Status of Women Committee on Dec. 8th, 2025

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

In any case, they've been doing that in Beauce for several years.

[Vé Mikaelian]

I don't doubt it, but sometimes I've thought it's crazy the amount of resources we have to spend just to make sure, at the end of the day, that a woman isn't killed.

To get back to my answer, I'd say that, no, it's not something we do. However, the problem is certainly complex enough to approach it in different ways. As I keep saying, prevention is extremely important, and that is one way of doing it.

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

In any case, they seemed to—

[Vé Mikaelian]

The fact that men support feminism is always a good thing.

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

You said that the state weakens women's participation in the public space. Did I understand correctly? Is that what you said earlier?

[Vé Mikaelian]

Yes.

[Dominique Vien, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

In two or three sentences, tell me what you meant by that. Why would the state prevent women from participating?

[Vé Mikaelian]

Women are prevented from teaching because they wear a veil, for example. That's one way women are prevented from fully participating in civil society. I could give many examples like that.

[The Chair, Conservative, Marilyn Gladu]

Very good. We're going to go to Ms. Nathan for the last five minutes of this panel.

[Juanita Nathan, Liberal, Pickering—Brooklin, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you to both of you for being here and for sharing your personal experiences as well.

Ms. Mikaelian, we've observed political leaders deliberately targeting new immigrants, especially Muslim women. We've also seen political leaders specifically targeting queer communities, or particularly trans people, by claiming they have only recognized two genders.

Can you explain the implications of these messages? Who are they trying to appeal to, and why might they be using this approach? Is it working? What other communities are affected by it, especially young women?

[Vé Mikaelian]

I just want to make sure I understood your question correctly. Do you want to know how policies that lean toward transphobia can influence society and antifeminism?

[Juanita Nathan, Liberal, Pickering—Brooklin, ON]

It's about politicians specifically being vocal about this, because they're usually seen as community leaders. It's leaders talking about this.

[Vé Mikaelian]

Trans and non‑binary groups are under constant attack right now. I think this is part of a rising tide of right and radical right narratives. These are marginalized groups trying to live with dignity.

I haven't mentioned it, but there's been a huge increase in violence and hate speech targeting these groups. Just today, I saw media reports about schools in Quebec that were going to prevent teachers from being addressed as anything but Mr. or Ms. So, young people are being told that gender is binary, that there are only men and women and that a person's dignity will not be respected if they want to be called something else because they identify differently.

When we adopt measures like this, we give credibility to masculinist and transphobic narratives. Furthermore, it's happening in front of our youth. Yes, it's really very concerning when political leaders voice this kind of narrative.

[Juanita Nathan, Liberal, Pickering—Brooklin, ON]

I don't know if you have anything to add to that. I know you've been harassed yourself.

[Rachel Gilmore]

I've been horrified seeing the virulent transphobic rhetoric that has been spread through society. Even some politicians in our House of Commons have been saying disturbing things that have gotten them condemned by Egale Canada and other organizations. Pierre Poilievre's comments about trans folks have been egregious, saying that he's only aware of two genders.

I think that one of the massive issues within this is that you're ultimately not only.... All of our rights are intertwined, and when you adjudicate the presentation of gender for, say, going to the bathroom, what you are doing is adjudicating who is going to be harassed in that bathroom.

I'm a six-foot tall woman. If I go pee and there's a bathroom ban, are people going to speculate about my genitalia? Am I going to be harassed when I'm just trying to use the washroom? Anyone who doesn't present in a very effeminate way is going to face questions and harassment. They are open to that. It's not only rigorously enforcing the forms of gender expression that exist in our society, but also.... Even among cis women, they are going to be harassed for this. All of our rights are intertwined, and it is essential that we fight for all of them.

[Juanita Nathan, Liberal, Pickering—Brooklin, ON]

Can you talk a little bit about the anti-DEI movement and how that is affecting women in general, especially young women?

[Rachel Gilmore]

Anti-DEI is one of the stupidest things I've ever heard. You're opposing diversity and equity and inclusion. Why? What is wrong with any of those things?

I think there's a fundamental misunderstanding of how DEI operates in Canada as well. We tend not to use quotas, which is the aspect that is often attacked as privileging certain groups over others. What we tend to do is just audits of workplaces to ensure that everyone is having equality of opportunity.

I think that to attack these notions is a dog whistle to the worst elements of society, which are seeing a slide towards a more fascistic world, and every politician who engages in that should be ashamed of themselves.

[The Chair, Conservative, Marilyn Gladu]

I'm so sorry, but that's the end of our time for today. We had a bit of a late start with the votes.

I want to thank our witnesses. Thank you for being so open and for sharing freely with the committee. We really value that.

I'm now going to suspend briefly while we switch up for the next panel.

Thanks.

[The Chair, Conservative, Marilyn Gladu]

Welcome back.

We're here for our second panel, and we have additional witnesses.

For the benefit of the witnesses, at the bottom of your screen, for those on video, you can pick whether you want English, French or floor audio, which gives you both. It's the same with the equipment that's here in the room. If you need any assistance, we have our technician.

If you want to speak, raise your hand or wait until I acknowledge you by name.

All comments should be addressed through the chair.

For our second group of witnesses, we have, from the Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne, Ms. Nour Enayeh, president, and Ms. Soukaina Boutiyeb, executive director. Welcome.

From the Healthy Gamer Foundation, we have Dr. Alok Kanojia, trustee and president.

We'll start with the opening remarks.

Ms. Nour Enayeh, you have five minutes.

[Nour Enayeh, President, Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne]

Madam Chair, members, on behalf of the Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne, I'd like to thank you for your invitation. My name is Nour Enayeh, and I'm president of the AFFC. I'm speaking to you from Vancouver, from the traditional and unceded territory of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh nations. I'm accompanied by Soukaina Boutiyeb, our executive director, who is with you in person.

The AFFC is a national non‑profit feminist organization dedicated to raising awareness and promoting the role and contribution of over 1.5 million minority francophone and Acadian women. Our organization comprises a network of 17 member organizations across the country. We're here today to talk with you about antifeminist ideology because, in May 2020, the AFFC was the target of disturbingly violent intimidation. We received a suspicious package.

I warn you: Some people may find what I am about to say disturbing.

The package contained not only explicit threats to beat us, but also a hundred threatening pieces of writing highlighting that a woman's place is in the kitchen. The messages conveyed antifeminist values and made discriminatory remarks about francophones and immigrants. The incident is not trivial and isn't an isolated occurrence. It fits within the broader context of rising masculinism in recent years, which endangers women's safety. The incident reflects the rise of anti‑gender and anti‑rights movements, and well‑funded and coordinated networks that use fear and disinformation to attack the rights of women, 2LGBTQI+ individuals and minorities.

That incident illustrates a particularly dangerous ideological convergence. Francophone women are being attacked not only because they advocate for gender equality, but also because of their minority language identity. Francophone and Acadian women are doubly, if not triply, marginalized: as women, as francophones and based on other identity factors.

These forms of oppression are not cumulative, they combine and intersect to create specific vulnerabilities and exclusions that we have to confront on a daily basis. This reality requires an intersectional approach in order to design tailored responses. We therefore organized the first pan‑Canadian forum on masculinism and francophobia, launching a vitally important conversation that needs to continue. Throughout the process, we were accompanied by a youth delegation that played a critical guiding role. The recommendations that we're presenting to you arise from that forum and propose concrete actions to counter antifeminism.

We propose that the government support and value the voice of young minority francophones and involve women's organizations in defining issues and developing solutions. We also propose that the government work with the provinces and territories and with civil society to pool expertise and implement concrete projects to fight antifeminism. We also propose that the government increase training for professionals on antifeminist ideology, and that it promote funding for research on discrimination and how gender and language overlap.

We also propose that the federal government require a more comprehensive gender-based analysis with a focus on the reality of official language minorities and ensure access to the results. We also propose that the government adopt legislative measures aimed at regulating and sanctioning hate speech and violent and discriminatory acts against women and individuals from gender‑diverse backgrounds, while recognizing the specific situation of minority francophones. Finally, we propose that the government provide mission-based funding for francophone and Acadian women's organizations in minority situations to address their needs and mitigate the impacts of the antifeminism they experience.

Thank you. Our executive director, Ms. Soukaina Boutiyeb, who is with you, will now answer your questions.

[The Chair, Conservative, Marilyn Gladu]

Thank you very much.

Now we are going our second witness, Dr. Kanojia, for five minutes.

[Dr. Alok Kanojia, Trustee and President, Healthy Gamer Foundation]

Thank you, Madam Chair and members of the committee, for inviting me to speak today.

My name is Dr. Alok Kanojia and I'm a psychiatrist and trustee of the Healthy Gamer Foundation, which is dedicated to research and advocacy around the mental health needs of the digital generation.

Much of our work centres on understanding how online environments shape emotional development, motivation and well-being, especially for young people. I spent the last five years working directly with young men involved in incel, black pill, red pill and other online subcultures.

What I'd like to offer today are not just clinical observations, but human stories and patterns I've seen repeat across thousands of individuals who end up in these communities and what these mean for policy-making.

Most of the young men I work with do not begin with anti-feminist ideology. They begin with loneliness, shame and a sense of falling behind their peers. A typical pathway looks something like this. A young man feels isolated. He experiences repeated rejection or humiliation, sometimes romantic, sometimes academic, sometimes familial. He turns to the Internet for support because he has nowhere else to go. Online spaces provide simple explanations for complex situations. Those explanations slowly harden into ideology.

The core psychological start is with hopelessness that then transforms into hatred. Communities built around hopelessness naturally drift towards extremism because shared suffering becomes fused with shared resentment. Online spaces amplify these vulnerabilities in several ways. Algorithms surface more extreme content because extreme content keeps people engaged. Isolation becomes reinforced. Young men who feel socially inadequate compare themselves with curated, idealized lives online. Anonymous forums reward cynicism, pessimism and anger, and vulnerable young men are told, “Your failure is predetermined. Your genetics define you. The world is rigged”—usually against you.

This is the psychological backbone of the black pill.

Toxic manosphere algorithms are successful because they are validating and empathic for men's experiences. Most men are not taken seriously when they complain. Most men do not perceive that their issues are being taken seriously. Manosphere influencers will be empathic by saying, “Yes, you are right: The world is rigged against you and no one will come to help you. Survival is up to you, and you can't count on anyone.” Frequently, they will offer a way to become an “alpha”, to no longer be a loser.

Across nearly all cases, I see five recurring themes: social deprivation characterized by lack of friendships, mentorships or a meaningful community; emotional illiteracy, as these young men were never taught how to process rejection, shame or grief; trauma histories, oftentimes including bullying, childhood emotional neglect and attachment issues; unmet mental health needs, as depression, anxiety, ADHD and autism spectrum conditions are disproportionately common; and a loss of purpose, with academic or career stagnation that creates identity collapse.

When these needs go unaddressed, ideology becomes a coping mechanism.

The encouraging news is that many of these young men do improve and they do leave these communities once they have alternatives.

What we found works is building agency by helping them take small, achievable steps that contradict the narrative of hopelessness; teaching emotional skills, especially around rejection, resilience and self-worth; creating off-line community, including mentorship, peer support and structured social environments; focusing on mental health treatment, addressing underlying conditions that contribute to their despair; and positive identity pathways, helping them see value in themselves beyond dating or status hierarchies.

These interventions are far more effective than shame, punishment or moral confrontation. When we offer belonging, dignity and purpose, ideology loses its grip.

I respectfully suggest three evidence-based approaches: first, invest in preventative mental health supports for young men, especially those dealing with loneliness, school disengagement or neurodevelopmental conditions; second, promote digital literacy and emotional literacy curricula in schools, teaching youth how to interpret online spaces, regulate emotions and navigate rejection; and third, support community-level programs, including peer programs, mentorship networks, skills-building groups and spaces where isolated young men can reconnect with society in healthy ways.

Young men who feel included do not become radicalized. Young men who feel valued do not seek refuge in hopeless communities. Young men who have purpose do not turn to anti-feminist ideology for identity.

These individuals are not born villains; they are young people in pain who found the wrong kind of community at the right time. If we address their underlying suffering, not just their ideology, we can meaningfully reduce harm, improve mental health outcomes and create a more inclusive and resilient society.

Thank you very much, and I look forward to your questions.

[The Chair, Conservative, Marilyn Gladu]

Thank you very much.

Now we're going to go into our first round of questions.

We'll start with Ms. Roberts for six minutes.

[Anna Roberts, Conservative, King—Vaughan, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you to the witnesses for being here today. My first question is for Dr. Kanojia.

I have raised a son, and sometimes as parents, we have a hard time seeing the problems that our children are experiencing.

From your clinical experience, how does this loneliness make them more susceptible to joining misogynistic and extremist online communities?

[Dr. Alok Kanojia]

The loneliness is an important risk factor because in these online communities, that's where they find connections.

Let's say I'm a high school student and I feel socially isolated. What I can do is turn to the Internet, where there are millions of people who feel similarly socially isolated. We all form bonds through an experience of shared social isolation, which I know is a little bit contradictory, but that's how it works.