. Another person for whom I'm really thankful to have had a relationship is the Honourable Michelle Rempel, who has probably been one of the most incredible crusaders for feminism in politics. She's also been a supporter of this campaign. I'm very fortunate to have had the influence of these women. I was hesitant to even send my initial letter to the Minister of Education in Alberta about my concerns regarding sex education. I thought, if they can do it, why can't I?
I hope that answers your question.