4 10 77 https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2788/1985_Vol_9_No_2.pdf fdf2903b67efe3c9ff80ef2f8aa60234 PDF Text Text Northern W $1.00 Journal AUGUST 1985 VO QP i .1,y, 1 4 k -,, 7777'.!- ";11 - - -- -:__ - -7:-- j---- __ __ :;:-----"---- PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �WELCOME HOME JOAN EDITOR' AL Our readers will be as delighted as we are to know that Joan Baril is back in Thunder Bay. Joan's significant contribution to The Northern Woman is so welcome. We wish to thank those readers who promptly renewed their subscriptions recruited new subscribers and sent donations. The monies thus received have replenished our coffers sufficiently to publish this current issue. Our long-term finances, howgver, are still precarious, so we must re-iterate our appeal. If each of you who read this issue found five new subscribers-the Northern Woman would be financially secure. Please help us keep our journal healthy. . NORTHERN VOICE Seven years later, here I am, a feminist, still living in this small northern, one-industry town. It is called Iroquois Falls and is located north of North Bay, about 300 miles. According to the tourist pamphlets, Iroquois Falls is known as the "garden town of the north". I can't help but grin every time I come across the description. Certainly there are a few gardens around, but they can hardly justify the picturesque description Iroquois Falls was given. So what does a feminist do in a male-dominated town? She tries hard to hold onto her sanity. Mind you, I wasn't always a feminist.. When I first arrived, I was your typical, loving wife, who cooked wonderful dishes and anxiously awaited her husband's return from a far off bush camp. Those were lonely days when I was too shy to meet people and rathered the safety of our small apartment. The love of my life was home rarely and long distance phone calls to my family were frequent. Those calls made me feel I wasn't reaching out and touching someone, rather, I felt more depressed because I realized how far out of reach they actually were. Nothing was familiar to me, not the french I heard around me, nor the constant talking about others which was so much a part of the small town atmosphere. I remember taking my first taxi ride and the driver telling me how much I was going to enjoy living in a small town. He cautioned me. Everybody knew everybody else's business. Coming from Toronto,'it fascinated and alienated me to see so much interest in other people's lives. Back home, you were just another face in the crowd. But in Iroquois Falls, people talked about you, though it may not always be good, but at least they knew you existed. That was my first impression several years ago and the town hasn't changed much. But I have. Due to some very important people in my life, I grew and changed, though I still feel lonely. But it's a different kind of loneliness that has taken over. I feel I am amongst the few feminists who are a minority that share the feminist perspective. To simply acknowledge yourself as such is similar to having the bubonic plague. People fear the word as if being a feminist means being a radical, man-hating woman. How can we make them understand that we are not out to expel them, but to add the word "equality" to their vocabulary. Iroquois Falls is isolated from the rest of Ontario in the sense that new ideas and views are slow in being accepted. The graduating teenager in the town tends to hold onto their grandparents views that are stereotyped sexual roles. If you're lucky enough to be hired at the paper mill and protected by a union, you are often subjected to rude sexual comr ments and sexism at its best. I feel like a closet feminist sometimes, as I realize how gently I must introduce feminist views in order to reach a greater scope of women and not frighten them away. It can be so frustrating and tiresome because often I feel like shouting out at the inequality and sexism being practiced here. I remain optomistic as I realize change is possible. The wheels of progress have started to turn in the form of consciousness raising and support group which is slowly becoming a reality. Eventually, we hope to reach the women who need a place to go for support and information for whatever the cause. Alcohol and wife beating are just a few of the more popular problems. They're real and large in number, unlike the facilities for the women. Only recently has a home for battered women been established in our area. For three to six weeks the home offers ten women and their children the opportunity to re-examine their lives with the help of trained staff. This is just a bandaid solution though. Still, what is needed is a place where women can go to share and have access to new ideas, and views which will enable them to realize their self worth. So while other feminists across Canada are struggling over issues to agree on and fight for, those of us in small communities are plowing ahead to educate women to just feel comfortable with the word "feminist" W e have a long way to go. Even if the rest of Canada takes on the feminist perspective, it's isolated towns like Iroquois Falls that will stagnate if we let them. So, we go on. Kim Gareau Dear NWJ: Thank you for the complimentary copy of your journal and a small donation as well as subscription funding is enclosed. Keep up the great work, please: Jeanne Edwards Dear NWJ: Please renew my subscription and also find enclosed a donation, I hope this helps, as $5.00 seems such a small amount to kay for all the talent and information contained in the Journal. Linda Salamon ALERT, INDIAN WOMEN WHO LOST STATUS. The amendments to the Indian Act allowing reinstatement have passed. To apply for reinstatement for yourselves and your children contact Indian Affairs or the Legal Clinic in your area. We're always good people. NORTHERN WOMAN page 2 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �appointment (phone (807) 548-4325). Northern women travelling through Kenora should call the day before. UPDATE Joan Baril Holdings include books, periodicals, clipping collections, pamphlets, memorabilia from lesbian The official opening is an exciting first for Thunder Bay --- Immigrant Women's August 23 from 3-6 pm and it's organizations and events etc. Donations of items for the expenses are vey welcome. Mailing address: LARC c/o collection or money for Employment Place is a centre run by immigrant women to help women find jobs. It's a Isabel Andrews, RR #2 Kenora, seems every feminist periodical has a list. There is the Canadian Women's Festival '85 August 30, 31 and September 1 self-help centre where women can share their experiences about work issues, discuss what the barriers to employment are P9N 3W8. .. Conferences - it and consider strategies. The centre is in downtown Port at Kildonan Park Winnipeg. In November Charlottetown will Arthur ward across from Eaton's, upstairs at 12A South Court Street. The coordinator is Thuy Ly. **Mary Rakowski and Fiona Karlstedt have prepared a handbook to assist host the Farm Women's Conference with the theme "Networking for Action". held June 6,7 at the Avila The Northwestern Ontario Centre was so successful that Women's Health Education women who are considering Northwestern Ontario Decade Project is holding its annual running for political office. Council is attempting to meeting with workshop October The booklet, a project of the arrange a repeat. Moderator 18, 19, 20 at Avila Centre Economic Development Committee Susan McPhail from London, Bay. They'll be working of the Northwestern Ontario Ontario guided the group into Thunder on strategies for the future in Decade Council, is a guide for an understanding of women's health issues in women seeking office at the peer/feminist counselling as Northwestern Ontario. municipal level. It sets out apposed tothe traditional Interested local women should the pitfalls, and also gives social ,worker/client model with phone 345-1410 Monday practical information. The its innate imbalance of power. Wednesday.. Anna McColl of guide, which has been published Approximately half of the this Journal attended the locally, is available to Feminist Counselling Workshop eighteen participants were from the region outside Thunder Bay. Once, what we read about women came to us filtered through the Feminist Periodical Conference in June which was held outside as if a Centre will start up axiomatic among feminists that this Septembre. The 268 women women learn when we speak the polled -want a centre to lobby truth of our own lives. for women's issues (seen as a women of Project Mayday, priority by 77.6%), to provide on The the North Shore, have just information on women's completed action research activities in Thunder Bay and study, thetheir result of in-depth Canada (73%), and arrange interviews and so, for the self-defence and assertiveness journal of writing by teens published in Calgary, and interested women...... According to a survey done by a group of Lakehead University women, the women students want a Women's Centre on campus and it looks portfolio bulging with tpatriarcal reatment plant of the publications including Teen mind. But now, it is Herizons, a newspaper-style time, we have in written training (56%). The women also first form the lives and experiences indicated they want information of women in Ontario on scholarships (72.8%), job single-industry towns --- in creation (70.5%), and health this case Schrieber, Marathon, topics such as birth control Manitowadge and Terrace Bay. (61.6%). The women learned interview Some university women's techniques from Diana Ellis centres concentrate on helping (Women's Research Centre, B.C.) women thread their way through who also helped them to draw up the enormous amount of material interview guides. The issues connected with the new which come out of the report disciplines of women's studies. will be used as the basis for An example is the Women s t he Northshore Women's at the Conference October 26, 27. Resource Centre University of Guelph. Not Ear Falls surprisingly 71.9% of Lakehead Congratulations, Mothers' Action Committee. When to the women who responded the local council cancelled the questionaire priorized women's swim program and supervised studies as a need. Other centres focus on health. One such was the Birth Control and Counselling Centre which operated at Lakehead for five years (1969-1974) and which also served as a women's lobby and drop-in centre.*.. University women often have to battle hard for a place on campus. University of Toronto women have been trying to get a women's building for sixty years. Chief opposition comes from male students and **The Breaking the Silence a feminist magazine on social issues from Ottawa. is A 1 so mew The Newsmagazine, a new glossy from Alberta. * The official opening of the first women's centre in Hearst was marked by two days of ceremonies. Town councillor Sheila Lamontangne, and the regional representative to National Action Committee on the Status of Women (N.A.C.) Kathryn Fournier, were the speakers the first day. There was also a wine and cheese party. There was open house the second day. Margot Blight form Thunder Bay spoke on the varying styled of women's centres. The Centre, which will offer bilingual services, is a first for Hearst, the result of beach, the women lobbied several years of work by programs available to children. Still battling, the Women's Committee in Nakina against the group. The Centre defines successfully to keep the CN runthrough. They have worked hard to show how the CN phase-out will affect community life. In recent hearings, they weren't even given a place on the agenda. Bravo to the women of Vermillion Bay who spearheaded the fight against the plan to dump PCB asphalt near their community and forced -administrators who pretend g overnment officials to women's causes have no validity reconsider the scheme...***LARC in order to divert scarce funds (Lesbian Archives and Resource and resources into activities Centre) near Kenora is open by and they find less threatiening more congenial. Montreal. She returned with a France-Femmes, a local women's itself as a service organization to provide counselling, rape crisis work, information, referral and lobbying action on women's issues. It will also set up workshops and 'conferences. 4.4,4 It must be a joke, a shaggy dog joke -.you don't know whether to laugh, cry or ignore it. To Flora MacDonald and all the Tories "It 's a landmark", a "major step foreward" and they can say it with a straight face. NORTHERN WOMAN page 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �conferences on the Decade of Women in Nairobi received almost as much mainstream media coverage as the visit of the giant pandas. The Globe and Mail sent their expert on re000 LIM *-/ Oil v in:10 1:100 EILICIOCIODD "squeal bills" which require women considering abortion. "attractive" and "a most recently passed by the Illinois in the language of men" He would allow a husband to get an of Greece who he described as feminine woman who could argue thrilled at her looks, "Handsome, patrician looking...superbly dressed," but she "gave women hard It seems to occur to nobody shuffle toward equity. Regan, women would be What it is really about is Mauree interested in hearing from statistics --reporting women like. Papandreou, who is, statistics. Starting in in fact, a tireless grass roots 1988,companies have to hand in organizer of womin in Greece. reports telling governments who So much is going on at Nairobi they employ, detailing how many --- two major conferences, 7000 are women, disabled people, visible minorities and so on; not all companies, mind you, but Crown Corporations and parents. (A similar measure is being considered in Saskatchewan). Then there are doctors and others to inform on instead of colour and it is only the tiniest that storiesabout big names like not much to do with employment else ie husband, father, both women, Michael Valpy who was struck by Margarita Papandreou While other women It 's "Employment Equity" a lectures". "gave flowery speeches", hers term so meaningless it would were "closely reasoned". make George Orwell blush. It's written permission from someone participants, hundreds of meetings and panels. For example under the heading "Media" we find listed fifty "federally regulated" employers workshops at the NGO conference Another type is the bill legislature this spring. It injunction to prevent the wife from having an abortion. (It will likely be vetoed by the state governor.) A new ploy is to require the woman to dispose of the fetal tissue°. In New Jersey proposed legislation would require women considering abortion or who have had a spontaneous miscarriage to choose "burial, cremation, entombment" at their expense. It would mean, for example, that a woman who miscarried at home, wuld have to arrange "proper" disposal of fetal tissue or face a fine of $7500 or 18 months in jail. All this bizarre legal activity is taking place in a country which has a higher teen-age pregnancy rate and with more than 100 workers - -- (Non-government forum). Here banks, airlines, the CN. are some samples: Media, Power "Very well," I hear you say, Uses, Political Tool; more teen abortions than any other industrialized nation. A report by the Alan Guttmacher Institute concludes that other industrialized countries have more liberal attitudes toward Peacemaking --- and on and on, access to contraception without parental notification and more "what happens then eh? The Production and Broadcasting; purpose of the statistics of Colour as Writers; is...?" This is where the Women Hands-on Computer Centre; shaggy dog "comes in --- no Information Sharing on punch line, no point. According to the act, after the figures each panel as intriguing as the are handed in, o l interested last. ic, can pay a International women fee and see them. On the other organizations will network at hand, consolidation of the Nairobe. So many of our various numbers may be made --- concerns can only be dealt with f p sex than the U.S., easier cAlrcitttlirl.rf7=4411471e114keen pregnancy rates. and it will be various --- internationally. For example because there are varying the International Feminist methods of reporting --- and Network Against Sexual Slavery may be presented to Parliament. will meet there. Kathleen Well, that's it. This should Barry, author of Female Sexual make the employers of the Slavery will be present. The nation tremble, don't you group works to combat the think? There's no teeth in the forces which make forced act, no penalties for companies prostitution and pornography who hand in bad reports, no invisible, profitable and definition as to what a bad thriving. *****The good news is report is, no enforcement and the follow-up conference to be no remedy. It's like sending held at the University of David out against Goliath Guelph September 26-29. without his sling. Registration is open to anyone. Michael Sabia, the relevant This will be a major conference government official, thought which will bring messages from perhaps the Canadian Human Rilghts might do something, Nairobi and cover many topics. he's pretty sure, and maybe The theme is "the significance they could lay a complaint if of women's contribution and they didn't like what was in status in domestic and the reports even though, he international developement". allowed, they don't usually Nothern women will have their initiate complaints on their air fare subsidized. Phone Lisa own. This is the same Human Bengtsson, Secretary of State Rights Commission which was office, 345-2316.***** Studio D told, some time later, by the (National Film Board) went to Federal Court of Appeal that it Nairobi and intends to put out could not impose affirmative a film. It will be available for women's community groups. action programs. Chavira Hoseh, president of The American Scene. Over the NAC commented, "It seens the past several years each government thinks the Human American state has seen Rights Commission is to be the repeated attempts by antito bring in laws enf orcement agency f or abortionists "employment equity". If they to provent women from getting can't impose restitution, it's abortions. Many states have useless f or impos ing passed "permission" bills to it wonderful that the considering abortion get "employment equity". .. Isn't make it mandatory that women NORTHERN' WOMAN' page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �VISIT 13ooKs DOMESTIC ABUSE INTERVENTION PROGRAM In NO IMMEDIATE DANGER? Prognosis for a Radioactive Earth ($12.95) Dr. Rosalie Bertell adds new insights to the crisis of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. For herstory buffs the reprinting of NOT IN GOD'S IMAGE: Women in HIstory from the Greeks to the Victorians ($9.95) is welcome. Edited by Julia O'Faolian and Lauro Mart- As part of our continuing Family Dispute Unit study, three members of the Thunder Bay Physical and Sexual Assault Crisis Centre, recentStock up for your fall reading ly visited the Duluth Domestic Abuse with some of the fine new titles Intervention Program (DAIP). available at Northern Woman's BookSince 1980 the DAIP has coorstore. dinated services to families experTwo recent books by Jane Rule: iencing violence. INLAND PASSAGE ($10.95) is a collecWhen police attend a family disines. tion of short stories "..soul-deep, turbance, if probable cause exists Heleieth I. B. Saffioti "... a gentle tales (that) explore theconan assault charge must be laid, and ventional and unconventional relacontemporary pioneer in the theory the assailant is detained at the and research of women's status and tionships in all our lives", while jail until court the following mornroles.." gives us WOMEN IN CLASS A HOT EYED MODERATE ($10.95) is a ing. An advocate from the Women's SOCIETY ($12.75) collection of essays. Coalition is notified by the jailer Highly recommended for all PMS A most exciting writer that and goes to see the victim immediatesufferers Katharina Dalton's ONCE many of us are just discovering is ly. She offers support and shares A MONTH ($9.95) "is a clear, easily Jamaica Kincaid. AT THE BOTTOM OF information with the victim about THE RIVER is a collection of Kincaid': understood account of premenstrual Orders for Protection, and financial short stories. syndrome, its effects, diagnosis, and legal assistance. If the victim and complete treatment". FLIGHT OF THE SEVENTH MOON is wishes to leave her home the advoa companion piece to Lynn V. Andrews Periodicals available at the cate will assist her in getting to Bookstore include Broadside, Voices, earlier work MEDICINE WOMAN. "This the shelter. Whether or not the vicHERizons, Hysteria, Kinesis, Women beautiful book weaves rare and protim leaves she is encouraged to partand Environments, Healthsharing, found teachings of the Medicine Path icipate in weekly groups for batterFireweed, Room of One's Own. with the remarkable story of a wared women offered by the Coalition. rior woman's gateway of initiation". Place your order now for the The advocate keeps in contact with 19 86 Everywoman's Almanac. Both books are available at $10.50. the victim offering continued support and assistance. A male advocate from the DAIP visits the assailant at the jail and informs him of the Domestic Abuse Program which involves 12 weeks of group counselling and 12 weeks of an educational group. If he pleads guiltrrnr-ls-niand guilty the mandated by the court as a condition The Northwestern Ontario Women's of probation. Repeat offences involve Health EduCation Project (NWO W.H.E.P. a jail term as well as mandated counselling. a three year demonstration project Ellen Pence, Director of the DAIP scheduled to conclude August 31/85, feels that the police policy of manhas been granted a ten month extendatory arrest and the clear court sion by its funder Health Promotion guidelines for sentencing are the backDirectorate of Health and Welfare bone of the program. It emphasizes to Canada, until June 30,1986. the batter that violence is a crime. Judi Vinni has been hired for We were extremely impressed with the half-time co-ordinator's position the level of cooperation achieved by for the project and will spend the the DAIP, Police Department, courts, ten month period working with local and regional women who are attempting probation and the Women's Coalition and the commitment each shows to the to form an organization to represent program. Those we spoke with were their interests in women's health in very pleased with the outcome of the Northwestern Over the Ontario. past three years of CARRIE GERENDASY project and feel the number of repeat operation, W.H.E.P., a health promocalls to the police has gone down, tion project, developed workshop kits fewer women are withdrawing charges, on a range of health topics chosen by and both victims and batterers are women in fourteen N.W.O. communities. getting assistance through the groups. Carrie Gerendasy will be perThe seventeen workshops have been Videotapes and discussion in forming at a concert sponsored by presented in a total of twenty comboth the men's and women's groups foProject Ploughshares. The performance munities by the co- ordinators of the cus on the use of power and control will take place on October 5 at 8p.m. project and late by community women in abusive relationships. The emphasis in the sanctuary of St. Paul's United who attended training sessions in of the men's groups is to get the batChurch. Thunder Bay this past year to prepare terer to take responsibility for his Carrie is an American folk them. behaviour, while the women's groups singer who has earned the reputation The health workshops provide indiscourage the victims from blaming of being one of Minneapolis' most formation b.ut emphasize group partithemselves, and encourage assertiveimpressive solo acts. Her high energy cipation so that women can share their presentation, moving interpretations, ness. knowledge, identify their needs and The DAIP is offering a "Communand genuine concern for using music formulate their own solutions. ity Interventions in Domestic Assault as a statement, all make for an unforCurrently a core group of seven Cases" Conference from Oct.31 to Nov. gettable experience. The Mothers' Day women, representing thirty regional 1/85 to share their success and faiMarch for Peace, Take Back the Night women involved with W.H.E.P. are planlures with other groups or individuals Marches, Anti-Pornography rallies, ning a conference to be held in Thunworking in the area of family violence. and ERA rallies are various events der Bay, October 18-20/85. If anyone is interested in further inat which Carrie has performed.. "The purpose of the ten month formation on the conference please Tickets are $5.00 for adults extensions" say W.H.E.P. co-ordinacontact us at 345-1871. and $3.00 for seniors, youth, and tors "is to ensure that workshops are unemployed. Tickets are available at in Northwestern Ontario communities Submitted by Brenda Persson & Pam Dunk the local Peace Coaliton Office (345. and being used as a resource." 0372) or at the Women's Centre. HEALTH CONCERT , NORTHERN -WOMAN page 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �QUALITY DAY CARE A CHILD'S With growing frequency the situation of day care in Canada is described as "crisis". It could also be called a tragedy. As a society we must seriously question why we tolerate a situation that prevents hundreds of thousands of our youngest children from receiving quality care. This deplorable situation is not new. (As a social planner I have been expounding the same day care concerns, the same recommendations for some fifteen years.) What is so frightening is that, despite conscientious attempts by many day care advocates, the day care situation not only has failed to improve, but is actually deteriorating. The reality is that nowhere in Canada do we have a comprehensive child care system. Rather, we have a faulty welfare system that will never appropriately serve child care needs. How long can we tolerate a situation where less than 12% of Canadian children under 6yrs. of age in need of day care have access to licensed, supervised programs? What possible rationale can be given for excluding low and middle income families from day care services because of prohibitive user fees of $4000 - 5000 per year, per child? (Only very low income families qualify for subsidy, only very high income families can afford the exhorbitant fees.) What justification is there for exploiting ay care workers through grossly inadequate wages -- on average barely 30% of beginning elementary school teachers salaries? Why do we tolerate a system that inflicts tremendous emotional stress on so many mothers who have no choice but to place their children with unqualified, inappropriate caregivers? If we value children, if we value families, significant, systemic societal changes must occur ... and must occur soon. ISSUES The major day care issues are easily identifiable. They are quality, cost, accessibility. A further, yet inter-related issue is the status and wages of day care workers. Quality It should be self-evident that quality care is essential for infants and children in their formative years. The principles of quality day care have been succinctly outlined by the Ontario Coalition for Better Day Care when they state: "Daycare programs must focus on the education, the rearing and the physical care of the child. The education function involves developmental programs concerned with the intellectual, emotional, physical and social growth of the child. The rearing function involves liasion with the home to complement family life and provide the kind of guidance children would receive at home. The caring function integrates health and social services as required. It should include proper nutrition and preventative medical care, by MARGARET PHILLIPS R IGH T requires adequate provisions for physical facilities and space. In a responsive childcare system, there should be flexibility to allow working parents to select the type and location of childcare that meets the needs of both parents and child. Programs in all locations, should be monitored according to a set of standards and regulations established by the provincial government which embody these principles." Most day care consumers agree that the preferable choice of a day care program is a non-profit group day care centre. Concern arises with for-profit centres (which comprise 40% of Ontario licensed spaces) as quality may suffer in the cost-saving measures that ensure profit for these commercial centres. While quality care will vary between centres, at least parents have the assurance that these centres are licensed and monitored. The majority of families, however, must rely on the "informal system" .. i.e. baby-sitters, neighbours, relatives, where no licensing or supervision exists. The care received in these situations is generally unknown and of uncertain quality. The growing use of the term "informal system" is most unfortunate, because it means nothing more than unsupervised care, and the government trend to include these situations within a day care "system" is distressing. (I will return to this topic under the discussion of funding.) To date research on quality and developmental aspects of day care has been largely confined to day care centre programs (the "formal system"). The one major study of unlicensed, unsupervised care conducted by Metro 'Toronto Social Planning Council confirmed our fears about the inadequacy of "informal" care. The study reports that "... the children in these types of arrangements generally received only custodial-type care which ignored their development needs. While their basic physical needs may have been met, the children were more likely to spend their time watching television than engaging in creative developmental activities. Regular outdoor play and excursions, active physical play, creative activites, and nutrious meals and snacks were not found to be part of the program in most private, unsupervised day care arrangements. The providers, who typically lacked training in how to work with young children and had no long-,t.erm commitment to the provision of child care, tended to see their work as a stop-gap to tide them over until personal and family circumstances allowed them to work outside the home." (Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women, Day Care in Canada: A Background Paper, 1984) Numerous day care need studies and inquiries repeatedly set forth the serious problems that parents experience in using unsupervised careparticularly baby-sitters. In addressing the Ontario Federation of Labour Day Care hearings in 1981, one Thunder Bay mother, expressing her concern about being forced into making inadequate private arrangements, stated "In my son's short life he was fed starches and sugar because they keep children quiet, and were cheaper than fruits and vegetables, and plunked in front of a TV instead of being provided with stimulating play". A recent study of Thunder Bay child care arrangements (N.W.O. Women's Centre, Project Child Care 1984) found that instability of care arrangements - particularly baby-sitting care was a serious problem for many Thunder Bay families. It was found that of those parents using babysitters 44% had had to change sitters one or more times during the previous twelve months. One mother changed sitters 8 times in the twelve month period. This study also found that "large proportions of those using either care by relatives or sitter care would, if they had their choice, use formal care as their preferred childcare arrangement." This finding substantiates the conclusion of many other studies as summarized by the CACSW report which states "A review of the findings reveals some common trends and patterns in parental views on the form of care considered most suitable for their children .... they want licensed, supervised care, preferably in a day care centre. How stressful it is for families who because of accessibility problems and cost factors are unable to exercise this choice. a r graphics by ANN-IDA BECK continued next page NORTHERN WOMAN page 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Accessibility The CACSW report points out that jn 1982 the ratio of spaces to children had actually declined (see table below). While a modest increase in day care spaces has occurred in the intervening period it has in no way kept pace with the increase into the labour force of women with young children. For example, in Ontario the percentage of women in the labour force with children aged 3-5 yrs. increased from 58.3% in 1981 to 61.5% in 1983. The increase in the labour force of women with children under 3 yrs. is even greater - from 49.5% in 1981 to 53.2% in 1983. This trend continues. Analysts predict that by 1990 75% of women with children under 6 yrs. will be in the paid labour force. Recognizing the implication of this trend -- the increasing numbers of children who will require day care -- and considering that in 1982, of the children who needed care only 11.6% were served by licensed, supervised programs, the issue of accessibility of day care spaces becomes paramount. The need for infant/toddler supervised care is even more dramatic, as the 1982 figures show that only 5% of under 2 yr. olds were served. (National Day Care Information Centre) The availability of day care varies considerably. While few areas are adequately served, and virtually no where can one find an appropriate continuum of infant, pre-school and 'latch-key' services - there are many areas that are totally without service. /The situation in rural areas is particularly critical. For farm women .. whether they are full-time farmers, or working off the farm, or a combination of both (in addition to their household work - which is frequently the sole responsibility of women), the need for day care is acute. As a study by the National Farmers Union of their female membership points out "... many parents have no alternative but to take their children into the barn or field with them while they work. This is not only a dangerous environment for a child but is a source of distraction for the parents who are then more susceptible to having an accident". No longer can day care be considered an urban phenonenum. Rural children also need day care and policies must be flexible enough to provide the appropriate services. Table 1. Year How accessible is day care in Northwestern Ontario? It varies. During the past fifteen years a number of municipal Councils/Indian Band Councils have initiated day care programs. At present day care centres providing pre-school, and in some cases latch key services, are operated by Geraldton, Longlac, Long Lake Indian Band, Heron Bay, Balmertown, Dryden, Ear Falls, Fort Frances, Grassy Narrows, Kenora, Islington, (Whitedog), Onegaming, Red Lake, Shoal Lake, Sioux Lookout, Whitefish Bay. A community non-profit corporation has recently opened a day care centre in Marathon. Thunder Bay has four municipal centres, the Confederation College Children and Family Centre, and a commercial centre. A workplace day care will open this fall (St. James School) for Board of Education employees. Whitefish Bay has the only infant care centre in the district. Thunder Bay and Fort Frances operate licensed private home day care programs that accommodate infants and toddlers. As can be seen by the omissions from the foregoing list there are a number of communities in our district that are totally lacking in child care services. Concerned parents and community members in Atikokan and Ignace have been advocating for day care for years. Recently a strong Terrace Bay committee has formed to promote a day care centre in that community. Farm women in Northwestern Ontario are also stressing the need for rural day care. In a brief to the Ontario Advisory Council on the Status of Women (Dryden, 1984) Janet Owen and Jacquelyn Hunsperger of the Farm Women of the Rainy River Distriat stated that "In rural areas affordable good quality childcare is non-existent" and discussed the need for childcare when mothers work on or off the farm. They pointed out that "women are often restricted from attending farm meetings because of inadequate childcare and/or lack of finances to pay baby-sitters". They recommended that "day care centres be set up in small hamlets in rural areas so women can leave their children there one or two days a week while they catch up on the essential parts of the farm operation that cannot'be accomplished with children in tow. A very important spin-off of this option would be the opportunity for the children to interact with other children, giving them the chance to develop social skills". Numbers of children under 6 requiring day care and licensed spaces available, Canada, 1975-1982 Estimated number of children under 6 with mothers in the labour force Number of children under 6 occupying licensed family and day care centre spaces Percentage of children under 6 with access to licensed day care Number of children under 6 not accomodated within the formal system 1975 562,000 64,589 11.49% 497,411 1976 620,000 75,330 12.15% 544,670 1977 656,000 73,865 11.26% 582,135 1978 695,000 73,475 10.57% 621,525 1979 721,000 86,780 12.03% 634,220 1980 760,000 92,423 12.16% 667,577 1982 950,000 110,573 11.63% 839,427 Source: Health and Welfare Canada, National Day Care Information Centre, Status of Day Care in Canada, 1975-1980; Day Care Spaces in Canada - 1982. (Figures for 1981 are not available). NORTHERN WOMAN page 8 The number of day care spaces in Thunder Bay must also be questioned. For example, there are no municipal day care centres (the only centres where parents may apply for subsidy) in Northwood, Neebing, McIntyre or Current River wards. Accessibility is a Northwestern Ontario problem. For some it means lack of preferred space. For others it means no choice at all. But even in those centres that have day care spaces available the cost prohibits many families from utilizing these quality services. Cost The issue of cost is, without question, the most disturbing problem we face in Northwestern Ontario. It is the primary concern of most parents presently using "formal" day care, and it impinges on the hopes of others who are working to initiate day care in their communities. The funding dilemma has quickly become a crisis and without immediate attention will only worsen. The crux of the problem is, of course, that governments de f care as a welfare service, providing day care subsidies only to those they judge "needy" and requiring "user fees" from all other day care consumers. The problem will only be resolved when day care becomes a universal, publicly funded (yet non-compulsory) service, as health and education are universal services. A system that rationalizes societal support to parents for their 6 yr. olds, yet denies such support to 3 yr. olds needs to be questioned. Mind you, many arguments against universal day care sound suspiciously like the arguments that were advanced against universal education 100 years ago. So, at the present time, day care functions under the welfare system and through the Canada Assistance Plan 'provinces may set up day care subsidy programs based on CAP guidelines which set the social and financial framework for provincial participation. In Ontario, day care is provided under the Day Nurseries Act. The province will pay 30% of the net cost of subsidized day care, the federal contribution is 50% while themunicipality pays the remaining 20%. To meet the financial ability criteria re day care subsidization Ontario employs a "needs" test, as is required for general welfare assistance. (All other provinces use an "income" test criteria which is felt to be less intrusive and more equitable). The "needs" test method determines the amount of family income available for the purchase of day care services after all its approved expenses have been met. People subjected to a "needs" test find this a demeaning experience, as well as a serious PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �invasion of privacy. Another argument against the needs test approach (reported by the CACSW study) is "That it forces a family to contribute its entire residual income up to the full unit cost of day care services, whereas the income test approach establishes a'sliding scale usually based on an expenditure of 50% of the amount by which family income exceeds the turning point". Under CAP, provincial subsidies are only cost sharable with the federal government for families who qualify for subsidy. Provinces are free to provide subsidies to families with larger incomes, but cannot recover the federal 50% of these costs. Many municipalities have established "user fees" for unsubsidized families that in fact do not cover the full per diem costs of operating the day care program. This practice has come to be called "the indirect subsidy". In 1983 the Ontario government informed municipalities that "the practice of indirect subsidization must be eliminated by January 1, 1986". (It is understood that this date has been extended to September 1986) The elimination of indirect subsidies will have drastic consequences for day care. Already some Ontario centres have been forced to close, as unsubsidized families are forced to seek less expensive care through relatives or baby-sitters. The N.W.O. Women's Centre study (1984) found a significant use of relative care, which was uncWrstandable as, of the respondents using relative care, 59% paid nothing for this child care. There are a lot of generous grandmothers in-tThunder Bay! But in our mobile society most young parents do not have extended family available to provide this free service. (And this situation ignores the economic security needs of older women who are thus working without pay.) As the majority of day care. in Northwestern Ontario is municipally operated the future of day care in our region is indeed bleak. A survey of N.W.O. centres, conducted by Margie Bettiol-Young of Sioux Lookout, concluded that "the policy will ultimately cause the closure of centres due to a drastic drop in enrolment." This study found that the anticipated per diem rates for 1986 averaged $25 ($18-30 range) however current fees ranged from $9-14 (average $12). Without indirect subsidization middle and low-income families cannot afford day care. This essentially is the situation already in Thunder Bay where day care fees have increased dramatically ... a 350% increase in the past eleven years, making it more and more impossible for middle income families to afford. The current fees of $17.50 per child per day are reported to be increasing to $21 in 1986, thus even further denying quality day care to the average family. Why are the children of middle income families denied supervised day care? If we believe that all children have the right to quality care it certainly makes no sense. Has this outcome occurred accidently? Or is it a deliberate policy of the former Conservative government to force married mothers out of the labour force? The statistics previously cited demonstrate that wo- men's participation, in the paid labour force continues to increase despite day care inadequacy. The only result of Ontario's day care policy is that more and more children are denied quality care. Another very disturbing factor is the Ontario government's trend the past few years to provide funding of support services to the "informal system", thus legitimizing unregulated, unsupervised arrangements as day care, as well as using the scarce financial resources that should be going to the "formal system". The CACSW report insists that with this approach "the goal of developing a comprehensive system of day care services is subverted". The report states that "there is no basis on which to conclude that the provision of such so-called support services in a community actually has any impact on the quality of care delivered to children in informal arrangements". There is urgent need not only to infuse new financial resources into child care but also to ensure funding priorities recognize the right of children to quality care. Exploitation of Day Care Workers The commitment of people working in the day care field has kept day care alive in Ontario. In effect day care workers subsidize parent fees through their low wages. As the Coalition for Better Day Care states "Because of underfunding, day care programs in this province are faced with the cynical choice of either exploiting parents or exploiting staff to avoid exploiting children". Because of low wages, poor benefits, low status and few chances for improvement, staff turnover in child care programs is high. Staff turnover disrupts the caregiverchild relationship to the detriment of the children. While the wages of day care centre staff is abysmal on average $267 per week in Ontario the income provided to supervised private home caregivers is even more horrendous. For an average of $12 per day per child home care providers are expected to provide toys, nutrious meals and snacks, equipment and a stimulating program. When the 'hidden' costs of depreciation, insurance and home maintenance are considered the net gain for the provider may be nil. Day Care: A Women's Issue Ideally, day care should be seen as a societal issue, of equal concern to men and women. The reality is that day care remains primarily a women's issue. It is women who experience the stress of balancing job and child care responsibilities. It is mothers who forego job opportunities because of inadequate day care and parental leave policies. By and large, it is mothers who make child care arrangements and who worry about the inadequacy of these arrangements. It is women who provide care - at exploitative (or no) wages. The vast majority of day care centre staff are women, and it will be these women who lose jobs if day care centres are forced to close. As the Abella Report, Equality in Employment states "For women who are mothers, a major barrier to equality in the workplace is the absence of affordable child care of adequate quality". So when we talk about day care we are talking about equality for women. But, we are also talking about the right of children to quality care. And so, the issue of day care is not only an issue for parents and day care workers. It is an issue for everyone concerned with equality and justice in our society. What Next In official discussions of day care policy these essential issues tend to be ignored, but rather are superceded by budget considerations and jurisdictional debates. With a new government installed in Ontario, whose election platform included day care reform, day care parents and advocates have had their hopes raised. However, no action has as yet been forthcoming. The concerted effort of community people is required to ensure adequate day care programs and policies are developed by all levels of government. A number of groups have formed for this purpose. The Canadian Day Care Advocacy Association is a voluntary organization that addresses day care issues at the national level. In Ontario the provincial advocate is the Coalition for Better Day Care (see article by Joan Baril). Action is also occurring in Northwestern Ontario. The most notable example is the important work that has been done by the Sioux Lookout Parents Committee who have made presentations to municipal and provincial authorities, and have encouraged media attention to the issues of indirect subsidization and quality care. Dryden also has an active Parents Committee, and recently concerned Thunder Bay citizens have organized the Thunder Bay Advocates for Quality Child Care. (See article this issue) con 't next page NORTHERN SW OMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �QUALITY DAY CARE (con't) The Northwestern Ontario Regional Day Care Committee has also been formed to help 'network' and share information amongst all community day care groups. The Committee will provide support to any community organizing advocacy associations, as well as developing links with provincial and national bodies to ensure N.W.O. input. Committee representatives will travel throughout N.W.O. this fall to meet with all interested groups. The Committee would welcome your suggestions - please write: N.W.O. Regional Day Care Committee, Box 144, Thunder Bay, P7C 4V5. THE DAYCARE Developing a quality day care system will not be easy ... but it is vital that we organize now to achieve this goal. "Childcare is a social investment in the future. It is not, therefore, the exclusive financial responsibility of an employer, or a union, or a worker, or a parent. It is a public expense that should ultimately be borne by all taxpayers, much as education is. Childcare should be seen as a public service to which every child has a right. Childcare is not a luxury, it is a necessity. Unless government policy responds to this urgency, we put women, children, and the economy of the future at risk. Considering that more than half of all Canadian children spend much of their time in the care of people other than their parents, and that more than half of all parents need childcare services for their children, social policy should not be permitted to remain so greatly behind (Judge Rosalie Silberman the times." Abella, Commissioner, Equality in Employment, October 1984) CRISIS by JOAN BARIL A coalition - "a temporary combination for special ends" says the Concise Oxford, "Between parties that remain distinctive." It's a short term thing - everyone dances together until the music ends and in this case the music doesn't end until we have a better system in Ontario. There are some strong partners in the Coalition for Better Daycare - Ontario Federation of Labour, Ontario Teachers' Federation, Action Daycare, The,Ontario Social'Development Council, for starters, as well as local chapters of the Coalition throughout Ontario. Janet Davis, who has been travelling across the province on behalf of the Coalition, recently spoke at Ogden Street Community School. She has been a worker in daycare for ten years, as a volunteer and as an employee. As well, she has a resident user in son Keith, age 5. For years, she said, she was "on the borderline", that situation where a woman knows that a slight change in her financial position may mean she will be cut off from her daycare subsidy. "The whole daycare system is a mess, " she says, The Coalition uses the word "crisis". It has always been expensive for those who have to pay full fee - $350 a month per child is the provincial average and climbing. In Thunder Bay, it could go as high as $500.00 a month. In some municipalities such as Peterborough the fee payers dropped out one by one, and the only users are fully subsidized. It's the ghettoization of the system - no social mix for the kids - and daycare, no longer accessible to the general population, becomes a "welfare service." Those who are eligible for subsidy are treated accordingly endless forms, monthly reporting. Some cities hire "snoops" to make sure the mother of little Kevin doesn't have a man to stay, or isn't the future of day care in NWO. doing typing in the evening after work and not reporting the earnings to the daycare officials. How does Thunder Bay stack-up against the rest of the province? Janet gave us the gold ribbon for our daycare centres, "some of the best in the province"; but we got bad marks for excessive paper work. Women have to hand in monthly reports here, whereas other places require reports only every six months. It's not only a "petty harassment" for the mothers, but the administrative excess, the checking, printing, phoning, tracking down, -reminding, compiling, etc. and etc., add unnecessarily to our costs. Thunder Bay is not the only municipality which tangles the parent in expensive red-tape. Women who want to know if they are eligible for subsidy (or partial subsidy) have to go through a needs test. In some places the completion of this requires long forms, sometimes taking two hours, and perhaps a visit to the home by a social worker - sometimes a visit to the applicant's workplace is done as well. The good news is that Thunder Bay has changed its needs test. It now allows applicants to claim more realistic living expenses. This means that persons who have been turned down in the past may be eli- the fault lies with the feminists and working mothers (absurd and frigten.ing.) Nevertheless, broad support for quality daycare is widespread. The purpose of the Coalition is to mobilize that support. Local coalitions lobby their local governments. In Thunder Bay, affordability is an issue, as it is everywhere. We also need to allow "purchase of service agreements" to be given to community groups. This means that parents who are Board of Education employees, and who want to send their children to the new St. James School daycare may be eligible for a subsidy. It could mean, for example, that student parents at Confederation College could use the daycare facilities on campus. gible. The system of funding and subsidies is Byzantine, and like the ancient empire, it is crumbling. The Liberal government has made pledges; it is also written in the famous accord between the NDP and the Liberals. But, political promises sometimes get, lost, and daycare is becomr ing something of a political hot tt****************************************, potato again. The mood from the Amer- ; PREPARE NOW ican right, which is drifting across The federal Parliamentary Task the border, is anti-daycare and anti-women. For example, a Dr. Clarke, t Force on Child Care is expected to of Windsor Family and Children's hold hearing this fall. The results ; Services, of has publically blamed the Task Force deliberations-will; working mothers for divorce, alcoholbe very important. Plan now to pre- ; ism, and sent family violence. Various a brief to the Task Force, exarticles and books recently published pressing your recommendations for have the same theme. Another ploy to argue that women who want to stay home with their young children get little help from society (true), and PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �DAY CARE ADVOCATES JAS Concern for the future of day are locally and provincially has rompted the development of a new oranization - Thuder Bay Advocates for uality Child Care. At the organizaion's founding meeting held recently he following goals were adopted. ong Term Goal To advocate for a universal, ublicly-funded, non-compulsory day are system which will provide high uality child care services to all hildren/families who need/desire uch services. Short Term Goals 1) To advocate for the improvement of provincial/federal day care policy and the expansion of programs, including: a) direct subsidies to non-profit day care organizations/agencies to permit (1) lower user fees, and (2) increased day care staff wages b) capital funding to non-profit organizations/agencies for the construction/renovation of new day care facilities c) maintaining high standards of health, safety and programming of day care services, and of training of day care staff d) an increase in subsidized day care spaces 2) To monitor the provision of day care services within Thunder Bay, and make representation, as appropriate, to the City for the improvement of municipal day care policy and the expansions of programs 3) To provide support for the improvement of the status, wages and working conditions of (licensed) day care staff/providers 4) To encourage public awareness of the present day care crisis in Ontario/Canada and the solutions to the crisis; and to promote public support for the provision of high quality day care as the right of every child. (i.e. day care as a right not a welfare service) To develop links with non5) profit day care groups regionally, provincially and nationally to share information and support; and where appropriate, to work collectively with such groups to promote improved government day care policy and the expansion of programs. The group plans to sufvey candidates in the upcoming municipal elections concerning their commitment to day care, and will prepare a brief to the federal Parliamentary Task Force on Child Care which is expected to hold hearings this fall. Membership (fee $3.00) is open to all Thunder Bay-individuals who subscribe to the aforementioned goals. It is hoped that large numbers of parents, day care workers/providers and interested citizens will join Advocates for Quality Child Care and strengthen the voice of day care in Thunder Bay. FEM INIST PRESS Anna McColl Issues raised in workshops covThis_qummer I had the opportunity ered advertising, the collective proces f meeting with 50 women representing cess, design on a shoestring, funding, 5 women's publications from across maintaining an editorial policy, power anada. The occasion was the Feminist and skill sharing, subscription proeriodicals Conference held in the motion, recruiting and training voliny village of St. Marc-Sur-Richlieu IN CELEBRATION OF unteers and working with writers. CANADIAN WOMEN a forty minute drive from Montreal. Poetry and Short Stories by and about In a resolution at the closing The conference got off to a good Canadian Women will be edited by session we voted to act as a group to tart with a relaxed wine and cheese Greta Hofmann Nemiroff and support any feminist periodicals that et-together at tbe women's centre published by Fitzhenry and Whiteside come under similar attack to that of on Rue Urbain. This was followed by early in 1986. Deadline for this Winnipeg's HERizons. HERizons was atn amusing bus ride to St. Mares thematically organized anthology is October 1, 1985. For further tacked for its editorial stand on ith Susan de Rosa of she planning co information, please contact Greta choice on abortion and on lesbianism ommittee giving a more than credible Hofmann Nemiroff, The New School, by some local religious and anti-choic performance as tour guide - with adDawson College, 485 McGill St., choice groups led by their clown ittedly some good-natured prompting Montreal H2Y 2H4. prince Joe Borowski. rom the bus driver. It was also resolved to underThe comfortable atmosphere estabtake a joint promotion and marketished earlier by the warmth of our ing campaign to improve our base of reeting upon arrival at the offices 50,000 subscribers and our combined f Communiqu'elles (the organisers of annual budget of one and aha he conference) 'wasn't hurt by the annual budget of I-5 million dollars hoice of location, a lovely old inn Other resolutions were to broaden our he 160 year old Auberge Hadfield base among women of visible minorities ituated on the Richelieu river. The and to research the possibility of ccommodation consisted of private having a staff person for a national ooms in small houses scattered organization. hroughout the grounds of the Inn. The energy and enthusiasim generated his arrangement lent itself to late by the women at the conference along ight visiting and partying. with Eleanor Wochtel's quote that " The keynote speaker Greta Publishing feminist periodicals is ofmann Nemiroff, addressed the iman act of defiance against the dis-. ortance of women's writing. missal of the women's movement" surely Saturday's opening address was strengthened the determination of many iven by Eleanor Wachtel, editor of to carry on in the face of adversity OOM of ONE'S OWN (a literary journal and to be that act of defiance. ut of Vancouver) and author of FEMINT PRINT MEDIA. 1s. Wachtel stressed e need that we be more radical; rended us that we live in dangerous mes, that feminist publications are PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor e backbone,of the woman's movement, - �INTERVIEW 749,000 Canadian women purchased tranquillizers in 1979. A poor Third World woman sells her only chicken to get money to buy tonics and "growth hormones" (anabolic steroids) for her children. Unrelated statements? Not at all In fact, when you consider the underlying issues, there is much commonality of experience between Canadian and Third World women. Persuaded by elaborate promotion campaigns mounted by the drug industry that "there is a pill for every ill", people will spend their last rupee, or peso or dollar to buy the vitamin, the hormone, or the pain killer that will restore themselves or their children to health. Whether it is the "medicalization" of social problems (an increasing Canadian phenomena) or the "dumping" of drugs (banned in Canada) in developing countries, the role of the pharmaceutical industry and the role of the (male) medical system in women's lives and health requires careful scrutiny. SIDE EFFECTS, produced by the Great Canadian Theatre Company of Ottawa, and Women's Health Interaction uses popular theatre to examine these issues. Sponsored by Northern Women's Centre and Kam Theatre, SIDE EFFECTS played to a "packed house" in Thunder Bay earlier this summer. The appreciative audience not only were impressed by the important information provided by the play, but were delighted by the outstanding quality of the performance. It was impossible not to be touched by this exceptional play. The origins of SIDE EFFECTS are rooted in Inter Pares philosophical premise that "links" must be made between development issues in Canada and overseas. In 1982 Inter Pares (a Canadian non-governmental development organization) sponsored the visit of two Bangladesh women to Canada. As the Bangladesh visitors, Khushi Kabir and Shireen Hug, met with women's groups across Canada, including Thunder Bay, the concern about women's health and the issue of pharmaceuticals were frequently discussed. Thus, as a followup to Khushi and Shireen's visit, Inter Pares sponsored a workshop on Women and Pharmaceuticals, From this workshop the idea of the play was born, and Women's Health Interaction was initiated. (see WHI article). The "linking" process continued in 1984 when Margaret Phillips (Inter Pares Board Member and NWJ) and Mary Ann Haywood (Women's Health Interaction) travelled to Bangladesh to visit health and women's projects there. With the enthusiastic response that has greeted the cross-Canada tour of SIDE EFFECTS, we anticipate the growing "links" between Canadian women concerned with health issues, and the strengthening of "links" with women in developing countries. Kim Erickson spoke with SIDE EFFECTS actors Mary Burns and Mitzi Hauser about the evolution and the impact of the play. by KIM ERICKSON KIM: Thz project hca quite a tong hatoty to Lt and hay been shaped by zeveAat gtoups - Intet Panes, Women'4 Heath Interaction, GAeat Canadian Theatke Company. At what ztage did you both come in? MARY: Great Canadian Theatre Company (G.C.T.C.) got involved two years ago at a Conference in Aylmer, Que. about Women and Pharmaceuticals. Barbara (Lysnes) went to the conference, and it was there that they said it would be really good if we could have a play that went across the country, and taught people about the issues. So she came back from the conference and talked to G.C.T.C., and it was decided that they would take it on and do this play. She got Janet Irwin, who is the director of the play, and ultimately the writer as well, and they started doing research. I started joining them, and one day a week we'd meet and read, talk about ideas, and then meet once a month with the women from Women's Health Interaction (WHI) and Inter Pares, who were putting out this 'For Health or For Profit' kit at the same time. The first actual thing that happened in terms of putting the play up was a three week writing workshop last May. Mitzi came on for that. MITZI: Yes, and then they asked Cynthia Grant to co-direct the workshop with Janet, and basically what happened was that Janet took over the research. She'd come in every day with things- a various books, and Cynthia was the one who tried to put it all on its feet. She works with Nightwood Theatre in Toronto, and she'd done a lot of collaboration like this with women, so it was quite amazing how she got 21/2 hours of material in 3 weeks. She works very ecclectically, which is really good. I felt very willing to try anything new, to experiment, and to look into my background. I think everyone did. Besides being an actor, you are something else as well. Some people had music, some people had dance, some had various other things which they brought in. There were many, many different styles. But it was also a method of getting away from text, and making it a little more symbolic, instead of heavy, heavy dialogue all the time, teaching, teaching to death. You read these things, and then you want to get up and do a monologue about somebody's story, which doesn't make very good theatre. MARY: It was also an experiment to see what kind of a play it would be, because at this point no one really knew. KIM: So did you have to hone down ate that matetiat aliten the woldnhop? MARY: Janet did. She took it all and condensed it, and basically turned it into the play we're doing now. MITZI: We did another one in Novem ber. That was the conference of the Canadian Health Coalition. So for that November date, Janet had taken all the information that we had brought together and made a script of it. Basically it was four women's stories, interspersed with the drug company scenes. There were Third World scenes in that as well. KIM: Have there been changes since Novembee MARY: The structure is still the same. Most of the characters - all e women, thet,- -"TaPFIftfitit+Oter Granny, and the drug company people - are all the same. There are a couple of scenes that have been added, and there may have been something taken away. There's more music. Cathy (Miller) wrote one song for the November show, and then she wrote 3 or 4 more for this one. MITZI: Different people were used for the November workshop. Oh, the slides were added as well. KIM: The text mateulat that way used COMM di/tee-ay 6Aom women's expeAiences. MITZI: Yes, we had two taped testimonials from women, two drug addicts, Mary Ann and Giselle. The other -(character) is a composite of ,_the DES. There are two books written about DES, an American one and a Canadian one, so it's put together based on the books. MARY: The fourth character is Margaret, and she's a fictional character. She came up really in the first May workshop, and then she got developed a little. She is representative of the early 50's premenopausal or menopausal women whose children have left home and they don't know what to do -- that whole syndrome. KIM: So it's been quite an evotution. Thiz hca been an ate women's puject, even the technical peopte. I cmume that wca a covacioca decizion on the pant o6 the people pAoducing it. MARY AND MITZI: Yes. KIM: What's that Lae for you az actoAs to be .involved in something like that? NORTHERN WOMAN...page 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �MITZI: I was really amazed. I've been involved in these type of things before, but never all women. I was amazed to realize how much censorship I apply to myself when I'm in a group of male and female. And I couldn't believe it I thought, then I do, I tensor everything, every idea before I bring it up if there's a mixed group. With all women the censorship was just gone. And it was like, no matter what you say, it's fine, we'll accept it, you know, because we're all women. So even (if) you give stupid ideas or things that aren't really well thought out, somebody else will build on it and you'll just keep going. KIM: Fat me, that's Zike the pnocess you were taking about, the way that the ptay RVA constAucted, bAinging in all individual inputs, and what you don't use isn't useless. MARY AND MITZI: No, not at all MITZI: Because it's probably triggered somebody else. MARY: That's right. I think it's really neat that we're all women going across the country. And it's fun because a lot of people are surprised by that. We've come into some town where there'll be technicians at the theatre waiting to help us, and you can see their eyes widen when they see eight women jumping out of the truck, and putting our work gloves on. They sort of think that's funny, and then by the end of the night, they're impressed with how quickly we got the work done. And so that's very satisfying. But I really think that there's a sense, an attitude, just a relaxed quality about the tour that I can't lily give any concrete - but I'm-sure-that it's because we are all women. KIM: I'm tki.nkAAg just now of a pAoject .the 'The Ctub', which we both wothed on. There was a 4eeting oi rapport there, but because o4 other kinds of conttots, the kind o4 stAuctune you're wotking Ln, and just taking a paAt ... I think that's pAobab ty a teatty di44enent kind oi ptoject than thi4 one whete you've got input on all tevets. You may not be doing ate the jobs but you'te in touch with all the things that are going on. MITZI: The whole thing of having a KIM: The putpose of the play, inimmdirector is very hierarchical. He ing an audience, could be cat tied out has the final decision and that's in a couple .04 di44enent ways. Somethe way theatre's built up. Now to one could go on a speaking tout, on have a cooperative theatre company, .a video could be done. There ate all even though we all have our input, kinds o4 di44etent apptoaches that Jan was still the one that had to simitat content cowed be dealt with. have the final say. You can't have MITZI: The thing is, this is entera piece of work that doesn't have tainment as well. It's very funny, so somebody finally saying, this is the in fact, you're using a vehicle that way it's gonna be. is probably your best access to the MARY: You can, but it takes forever. audience. I mean, would you rather Sometimes it's just easier, you know, see a play, or go to a lecture? It's to have someone finally say, OK, obvious. I'd rather see a play, esthis is it. pecially if it's going to make me MITZI: The whole structure of thealaugh. And so we coat all the informtre is hierarchical. ation in humour, which is one of the bestways to reach people. KIM: Sometimes people's de4ense4 go they aren't allowed to up mote laugh at on with the situation. MITZI": Yes, it's true. The waiting room scene is one of the scenes that is the least didactic, and yet, people identify with it because everybody has sat in a waiting room and gone through the same things these women are going through waiting for the doctor, and trying to make conversation, and telling their whole story to strangers. I think people really enjoy that scene, and yet it' doesn't come up with a lot of new information, but it does bring you into (the scenario). MARY: A video would reach more people. That's an advantage it would have, and a lot of people have said, why don't you make a video? Maybe at some point that would be good, but I'm glad it's a play instead of a video because it is neat that we are going to communKIM: It must be intenesting to do ities that don't get to see that much th,bs kind o4 theatAe that's using the medium- to infroitm people about a ceAtain issue. It's really di44eAent 4Aom theatre that has sotety aAtistic at enteAtaining aims. MITZI: Well, it is more or less documentary, in that you follow several people through their lives. It's a build-up and adding, and adding, and adding, so you get a picture in the end of all the issues, as opposed to having a scenario played out in front of you that has a beggining, a middle, and an end. I think we give them the beginning and maybe the middle, but we don't give them the end. The audience has to make the end. MITZI: Yes. I mean, we have a technician and we defer the technical things to the technician. But there KIM: I6 the/Le a di44etence az OA is always things that happen, such as your peAsonae commitment to the as, map-reading. It seems to me that pAoject i4 you know that these ate whenever I'm in a mixed group it's issues that a44ect you peAsonatty, always the men that take over and and ate women, in some way? read the map. Now all of a sudden MARY: I think so. Because of the way you get a chance to actually read a the whole thing was set up, some of map and figure out where you are. us have been involved since the very You have a flat tire.. you get a beginning, so our input is there as chance to do the flat tire. It's in writers and directors, at least at our culture that the women will get some stage. I know I'm more involved the food and the men will look after in this show than in some other shows the car .. that type of stuff. And where I would be given just a script, it doesn't happen anymore because and this is the kind of theatre I pereverybody will do everything. sonally like to do the most. I find MARY: And it was a conscious effort, it really exciting because I think and there was a little bit of flak that it really does affect people. associated with that - you know, why are you going out of your way to look The difference I find is after the show when you talk to people, almost for women for this particular job? everyone will come up to you with a It's a difficult thing in a sense to story to tell - either about themjustify, but I think that theatre is selves or someone they know. It's so a funny thing. It's deceiving. You obvious that it affects everyone's tend to think that theatre is a very daily lives. So you feel that you've egalitarian place. But it isn't. It really connected with the audience. is male-dominated like almost any other field. theatre. MITZI: A smaller community has a difficult time making a video, because of the equipment, the expense. But if they see people making a play, if they see.... oh, these people got together and made a play.... ok, we've got an issue we want dealt with.... they could put a play together for themselves. Basically all you have to know is how to talk. With conviction. They could do the same for their own community. KIM: You've been seeing a 4aiA numbers o4 di44etent communities. You went out to the east coast and now you're heading to the west coast. 14 there a di44eAence in audienceteactionz in di44etent peaces? MITZI: I think in the larger centres you get.more people who already know the issues. Probably we're doing it in the university setting and there are groups that have already been organized around these issues. When we go into a smaller centre, often it's the first time these people have come across the issues. Also, what's more important than the play is the discussion that follows the play. I think there's a lot of information exchanged that informs people of what's going on in their area. con't. p 14 NORTHERN WOMAN page 1: PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �I Auppozefact, in playing you're di46etent the only person in your kindA o4 hats, too, youtte not jutst own best interest. What you put into ptaying in a theatte building of a know as much your body you'd better peace when .tome o4 as thepossible. people who about "Side Effects" shoutd be being teached that's the maybe theme.wouldn't When does the side think to go. effect become worse than the disease MITZI: That's itself? the problem with that playNot much you can put ining in the universities, The effect, as to your bodyyou hassee. no side people you want go to fartoasreach drugsdon't are concerned. Then auniversity halls. go into to the gain,They we're thecom-' whole business munity centres. of That's making where money.the Is init better to put formation is exchanged, and that's something on the market and make mowhere their friends ney, orare. do we test it for longer? MARY: It is a What's bit of the a problem, un-of dangerous percentage fortunately. Almost we go, can we allow cases -everywhere what percentage you do have the tothis be playandtendency still let drug go on the ing to the people who are aware of market? 5%, 1%, 2%? Profit and loss, the issues already. And I think that that's basically what it is. We're is a hard thing to avoid. But I think caught in the middle. And the whole it's good to business reinforceofthe whovs the brand thepeople generic 'preaching are - I mean,name the drugs, saying which is so topical now, to the converted' well, I think all these things has suddenly brought the convertedup. need the reinforcement - they need the push. MARY: It's really a new concept to a Ls a timely lot of people, too. When you first uAe it seems -to get hit with it, it's almost shocking tot mote questionto suddenly realize (that the) phart now - otdinaty maceutical industry is an industry t - o4 authotity, just like anything else. It's a multipeople in paw. national corporation. Of course they n the KeB spit are thinking of money first: , 4ot exampte, peoKIM: You think that thete'A a ttuAt t. Atzo, with the with the peopte cleating with your , peopte atequeAtheatth, and i4 the huust gets btoken, e doing. Ate them well, what does that mean? Who's godemand 4ot bet-et ing to take cate o4 me? KIM: s because they have first with Thaliith DES, that everyy the pharmaceutiit's going to be. t safe. They say d, they say they're results, looking-. , these things come at you've got to f. You think that pharmacists are nterest, but in MARY: Yeah, it's a scary thing. And the Third World scenes that we depict in the play and the issues that we bring up about drug dumping and that kind of thing - there've been people who have made comments like 'Well, if that's true...' and you say, 'No, no it is.' And they say, 'Well, if that's really true...' - they just can't quite believe it KIM: Welt, 'some o- the Atoitie4 ate ptetty shocking. MITZI: They are. That is the word when I first read about those things. We saw a few videos on the pharmaceutical industry, especially as it relates to the Third World. It was amazing: We have evaluations that go out with (the play) to ask, did you know about this information before? was there anything that was new to you? and basically what people don't know about is the Third World information. Sd if all we're doing is educating them as far as what happens there, then that's good if they know everything else that we have to give them and we're just reminding them of those facts. MARY: That's one of the major aims of Women's Health Interaction, too. They are very concerned about linking the Third World women with North American women - even in terms of just recognizing what's going on with them, just recognizing what we have in common. KIM: And then people can decide what action to take ,6ADM theme once they ate aware. MITZI: Yeah, we don't give any answers because we don't know the answers. Nobody really knows the answers except the fact that you've got to start working at getting some answers. Sa, it's up to each community what they- can do. It's up to the person that's watching work - where can I actually stand u and be counted? V' CV V oNc, HEALTH INTERACTION Interaction (WHI) work of women's, ment groups in Canprovide a platform out on health conms to link local health issues pment of educationanges, and network- f a Workshop on uticals held in onsored by Inter agency which supvelopment projects seas. ating network, ties to any one ather encourages wide range of inps. At present, around which partis women and phare across the counformation and acheme, including rs, consumers and olved in the net- work are community and international development groups, addiction centres, women's organizations, educators and students. WHI examines why women reach out for drugs, why they are prescribed certain drugs, what their real health concerns are, and how their needs could be better met. WHI looks at the social, cultural, economic and political factors which affect women's health. We study the role of pharmaceutical companies and the medical system and their impact on women's lives, both at home and abroad (drug dumping in the Third World eg). The overall objective of WHI is to contribute to the creation of a national women's health network which would raise the profile of women's health issues in Canada and provide women with a platform to voice their concerns. WHI cooperates on the international level with Health Action International, which is working towards the adoption of a code of con_ duct on pharmaceutical marketing practices by the World Health Organization. WHI exchanges information and resources as well as people with Third World women's health and development groups. In 1984, WHI produced an information kit on the pharmaceutical industry in Canada and the Third World entitled "For Health or For Profit". Recently, WHI has produced an Organizers Manual on women and pharmaceuticals which will be useful to women's and international develop ment groups addressing health issues. WHI is also beginning to take up the issue of population control/ family planning, with a view to establishing feminist guidelines appropriate to industrialised and Third World countries. For more information about Women's Health Interaction contact them in care of Inter Pares, 58 ArthuT St., Ottawa, Ontario. In Thunder Bay, contact Northern Women's Centre, phone 345-7802. e 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �?-0 SOLVICg IN THE SCHOOLS Books 00,2 Feminist Aleiert6 flpuivadha. !!!Lb NORTHERN WOMAN'S BOOKSTORE 69 N. COURT ST. THUNDER BAY, P7A 4T7 BitartaFzgyam, lit LW 344-7979 W444tha/ cg:ance4 ir-%04. , a/ /4 Mata 011°. J4fe;d4-teiern aidei ./11 - /30 f7, Fiction Poetry Theory Health gptrituality Peace Sci- Fiction Third World fk 00Sieali/J on Thursday, Fri day 11.30 Saturday ********* WOMANSPACE * 6..0" 11.30 - 4.30 #41.4141-**11* ADVOCATE S I am interested in Thunder Bay Advocates for Quality Child Care Ake., FIRST NEDNESDAY OF EVERY MONTH 4,- ma ion Name Address 69N. COURT STREET \\ PH. 345-7802 Clip and mail to: Thunder Bay Advocates for Quality Child Care Box 144, Thunder Bay P7C 4V5 **********11*******####******** JUST RELEASED PREEDOM OP CHOICE THE RESISTING 4' new poems CANADIAN ABORTION maws ACTION Lwow (CABAL) actla %eC NINIOCIATION CANADIII3INIS POOH LX MOTT A L'AVOATIMANT I awsiAl The Purpose of CARAL Is to ensure that no woman In Canada is denied access to safe, legal abortion. Our aim is the repeal of all sections of the Criminal Codce dealing with abortion -and the establishment of comprehensive contraceptive and abortion services, including appropriate counselling across the country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abortion as a fundamental human right." I support the statement of purpose of CARAL and wish to become a Rarnw Address: to1 Postal Cods: OccupationName of Federal Riding- Available @ $6.50 each flout NORTHERN WOMAN'S BOOKSTORE., 69 N. Court St. Individual Member Limited income .43.00 Family Sustaining Donation $10.00 $15.00 $25.00 5- RETURN TO: CARAL, Box 3134, Thunder Bay,Ont. P7B 5G6 NORTHERN WOMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Thunder Bay District The Confederation College of Applied Arts & Technology '85 EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS FALL "NEW**BUSINESS DIVISION-EQUAL OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATE PROGRAM (Post-Basic) at present offered part-time (evenings) through the Continuing Education Division. This one-year certificate program to begin full-time September 1985 is divided into two parts. One semester-September to December-in the College; second semester-January to April-in a field Field placements and job opportunities will not necessarily be in the placement environment. Thunder Bay region. Subjects in EOM program may be taken during the day or as offered during the evening. For further information, contact the Director of Equal Opportunity Programs (807) 475-6278. GENERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE DIPLOMA PROGRAM emphasizing Women's Programs Curriculae may be taken full-time during the day or part-time (evenings) through Continuing Education Division. For further information, contact the Program Co-ordinator (807) 475-6390. CAREER PLANNING FOR WOMEN is an 8-week program to assist women entering or re-entering the labour force to understand present employment conditions, to select realistic career goals and to enter appropriate employment or begin suitable training. Start date -- September 9th, 1985. INTRODUCTION TO NON-TRADITIONAL OCCUPATIONS (1.N.T.o.) is an 8-week program that helps women to explore opportunities for employment in non-traditional jobs. Students study job search Work placement gives women real job experience. skills, goal setting and plot a career path. Tentative start date -- February 3rd, 1986. to all aspects of practical trades training and the world of Hi-Tech. WOMEN INTO TRADES & TECHNOLOGY (w.I.T.T.) is an 18-week program designed to expose women Start Date -- September 16th, 1985. E. I .0 . For further information on CAREER PLANNING FOR WOMEN, I.N.T.O. or W.I.T.T., contact the Chair of Industrial & Motive Power (807) 475-6215, or a Counsellor, C BASIC TRAINING IN SKILLS DEVELOPMENT (B.T.s.D.) Academic Upgrading Grades 8-12; English as a Second Language. For further information contact the Chair of Communication Arts (807) 475-6210; or your local Canada Employment & Immigration office; or the Women's Employment Centre, 130 S. Syndicate Avenue, Thunder Bay, ON P7E 1C7 (807) 623-2731. PROGRAMS PROGRAM REGISTRATION INFORMATION: Registration for ALL subjects begins August 6th (5-7:30pm) and commencing August 7th from 9am-7:30pm every weekday except Fridays from 9am-4pm, in the Registrar's Office, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: : the community. Assertion is not to be confused with aggression. Assertion takes into account the rights and feelings of others. DATE/TIME Thursdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 12, 1985 COMPLETION: November 14, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Ivy Cook ROOM: $30.00 260, Shuniah Bldg. GS 026 99 ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING (FOR WOMEN) This elective post-secondary credit subject will provide the student with the skills necessary to negotiate honestly for the things she wants--on the job, at home, in HYMERS' Fall Fair: September 1st and 2nd at the College Booth. *NEW*MAIL-IN Registrations: deadline August 30th. To receive a registration form, call the Community Programs Office (Continuing Education Division) (807) 475-6116. Northwestern Ontario Residents may call Toll Free: 1-800-465-6961. : GS 010 99 PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING (FOR WOMEN) This elective post-secondary credit subject will give women practical instruction in personal economics, handling money and managing one's financial affairs. Topics covered include budgeting, banking, investing, credit, housing, car ownership, insurance, and other topics which students may be interested in. Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. September 10, 1985 December 17, 1985 Lauretta Johnson ROOM: 344, Shuniah Bldg $45.00 DATE/TIME START DATE: COMPLETION: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT This elective post-secondary credit subject will deal primarily with the roles of women in management and the particular skills needed by women to effectively fulfill managerial functions under the constraints which are from themselves, as well as those imposed by the : organizations. DATE/TIME Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 9, 1985 COMPLETION: December 23, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Betty Chalmers ROOM: $45.00 265, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: GS 143 99 : WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT This elective post-secondary credit subject is intended to examine situational stress in our lives, family, job, social relationships, in conflict, change, developmental crises, etc and the potential sources of stress they bring to every situation because of their personality, their own belief system, their life rhythms and their problem-solving. A lifestyle and attitude approach to changing their stress response will be developed by each individual. Wednesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. October 2, 1985 December 4, 1985 Bert Hopkins ROOM: 260, Shuniah Bldg. $30.00 DATE/TIME START DATE: COMPLETION: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: GS 144 99 WOMEN & INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT - I This elective post-secondary credit subject will expand awareness of the role of women in development (economic, social, cultural and political) by: --exploring activities, concerns and issues regarding WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT in the Third World, and --examining links between development issues affecting Third World and : Canadian women DATE/TIME Wednesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 11, 1985 COMPLETION: November 13, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Margaret Phillips ROOM: $30.00 258, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: : WT 843 99 Motor Vehicle (WOMEN KNOW YOUR CAR) In this elective post-secondary credit subject women will learn the basic procedures of car maintenance and general operations. DATE/TIME Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m . START DATE: September 23, 1985 COMPLETION: November 4, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Al Bonazzo $18.00 ROOM: 149, Auto Shop, Dorion Bldg. FEE: : ZB 293 99 FIRST STEP--COMPUTER PROGRAMMING FOR WOMEN An introductory course in computer fundamentals designed to give women an understanding of the capabilities and terminology associated with comUpon completion, students will be capable puters. of designing some of their own "BASIC" programs such as budget or mortgage payment calculations. Students will have hands-on computer experience. Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. September 24, 1985 November 26, 1985 Anna Melville ROOM: 379, Shuniah Bldg. DATE/TIME START DATE: COMPLETION: INSTRUCTOR: $30.00 FEE: : PORNOGRAPHY AS A SOCIAL PROBLEM This subject will critically analyze the subject of pornography as a social problem from a feminist perspective, which takes into account the power structures of this This controversial topic will look society. at issues such as: Does pornography promote violence toward women? Should there be censorship and if so should the state be a vehicle to promote it? Does the present laws on censorship protect women from the effects of pornography? Will the changes in the Constitution better protect women against the effects of pornography under the 'Human Rights Option'? These and many more questions will be examined and discussed. DATE/TIME Wednesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 25, 1985 COMPLETION: November 27, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Janis Aylwood ROOM: $45.00 327, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: : ZW 046 99 TIME MANAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR THE DUAL CAREER WOMAN The purpose of this subject is to assist women in applying the management principles of assessment, decision-making, planning, organizing, implementing and evaluation to their life situations in order to achieve a rewarding balance between personal activities and professional responsibilities. DATE/TIME Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 24, 1985 COMPLETION: November 26, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Ivy Cook ROOM: $45.00 260, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: : ZW 047 99 THE TRAVELLING WOMAN This subject is designed to help today's woman plan her business or pleasure trip effectively. Topics include passport, visa and health requirements, the "do's" and "don'ts" of travelling alone, planning and packing a business/pleasure wardrobe, travel insurance, coping with customs, popular travel destinations, best buys, tips on better travel photography and travelling with special needs. Consideration will also be given to individual needs and interests. DATE/TIME Thursdays 7:30-9:30 p.m. START DATE: September 26, 1985 COMPLETION: November 28, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Iva Wright ROOM: $30.00 327, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: ZW 048 99 HOW TO WRITE THE PROPOSAL TO GET THE GRANT : The preparation of proposals to obtain grants for needed community services is a skill. This subject will assist you to understand the expectations of funders and will give you practice in preparing proposals to your greatest advantage. This subject will be of interest to representatives of community organizations, women's groups and voluntary associations. DATE/TIME Mondays 7:00-10:30 p.m. START DATE: September 23, 1985 COMPLETION: October 7, 1985 INSTRUCTOR: Margaret Phillips ROOM: $20.00 327, Shuniah Bldg. FEE: EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS WELCOMES YOUR SUGGESTIONS, CALL (807) 475-6232. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mil Registration No. INSIDE THIS ISSUE: p2 YOUR VOICE p3 KRESGE'S STRIKE p4 UPDATE p6 BOOKS p7 DAY CARE pll FEMINIST PRESS p12 INTERVIEW p.15 CHECK THESE ADS 5697 Don't forget to renew your1 subscription! Here's my sub: Name Address (postal code) individual $ 5institutional $10 ************************************* IS THERE AN ASTERISK ON YOUR LABEL?? PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ************************************* WORKERS THIS ISSUE: RETURN 'ID: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 69 N. COURT ST. THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO P7A 4T7 Elaine Goodwin, Noreen Lavoie, Anna McColl, Karen Maki, Margaret Phillips,' Donna Phoenix, Sara Williamson, Kathryn Brule Return.Postage Guaranteed Northern ligoman Journal 69 N. Court St., Thunder Bay, Ontario P7A 4T7 (Six Issues) -$5.00 $10.00 Businese or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 9 No 2 Description An account of the resource Vol. 9, No. 2 (August 1985) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Northern women Immigrant Women’s Employment Place opening in Thunder Bay Women’s Centre opening on Lakehead campus Feminist counselling workshop Ear Falls Mother’s Action Committee Lesbian Archives and Resource Centre, Kenora Canadian Women’s Festival Farm Women’s Conference Women’s health in Northwestern Ontario Employment equity Decade of Women in Nairobi International Feminist Network Against Sexual Slavery Abortion access & legislation Feminist book list Domestic Abuse Intervention Program Northwestern Ontario Women’s Health Education Project Daycare access Daycare crisis Coalition for Better Daycare Daycare funding Daycare advocacy Feminist Periodicals Conference, Marc-Sur-Richlieu Women & pharmaceuticals Women's Health Interaction network Confederation College programs for women Authors/Contributors: Joan Baril Margaret Phillips Ann-Ida Beck Anna McColl Kim Erickson Elaine Goodwin Noreen Lavoie Karen Maki Donna Phoenix Sara Williamson Kathryn Brule Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1985-08 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2787/1985_Vol_9_No_1.pdf 0c10f68bcf3a35b12d7eead35b6733fb PDF Text Text $1.00 Northern Woman Journal June 19 85 VOL9N0.1 THUNDER BAY, Ont . THE STRENGTH OF WOMEN PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Editorial This isn't an editorial. It is simply an apology for our tardiness - we realize that this issue of the NORTHERN WOMAN is long overdue. Journal energy has been low - however, we are encouraged by the new contributors that are emerging, and by the volunteer help we've received for the production phase of this issue. We're also hoping that the Feminist Periodicals Conference which Anna McColl will be attending later this month will provide the inspiration to re-energize the Journal. We must, however, discuss with you, our readers, the problematic financial situation the Journal along with other women's groups is facing. To be precise, with the publication of this issue the Journal's financial resources will be totally depleted. Our revenue - sub- criptions and sales - is never enough to cover our operating expenses. The surplus we've happily had for the past five years resulted from the profits of Rising and the initial printing of Salt and Yeast which author Gert Beadle donated to the Journal. Each publication we've dipped into this reserve - and now it is gone. It is urgent that we find new revenue. The following article by Women's Centre explains their situation their financial shortfall - and the need for all of us to become involved with and supportive of Women's Centre's fund-raising efforts. It should be noted that the Journal's financial dilemma could exacerbate Women's Centre's money problems. Let me explain. The rent for our new collective home is shared by Women's Centre, the Bookstore, the Journal and individual Womanspace women. II the Journal can't improve our finar cial situation, we will be unable pay our rent, placing even more bui den on Women's Centre and other Womanspace partners. The Journal could become finar cially secure if each subscriber brought in five new subscribers. Is that an impossible task? We anxious ly await your response. i We aite happy to in4oAm you o4 the tecent pubt.ication o4 THE RESISTING SPIRIT, new poem by Gent Beadle. Avaitabte at the Nokthenn Woman'4 Bookistone Ctedit Coven photo by B. Linduty WOMEN'S Well, it's been a while since our last Newsletter so we thought we'd take part in this issue of the Journal to let you know what's happening. To start with, I'm sure most of you are aware what's been going on with regards to $$$ from City Council. We were cut back close to $5000.00 from last year's allocation. Needless to say it hurts. If you are interested in seeing the letters that all the great women out there have sent to the local papers in support of us and support of a woman's right to choose, we have copies in the office. What this set back calls for on our end, is a need to do some fundraising and some serious profile raising. Is there anyone out there that would like to sit on such a committee or maybe has some great money-making ideas? We don't want to start being part of the 'boogie' crowd, we don't feel like making money getting people drunk and disorderly. We need help, if you can't make a financial donation, your time and energy is just as valuable to us. On the positive side, we are having Pot Luck meals every first Wednesday of the month, and so far they have been successful and lots of fun. Also, every Wednesday starting at 7:30 p.m. has been set aside for discussion group nights. The topics are usually chosen at the Pot Luck, if you'd like more info just call the Centre. We are in the process of forming a support group for Women who are separated or divorced, the group will meet once in a while and according to need. If you are interested call the Centre and leave your name. It has come to our attention at the Centre that school age children are sniffing PAM to get high. Please stop buying this product and urge your area storekeepers not to sell it to kids. There have been a few deaths in Canada since 1978 and the company has refused to change the product. The ingredient that causes-the trouble is Freon-11, a coolant that is in most aerosal products and inhaling this product causes lung damage and eventually lung collapse. PAM had test marketed a water based product as early as 1979, but felt that it wouldn't sell, SIDE EFFECTS was a sell-out and a hit in Thunder Bay!! All the Women that worked on it sure did a great job of ticket sales and talking it np. A big thank you to Pat M., Heather W., Margaret P. and the people at Kam Theatre. We have planned a follow up meeting to continue work on this issue in Thunder Bay. By the time you read this, it will have happened. We have a few $$ for start up of this committee (earned from the play!) If you want to get involved, give the Centre a call or get in touch with Pat at Decade. We've been doing some speaking engagements and getting involved with other local groups. We took pa in the Women and Disabilities Confe ence at the Ramada at the beginning of the month and not only had a goo time but had our eyes opened quite a bit. The key note speaker was a woman writer named Gwenyth Ferguson Matthews who put out a book called "Voices from the Shadows". She was an incredibly powerful speaker and set the pace for that whole weekend The Bookstore has a copy or two lef and it is well worth taking a look Please stop in and have a visit We are looking for new ideas on hou to use our space and its always so nice, to see people!! NORTHERN WOMAN page 2 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Better Strident than Silent by the Working Group on Sexual Violence A FEMINIST MANIFESTO nepAinted pLom BAoadside Vo2.6 No.7 At some time during the past ten years, the word "liberation" disappeared from the Women's Liberation Movement. Our analysis was softened so as to reach the ears of those who govern even before we said it out loud to each other. Our demands became polite requests, and our reality became a negotiable position. As the strategy of lobbying governments for legislative reforms became the movement's primary (if not its only) strategy, the task of articulating the requests has been increaingly undertaken by women situated close to the seat of government and women who speak the language of power. These liberal lobbyists seek Jthe small reforms which enable the state to maintain an appearance of addressing the subordination of women. The primacy of these women lobbyists is not a new problem. As one feminist collective noted in 1975, "... they talk about women's oppression as a legal question, as if getting some legislation passed will solve our situation. For them t.t is always a social (societal) question or a legal question. Never is it a question of power, real power economic (who owns), military (whose physical strength) and _ political (who rules). It is never a question of what it means to take that power and distribute it among us all." (From 'The Liberal Takeover of Women's Liberation', Feminist Revolution; Redstockings, New York, 1975) Today as pressure increases from the right and from a declining economy, a perception has developed that it is necessary for feminists to be "reasonable" and to accept the legal/ legislative framework of the state. These pressures are from the small but powerful sector of society which would send women back to the hearth and home, to the promised bliss of unquestioning obedienne to "nature", man, god and the state. In comparison with the threat from these forces, the state can be seen as a friendly and benevolent patriarch whose allegiance we must maintain, whose wrath we dare not incur lest he decide to pay greater heed to our "R.E.A.L." opposition and their brothers on the right. It is in times like these that the call to unity, the invocation of sisterhood, is most often heard. Criticism from "within the ranks" is silenced. Centralization of power is defined as "practical" and "necessary" The basis of agreement becomes the lowest common denominator. Our collective voice is heard, from behind a polite but slightly nervous smile, to utter statements devoid of content or commitment, words without emotion, and demands without conviction. Just as our perspective has frequently been lost in our approach to the state, so has the left frequently co-opted the feminist voice. However sympathetic many of us are to some of the issues raised by the left, it is undeniably true that ending the subordination of women is not a primary focus - regardless of how well they have learned the rhetoric of feminism. To paraphrase one feminist writer, while liberals abandon us to the state, the left abandons us to batterers and rapists. (From 'Feminism, Marxism, Method and the State: Toward Feminist Jurisprudence' by Catharine A. MacKinnon, Signs, Summer 1983). A truly feminist voice accepts neither, and is wary of false alliances with the left as it is of co-optation by the state. The process of analysing women's oppression and acting to end it is the work of the many feminists working at what is sometimes fondly, sometimes condescendingly, (and all too rarely respectfully) called the grassroots level. This is the work of the transition houses, rape crisis centres, women's centres, and the many other women's services which gather together the wide range of experience of Canadian women. Words such as rape, pornography, battery, incest, racism, poverty, homophobia and abortion are not polite words in the vocabulary of those who have power. Talking together, breaking the silence, is a conspiracy to effect fundamental change. Articulating our experience is a radical act - words such as rape, pornography, battery, incest, racism, poverty, homophobia, and abortion are not polite words in the vocabulary of those who have power. Translating these words (e.g sexual assault,,obscenity, family violence) may sound more polite, but it will only disguise the problem and serve to temporarily obscure the ugly reality of patriarchy, a reality which feminists have worked so hard to uncover. The struggle to uncover this reality, and to have it heard, has been a long and painful one for countless feminists. We have succeeded in challenging myths about the lives of women. We have collected and displayed a huge quantity of evidence of the injustices perpetrated against women. We cannot afford to have our reality distorted and made more palatable by those of our gender to whom the government We andought medianot choose listen. to betosurprised that those who govern choose to listen. They have an interest in tinkering with bits of the state machine to try to show that, while it is not perfect, it is responsive to our needs. We must recognize, however, that they choose to listen only to some of us: to those who will speak in softened voices, to those who will dress as befits the occasion, to those who will be "reasonable" and "realistic" and never demand "the impossible". It is those women who are chosen, and who we have permitted, to consult, to present briefs, to talk to the media, and to negotiate our experience. They are often not given the time and money, and sometimes they lack the inclination, to undertake the slow and cumbersome process of involving the very women they are asked to represent. ANNIMINNI1111111111" Because lobbyists have often conceded so much for the few gains, the umbrella of protection with which we are left is stripped of all but its frame. The timetables of the government and the media are superimposed upon the process by which women talk together, analyze and decide our strategy. When the others' timetables win out, as they so often do, it is our own democratic process and women's needs which become lost. These timetabling pressures are most keenly felt by those women in proximity to power. This superimposed sense of urgency has created a resistance in them to accepting the slow but essential process of untangling the web of women's oppression. It is the victims of rape, battering, incest, poverty, homophobia, racism, etc., who must live with the compromises made in our name. The terror in our lives is minimized and marginalized. Because lobbyists have often conceded so much for the few gains, the umbrella of protection with which we are left is stripped of all but its frame. Yet to challenge the bargain baSement sale of our experience is to be called strident, idealistic, divisive, man-hating, and, worst of all, "unreasonable". These are labels which are designed to silence women. Yet we know from the history of our own movement that polite deference to power is not an avenue for change. We know that the compromises made in our name are not strides forward, but merely directions to be content with running in place. We know that silence is not heard. Our talking to each other is the strength of our movement and the breadth of our conspiracy. Our differences create the friction which moves us forward. The call to unity, the demands to compromise, to be "realistic", to defer to the government chosen "experts" as our representatives, to develop "efficient" organizations, to be acceptable to the media, are all ways to hush the chorus of voices that is feminism. (continued on next page) NORTHERN WOMAN page 3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �(continued from previous page) We suffer enormous harm from accepting and adopting policies formulated by "experts" in order to meet the timetable of a government department, parliamentary committee or organization's constitution. We must learn not to respond on initial impulse, fearing that if we refuse to meet the media or government's timetable, we will forever be silenced. None of this means, of course, that we can afford to ignore the state in an attempt to create a utopian feminist community. It is tempting to isolate ourselves and pretend that it is possible to build a world on feminist principles without ever directly confronting the power invested in the state. It may be less overwhelming to turn the focus of work inward, convincing ourselves in the process that the power structure as presently constituted is simply too male, too hierarchial, to be actively struggled against. But to do so is to abandon-, those women whose lives are directly and daily affected by the power of the state, and who simply are in no position to ignore it. However, when we do take on the state, it is essential that our demands for change be grounded in an analysis of power. We must cease to scurry after crumbs we are offered in the name of real change. While we work toward those short term goals that will make the lives of some women easier (and indeed may be literally life saving in some cases), we must not lose sight of the revolutionary change thit will ultimately eliminate our oppression. We must choose our issues and our strategies carefully. Whatever work we do with institutions of the state must not be done at the expense of our organizing work with women, or we will lose not only our capacity to resist co-optation, but also the impetus and base for independent action. We must take the initiative, and not be constantly locked into the timetable and agenda of the state. We are calling for a reclaiming of a feminist voice. It is not the voice of one woman, but of many women doing many kinds of work. It is a voice which does not hesitate to express the breadth of women's experience, the depth of women's subordination, the height of women's creativity, and the power of women's rage. It is the voice not of one organization, but of the work of many women and many women's groups. It is not a voice situated only in Central Canada, at the door of the government, but in many communities across the country. It is a voice which must be reclaimed if we are to succeed in our struggle to end women's oppression. To reclaim our feminist voice means recognizing that feminism and feminist work is the basis on which the Women's Liberation Movement has been built, the grounding that has made the movement relevant, dynamic and effective. This is no time for revisionism, no time to deny our roots or compromise our strength. Reclaiming our feminist voice means defining and describing women's issues, not from a theoretical or legislative perspective but from the perspective of women. It means speaking out as feminists, taking every opportunity to put women first and to tell the truth about women's experience - in the media, in our own communities, in meetings and conferences and workshops, in feminist tions, in public and in private. It means we must analyze and debate the issues and resist attempts to shortcircuit that process. Reclaiming our feminist voice means continuing to build our analysis of the state and political theories - based on our own experience to inform our strategies and actions. It means saying no to demands for simplistic solutions to the complexities of women's subordination. It means demanding what women need, not what the state or our potential allies will accept, Reclaiming our feminist voice means continuing to work for and with women and it means respecting the expertise we have gained through that work in women's centres, rape crisis centres, transition houses,and countless other feminist organizations. It means setting our own priorities, strategies, and timetables for participating in legislative reform efforts. As feminists in the 80s we must - as we did in the 60s and 70s - name our experience, define our issues ourselves, and we must dare to express our commitment and our rage. As feminists we must and we will regain the initiative from the forces that would limit and control us. LU Women's Centr.e by IRIS JOHNSON & JANIS-AYLWARD In February of 1985, Lakehead University once again had a Women's Centre on campus. We decided to run the centre within a cooperative structure although some hierarchy was necessary in order to comply with guidelines established by L.U.'s Student Union. Laura Joy was elected president, Jacky Roddy, treasurer, and Irene Matt became secretary. Recently, the L.U. Women's Centre received a grant from the Women's Program of Secretary of State. This grant is being used to do a needs assessment of women on campus and women who attend classes within communities outside of Thunder Bay. The purpose of the needs assessment is to determine what type of services the Women's Centre can offer to meet the needs of women at L.U. and in surrounding areas. So far, 500 questionnaires have been distributed within L.U. and app. 280 have been returned. These questionnaires were given to Winter session students, faculty and staff. Off campus, we intend to survey approximately 200 students. We feel this is important because L.U. is a regional university and we would like to provide services to the region. These services could range from bil- (The purpose o4 ctitique, pubV./shed conavftentty in a number oi Canadian ieminat petiodicatz, .bs to encoutage debate and dammion o4 4tAategie4 and iimueis. Anyone with queztion4 and comments 4houtd (Amite the Wotking Group on Sexual Viaence, c/o 301 - 2515 Buttatd St., Vancouver, B.C., V6J 336. Membeu o4 the Wothing Group ate Kate Andrew, Ian Batiutey, Megan LL Lo, Debra Le abs and FAanceis WaAsehtein.) ------ ANTI-POVERTY PROJECT leting out for workshops or special events to providing an informal liesion for bureaucratic red tape problems. From our survey we will be developing a resource manual to help those who may not be familiar with Thunder Bay. University can be rather isolating at times and we would like to establish links with the rest of the community. Our manual will also contain the information necessary to implement the services that our results indicate are needed. We will also try to develop a budget and possible sources of funding for those events that require more than just volunteer energy. One of our long term goals is to provide a supportive environment for women who may wish to attend University but need emotional support or practical support in such areas as child care. A child care centre on campus is probably not feasible in the near future but support could be given by establsihing an exchange network between women. If you would like to participate in the L.U. Women's Centre or offer suggestions we would appreciate your input. You can write to L.U. Women's Centre, Oliver Rd., Lakehead University, Thunder Bay. The Lakehead Social Planning Council with assistance from Employment and Immigration Canada has begun a six month project to implement strategies to combat the effects of poverty in Thunder Bay. Bev Cadene, project manager, states that poverty can be defined as insufficient access to certain goods, services, and conditions of live which are available to everyone else and have come to be accepted as basic to a decent, minimum standard of living. Signs of poverty in Thunder Bay include a large growth in welfare rolls, an overflowing emergency shelter and increased usage of various free food centres. On the basis of the research already done by the L.S.P.C., strategies being considered include a survival handbook, co-ordinating a group around the issue of housing and supporting existing poverty-related services such as the Emergency Shelter on Simpson Street. Participation by those affected by poverty will be a key component of each strategy. Anyone interested in being involved in this project or wanting further information should call Bev or Diana at 345-3631. NORTHERN WOMAN page 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �G REENHAM DIARY by JOSIE WALLENIUS Much has been written about Greenham and many women have been there. This is a simple record of the days I spent there, what new things I learnt about myself and other women. During this time there was a definite policy on the part of the police and the military to "go softly". There were too any women there who were going to go back all over the world to talk about it. As one woman said to me "they will start again when you go back". Systematic persecution and abuse. Confiscation of shelter, fire and food are the usual rewards of those women who have decided to make permanent witness at the camp. The ten days action in September was planned to coincide with the largest NATO exercise since 1945 on the West German border, Exercise Lionheart, practice for W.W. 111. I had read that a Greenham woman's advice to other women was never to do an action until it comes from the spirit, then it will be alright. Well I felt like it all right. By several quirks of fate I live in Canada with a husband, and the rest of my family live in England, so I'd wanted to go for as long as the camp had been there. I felt I first had to meet Ann Pettit, mother of two, the instigator of the whole thing. She lives on an old farm in Wales. A really special woman who won't admit to being so. She also was working in the group who made Wales a Nuclear War Free Zone and went to the U.S.S.R. to meet people from the Group to Establish Trust. Living as many others do with the minimum of personal possessions because of her commitment, she is still searching for answers. ;We talked and talked. I confided some of my.fears about Greenham and she said to try and get to Orange gate. Saturday, September 5 My brother, with kindness and interest takes me to Ashford to get a seat on a coach that is taking women for the day. I have a lot of help from my family. My daughter lent me her tent etc., my sister-in-law gave me farm produce to share, my little nephew appeared with his camping tin foil, as he didn't want me to be cold. I watched women piling on the bus, leaving husbands holding children in night clothes. I had two ruchsacks, they said bring food and water for ten days. As well as being apprehensive about not being able to stay warm or make friends, I was beginning to wonder if I could even stagger off the bus. The only other woman going for more than a day sat beside me. She is a nurse and a quaker, called Dana, and we are both thankful to be together. The bus drops us off at Orange gate and other women help to carry our stuff to find a site. I felt the need to make a home straight away. The ground is stony and the tents fall down. When up they flap around in'the wind. I feel totally inadequate and am aware other women are watching, but am too shy to ask for help. They are sitting around fires, with odd clothes and haircuts. Feel like my first day at school. We walk round the perimeter. There are concrete posts with thick green wire. Then several rolls of barbed wire and a razor wire I have never seen before. Beyond that more barbed Later I wrap myself in tin foil, and turn on the hard ground. I realize my tent leaks. Sunday Thousands of women come down again from all over England. It is strange how women who can only come for the wire. Police and military patrolling. day feel guilty. Received message I Lots of coloured webs, hand woven pic- was a grandmother. Hope Carol understands I'm doing more for the baby tures, written messages on the wire. by being here. Some quite beautiful. Lots of patched Walking along the wires we talk miles gaps too. The perimeter is nine to a policeman who says he doesn't rocky and muddy in places. See the understand why we don't all break into missile silos. Feel strange when I get the base together. He says that the back and my kneecaps are aching from British police and military are there walking in wellingtons. to protect us from American military Of the thousands of women there who would shoot us as terrorists. Is I bump into Ann Pettit. I wasn't exthis Reagan's war against terrorism? pecting her till next weekend. She says she will bring her dinner to cook I begin to think about organization, at our fire, but on seeing our one jet and fret that we aren't breaking into the base together as a massive exerprimus she'took her wild mushrooms cise. After all shouldn't we be havand dried lentils and us back to her ing more meeting? fire. She is in a big tent with other I talk to other women. Some agree women, and we are drawn into their and others just laugh, and I get fruscircle, sitting over hot coals and trated. We meet a woman who has been eating homemade soup. at Greenham for two years, with spells in prison. She wears a short sleeve shirt, jeans and sneakers. We wear long I HAD READ THAT A GREENHAM WOMAN'S johns, heavy coats and boots. ADVICE TO OTHER WOMEN WAS NEVER TO We have dinner again with women DO AN ACTION UNTIL IT COMES FROM from Quaker tent, who are there to THE SPIRIT, THEN IT WILL BE ALRIGHT hold Despair and Empowerment workshops. Put my name down to attend. There are already many names down. At dusk we start to move and join Dinner is vegetable stew, stewed hundreds of other women silently at blackberries from the common, tea and Orange gate. We sit in complete silsmoke. Sit around fire on bits of ence for a long time. It feels very wood and talk. There is Mary, about peaceful. The police stand watching 30, given up job as a librarian to on the other side. A woman starts to run workshops around the country. hum. Other women take it up in differ- Joan, about 50, given up job as head ent chords. The air seems to vibrate. of social work department. Polly, early 20's, studying drama at London UniIt is very beautiful, and very eerie. versity. Karen, blond and elegant, The police start to move restlessly another university graduate. Then there and we start to sing. The words are easy to pick up though I have never is Blues. Blues, child of our society... heard them before. Suddenly we are all Standing, though nobody has given an Homeless, jobless, intelligent, loving, order, and move to the fence. We start Glasgow accent, leather jacket. We thought if she stayed with us to pull backwards and forwards on the wires, rocking it, you can feel the we could teach her the principals of non-violent disobedience. I talked to concrete posts coming loose in the good earth. Police are on the radio Mary about my frustration to do with the apparent lack of organization. She says she used to feel like that, and pointed out the camp had been there for two years, and the women survived precisely because it was not organized. When you are evicted five rock again. The police look confused and disturbed, they don't know how to times in a night, and reduced to sleep react because we are not being violent .ing in a bag, just to stay there reOnly to the wires. I don't mind being quires all the strengh you have. for help and more come. They come out of the gate and separate us from the wire by throwing us to the ground. As they clear women from one spot others go to another gap and start to shoved to the ground. Its the first time for a long time I have felt whole and unfragmented. We sit on the ground again and start to sing. Some women are crying. A song starts to the strain of 'The Viennese Waltz' De da de de dum Snip snip, snip snip De da de de dum Shake shake, shake shake And then everybody is dancing, whirling round and round, holding each otter, dancing and singing and laughing. How long is it since I have been happy like this. con 't next page NORTHERN WOMAN page 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �GREENHAM DIARY continued Monday, 5:30 A.M. Woman pokes her head in tent and says "Blockade". Pull trousers and coat on and go to Orange gate. Sit down with other women in front of gate. We sit close and keep warm. The blockade keeps people from getting to work at our gate. Needless to say they are diverted to another gate where police are there in numbers dragging women away to the Newbury police station. This week it is Indigo gate which is being kept opened and harassed. Their firewood is gone and the police have doused their fires. At Orange gate we have some satisfaction in seeing a lot of traffic diverted. I watch with interest the looks on the drivers faces. The women's faces, most of whom are Americans, are quite expressionless. We sit for three hours. Talking to a woman from Mother Jones magazine who said that fifty Spanish women had been turned back at Gatwick when the authorities had found out they were going to Greenham, and she herself was only allowed in because, she phoned a Greenham lawyer. She told me her interpretation of the gates as she had spent some time at each. Orange gate - - cooked well, loving Blue gate,-- jolly, happy Indigo gate - - forgotten, windswept intense, close relationship with guards Green gate - - intensely women only, children, spiritual, imaginative Red gate -r= calm Yellow gate - - rough, on the front line At 9:00 a.m. we go back and build a fire and have breakfast. Bread, cheese, tea and coffee. Learn how to use water. After supper the cooking utensils are filled with water and heated up to clean them. The water is then used to fill the hot water bottles of weak souls like me. In the morning that water is' still lukewarm and you can wash in it. Washing up is a favorite job as you get to wash your hands. Greenham supporters from the nearby town bring firewood. It needs chopping and sawing. We walk round the fences to Yellow gate. These women are always under pressure: Strange women who don't know the base usually go there first. If a woman is a society reject, she is never turned away, no matter how much support she needs. I am suddenly aware how ruthless and sick the outside world is. That night we are 'at the fence and I see a babies jacket that a woman has left on it. The wires guard' missiles, but there is nothing to guard the people. Very few people know that when there is a nuclear alert, American families are bussed in their nightclothes, to concrete bunkers, leaving British police, military. Peace women and local residents to their fate. I feel things for a moment and feel so terrible. I have to pull the blanket over my imagination again. Tuesday Blockade the gate again in the morning. We hear that more women have been arrested at Indigo. We walk round to see them with firewood in our rucksacks. There are less women there but they seem cheerful and confident. We go on round the perimeter and speak to women at Yellow gate. It was very strange. We saw a bus load of American children being taken into school, next to the missiles, their missiles, in another country. We smiled, after all they are only children, but some of them made' nice gestures back, and their faces were white. Boy children, soon to become men. Some of their fathers, one day when they were being bussed in, pulled down their trousers baring their buttocks to the window. I think when I heard about that I felt without hope. THE WIRES GUARD MISSILES, BUT THERE lS NOTHING TO GUARD THE PEOPLE That night we sat around the fire. Talking, laughing and drinking tea. We were told the story of another Welsh woman. (Oh these Welsh people) She was a quiet woman who worked for a small employer who was sympathetic and let her withhold her income tax. The,usual thing happened, after an exchange of letters over a period of a few years she was threatened with prison. So she took a bucket of pigs blood and dropped into it money she owed in small change. She took it to the revenue building, entered it and poured it over the steps. She said she didn't understand why people were shocked at that when they were so indifferent to the dying of the human race. We shared stories of loves and relationships. We held each other in merriment at the way we take stupid things so seriously. We A friend of a friend of Polly's knew somebody in Newbury who would give us a bath. Feeling slightly guilty we set off to hitch a ride. It was a lovely day and after a few miles we were given a ride in a car by a young man in a business suit. He was friendly and enquiring and wished us luck. We had a bath, our clothes washed and much hospitality, but I was struck with how impatient I was to go back, to people who had made the important things the priorities in their lives. I wished that more people understood that once the change is made, everything seems to make more sense. That night after supper we talk about the New Age, the Atlantis age, the second coming of Eve and the sixth sense. We hear that 15 years ago an underground lake flooded and the base tad to close. So we go to the wires and call out to lakes, rivers and Oceans that we love and are dying already to help us. We don't see any tidal waves but it is obvious the police are having to think about it too. I understand that the reconciliation between the military and the police on one side representing one force and the women on the other representing another power, is vital, not only at Greenham but everywhere. I realize I feel threatened by new women approaching and who are going to stay at our site. Will there still be enough space for me, I think to myself, and will we have enough food to go around. I had been welcomed so warmly when I had been alone, and didn't know how selfish I was. Thursday. Today is the day of the "Stop the City" protest in London. A day when Peace people do C.D. at the stock exchange and other centres of power. We thought we should support them at Greenham by blocking the main roads to London. As usual women are not aware of any real plans. I walk the miles to the main road with a lawyer who talks about the crisis of conscience she has about not being arrested. I say she does more for women in court by retaining a clear record herself, but she does not feel reassured. We straggle to Yellow gate and women tell us to go back and blockade near the roundabout. Gathered there we are confused, not many of us have done an action before. Heavy traffic is roaring past and we say we dhould put up our banners and just lie on the grass island. One woman says we don't have the right to stop people from getting to work on time. A Greenham veteran walks up. "What rights do you mean", she says. "That's a Cruise up there." And points to the direction of the silos. A gap seems to appear in the traffic and we all move in accord and sit across the road with our arms linked. We are happy and feel sure of what we are doing. Traffic starts going over the grass island so we spread out and stop that too. Traffic is stopped. Everything is quiet. The police come on motor bikes and horses and drag us off the road. They hold us to the guound with their knees. Traffic starts up and I see Iso- bell, a Swiss woman, standing on the side of the road. She walks calmly in front of a big truck and lays her body down. It stops incheS from her body. I love her. We start to walk along the side of the road, followed by' the mounted police who effectively block the road with their horses which is quite gratifying to us. Cont'd. Next Page NORTHERN WOMAN page 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �GREENHAM DIARY continued We sit around the fire at night and decide that we are there to enter the base after all, and plan it for the next day at 2:00 p.m. Mary, Polly, Karen and myself. Blues desperately wants to come with us, but we persuade her to be a lookout. She wears a leather jacket and she is Blues, and we know instinctively that we will be better treated when arrested without her. This is the beginning of the biggest lesson I had to learn at Greenham. Friday In the morning we sit and make rainbow coloured paper flowers. We know already where to go in. We pack bread, cheese and water. We agree we do not know how the wires were cut. We go in the tent to think about why we are doing it. We begin to walk round the perimeter and stop to wait till patrolling police have passed. Blues is happily picking blackberries along the fence. We go through leaving gloves caught up in the barbed wire. We sit on the grass and break bread and hold hands. I ask Mary why she thinks we feel so calm and she says because there are four of us and I feel she is right. The flowers are planted round the Oak tree and balloons are hung from the branches and on we go. We walk over a small hill and start walking towards the centre of the base. After some time we see the airstrip. We., link arms and walk c right down the centre of it. We feel very happy. A motor bike approaches ridden by airforce personnel. He says "How did you get this far/"We say we iwalked, and ffis face breaks into a huge grin. "Cracking" he says "Oh cracking". He rides off rather slowly and we are approached by U.S. jeep and soldiers, and they don't speak but ring for pblice. When we were taken away I wondered if it had happened that a plane had come down the run.. way at the time we were walking on it, and the three young women with me had gone on walking, would I have had the courage to have run off. We are searched and questioned and finally released. They drop us a long way from our gate and as we are walking back Polly is hit by an apple from a passing youth in a car. In the night it rains and we sit and go over it all. Blues disappears and though we call after her we know she is going on the base. Later a woman comes to our tent and says Blues is lying outside the wires. She is beaten and is semi-conscious. We carry her in and bathe her head but she keeps on muttering "I did go in, didn't I". "I did go in." We are very quiet and don't seem to be able to respond. We know we should have let her come with us, and we know why we didn't let her, but still felt it was her own fault. She can't settle, till Joan, who is sitting silently washing her feet begins to sing a Greenham song. "For she's a jolly brave woman....", and Blues drops asleep. There is one law for one class and another for the other, and very few people like Joan in the world. Saturday The Despair and Empowerment workshop is about to start. I sit outside with an American woman and decide we feel too happy to participate. Then we change our minds. I REALIZE THAT WHEN I GO HOME THE HARDEST THING I WILL HAVE TO DO IS TO MIX WITH THOSE WHO REFUSE TO SEE We start with meditation and breathing, and then are told to feel the suffering of the human race. Most of what happened in that three hours is too personal to relate. One woman described her 14 year old daughter coming to her and asking what she should do when it happened. Her mother was not able to answer her for a few days. When she did she told her to just find the nearest person she could and to put her arm around them .... I think of Mr. Reagan and his campaign against terror. A woman from Yellow gate says she heard of a three month old girl being raped by her father. I realize that when I go home the hardest thing I will have to do is to mix with those who refuse to see. We say we feel powerlessness because of authority, governments, logic. Friendships, sharing, creatively, and doing what you're good at makes us feel powerful. So somebody has the definition wrong. When I questioned what right I had to disturb other women whose lives were often bad enough, she says it has to be done. We can empower others by sharing grief% We made commitments to each other for life. At midnight we go to the wires. About ten of us. A young woman starts climbing and using the bolt cutter. We are rocking the posts. Lots of police arrive with dogs. The search light is very bright. A policeman tries to drag her through the hole, ' she is crying with fear of the dogs, who are really straining their leashes. I ask that they arrest her outside the wires, and as he turns to me she runs off crying out "Women don't leave me". A policeman runs after her and throws her to the ground. She goes into an asthma attack. Instantly the scene changes. Helpless person on the ground, policemen hovering over her as though she is a child, which she nearly is, gentle, wanting to be good to her. They carry her carefully to an am- bulance. A policeman says, shaking his head, "I bet her brothers and father are fighting us at the pits". They were. The British police are not trained to do what they are being forced to do now. I think we are all crazy. Sunday Thousands of women come down again. There is a big action at Orange gate. We walk round with our friends, always arm in arm. Everybody is either a sister or a mother or a daughter. We have to go. Better to leave Blues at an action than a?.. lone at the fire. We take her stuff to another group.She is going to stay because she says its better than the outside world. A woman gives me a lift to London. I get on the underground with another Greenham woman. People stare at us. She and I smile and embrace as we part. I see my family. My daughter- in-law gives me the baby to hold and says "I'm glad you were at Greenham". Some people say what have the Greenham women done. This question is actually asked. Well, they are living human lives in a non-human world. They are living a religion of-life, not death. Concern about them has prompted Casper Weinburger and Michael Heseltine to discuss the continued presence of the women around the base. The Pentagon feel that when the British people have become used to the missiles on their soil they might become less emotional about them. Less emotional.Before I finally left Ann Pettit in Wales, she gave me a dogeared book on Chief Seathl's testament to the white man. She would like me to use it. "We know that the white man does not understand our ways. One portion of the land is the same to him as the next. For he is a stranger who comes in the night and takes from the land whatever he needs. The earth is not his brother, but his enemy, and when he has conquered it he moves on. He leaves his fathers graves behind, and he does not care. He kidnaps the earth from his children. He does not care. His fathers graves and his children's birthright are forgotten. He treats his mother the earth, and his brother the sky, as things to be bought, plundered, sold like sheep or bright beads. His appetite will devour the earth and leave behind only desert." Women, please share your grief. *** ******* ******** ***AAA* **** NORTHERN WOMAN page 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �IN TRANSITION She had accepted 4on many yeasts that het stupidity was without question, that she was in 4act a burden and a bone het beauty gone, het motets decadent She knew it was het fault he dnank and bnoke het tooth and eat drum because he spent the 4amity attowance and she oried. She was persuaded she would starve without the crumbs he threw het and the kids he had no time 4ot and the house that totted around het She was zunoised to iind that none o4 the above THE FEMINIST PROCESS was teatty true, that in the bosom o4 14 Eternal, ate we who sip the chnatian society, she was in 4act through the straw of change a sociat nip o6,6", het worth in chtistian sense the tension inioun joutney. dottatz, the 'mice 0,4 a bus ticket. That we can be evenything and nothing simuttaneousty, creating small peaceful .islands in the Gent Beadle game o6 human deli e, measming distance by tecognition truth earned and .learned by painiut insight into the hearts wisdom. We ate the chatted evidence oi human continuity in a sexist society. A laded wish? That process claims us att we ate the common gAit o4 tesiztance There was a time that move's it 4oAlwatd when I thought by the bteadth oi a hait. C t was usetess to Out spiAit has escaped the bondage to betieve in making it's own music in good wtiting it's own scone 4ot common chorus. anymore, FADM sitence to silence Woman's voice because the white knight is nisingin het own deience might win out against att tnaditionat odds but took what the white knight stand/3 4ot these days .... We ate breaking the sound bat/tie/L. 'Gent Beadle Then, the teat rescue begins as the white knight 4ade2 into a rainbow o4 women on a ttait to justice Got the good o4 the people in the days to come j a PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �INTERVIEW because most of the plays we were doing werebythe LIZstandard MARTIN regional theatre repetoire number of the time - the one Shakespeare,the one Restoration play and so on. So you did Tartuffe and you and diddirects Hamlet,and there really wasn't Thunder Bay's Kam Theatre assemchooses the plays,who much scope for the women. bled an exciting and unique producwrites them and what roles are availPATSY:That statistic holds true tion team for their recent play,ALONE. able to Canadian same performers. So,it there,too that is,only 10% of all Based on a true story,the play is a definitely is a rare and welcome occthe roles are female roles. poetic exploration of one woman's asion when a play with a strong female SVETLANA:Right. we had these eight awakening to her own courage and character is written, But directed and women and my first directing project abilities. And for their production scored by women. Kam Theatre should in the first year of the program was of Patricia Ludwick's play,Kam be lauded for having involved three a play called RITES by Maureen Duffy Theatre asked Svetlana Zylin of Torvery talented and interesting women from England. It'sfor a re-working of the onto to direct,and commissioned in this production,and having BACHAE using only women,and set Thunder Bay's Kim Erickson to write given Thunder Bay audiences a chance in a women's washroom. I got an original score. The play ran from to see their work. I also wantall to these women together to do the play,and February 21 to March 3rd,and received thank Kim,Patsy and Svetlana for tak- in terms of their timing,we lucky. It covery favorable reviews. This interview ing time from very 'were busy pre-proincided with a lot-of flow grant took place before the show's opening. duction schedule,to sit and talk of with money from OFY and from LIP and LEAP Patricia Ludwick trained as an me. and a lot of interest in women because actor in London,England,and has been the feminist movement was really burperforming across Canada for the past geoning in Vancouver at that 0 time. So, fifteen years(including two appearout of that play the Women's Theatre ances at Magnus Theatre). In recent Co-operative was born. We began to be years,her major interest! has been the invited to women's conventions and development of new scripts,as actor, seminar type situations to perform. dramaturge and workshop participant, And we began to actively search out especially in association with The material written by women for our all New Play Centre in Vancouver where female company. she was Artist-in-Residence in 1983. PATSY:And there wasn't much of it ALONE is her first play and was proaround at that time. duced as part of a festival of new SVETLANA:Yeah - it was really diffiworks in the spring of 1983. Since cult to find material by local women then she has written two short plays, which forced us into a really good A LETTER TO MY GOD-DAUGHTER,and TRIP situation,in that we had to create our THE LIGHT FANTASTIC,which was produced owl material. It also led us to actiin a programme of works by women wrively seek out women writers and encouters at The New'Play Centre in Novemrage them to write about women. Like ber,1984. the first play by Margaret HollingsSvetlana Zylin has directed proworth that I did was called BUSHED, ductions for Theatre Passe Muraille, and it was about two men in the launThe Great Canadian Theatre Company in dromat. What I found most interesting Ottawa,The Ensemble Studio Theatre in In a fLecent kepont on 'Women in Canin terms of staging possibilities was New York City,Theatre There in Edmonadian Theatne' on the StaAlz oi Wothat while the main focus of the acton and at the Vancouver East Cultural men in Canada, the 4igute4 -o how that tion was on these two men,in the backCentre. She has worked with The New women ate gneatty undet nepnezented ground were all these women doing Play Centre in Vancouver,Theatre Netass aAtiztic dinecton.s,ptaywnigh,t4 laundry. Actually the play was set in work in Edmonton and the Mulgrave and dinectou. In ate thnee categonThunder Bay. Road Co-op Theatre in Nova Scotia. iez.they maize up 10% an tezz o6 the PATSY:Margaret lived here for years. She was a staff member of the Langara people who ate wanking in Canadian SVETLANA:Yeah - this is where the play Theatre Department of the Vancouver theatte - and the majoAity a4 the4e was born. But at that time I remember, Community College,Dramaturge at the women ane with youth theatnez on (and thanks to the encouragement we've Pauline McGibbon Cultural Centre and cottective4 tike Kam Theatne. I'm received in the last decade,she has Director of the New Play Development intetezted in knowing how you managed changed tremendously) - but,at that Series the DuMaurier Since 'minonity'? toin become pant ,q Theatre. time she wasn't writing about women moving to Toronto,she has participated SVETLANA:I had always wanted to be inbecause she didn't find them as interas both performer and director in volved in theatre,but thought - for esting as characters as she did men. RHUBARB the Theatre someat stupid reason -Centre,Brave that my only opWe both chuckle over the fact now that New Works produced by Factory Theatre tion was to become an actor. It never it was a lot our conditioning. For the Lab,Equity Showcase Theatre and Scheme occured to me that I could become THE same reason that I started out in actof Things. She is currently Artistic DIRECTOR,because at that time I didn't ing,she was writing about men because Director of The Ritz Cafe Theatre. have any role models. But after my she didn't have any active role models Kim Erickson is a professional initial training at the Manitoba Theaof playwrights who were successful at ongwriter,musician and composer who tre Centre school,and various workshops writing about women. s well-known to Thunder Bay audiences and lots and lots of amateur and semi KIM:It sounds a lot like music. I was for her appearances at the Summer Sol-. professional- productions,and after just thinking that it's very similar tice Festival,Doodles and the Summer going to Toronto to make a stab at in that it's okay if you're the backin the Parks program. She studied musbeing a professional actor,I found fup vocalist or play piano or flute or ic atthat Carleton University in. Ottawa I wasn't completely gratified something like that;but as soon as I and went on to do .graduate work in el'spiritually' - about being a perforstarted writing, I suddenly had less ectronic music in Holland. She has done mer. There was a graduate program at support for the work I was doing. It xtensive recording with people like UBC that actually specialized in di'was withdrawn - I was on my own: Ian Tamblyn,Sneezy Waters,Rodney Brown In recting and I decided to go there. PATSY:You were telling me about specand Lois Garrity;and has also worked order to qualify for the theatre deializing in electronic music at the ith partment,I the Penguinhad Theatre Company and to do a make-up year post-graduate level - and it's like, e Groupe de la Place Royale in Ottawa. where I did nothing but theatre even I think of women singer/songwriIn 1982 she deVeloped the courses music theatre courses - the acting and all ters as singing plaintive lovesongs. iecethe MARCH,which was performed at the peripheral courses involved with Not that I don't like them - I do ational Exhibition Centre/Centre for of the theatre department - and out but you don't immediately leap to that that most of Indian Artcame and aatrealization Lakehead University. thinking electronic music in relationthe people I really enjoyed Despite gains in status for working woship to women. with were women. Which because men in theatre over the lastisn't ten or SVETLANA:But then who is one of our I don't geta along fifteen yearsnaturally - which to great with ex- men, better electronic musical composers? wereflection happened to a very talententbut is a of have women's incrIt's Ann Southam who's writing increcropand of opportunities women in the department easedted roles in our dible scores for dance. But,I know at that time. Yet they never got a society in general - men still dominwhat you mean about the encouragement. chance to'really express ate Canadian theatre,in terms themselves of who continued on page 10 NORTHERN WOMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �INTERVIEW continued One of the first things my department head told me when he was forced to acknowledge that I had to be accepted into the department because I'd done this qualifying year and gotten straight firsts - he said women do not make good directors. The only woman director he'd ever known was Joan Littlewood and she was an "exception" - read in brackets,bull dyke!(Zatightet) I'm serious - he actively discouraged me from persuing that course of-action. But basically I had the last laugh.PATSY: That has a double edge, you know. I describe myself as having worOnly four people were accepted that ked my way down in Canadian theatre. year - and of course the other three were men. But one man flunked out I started just before that burgeoning when there were only the regional that Christmas,another dropped out- in theatres where you could get paid at February because he couldn't stand the all. The little theatres, the small pace and the third one flunked out at rebellious, Canadian nationalist or the end of the first year. So, I women's theatres hadn't started. So, ended up going into my second year by my only chances of work were in the myself. And up to that point,as far as big theatres. And I got to the biggest I know,I had been the only woman who one Stratford and found that the had actually gone through the direcbigger it was, the less it worked the ting program. They tended to shunt us way I felt the collective art of theainto the dramatic criticism portion, or tre functioned best. So, we are shut into set design. At that time,women out - not only women, but men who are technicians were absolutely unheard interested in projects that are not of probably going to make vast amounts ATSY:Except for stage managers of money because they are pushing the hich is that housekeeping role - the edges of things. But, if all of the other or babysitter. The best stage people like you and Cynthia Grant and anagers I've worked with have very Katherine Shaw and other women direcften been women. But almost all of tors that I've worked with, had ended hem,at some point,got tired of babyup having to cope with that awful, itting. So they go into administrabureaucratic WEIGHTED THING of the ion or leave the theatre altogether regional theatres, we would have lost here isn't enough satisfaction in a lot of that wonderful creative enhat role. ergy that is still here in these small as that,awakening oi lieminat/natio- ati6t conciou6nez4 An the .late ixtie4 and a.anty zeventiez bene6ited omen in theate? VETLANA:Absolutely. ATSY:Oh yeah - it's much different ow than it was before. VETLANA:It was that double push. The eminist consciousness in Canada eached a real flowering at the same ime as our sense of nationalism and ndienous theatre. All the women I now,who are working in theatre, umped on the bandwagon when they had n opportunity to create material and ork with new material;when none of he parameters had really been defined o exclude women from active roles. ut of that time,so many really good omen playwrights have been born,and o many really good projects were iniiated that included women. Some of t has worked as a reverse sexism - a ind of tokenism. For example,in this ituation - as glad as I am to be here nd I really wanted to do this play till,the main reason I was invited as that Kam being 'politically corr- ct' had a play about a woman, written y a woman and they wanted a woman dir- ctor. S three much woAk PA. a Pme-Lance, iemaee di/mato/a VETLANA: Very little. I work two, maye three times a year in situations ike this and the rest of the time I reate my own work. I look at my conemporaries, the people I went to schol with - like Richard Ouzounian, who as my classmate .. nd who has tecentey become puducet t Tounto'4 Centtestage Pkoduction4 .. Where he is now - three or four ears younger than me - and where I m now, are poles apart. The doors to egional theatre are still very closed o women. places. (Vhat'4 going to happen to them zmatt theatAe4 in tUz age oi goveAnment cutbacks and the poputaAity of home video's and movie chavActe PATSY: Well, the little ones are on such a small life-line. There have been many demises across the country in the last 3-5 years and the reason they folded was quite simply that the bank cut their line of credit. It wasn't in fact that they had a huge debt load, but the bank foreclosed on the small one where it wouldn't - or it could be persuaded not to foreclose on the huge debt that Stratford now owes. SVETLANA: That's happening with a lot of businesses - not just in theatre. But there's a more insidious danger in the burgeoning of the video and TV/ film market in that we're losing our best writers to television and film. One of the best Canadian woman playwrights that I've worked with has literally given up writing plays. She will not write them anymore because there is no gratification in terms of a return - monetary or spiritual. She's writing film, scripts and making tons of money, and if she wants creative and spiritual fulfillment, she writes a novel - which she now has enough clout to get published. But, this incredible theatrical voice is lost to us because we can't offer her anything to sustain her. I don't know about you, but as I approach 40, I'm beginning to wonder if I can maintain my sanity existing on this poverty level. It's not that I'm a materialist or a capitalist, but I do crave those material comforts that just sustain you from day to day. Never mind the luxuries: PATSY: We're also starting to face that statistic of how many women in Canada at the age of 60 are living under the poverty level. That's where we've been working - under the poverty level - but with the energy of youth, and the courage really, of believing it will all be worthwhile. SVETLANA: Yeah - it's like I keep extending my five year plans. And when you're 25, you can still go, well I've got until I'm 30. But, the pressure of it - especially for a woman ... Because another part of being committed to the work I'm doing is that it doesn't very easily align itself with the more traditional roles that a woman takes. I haven't veered off into marriage and children. So, I don't even have that central core of a home life to sustain me. We're out there in the cold water, and I've been treading it for a REALLY long time. And the longer the time goes, the less I'm thinking in terms of the 'big break' happening tomorrow or whenever. KIM: I have a hard time visualizing what the big break IS -? If we're talking about what we're going to break into, is it things like Stratford-type theatre, or cross-Canada tours of bars for musicians? I'm not sure if those are worthwhile things - and so, I'm left with the dilemma of going where is the work for me? SVETLANA: Exactly. But the point is that my priorities have changed and a sustenance living with recognition from my peers would be just fine. I'm not thinking Broadway hits anymore! But I am thinking national recognition from my peers - at least among the people I've worked with. An unquestioning acknowledgement of my abilities and status as a director and enough money that I can live comfortably - just that level of survival... PATSY: I think that everybody has the need for respect, a feeling of selfworth. We all need to feel that people recognize that we are giving 'worth' with our work - whether we're running a corner store or writing a play or whatever. And for me it is my actual peers, the kind of people who are interested in the same kinds of theatre I am - new Canadian plays and those slightly off-the-wall things that are not Broadway-bound - that's my support group and that's where I get my recognition. SVETLANA: As a director, I'm more isolated. It's much harder to find that kind of recognition and support. I'm sure Kim and I are more akin in this in terms of the isolation of being a composer or a director. Unless they make a big deal of your name in continued on page 11 RTHERN WOMAN page 10 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �doing the work, it largely goes unrecognized. If I direct a really fab pious show and my name isn't on the poster, the actors get all the credit. The individual little group of actors that I've worked with, love me and support me - but then they go on to the next project and their job is to love and support the next director. Even Kim can wank atone on hex piano, but as a dixectox you can't work without a scAipt and actou. SVETLANA: Right. PATSY: I just meant that the knowledge inside my head that there are people all over the country now, that I may not have seen or worked with for five years - in whatever capacity any of us were working is enough for me to feel that I can keep on going with what I'm doing. SVETLANA: That's great. All I'm saying is that right now I feel a strong lack of that. And the search for work gets more and more frustrating. I don't want it to sound like I'm crying the blues. I want it recognized that these are legitimate concerns amongst all of us. And I do think it's wonderful to have this particular project coming together, with this incredible flow of energy. Maybe we coutd tatk about the p.tay now. It's based on the true stony o6 Maxtha Matt in, who was stranded thAough one winter - pxegnant and atone-- on an isZand oii the noAth pacific coast. I'm ,interested in knowing what appeated to each oi you in thus story - and why you, Patsy, wanted to tuAn 'it into a to me the perfect framework to tell a story that was of interest to all of us; because we all want to find that state of balance and that harmony with what's around us. I wanted to examine the personal, internal experience of a person trying to adapt to changes in their environment - the interior world as a paralell to the exterior one. That's why I chose to fragment her personality into the three actors playing one person, because then you could examine the mental changes, the inner emotional changes and not simply keep it on the exterior level. Also, I was interested in that polarity of masculine and feminine in each of us. It was very much a part of what I was trying to understand about the character. SVETLANA: What I really like about it is that it encompasses several layers which makes it interesting for me as a director. First, it's a story about a woman, set in a very interesting situation - which I liked. Secondly, there were the three aspects of her character portrayed by three different actors, which allows a lot more scope and room for dramatizing that story in an interesting fashion. And thirdly, the whole notion of contact improvisation, which I'd seen but never actually worked with, fascinated me in terms of communicating changes to an audience in a non-verbal way. So, it isn't just another 'saga of survival in the wilderness'. It's a moving, flowing living thing. ptay? PATSY: I originally read just an excerpt from the diary of Martha Martin. It was the end of her diary, and what I found was a woman who was very much at peace with herself and the world she was in. And I wanted to know how she got that way! So, I tracked down the complete diary and read the whole story from the beginning and realized that it had all the classic stages of the mythological journey of the hero - which is the same throughout history and all primitive cultures And it seemed . - ? And contact impAovaation SVETLANA: It's a form of movement relying on centres of gravity and the body's fulcrum points to generate interaction between people. It's more than dance or mime - it's each actor finding their own centre of gravity, and then responding to that in each other. PATSY: It's playing with each other. And how dm the muzicat ctement fit into aft oA this? KIM: I was approached by Kam last spring with the script of ALONE and asked if I could conceive of any music to go with it. So, I read it a few times and wrote down some initial impressions; re-read it and wrote down some more impressions; and eventually a lot of the same impressions started congealing into themes. Musical ideas began recurring throughout. Patsy and I started writing letters and she explained some of the structure of the play and the themes in the writing for her. We realized that we were both trying to re-find women's modes, lost fragments of women's expression - the 'collective unconscious', if you will. Patsy was exploring this in terms of myth and story, and I was doing the same with music. So, I was able to translate those themes into musical ideas.- and the score got written! PATSY: And it's still getting adjusted. KIM: Yeah - it's still 'adjusting'. Now that you'Ae ate here woAking togetheA, ate there changes being made in the scare? KIM: Not too many - it's mostly honing down and pulling in. PATSY: There are some places where you can expand the time length, because as these particular three actors with Svetlana find their way of expressing the physical life of the play, the timing will change. So, different parts of what Kim's got can expand and some will be cut back. SVETLANA: One of the best elements for me in terms of having the music is the ionist on stage who follows the action. Because it is contact improvisation, we can't set it precisely. I'm not dealing with conventional blocking so there's a mutual communication happening between Damon (Dowbak - who .12 doing petcussion) and the actors. They can help each other out and create a much fuller mood. The actors are free to explore the inner momentum of the creation of sounds, as opposed to actually worrying about finding ways in a set that has minimal props, of creating sounds that have to take you into another awareness or create a particular kind of mood or whatever. GODDESS IMAGERY Sasha McInnes is collecting .slides of the art and altars of con-, ,temporary women who are working in :Goddess-related and other enabling/ 3 empowering imagery for possible in:clusion in an upcoming Studio D, National Film Board film on the roots of religion. Please send no more that :twenty slides, including descriptions, ;media, motivation and anything else you want to say about your work. Sasha is interested in all media, including women's traditional arts. Send to Sasha McInnes, 237A Dundas :.Street, London, Ontario N6A 1H1, ;phone (519) 438-5307, 672-2832. And you'ne ptecused with thiz new element that has been added to your ptay? PATSY: Oh - absolutely! It's wonderful - a whole new level of creativity has been added on to all these other ones. SVETLANA: I'd just like to repeat that it's wonderful having this particular project coming to-gether, and I feel quite positive that with the exception of a very few men that I've worked with in theatre, only women are capable of generating such positive feeling out of sometimes what is so little A lot of that is in this play. WENDO COURSE call Teresa 935-2371. -----1111=1111111 NORTHERN WOMAN page 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Solstice Summer Solstice '85 will bring together several dynamite women performers from across Canada on June 22 and 23 in Current River Park - admission is free. Clearing by Noon is a Halifax based group of four, Sandy Greenberg, Rose Vaughan, Catriona Talbot, and Marsha Rake. They love to sing their own songs plus whatever inspires them jfrom contemporary songwriters such as Connie Kaldor and Holly Near and traditional folk music. Their music has been dubbed "survival music": they sing "Come on Little Sister" and "Keep A-boin" to cheer their audiences and each other on with humour and bridled optimism. They also sing for survival in the global sense: ballads and marches and lullabies for peace. They sing about bringing-up children, about being unemployed, about starting all over again, about finding new, love. Two of the group, Sandy and Rose also present an engaging show for children called "Rosie & Sora". Edmonton's Bev Ross brings high tech to a folk orientation, accompanying herself on an electronic keyboard computer. She has the gift of being able to drive home a point with humour and unpretenious urbanity. Whether addressing sports, the Eighties or modern relationships, Bev understands the Value of the well-tempered scalpal. It has been said that music is a bridge that links the soul of each person to a vision of hope for the future. Jan Stoody constructs that SCRIPTS WANTED The search continues at Kam Theatre for exciting new Canadian scripts. With an entire season devoted to Canadian work there's never too much of a good thing. New scripts, old scripts awaiting production and ideas for new work are all welcome! Welcoming scripts of all kinds, Kam is particularly known for their interest in plays with a political and social emphasis. In previous seasons Kam Theatre has been allocated funds through the Ontario Arts Council Playwrights Assistance Fund to assist with the development of new scripts. A Playwright's - in - Residence program is also an integral part of the season. Writers with ideas and new writers wanting development assistance may be eligible for funding. To apply, a script synopsis or rough scene by scene breakdown should be submitted to Kam Theatre along with a letter of introduction. Playwrights interested in the residence program should indicate their availability. Kam Theatre would like to thank all the playwrights who have previously submitted scripts. Keep them coming! All scripts and proposals should be submitted to: Co-Director, Kam Theatre, 215 N. Frankin St., Thunder Bay, P7C 4J1 bridge for her audience through songs that she has researched and carefully selected, or written, that tell stories and express the everyday experiences of people throughout the world who are working towards a new vision for humankind. From the uranium mines in Northern Saskatchewan, despair in Chile, to the loving sentiments of an Indian lullabye, her songs link us together Raegena Bueno, newly arrived in Northwestern Ontario from Brazil, will be reading short stories and essays from her perspective as a visible minority immigrant. Madeline Moonis, along with partner George Cook, tells Indian legends of this area". as one. Jan has been singing throughout Saskatchewan for six years, first with a band, then as a duo, and now solo. Originally from Ontario, she has been living on the prairie for eight years. Friends in Thunder Bay will know Jan from her part-time residing at a farm in Kaministiquia. Originally from St. Louis where she sought out and learned from many of the regions fine old time fiddlers Gail Heil is a member of Minneapolis' June Apple Musician's Co-op. She also plays banjo, dulcimer autoharp and guitar. Teaming up with Bob Bovee, who plays a variety of instruments, they perform old time Country music, a raw rough-edged honest kind of music that begs involvement of some 'kind. It's a dance music: a music that makes you want to tap your feet or laugh or do something other than just 9 Wellknown to Thunder Bay audiences, Kim Erickson and Jennifer Garrett will bring their unique creative sound to the Festival. They will be performing separately, together and with other members of Groundwater - Damon Dowbak and William Roberts. The Children's Village will have a performance area with music, a puppet show, juggling and instrument making workshops for the active participation of the kids. For the convenience of parents of young tots, there will be a large tent, especially for changing and feeding. With the cooperation and commitment of over 150 volunteers, this year's Summer Solstice Festival is sure to be a wonderful celebration of the beginning of a long awaited summer. sit back. Maggie McKaig is part of "Lost in the Colonies", a four member group from Calgary. Her fine guitar playing, original songs and strong voice will be much appreciated by festival goers. Other members of the group are Luke Wilson on banjo, Bill Eaglesham on fretless bass and Ray McAndrew adding inspired percussion. WOMEN AND PENSIONS The Northwestern Ontario Women's Decade Council declared April 2,1985, as Contingency Day, a day for couples to sit down together to look at and discuss their assets, to plan for retirement years and make provisions for their spouse and dependants. Contingency Day was sponsored by the Pensions Committe of Decade Council which evolved from a NWO Women and Pensions Conference in 1982. To facilitate the sharing of resources and information, the Pensions Committee came under the Decade Council umbrella in spring 1984. The Committee to date has prepared position papers and presentations aimed at public awareness and pension reform. Both the Committee and Council as a whole have long been aware of case histories of women who have been left alone in situations of inadequate insurance and/or pension support. Confusion regarding the pension issue, along with a reluctance to examine circumstances which could involve the loss of a partner or occupation, have made it difficult for many individuals or couples to make a realistic assessment of their long term financial positions. In 1984 the National Council of Welfare estimated the low income level of single persons living in a city the size of Thunder Bay to be $9403. Statistics Canada states that the average income for women over 65 is $8441. Families and persons living alone whose income is in the bottom 10% of the income ladder devote 60% of their income to food, clothing and shelter. The latest figures on life expectancy is 79.5 for women and 71.9 for men. As long as women marry men who are three years or more older than they are, and whose life expectancy is 7.6 years less than theirs, they should not be surprised to find themselves alone for a good number of years at the end of their lives. Contingency Day focused on a media campaign and a city wide mail of a pamphlet that asked five major questions: - "Do you and your spouse have wills' - "If your spouse dies could you cope and survive tomorrow?' - "What income will you have next week? Next month? - What are your expenses? - Do you know where to apply for financial help?" Contingency Day provided an opportunity for spouses to become informed and to prepare for the possibility of life alone before or after retirement. It is hoped that Contingency Day will become an annual event and will expand to involve more resource persons to develop a booklet to address pension and insurance questions, to focus on the needs of single people, and to increase it's coverage to include the region. If you are interested in contributing to the work of this committee or you would like to know more about pensions please contact Dawn St. Amand at the Decade Council 3453606. NORTHERN WOMAN page 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Obscene Use of Power by Fiona Karlstedt As some of you may already know, I have worked with the Women's Centre for the last two years. This fall I returned to school and this may be the last time I will have the opportunity of addressing the issue of pornography in a public forum for some time. And I want to leave you with a strong plea. When I was considering how I would begin today, I came across an editorial which appeared in the May 26,1984 issue of the Dryden Observer. I will refer to parts of it here because I think it shows all too clearly the stage the debate is at for many people. The editorial read: "Not everyone likes to talk about pornography, much less air personal views in a public discussion, especially while a copy of Playboy or Penthouse is sitting on the coffee table at home. Whether to ban pornography from store shelves is a difficult question, simply because for every ten people asked about a given group of magazines... there may well be at least eight different views on which ones... are pornographic. What is one man's coffee table fare is another man's garbage. But if you look at Playboy's or Penthouse's circulation figures, you have to admit these two publications must be OK - both are ahead of Time and Newsweek in sales. No doubt there is some questionable material, visual and written, even in these magazines, but both have remained passable in today's fickle society... The same cannot be said for the skin magazines that are just that - more picture content than anything else - bought by people who don't care about the articles. Pornography doesn't have a firm definition, but it comes in degrees or classifications - OK, bad and ugly - classifications created by the public. The bad and ugly are easily spotted by their degradation of people, particularly women and children. The majority of society is against this level of pornography and the majority does not buy these magazines." (emphasis mine) The gist of the editorial seemed to be that eight out of ten people can't agree on a definition of pornography STOP ! This is Offensive, Insulting. and Oegrading to WOMEN The gist of the editorial seemed to be that since eight out of ten people can't agree on a definition of pornography it would be a useless exercise to attempt to formulate one. And further that since a majority of society is against a certain level of pornography, things will just somehow take care of themselves. The editorial completely ignored the central issue of male/female power relations which we see reflected and accentuated in pornography; and the fact that the sexual objectification of women in pornography is integrally linked to the limitations of women's legal, economic, political and social rights in our society. The editorial could aptly be termed a non-event in journalism. It is high time we moved past the "picture content" and onto the politics of pornography. Without an understanding of the power relations reflected in it, no analysis of pornography will get very far. In the words of American feminist Andrea Dworkin, "The word 'pornography' does not have any other meaning than... the graphic depiction of the lowest whores. Whores exist to serve men sexually. Whores exist only within a framework of male sexual domination. Outside that framework, the notion of whores would be absurd and the usage of women as whores would be impossible. The word 'whore' is incomprehensible unless one is immersed in the (vocabulary) of male domination. Men have created the group, the type, the trade, the commodity, the insult, the industry, the reality of women as whore..." By limiting women to definition as sexual, as whores for the sexual use and abuse of men, pornography objectifies us, degrades us, minimizes us, and finally in snuff pornography destroys us. Nothing is created or exists in isolation and pornography is no exception. The acceptance of a continuum from sex-role stereotyping in advertising to "soft" and "hard" core pornography is essential to the analysis. By way of example, I wonder how many here happened to read an Ann Landers column published several months ago. I am referring to the one containing the letter from the mother who tried to breast-feed her baby in a restaurant and was told in no uncertain terms that such conduct was "unacceptable". In her response, Landers referred to a survey of restaurant owners and operators which revealed a consensus amongst those polled that breastfeeding in public was considered to be "offensive". While reading it, something clicked. We live in a society that deems breastfeeding (and I would ask you to read instead, "the giving of life", "an expression of tender love", "nurturing") in public to be offensive, while down the street customers are having their meals served to them by topless waitresses. We have become so conditioned to seeing women's bodies portrayed only in a sexual context in both advertising and in "coffee table" soft porn magazines that many of us find it difficult, if not impossible, to see women's bodies in the larger human context. It is these innocuous, seeming- ly antiseptic images of women as sexual beings in our daily media which lay the foundation for the further objectification and brutalization of women in pornography. It's obvious that one of the major problems faced in attempting to examine the subject of pornography is arriving at a definition. Some use it to refer to material which is sexually explicit; others would restrict it to material which involves violence and sex. "Pornography" is not a word known to our criminal law. The Criminal Code uses the term "obscenity". Law dictionaries have defined "obscenity" as "conduct tending to corrupt the public morals by its indecency and lewdness" and further refers fo a "shameful or morbid interest in nudity (and) sex". The law's concern with pornography is thus entirely defined in terms of the offensiveness of public sexuality, and not with the dehumanizing impact it has on women. Up to this point, the response of our society to sexually explicit material has been to exclude what is deemed to be beyond the "community's standard of tolerance". The implicit rationale of this response is that pornography may be forbidden because it is offensive, because it offends a standard of taste. In order for a work to be considered "obscene" in Canada under the present law, there must be undue exloitation of sex or of sex and any one or more of the following - crime, horror, cruelty and violence. Whether there is "undue" exploitation is determined by reference to "community standards". It is the judge who must determine what that standard of tolerance is. In October 1983 Judge Stephen Borins determined for the first time what Canadians will tolerate in pornographic videotapes. In releasing his ruling, the judge noted the irony of Parliament requiring judges, who are supposed to remain aloof from the community, to also have "their fingers on the pornographic pulse of the nation: According to Susan Cole, "The business of community standards makes it seem that the pornographer's crime is having the bad manners to have chosen the wrong audience, and that if he only could find an audience that would tolerate his battery of women, then he will be a good citizen of our society". continued on page 14 NORTHERN WOMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �4144,414#44###*#*#44644#44244W4404#4444#44*#*#*#44*#* Legal definiti-ms do little to further our understanding of pornography, however. Thelma McCormack has examined it on the basis of three characteristics: "First, it deals with sexual taboos: that is, kinds of sexual activities which we (in our society) regard as morally wrong, socially undesirable, improper, "unnatural'. These sexual taboos differ from one culture to another and from one period in history to another, but in all human societies there are rules about sexual activity, and in all human societies there is a kind of underground which mocks these rules. Second, pornography deals with these sexual taboos as if they were common, everyday practice. Pornography does not pass judgment, positive or negative, on the kinds of activity depicted in the story, film, pictures. (And) it is the combination of these two characteristics - the sexual taboo and the attitude toward it that accounts for our shock. The third characteristic is that the characters in pornography do not have any real relationship. They neither love nor hate; they do not think; and they have no regrets about what they do. They simply act, and they engage in sexual activities with any partner(s) who come along. What we see in pornography then, is the sex act devoid of any social context, stripped of all meaning except (physical) gratification. That is why characters in pornography never seem real; they lack any mind or heart; they lack any dimension except a genital one ... Pornography has been with us for as long as recorded history, yet we still do not understand it very well. Social scientists who have studied it - and who have also studied the people who buy it - have offered three major theories. The first emphasizes sexual repression or sexual deprivation. People who have a lot of sexual hangups, who feel guilty about sex fantasies or guilty about engaging in sex, or people who have been cut off from any kind of normal sexual activity for a prolonged period of time are, according to this theory, attracted to pornography. They enjoy it as a substitute for real sexual behaviour. Another theory links pornography to the institution of marriage... Marriage, according to this theory, is an important institution for the survival of society, but it is restrictive, especially for men. Through pornography, men can find an indirect experience of sexual activity without endangering the institution of marriage. Pornography, in this theory, is a substitute for prostitution, which is regarded as a necessary evil. A third theory holds NORTHERN WOMAN page 14 that sexual activity, like any other social activity, is learned behaviour. (For the uninstructed pornography may act as a sex manual.) Pornography, according to this theory, is often an aid to increased sexual enjoyment and, as well, provides partners with fantasies that add further to their mutual pleasure. In this theory, pornography is a stimulant as well as a source of information. All of these theories look upon pornogmapby as ;harmless and even as having a positive function for the individual as well as for society." In developing an understanding of the violence perpetrated against women, feminists have viewed pornography more critically. They began asking whether there was a relationship between pornography and violence against women, between child pornography and incest, between pornography and rape. Because it is difficult to find absolute proof of the harmful effects of pornography, "we are told that the pornographic image is harmless and that it is never translated back to women and children in the real world. This idea that the pornographic image has no impact goes against one of the most critical assumptions of the ad man . However you define pornography, what we do know is that it is more available and certainly more explicit than in the past. "And most of us pretend that it just isn't there. Every newstand is jammed with it. In the back of almost every variety store entire shelves are devoted to Fiona KaAt6tedt peaking at Intennationat Women' S Day CetebAation. Photo by JOAN BARIL Harm is seen to flow from pornography in two ways. First that there is a direct causal link between violent pornography and violence against women in the real world - the belief that such material can and does trigger aggression. Second, pornography has a more generalized effect. It contributes to myths about sexuality and about women which ultimately make violence and degradation more acceptable. It tells us that women like it and want it. Without clinical studies that prove absolutely a connection between the massive distribution of the pornographic image and the incidence of violence against women, we find ourselves up against a liberal scientific mentality that demands strict proof of cause and effect. Some potential sources of proof are available however. It may take the form of police or press reports that a sex offender was a large consumer of pornography or reports from victims themselves who believe their assault was influenced by pornography. There is also statistical evidence which attempts to demonstrate a correlation between the Prevalence of pornography and the rate of incidence of violent crime. Experimental evidence, accounts of experiments which attempt to measure the reactions of individuals to the stimulus of pornographic material, particularly aggressive or violent pornography, is also available. it. Partly because its the worst of our culture, and partly because we can't believe that the fear and loathing of women can be so strong, we try to shut it out. Essentially, we tend to exclude the pornographic image from among those that really matter because the image is perceived to be a fringe phenomenon, part of the underside of our culture. But the profit figures associated with the pornography industry suggest that this is big business and not a series of fly-by-night operations designed to cater to the transient and the furtive." (Susan Cole) Although the scope of their use of the term is not spelled out, police estimates have placed the annual market in pornography in this country at $300 million. Two trends in today's pornography are particularly disturbing. One reflects the amount of violence now part of the mainstream of this material. Women are regularly shown in bondage, in rape scenes, in dog collars; and in much videotape actual scenes of brutality are now commonplace. The other trend is the use or implicit use of children. Incest themes are commonplace and written in such a way that suggests dhildren have the "right" to enjoy sex with adults, thereby setting the stage for the actual sexual abuse of children. continued on next page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Pornoraphv continued There is no question that pornography is a devisive issue in our society. There is disagreement as to whether and in what way pornography causes harm. We believe that the harmful effects are obvious. At the other end of the pole are those who argue that pornography should only be suppressed when there is concrete proof that it is the direct cause of mrongdoing and that even our present obscenity laws should be repealed. "We are asked to believe that the pornographer is an artist whose vision can brook no restraint." (Cole) However inviting I do not see censorship as the answer. Censorship is to pornography what prohibition was to alcohol. No matter how noble your motives, you can't legislate morality in a vacuum. But you can regulate it. When the Women's Centre conducted a survey to determine the availablity of printed pornography in Thunder Bay as part of our presentation to the Fraser Commission we visited a corner store located across from an elementary school. Playboy and other similar magazines were displayed immediately to the right of the entrance. It was the first thing a young child saw when he or she entered the store. It is an insidious form of conditioning. "ornog,raphv is an indu3trY and as such deserves no more speclal treatment than any other. There is no convincing argument why the pornography industry deserves a hands-off policy, The fact is there does not exist a single social policy that does not, to some extent, curtail individual freedom. The basic tenet of our society is compromise, that we cede our rights in order to live in this world together. (The recognition that one in four women in this country can expect to be raped at some time in her life underlines the fear that women feel daily in their lives) Yet, instead of asking the pornographer to cede 111---- right to exploit and propagandize - (if it sells it must be OK) - we grant to cold:-blooded'entrepreneurs the right to ply their (grim) trade even if in doing so we place our children in danger and deny ourselves the right to walk the streets from fear of violence. Pornography is not about sexuality or freedom of expression. Pornography is not simply a collection of pictures or a videotape we find "offensive". Pornography is about the obscene use of power - the physical or psychic violence done to one human being by another. It is a form of,hate literature depicting the pleasure of the powerful in the humiliation and dehumanization of the powerless. We are being asked to make political decisions about pornography, and they must be informed decisions. Without an anayliss of the politics of pornography as a form of social control, whatever decisions are made by policy makers will be meaningless. We must teach people to be knowledgable consumers: complicate their lives. Force them to think about the issue! Bring the people in pornography alive! Make them human! Make the connections! paper presented at Dryden forum ************************************************* FAMILY DISPUTE UNIT The Thunder Bay Physical and Sexual Assault Crisis Centre is presently conducting a feasibility study into establishing a Family Dispute Unit to deal with family violence in Thunder Bay.,Since the inclusion of services to battered women aware that while there are services available to women and children who leave violent homes and seek shelter in transition homes or crisis housing, services are lacking for those individuals who choose to remain at home. In a recent presentation to the Ontario Women's Directorate Conference on Family Violence, Dr. Peter Jaffe of the London Dispute Unit noted that 85% of the women they have aided have not been in a shelter and would not go to a shelter. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the need for a specialized unit that would aid those individuals and complement existing social service agencies in the comr munity and the police force. Cour monly referred to as Family Dispute Units, Family Consultant Teams or Mobile Family Crisis Teams, this type of service has been established in other communities across Canada such as London and Calgary. There are various models of Family Dispute Units but they are primarily composed of crisis teams of social workers and police officers who respond to domestic disputes on a twenty-four hour, seven days a week basis. The crisis workers assess the problems in the family, provide appropriate crisis intervention and alternative methods of problem solving, as well as making referrals in the crucial time for resolution of conflict/crisis -during or shortly after the conflict Other family dispute units, although relatively new, have cut recidivism by 50%. Immediate intervention at the time of dispute and continued follow-up would benefit those fam- ilies and discourage further violence as a means of "resolving" conflicts. Funded by a Canada Works Grant, the Centre has hired three full-time researchers to conduct the study. They are presently examining the experience of other family dispute unit and will be conducting interviews with local police officers, social service agencies, women's groups and community organizations which deal with family violence to get their input into developing a model to suit the unique needs of Thunder Bay. Any individual or organization interested in obtaining further information should contact the Thunder Bay Physical and Sexual Assault Crisis Centre at 345-1871. article submitted by the Thunder Bay Physical and Sexual Assault Crisis Centre. (BOOKS New titles recently acquired by the Northern Woman's Bookstore include: Labour Pains, by Pat Armstrong, Women's Press, $9.95 ... explores the effects of the economic crisis on women's and men's work, both in the labour force and in the household.. Armstrong explains why women's employment will deteriorate both absolutely and in relation to men" Perspectives on Women in the 1980s edited by Joan Turner and Lois Emery, University of Manitoba Press, $8.95 "This collection of articles focuses on strategies and directions for the women's movement that will enable all women to benefit from changing attitudes in the 1980s". Includes an article "Native Women and the State" by Thunder Bay's Marlene PierreAggamaway. The New Our Bodies, Ourselves by the Boston Women's Health Book Collective, Simon & Schuster, $19.95 .. a new revised, updated and expanded version of this essential resource book. The Hearts of Men: American Dreams and the Flight from Commitment by Barbara Ehrenreich, Doubleday, Voices From The Shadows - Women with Disabilities Speak Out by Gwyneth Ferguson Matthews, Women's Press, $8.95. Baker's Dozen Stories by Women Women's Press, $7.95 The Day is Dark & Three Travellers by Marie Claire Blais, Penguin, $6.95 Myths To Lie By by Dorothy Bryant, Ata Press Redney: A Life of Sara Jeannette Duncan by Marian Fowler, Penguin, $7.95. As well, the Bookstore now has a supply of all of Marge Piercy's fiction. $9.95. NORTHERN WOMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �r 22, 23 NORTHERN WOMAN'S Current CurJUNE River Park SUMMER \.(4* SOLSTICE FESTIVAL e) SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE!! -a musical weekend -Goods & Services Auction .great food & drink 10% off all FI -crafts 20-40% off selecte -Children's Village open .square dancing Thursday, Friday Saturday -much MORE: for infor. call 345-7482 ********* WOMANSPACE 414141###### FIRST WEDNESDAY PRES:10111 O OF' EVERY MONTH canal CANADIAN ABORTION RIGHTS AC ASSOCIATION CANADITNNS POW' I.S DIP 69N.COURT STREET The Purpose of CARAL Is to ensure that no w PH. 345-7802 41********414141##############*.*** to safe, legal abortion. Our aim Is the repe Codce dealing with abortion and the estab traceptive and abortion services, including a country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abortion I support the statement of purpose of CARAL and Nuns. Address: Postal Code: Pho Occupation: Name of Federal Riding' Individual Member United income JUST RELEASED THE Family Sustaining Donation RETURN TO: CARAL, Box 935, S RESISTING new poems §ertledole Available @ $6.50 each from NORTHERN WOMAN'S BOOKSTORE, 69 N. Court St. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Don't forget to renew yourl subscription! Here's my sub: WOMEN'S CENTRE NEWS p2 p3 BETTER STRIDENT THAN SILENT p4 L.U. WOMEN'S CENTRE P5 GREENHAM DIARY P8 POETRY P9 INTERVIEW p12 COMMUNITY NEWS p13 OBSCENE USE OF POWER p16 CHECK THESE ADS Name Address (postal code) o individual $ o Institutional .5 $ 9 ************************************* IS THERE AN ASTERISK-ON YOUR LABEL?? PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ************************************* WORKERS THIS ISSUE: RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 69 N. COURT ST. THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO P7A 4T7 Elaine Goodwin, Noreen Lavoie, Liz Martin, Anna McColl, Margaret Phillips, Donna Phoenix, Deborah Ratelle, Alma Teravanen, Sara Williamson Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 69 N. Court St., Thunder Bay, Ontario P7A 4T7 (Six Issues) .0.00 $10.00 Business or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 9 No 1 Description An account of the resource Vol. 9, No. 1 (June 1985) Title: The Northern Woman: The Strength of Women Topics include: Women’s Centre news Funding cut to Women’s Centre Separated/divorced women’s group Sexual violence Anti-poverty project Greenham Nuclear war Poetry Kam Theatre, Thunder Bay Summer solstice Women & pensions Pornography Family violence Feminist book list Authors/Contributors: B. Lindsay Working Group on Sexual Violence Iris Johnson Janis Aylward Josie Wallenius Gert Beadle Arja Liz Martin Fiona Karlstedt Elaine Goodwin Noreen Lavoie Anna McColl Margaret Phillips Donna Phoenix Deborah Ratelle Alma Teravenen Sara Williamson Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1985-06 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2782/1984_Vol_8_No_6.pdf e1f8af8dff3892356f2777564dcd513c PDF Text Text $1.00 Northern Woman Journal - December 1984 VOL. 8N0.6 THUNDER BAY, Ont. MMMMM MMMMMMMM MMMMM EMMEN MMMMM MMMMMM MMMMMM MMMMMM MINIUM MMMMMM MINIM MAME MMMMMM MMMMMM MI PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Sudbury News STICKS & STONES TIME OUT FOR MOM A WOMEN'S THEATRE COLLECTIVE by CAROLYNN CAMPBELL ...invented in 1982...a mixture between theatre, popular education and community development... We work at: ...researching issues like violence the home, pornography, stereotypes, teen sexuality... ...experimenting with different forms of theatre and popular education techniques... (our pet project being theatre of the oppressed) We produce: ...skits (that make fun and sense) ...plays (about real stories) ...workshops (for conferences, classrooms and kids) Special Moments in '85: ...a play to come out in March ...a community festival to happen in May Sticks and Stones - A Stage on Rocks C.P. 622, Station B Sudbury, Ontario 675 -5591 PORNO THE PORNOGRAPHY ACTION GROUP is a collective of women who are concerned about pornography in Sudbury. We meet regularly to discuss the issues and plan actions around the issues. We feel that public education and lobbying government officials are important aspects when confronting the issue of PORNOGRAPHY in Sudbury. _ Every woman with small children knows that she puts herself last when it comes to getting family needs met. Well on September 29th we finally took About 50 women a day to ourselves. and 20 children joined in the Sudbury Women's Centre first retreat for homemakers. We laughed, we shared, we listened to one another and reflected. (We ate well too - Thankyou Val Caron Pathfinders.) To begin with we discussed some of the factors that led us to feel In small overwhelmed "on the job". groups we shared plans for feeling more powerful, for lifting that feelThe afternoon was ing of oppression. devoted to our sexuality. When we do get around to meeting some of our needs as individuals, that's the one we usually leave to the last, or never get to at all. This was a day of personal action. We don't have plans for a lobbying action, no minutes of the meeting, no resolutions or other products left the Centre des Jeunes at 5:00 p.m. Saturday evening. What did leave with us was a more enduring feeling of solidarity. How many times did I hear the comment, "Gee, I thought I was the only one who felt that way"? Well we would like to keep that spirit of sisterhood growing. We want to keep the Women's Centre actively involved in our needs as women who work in the home. If you were with us on the 29th, or would like to be so now, please check with the Women's Centre (Sudbury) for details of the first Homemaker's Your Voice Dear NWJ: It was with greatinterest and appreciation that I read your paper, Vol. 8, No. 4. Having lived most of my life in Thunder Bay, I'm pleased to know that your collective is striving to inform, as well as achieve goals that are so pertinent to women's lives. I now live in the small northern community of Chapleau, where the prevailing attitudes of many are basically non-committal towards women': rights and issues - by both men and women themselves. There is very little knowledge in some cases, of what is happening outside of the community wit} regards to women's issues. It is also difficult to capture women's attention to these issues. I would now like to subscribe to your Journal, and enclose a cheque in the amount of $5.00 for six issues. Thankyou for making it possible for people to read about the pertinent issues affecting our lives. If I can be of help to your group in any small way, please let me know. Sincerely Donna (Salo) St. Amand Reunion. OUR PORNOGRAPHY SLIDE-SHOW consists of material we found in local corner stores in Sudbury and area. It is available to be shown to any interested groups. Contact Sudbury Women's Centre 106 Beech St.(available in English and French) On behalf of the committee of homemakers who organized the "Time Out for Moms", and from myself as a participant, I would like to send a loud THANKYOU to Kitty Minor and Mercedes Steedman, for giving us themselves, their time and their sensitivity as leaders. Thanks as well to all the group facilitators and to the folks who helped with the child care. PREEDOM OR CHOKE CANADIAN ABORTION RIGHTS ACTION LEAGUE (CARAL) ASSOCIATION CANADINNNS POU/6 Li MOLT A L'AVORTZMINT (Aus,A) The Purpose of CARAL Is to ensurithat no woman in Canada is denied access to safe, legal abortion. Our aim is the repeal of all sections of the Criminal Codes dealing with abortion and the establishment of comprehensive contraceptive and abortion services, including appropriate counselling across the country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abokion as a fundamental human right." I support the statement of purpose of CARAL and wish to become a member. MAIL ORDER CATALOGUE is now available Name: Address: Postal Cods: Occupation' Name of Federal Riding. $10.00 Individual Member Limited income ' Family Donation Sustaining 13.00 Send $2 to Northern Woman Bookstore 316 Bay St., Thunder Bay, Ont. 71'7B 1S1 515.00 125.00 RETURN TO: CARAL, Box 935, Stn. 0. Toronto, M4T 2P1 NORTHERN WOMAN page 2 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �What's Up? by MARGARET PHILLIPS owls Bookstore advises the very work at Women's Centre. Fiona's enerpopular Everywoman's Almanac is availand her gy re-vitalized the Centre, skillful media presence has given able - other interesting calendars also in stock. New titles recently women's issues a positive, high-proreceived include Feminist Theorists, file in the community. Thanks, Fiona, edited by Dale Spender, Gender Gap by for a job very well done, and best Bella Abzug, New French Feminists, Ashes in all your future endeavours. We welcome Women's Centre newedited by Elaine Marks and Isabelle staff Carol Ann Collins and Karen de Courtivron, and Andrea Dworkin's Right Wing Women. Also new fiction Maki who are jointly sharing the coordinator job. Karen and Carol Annby Dorothy Bryant, Iris Murdock, invite you to stop in for a coffeeNadine Gordimer and Alice Walker. (decaff.) and meet them, also to The Bookstore's mail order service is now operational providing access attend NWC regular monthly meetings. to our great feminist literature to The Centre will be presenting an evenwomen from across Northwestern Onting of film at Lakehead University ario "row, Centre Theatre on Wednesday, Dec. 12 tom Linking women internationat 7:30. The three films to be shown ally. It is this concept that proviare: UP THE CREEK, SHIFTING GEARS, ded NWJ collective member Margaret and DECK THE HALLS. These films are Phillips a most remarkable experience part of the gamily Violence Preventhis summer. Under Inter Pares spontion Programme and deal with the sorship, Mary Ann Haywood, of Ottawa, men who commit the crimes. Presentand Margaret travelled to Bangladesh ations from local groups providing and visited women's, health and rural aid and counselling to the victims community development programs. will also take place. Admission is It all began in 1982 when Inter free and everyone is welcome. Pares organized a visit of two BangThe Centre needs women who are ladesh women, Khushi Kabir and Shirinterested in helping distribute een Huq, who met with over 40 Canaanti-war toy leaflets. This is part dian women's groups. These meetings of the nationwide boycott being oran era. identified a common concern about the ganized by Women's Centres and peace Nostalgia aside, we're now viewissue of women and pharmaceuticals, groups. The main target is the GI-Joe ing this necessary move as an excitwhich in turn prompted a women and doll. Not only do they promote vioing challenge, and we've found a lence and war but they are racist.pharmaceuticals workshop(see Heather great location which will house NWJ, (All the 'bad guy' companion dollsWoodbeck's article NWJ Vol.8#2). Womanspace, Bookstore and Northern in the series have non-caucasian Resulting from the workshop is the Women's Centre. Our new Space is at formation of Women's Health Action features.) the corner of 'Court St. N. and CameNetwork which will continue to link Women's Centre will be starting lot Sts. (formerly Goliger's Travel) health concerns of Canadian and Third work on a project dealing with single and we'll move January 1st. We're World women. The Network has produced parent issues using participatory really happy about re-uniting space a very fine educational kit on women research techniques. If you have any with Women's Centre and look forward F Health APO,to making thi s o con ac please call the Centre at 345-7802 or For Pro it for N.W.O. feminists even more vibthis kit). Their other exciting pro rant and interesting ject is, in co-operation with Great me New faces at Decade Council A very interesting weekend ocCanadian Theatre Company, the protoo with Pat McInnis and Dawn St. cured Sept. 14-15 when the Ontario duction of "SIDE EFFECTS", a play Amand joining the staff. Decade CounAdvisory Council on the Status of portraying women's experience with cil is now sharing offices with LSPC Women met in Dryden.. the first time drugs, doctors and health care. Plans at 221 Bay St. phone 345-3606rne the Council has met in Northwestern are to bring the play to Thunder Bay woes Were also, plipsed to note Ontario. Taking full opportunity to in the spring (for more information Brenda Reimer's appointment to the express the concerns, interests and about the play contact Kam Theatre, LSPC staff. Items of interest from needs of NWO women more than 20 Women's Health Education Project or LSPC include the recent publications briefs were presented to the Council. of a Fundraising Manual which con- Northern Woman's Bookstore.) We commend Decade Council, in partFor people interested in purtains useful information about souricular Leni, for the fine job done suing this important subject Conces of funds and how to access them. in co-ordinating this session. The federation College is offering a This manual will Le very valuable to excellence of many of the briefs course WOMEN AND INTERNATIONAL DEVEall community organizations in need presented was remarkable. The JourLOPMENT during the winter term.(see of funds. nal will print a number of these ad this issue for details) soli issues. Another LSPC service is the briefs in this and subsequent me On the broader scene, the A summary of the Dryden meeting apCommunity Information and Referral best news in years is the acquittal Centre., which will help you in locapears elsewhere in this issue moo by a Toronto jury of Dr. Henry MorAll of Northwestern Ontario, ting the agencies and organizations gentaler and his colleagues who were along with her many friends across that can assist with housing, educafound not guilty of conspiracy to the country, will join us as we tion, health services, child care, perform abortions. This acquittal, enthusiastically cheer Gert Beadle, services for seniors, recreation,, as the Quebec acquittals ten years who was one of the five recipients counselling, etc. Call them at 345ago, demonstrate conclusively that of the 1984 Persons Award, you done 4009 . the present abortion law is inopera-= osoo Planning for the very us proud Gert: Gert was accompanied tive. The issue remains, however, special decade celebration of Interto the Persons Award ceremony by that women's right to reproductive former Thunder Bayite Paulah Edwards, national Women's Day has already choice is being denied by our poliwho has recently opened her law officebegun. For more information call ticians who are still refusing to in Windsor. Joan at 767-9582 (evenings) oem, repeal the 1969 abortion law, a law While we're speaking of Gert and which effectively denies equitable her accomplishments may we suggest services to many Canadian women, esthat Gert's poetry SALT AND YEAST pecially rural and poor women. While and RISING would make fine Christmas rejoicing at the Ontario decision we presents, and would also support NWJ must not lose sight of the horrendous and NWC who receive the proceeds financial cost of the trials, the from these sales, eto notential continuation of appeals on Staff changes at Women's Centre. the Ontario case, as well as the posFiona Karlstedt, Women's Centre Cosible Manitoba prosecution. A cost ordinator for the past two years borne by Canadian people concerned has returned full-time to University. about justice and dignity for all We all owe Fiona a tremendous debt women. That such sums must be poured of gratitude for her exceptional NORTEERN a OMAN page 3 What's happened to UPDATE many of you may be asking. Well, what's happened is that our Update reporter Joan Baril has taken off..for a year's perJoan is sonal study, rejuvenation. spending her year away in Toronto.. doing lots of writing (we think) and availing herself of all the fetinist stimulation she can find (we hear you loved the Dale Spender evening Joan). Joan's promised to continue the national/international Update reports.. while the collective keeps tabs on local hapwe'll hear from Joan apenings..so gain next issue 'mu Lots of happenings, issues, problems, and some joy, of interest to NWO women. Most serious problem is that Womanspace, the Journal and the Bookstore are losing our home. Yes, the little Finn Hall building has been sold...a sad loss to our community.. not only because of the nostalgia we feel for this building that has been our SPACE for the past nine years, but also because for many in Thunder Bay the recent and long-term history of the Finn Hall symbolizes the progressive movement we associate with Bay St. Perhaps we are witnessing the end of . I 1- PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �BIRTH WITH A DIFFERENCE by Carol Ponchet The birth of my first son, Jeremy, on August 8, 1980 in Victoria, B. C., both changed my life and my attitudes toward the medical profession forever. My husband and I had planned on a homebirth and we had a midwife giving us pre-natal care. My midwife stated that if I went two weeks past my due date, she would insist that I deliver in the hospital. (I discovered later that this cautious attitude is rare among midwives. In general, due dates are not reliable, and mine was no exception.) I did go overdue and we had to re-adjust our plans. I was very despondent about entering the hospital. My physician insisted on inducing my labour three weeks past my due date. It went downhill from there. The oxytocin caused strong contractions two minutes apart, immediately. I was on my back with two straps around my belly. Labour was not progressing. I was continually intruded upon by my physician and an obstetrician who examined me internally. All of this proved very discomforting for me. Evetyone seemed concerned zotety with the monitor_ and my cervix, but not with me. (ed. italics) There were no soothing or .encouraging wards. After seven-hours of this, it was decided that a cesearean was necessary due to failure to progress and cephalo-pelvic disproportion. That was that. My dreams were shattered and I fell into a deep depression. It took seven months before I felt strong and secure again, not to mention the long recovery period from major surgery. Luckily, Jeremy was born healthy and suffered no compli cations from the surgery. When I became pregnant the second time, all the old fears and concerns crept up. We moved to Thunder Bay when I was four months pregnant. For some reason, I felt it was necessary to seek out an obstetrician. At that point, I believed I would never have another chance to deliver vaginally. Then I became involved with the Childbirth Education and Support Group of Thunder Bay. We were astounded to find that five out of eight members had had previous ceseareans and were very concerned with the high rate of ceseareans being performed in Thunder Bay. The name of a midwife was brought up and I decided to pay her a visit and discuss my concerns. She was a wonderful person, very supportive of VBAC's (Vaginal Birth After Cesearean). After an external examination of my pelvis, she felt I would have no problems delivering vaginally. My hopes were rekindled. I continued to see my obstetrician regularly and discussed my idea of a homebirth with him. He didn't support me but he respected my choice. His main concern over VBAC's was uterine rupture. I then asked him several questions concerning this is"What percentage of your sue, ie.: patients have VBAC's?...What are the indications of uterine rupture?... What percentage of VBAC's have uterine rupture?" (I learned later that the highest rate of uterine rupture is among women who have had previous ceseareans,) I found the bulk of the obstetrician's responses evasive and general. At one point, he admitted to me that he used scare tactics to influence women's decisions. After that admission, I didn't take my doctor's warnings very seriously. I decided to attempt a homebirth. I knew that if I set foot in the hospital, I would be allowed only five hours in which to labour and deliver my child. A cesearean was certain. Homebirth was my only option. I had also learned that all of Thunder Bay's obstetricians had gotten together last summer and decided they would collectively not allow VBAC's in Thunder Bay. As the time approached, I worried whether I would begin labour spontaneou"Sly or not, so I called my midwife often. One-and-a-half weeks past my due date, my labour commenced. It began Wednesday evening (Feb. 1/84). The contractons were very mild and 5-10 minutes apart. I fell asleep in the night and awoke with no contractions. Feeling a little disappointed, I got up to shower and labour started again! All day long, the contractions continued to be mild and 5-10 minutes apart. I phoned my midwife at noon and she arrived shortly after. She was very encouraging, and she suggested I move about and keep busy. She didn't "do" anything to me. No exams at all. She listened to the baby's heart and that was it. So I busied myself with laundry and ironing; I had difficulty suppressing my excitement. As the evening wore on, the contractions became stronger and closer together. At about 11 p.m., I felt it was time to go to bed and rest (ha ha) . Then, the work began. My midwife massaged my shoulders and feet and coached me in my breathing. What doctor or even nurse would (Or could) do that for me? She encouraged me to get up and walk about, and at 4 a.m., after another walk, my waters broke. Labour became much more intense, and I found it painful and didn't hesitate to ho4ler whatever words popped into my head. I began pushing at 5 a.m. and at 5:45 a.m., Devon Lee was born. Dad wiped the blood and vernix from the baby's eyes and nose, and cut the cord under the midwife's supervision. Jeremy awoke at 5 a.m. and watched his brother come into the world. He was very quiet and attentive. He held my hand and told me, "It's okay, mommy". I was exhausted after the birth, and suffered mild shock. I was bundled up, stayed in bed and nursed` the baby for 20 minutes. When I got up, the placenta came of it's own accord (there was no need to pummel my belly to get it out). The midwife and I examined the placenta to make sure it was intact, and it was. I had a few superficial tears, and goldenseal powder was applied. (Goldenseal is a natural antibiotic.) The difference between the two births is obvious. With Devon's birth, there were no: episiotomy, drugs, bright lights, foreign environment, restrictions of food or drink, solver nitrate drops, I.V.'s, fetal heart monitors, or strangers. There were only my family encouraging me, my own bed to lie in, my midwife and my baby nestled in my arms. There was no horrible rupturing as my doctor had warned. Devon was born healthy and pink, and nursed immediatly. As far as I'm concerned, my midwife beats any obstetrician hands down. She sensed my needs, knew me well, encouraged me, and most importantly, believed in my abilities and strength. My midwife has delivered over a thousand babies in her career, and I had complete confidence in her. If anyone has any comments or questions, I can be reached through the Childbirth Education and Support Group, P. 0. Box 2387, Thunder Bay, Ontario, P7B 5E9; attn. C. Ponchet. or phone Diane Lai'at 475-4563 or 683-3880. NORTHERN WOMAN page 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �REPORT FROM Northwestern Ontario Women's Forum with the Ontario Advisory Council on the Status of Women held September 15th and 16th, 1984 Dryden, Ontario On September 15, and 16, the Northwestern Ontario Women's Decade Council invited the Ontario Advisory Council on the Status of Women to the area, to participate in a forum. Area women in the past have been afforded little oportunity to present their concerns and positions to those bodies whose decisions and recommendations have had impact on the quality of their lives. The forum allowed a unique opportunity for representatives of regional women's organizations to present briefs to the Council and as well was an exciting time of sharing and getting together. The excellent calibre of the many briefs as well as the quality of the presentations generated feelings and enthusiasm and pride, mixed with concern and sadness for the multitude of issues which will need so much work before great strides are made. Departing from the seriousness Gert Beadle entertained the group with some of her best sensitive as wellas outrageously hilarious poems Noticeably absent from the forum was any representation from the Ministry of Northern Affairs, which Decade Council had especially wanted to have in attendance, in order that the Ministry be made aware of women's concerns in the North. The briefs once collated in report form, will be forwarded to the Honourable Robert Welch, Minister Responsible for the Status of Women and to each minister responsible for the subject of the brief. Copies of briefs as a full Forum Report will be available in December from: Ontario Status of Women Council, 5th Floor, Mowat Block, 900 Bay Street, Toronto Ontario M7A 1L2, The following is an overview as recorded by Sandy Peltonen, Regional Status Convenor, Women Teachers' Association of Ontario. IMMIGRANT WOMEN'S CONCERNS LEENA PESONEN Immigrant Information Centre Thunder Bay Observations - Immigrant women face exploitation and alienation. - There are few alternatives and few support systems available. Recommendations - Ensure more immigrant women the chance of taking the English as a Second Language courses available through Employment - Employers provide women to learn English on the job by providing 1 hourAday to. take classes. SOUTH EAST ASIAN IMMIGRANT WOMEN IN NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO JOAN WILLIAMS Down to Business TrainiAg Program, Thunder Bay Observations - Women not eligible for many benefits under immigration conditions. Women become exploited and develop low self-images. ecommendation issues to be dealt with include racial descrimination Sexism and basic human rights WOMEN & EDUCATION (Post Secondary) MARY FEDORCHUK Confederation College, Thunder Bay Observations Female graduates from high school demonstrate a lack of self-confidence, feel powerless, see limited optiOns, feel dependent, see themselves as followers anckx supporters. We seem to be educating our women for a life of poverty and continue the passive dependent socialization in our school system. Recommendations - School experiences need to be equal - Re-education of teacherstounsellors on gender biases and career development - School Boards need official policies and actions to change practices - Faculties of Education need courses in women's studies WOMEN & EDUCATION Trades & Technology ELIZABETH WEIBEN ELIZABETH POULIN Confederation College, Thunder Bay Observations Women must broaden their fields of occupation to get into better paying positions. Girls in High School are still making the same choices and ending up in job ghettoes. They do not seem to feel that they CAN DO. We must dispel myths with facts about pay, skills and opportunities available. -4111111Mfr Recommendations - Government must give incentives to employers to hire women in non-traditional roles Re-training of high school guidance counsellors to better assist girls in making choices for futures - Mandatory Professional Development day on employment patterns PORNOGRAPHY FIONA KARLSTEAD Northern Women's Centre Observations - No firm definition of pornography - Issue appears as maleifemale power domination. - there is a politics of pornography which involves social, economic and human values. - Men have established this industry and the results objectify, degrade and attempt to destroy women. - Restaurant owners seem to consider breastfeeding in public to be offensive yet down the street it is acceptable to be served by topless waitresses. - Legal definition of obscenity related to community standards. - Judges are forced to decide what the community will tolerate. - Now, more and more pornography is available, but many ignore it because of disbelief. - Pornography is a BIG business. - Taking it off the shelf forces it underground and makes a martyr of the salesperson. Recommendations - Higher consumer knowledge of issues. - Change regulations PORNOGRAPHY Recommendations from F.W.T.A.O. YVONNE HASTINGS Dryden Federation of Women Teachers Observations - Pornography has an effect on women and children - Effects of pornography are seen in the classroom Recommendations REGIONAL HEALTH NEEDS SURVEY A,IARGOT MORGAN NWO Women's Health Education Program Observations - 3 year project with funding from Health & Welfare Canada - 13 communities were visited and 5 workshops have been presented. - Women do not seem to be satisfied with present health care. - Women and children are the largest consumers of health care. - Situations in the Northwest place extra stress and heighten the problem. Recommendations - Women must increase their knowledge of health care and promote good health. - More medical services must be made available. - Reimbursement for travel due to medical reasons. - Establishment of medical hostel in Thunder Bay. WOMEN'S HEALTH ISSUE HELEN SCHUMACHER, R.N., M.Ed. Registered Nurses Ass'n. Lakehead Chapter Observations - Emphasis in medical profession is on sickness, not health. - Doctors are performing services that nurses could be providing. - Mental health has been given a low priority - Senior citizens are being forced from their homes Viand into institutions, rather than being accommodated at home. Recommendations - Improved mental health services must be initiated. - Media should be used for preventative health ideas. - Nurse practitioners could help with patient diagnosis. - Homemaking services should be instituted to reduce hospital costs. WEDUEDONG MEDICAL HOSTEL BERNICE HEALD Thunder Bay Annishinabequek Observations - Native health care is inadequate - Gaps in services are evident - Increased expenses are incurred because of long stays away from home. Recommendations - Establish a lodge in Thunder Bay to make better use of medical dollars. TRANSITION HOUSE SERVICES IN NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO MARE KOWALSKI Violence Coalition Northwestern Ontario Observations - Lack of understanding of wife-battering - A report is available Transition House Services - Some police are not laying assault charges and are counselling women out of laying charges. Recommendations - Child Care workers are needed for homes - A follow-up program must be organized to support women after they leave the home. - Increased funding be given by government agencies. - A program for staff training is needed. continued on page 12 - F.W.T.A.O. supports change in legislation and laws governing pornography. -AIOMAN page 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISIONNORTHERN PDFCompressor �Celebrating 11 Years of Poetry No Iteuion Ode to The Nottheu Woman Too o4ten, a sense o4 time passing This best -Eike time west spent. I was put back in touch with something nametess; you know the thing that threads through us -The abstract chemi6tAy that drew 116 even box just that short time ...4nom time to time... Until van daity Lives intAuded, neither detuded. No gentle gowet, yon tugged Fem. She stands het gtound, against the cuttent and the tide. She may be.4ound. Contender eat the tights oi ate on ptivitege eot none. She 4hurt4 dependance ass a ititt, a beggvus bone. She has known the icy btazt ,96 duty's sodden Meath, the degtadation o4 the kept that peots the spitit's death. She moves into the storm's red eye to sing a diiietent 'song, ban in the custody (16 man the nights were tong. She sees the tives oi battened wives built only on a kiss, and yearns to build sustantuaety on iitmet gtound than this. Joyce Michatchuk July '84 Love stat may peay a magic itute and tenderness con6ound het. But bittet is the evidence oi &token dreams around het. Fox men must Learn and women wait and zttuggZe box the changing. The Notthetn Woman standing 6itm compassionate and caking. taken itom Gents' book RISING 19 80 Do The Dishes I watched how my mother tied in hut steer: And said no bucking way mister. 'Lose bows woittd a manic -depressive existence petalz and thorns submerged in societat wateAs I made pots Wen washing them bowts big as your head Mugs - Kam Riven jugs And I kept washing them. that give tie as they threaten to 6f/town. viola nikkaa They have to shine and the sitvetwoau con Wen the glasses And then the mud - the inctedibte mud Soaping into cones Ice -cream droppings. Mud Con4enences The toutibte message "That's a tot oi wonk" Some penance o4 mine. The attennativesDo I tike doing dishes oxwomen do dishes! Anyone can do dishes! I'm stilt doing dishes Women one dishes! I'm dtawing them Tatting them Touching them Emutating them Remembeting them. Eaten alive Food on plates Dipped in suds Slaughtered in thein steeping wake Mountainous waves o4 warm. I did the dishes! What did you do? Genatdine Van Cxam 19 82 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN OMAN page 6 �To My Fitst Love Hey sister! Zook at me I know how you 4eet, I know you. how you Love me I know you so weU because you ate me and you're exciting and beaui4ut and sttpngo Yet you choose not to be, you choose to Let your strength be drained, be you choose to Let the man tett you not to what you want to be, I know he's good and kind and gentte, but you took at me with sad eyes and say, I have to tty to work it out, while you end the way of tiie you Love to Live the way 4 tiO, you Love to become the kind o6 wqe he Loves and tty to give your space to him and abandon att gout dreams to him, white you took so tited and worn and sad. Zook at me Hey Sistet! I Love you, I Love what you heel, I know your sttength, the woman you ae, I know you so well and I'm waiting ion you. Mattoty Satigaction Guatanteed 1976 For once, I was dtessed to the teeth I watked down McKibbon Stteet So, a cattoad o4 statheting boys Decided I wowed be theit evening toy They showered me with hoots and jeuts Something that's happened to me 4ot years When they once mote citcted the block I planned o them to make a mock As the can putted up to the cunt) I wars comptetay ready to distutb Quite catmtg I raised my 4ace Innocentty stated, stowed my pace I just wanted to express with ptose How I gAossed them out with my {singer up my nose. As Stiged Dteamet They were divided, people say, tike btind 6ish in a bottomless cave. He had hopes, dreams, aspitationz; Which he expounded, votubty, with the 4otee o4 a ctesting wave. Bev Pudaz She had hopes, dteams, aspitations too! With no oppottunity ion expnession. They wete concerned 1977 Cat4ight We Zive in a and, socia! net Prom which we draw sitty, chitdish, no account! How could she be AO tacking in disctetion! The cat that 4ights The cat that Aiwa's And the cat removed o4 claw Joyce Michatchuk 19 79 She Zi4ted het hand, tentatively, as though to banish het exptession. She sighed, resumed het task; once mote she woad sttive to wand o44 recut ting deptession. Irma Johnson 19 82 41.40-44f NORTHERN W OMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Growing Up We were kids catching 6Aog ctimbing toweA3 ptaying baseball thtowing rocks by the /civet we we to young. Some oi us began to tove and we dtank in out wits on dash. 'Liven toad's. Then we wete no .longer kids. One day &A-Oa-y-1 The Fatm , V (-7)651:1 Daybteak sunAise baAntoo4 gins pine Hayweed buttetcup dungteek hooPLot CatOiAth buttAing 4anspin kittendeath EiTsnest caput axebtade chickenneck Stoppait domstep catte6t tatcotpze rloodmoke waxbean tonduemeat bteadbuAz uttetkni.6e teacup wandi6h womenOt(2. 9ungpite pitchOtk wagonload .Kietdpath S,Padeto dunamuck 6eed6uet ef_dcteek °Iotkdone cteanctothez kccesctape caAztatt TownAoad hymn zing ptayetbook homecome !itk4toth 4tootusttaw dog6teep hamoon Suzan Cottin 19 82 we went to UniveAsity the cop told Sata to move Ptom the (midge where she sat Tetty tan hi4 through a gta44 door Gary went to Nam And I, I threw tacks atone at tatgets that did not cate. Nancy J. Zabitka Timmins 19 82 O The Ctinic StAike JUNE You, who once wete beauti6ut whose taughing eyes bAightened up the seasons; whose smite gave me reasons to keep 4ttuggting up that mountain, whose 4o6t beige shin invited kisses, whose eyes now ate toying whose tender gtance gave me iutiitement. Now as thin as chatk on a slate. Recall out Laughing Looking {got yout cat, tecatt you ttying to wake me up {got school, recall out hopes so we and great hopes powered out souez. Now my eyes with ice,.they do {jade, now we've chosen, s P.i.pped pat, have gone. Now I'm a 6tAanget, now a stranger -(1)5 my 6ong. Love you Sammi Kakeeway 1980 Outs sisteu stand outzide the warm with tips and 4ngeAs [lecke no chance Lt seem ion justice now they bend beiote sacked cow that hot& OUA health at tansome Out sisteu city into a wind that shatteu human Aitence and ponder well a s pit it catt to viotence. Break them, smash them to the watt they ate unwtitten pages, 4ot Leh and blood ate pittotied upon the etas o6 need when even sacred cows have Leave to tide a house gkeecL Gott 1975 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN: OMAN page 9 �Battening m The Stats ate tetting the oince cis dangerous a loaded gun without a war to go to. He 4-tat .insisters he L6 the Ptince and can Aide MOONFACE hits hoAse At 4choot without a saddee. there wa.o a giAt whose ace war, clouded tike the moon, He wilt 4mazh out iaces i6 the market place tett4 him he only human not Aiddted with laugh tines on co- toured red {tom the wind. She claimed 'she had many Wends. He does not joust with othms above his zt.ation as once he did, to win a tady'6 4avout with a lance They bon/Lowed het notez and misplaced hen name, because at times she was invisible, ctinging to watt.S tike nestless ivy. his tove is his excuse 4ot violence he must be OA/Led Ro.satyn Taylors Petnett 1980 by zomone he can handte,. The padded cat oi home the haiA ttigget 04 ter tor, '14 the last ztand o6 ego We have the 4caA's to oove it. Gent Beadle 1981 .C.nriec Links Us . "9 b Licu3 Ia- Cher-ruzA/51 You wean you/L. inAecuAity taAhLng toudty with your. cootne44, Something u, dead in this house She seatches, tuning everything upside-down I wonder what it Ls? She catchez hen breath, tucks hetset4 in As though at witt She could be a watt Awitehing 4tatement4 with the duptieity that ia4ition nuktuxeA u4ing iftivotity a4 a nancotie to aneAthetize gout mind and deaden thole demons that want to know why. Shatyt Thompson 1981 on a 6hetic where the .laundry tells it all I'm a miAAon and I'm good at ties I pretend to know What cis on the °then side But I have these questions and most o.6 art I wander why thLs home ShAink4 hen titt she's 6matt? Routtyn Taylor Pettett 1981 - -NORTHERN 11 OMAN pa ge 10 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �she woke dungarees, a gannet zhiAt hairs loose eazy banding on a soap box Satutday aAteAnoon in the patk. 4-tkov.Y.11-16% aftiOLO glances znide tematkz pazzetz-by passing heating but not Ziztening. ON PERFECTION In man's woAtd oA skin °ay 6ace and 6okm 'damn 6eminiztz' 'zhez ptobabty gay...' 'someone zhoutd zhoot 'em att' 'she ptobabZy can't get a man...' wand oA inequatity, tomq individuatity, zocial zteteotyping, lost tike yeztetday'z Ootztepz. Viola N,%fzf2 a 1981 Let Us Fey How we can ei6t each other Like dreams, we can dti6t so high How we can be chained to one another Like iences, we can cease and encumber Ate tetevant, When choosing 1n fiend On doe. And man has sad d That I am beautiia, "So ctoze to peqection." He has said, That I should be Placed on a pedeztat And displayed Az in an auction Where the countance Counts and gold, And 6eceing4 Aait to Sett. But do not azk me "What ,ice pet6ection?" Fan I do not know, Vet in man's wottd OA zanity, Only mind-oven -matters Is Aetevant, Let us gy When choosing sane OA insane. And man has said That I am hideous Joyce Michatchuk 19 82 DeAmmity, one he Danes not Aace. "So out oA Zine" He has said That I zhoutd be Gotten Aid (56 Like a pAizonen, a yeah oA teeth threatening to Aatt out a Aniend'z pout and a tot oA doubt one (IA my ttuty haAdezt years What Happens When What happens when you want to my and undetziand youn Zi4e, when alt around you 'they azk why you ztitt ate not a w- e. - What happens when you my to tett them and ztitt they wonders why, It makes you want to sump and yeti and maybe even cky. FADM what I heat and what I tead husband anent that great, I don't want to sound too cruet but I think I'd tatheA wait Eve 1976 i've grown zo much sown a Zittee haven't gown Cat into a dungeon Where tiving L Lying to cteation And zpeaking iz Sinning againzt PeAAection But do not dzk me - "What ins penAection?" Fors peqection Tz inane. and Aeet zo very atone and yet have known Kate Patkkati at timez the teazon why i 6-tilt Zook up to see the zky and hope and breathe 1975 and city' a Zot it'z aft on comze the zttuggte which Aew can zee iz dust me atone 'sometimes in lave sometimes my music box and when i stop a ,chaivactet o 3 to eis ten, ti 6eee - caught a pant ok.ei6e - thought was missing Pam Wibson 1979 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAk page 11 �Women's Conference in Dryden WOMEN AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LUAN WALL ELIZABETH POULIN Economic Development Comm. NWO Women's Decade Council Observations - Report available Women's Work - Mandatory Affirmative Action and Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value is the only way to change situations all around. Few women are in decision making roles or represented on boards. There is an insufficient amount of time spent on analyzing social implications of financial/ economic decisions Recommendations - Boards must have more input from women by having women representatives PROFESSIONAL NURSES CONCERNS RHODA DICKSON Registered Nurses Ass'n. Region 12 Observations - Job satisfaction in the nursing profession is low. - There are many part-time nurses - Hof the nurses drop out after graduation. - Salary is V3 of physicians. - Many nurses are under-employed. Recommendations - Improve the in-service component for nursing re-education. - Travel expenses to be given for travel to conferences. - Improved salaries are needed to ensure that high quality nursing care continues. - Appointments on committees should have a cross- section from the community. - Child Care options must be in place to allow women to attend meetings. RURAL WOMEN'S CONCERNS JACQUELYN HUNSPERGER JANET OWEN Rainy River District Rural Women Observations There are myths about farm wives and their roles on the farms. Family incomes reported in 1980 were well below the poverty line. Isolation and its effects are compounded for rural women, men sometimes take a second job leaving their wives responsible for the farm and the children. Recommendations - More appropriate courses be offered for farm women in dealing with running a farm. - Day Care plans should- include overnight care because of distances of trave RURAL WOMEN'S CONCERNS ENA SKENE Oxdrift Women's Institute Observations - The home economist stationed in Rainy River spends more time travelling than anything else. - There are medical gaps because of transportation shortages and lack of services. Recommendations - Establish area home economists - Provide courses for women over the television - More localized health care. WHAT'S UP continued from page 3 into costly _legal proceedings rather than the Provision of adequate health care facilities for women, is yet another 'reality check' of our society. We can make our concern known by writing the Hon. Roy McMurtry, Attorney-General, 18 King St. E., Tor onto, and stating our opposition to any appeal of the Ontario acquittal, and recommending the Ontario government refrain from prosecuting the Morgentaler clinic when it reopens,, We should also continue to impress upon our federal politicians (cc the Hon. John Crosbie, Minister of Justice that the federal government must repeal the abortion law, ern WOMEN AND DISABILITIES WINNIE MAGNESSON LUAN WALL NWO Women and Disabilities Comm. Observations - Physical disabilities face an attitude barrier which costitutes double discrimination. - There is high unemployment in this group of women. - Where a woman becomes disabled 99% of the time the marriage will end in divorce while only 50% end in divorce if the man becomes disabled. - A conference, in April 1985 is being organized in this area. Recommendation More attention must be given this area of Women and Disabilities. WOMEN AND PENSIONS LYNN BECK Pensions Committee NWO Women's Decade Council Observations - Need for pension reform - Pensions are insufficient for elderly women - Any changes in Federal Pensions must be accepted by the provinces. Expansion in private pension plans will not be adequate for all women. Recommendations - Pensions are needed for homemakers - Institute income security program for women. - Place part-time workers into the Labour Code. - Examine the credit splitting issue EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING NEEDS OF NATIVE WOMEN IN ONTARIO CHRIST! BANNON Ontario Native Women's Ass'n. Observations - A report is available through the Ontario Native Women's Ass'n. - A survey of 23 communities and interviews with 250 native women has led to a report with 10 recommendations. Recommendations - Some of the recommendations of the report include 24 hour child care and providing specific training in the women's own community. UPGRADING WOMEN JOAN BARIL Confederation College, Thunder Bay Observations There are many programmes at Confederation Col lege to assist women. B.S.T.D. - Basic Training for Skill Development Adult Basic Education Technical Upgrading INTO - for non-traditional occupations WITT . for trades and technology Some of these programs are difficult to get into with waiting lists and limited choices. Day Care costs take V3 of the women's salary Recommendations - The Unemployment Commission should change some of its regulations to help women continue their education without losing their benefits. - Day Care should be established on campus and be subsidized - Legal system, in protecting women, should be examined more on pages 13 I( 14 eve. Most frightening news is the threat to universal social programs posed by recent announcements of the Mulroney government. There really is little doubt that the Conservatives want to abandon the concept of universality of family allowances and old age security. In the name of fiscal restraint women again will be the victims-denied the small measure of dignity and integrity that universal social programs provide. Watch for UIC change! too, The economic statement the Conservatives put forward merely calls for examination of the unemployment insurance system with possible access to benefits restrictions. Translation: no more maternity benefits! Rest assured this is only the beginning. The small gains women have made the past ten years could easily be totally eradicated in the next four years. The need for women's vigilance was never greater PDF compression, OCR, optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor page web 12 NORTHERN OMAN �by JOAN BARD, On a first walk through the fields of education one can easily trip over a tangle of initials, -B.T.S.D., A.B.E, T.U.P., C.E.I.C., and so on. I would like to start this paper by introducing you to the BTSD program and it's students and at the same time clear a path through the alphbbet jungle. I am the Coordinator, at Confederation College, in Thunder Bay, of the Basic Training for Skill Development program which is usually shortened to B.T.S.D. and often still called by its former name "Upgrading". (In many other colleges BTSD is listed under the heading Adult Basic Education or ABE.) BTSD offers basic skill training for adults in mathematics, English and science in Levels 11, 111, and 1V. The colleges and other educational institutions recognize these levels as covering grades 7-12. We do not offer literacy training which in Thunder Bay is looked after by the local school board. I am also Coordinator of the TUP component of BTSD. TUP means technical upgrading and, in brief, it is a free tuition program sponsored by the province. Many BTSD women students are graduates of the I.N.T.O. (Introduction to Non-Traditional Occupations) and W.I.T.T. (Women Into Trades and Teachnology) courses. I am also the Coordinator of E.S.L. (English as a Second Language). Immigrants and especially immigrant women have their own set of problems which I have discussed in another paper. In this report, I intend to deal with the concerns of BTSD women students only. BTSD goes on all year round in a continuous loop. Oft any Monday, new students are arriving, on Friday, successful graduates are leaving. On average BTSD has 130 students including full and part time. About half are women and 20 of whom are CEIC (Canada Employment & Immigration Commission) trainees. A typical BTSD woman student is in her twenties, of a working class background. She dropped out of high school before graduation to take a job in the "female ghetto" perhaps as a waitress, a clerk or a counterperson. She may be single, married, separated, perhaps raising children on her own. She knows that her service job was a dead end, low paid and subject to lay-offs. In many cases it was a lay-off which was the catalyst which sent her back to school. These women cannot be classified as "re-entry" women who have been out of the paid labour force for some time and need help getting back in. Upgrading Women BTSD women are familiar with the labour market. They know what it means to live on minimum wage o-Family Benefits. They want to be able to support themselves. They do not count on a husband for support. They are not dismissing marriage but they know a family needs two pay cheques to survive. Almost all women arrive at BTSD with a goal in mind and a game plan of the steps to obtain it. The goals are varied and, in my opinion, generally realistic.Most plan to go on to some sort of occupational training after graduation, usually in a post-secondary College program although a few aim for university. Some women, mainly graduates of the INTO or WITT programs, are committed to non-traditional occupational training. In order to prepare this report I\ met twice with the BTSD women as a group of approximately 50 students and asked them to discuss any difficulties they may have getting an education. I also taped 40 private interviews with women students and 10 male students. What follows is a precis of the information they gave me. The Difficulty of Getting Into BTSD A woman, a hospital worker is laid off. She begins to collect Unemployment Insurance. She decides to take the opportunity to go back to school, upgrade to Level 1V (Grade 12) and apply for nursing. But there is a barrier. A person collecting Unemployment Insurance is not allowed to attend school without permission and that permission is very difficult to get. Over the past year several students who enrolled without UIC's permission had their benefits cut off and they were forced to drop out. Some people decide to forego UIC benefits. Students without family support would not be able to come to school except in exceptional cases. BTSD students are not eligible for Ontario Student Loans, Ontario Student Grants or Canada Student Loans. Many families take a severe drop in income to send a student to school. A person can get into BTSD by becoming a CEIC trainee. In order to do this she must choose as a goal one of the designated occupations specified by CEIC. There are 10 such designated occupational courses given at Confederation College. With the exception of Microcomputer Manager program which will start next year and the Food Preparation course, these CEIC designated courses lead to non-traditional occupations such as heavy duty equipment mechanic, welder and millwright. CEIC will then, pay tuition and allow the student to collect U.I. while remaining in BTSD only long enough to reach the grade level necessary to enter the occupational program. Usually this is Level 111 (Grade 10). One program, Electrical Engineering Technician requires Level 1V (Gr. 12). If a student is not on UIC, a training allowance is paid. Through the National Training Program administereby CEIC, many women have been given the financial means to obtain a Level 111 (Grade 10) who would not otherwise have done so. In November 1983, the College started the Level 1V (Gr. 12) BTSD program and CEIC has sponsored women .up to Level 1V enabling them in practical terms to get their high school graduation. Although the CEIC training program has been beneficial to women, there are local problems. First, there are only 40 places for CEIC trainees at Confederation College. About half of them are women. There is a long waiting list. Students wait two to eight months to get in. Confederation needs more CEIC places in BTSD. There have been a few reports of hostile attitudes from CEIC counsellors. One woman was told "that's man's work" when she said she wanted to be a welder. Another felt she had been given several weeks of testing to divert her from her goal. The students say they encountered counsellors who were reluctant to have them make a career change to a non-traditional field. On the other hand there was praise for the local Women's Employment Centre, and the College WITT and INTO programs. The BTSD women complained of, the limited choice of CEIC designated occupations available to them in Thunder Bay. There are 10 courses here contrasted to the 450 in the Toronto area. Toronto, with ten times the population, has 45 times Thunder Bay's number of designated programs. Students who are not able to become CEIC trainees, may pay their own fees amounting to $60 a month for full time study or $600 for 10 months which is the average length of the program. Many students have signed up in the TUP program which pays free tuition but no living allowance. In theory, TUP and full-time fee paying students may apply for a bursary, the Ontario Special Benefits in order to get some help with transportation and other costs. However the criteria are so rigid, few people qualify. Students who want to attend parttime cannot qualify for the CEIC program of the free tuition of TUP. Many women prefer part-time because of family and work commitments. We recommend TUP be available for part-time as well as full-time students, and also recommend that the Province, through the Ministry of Education, recommend to CEIC that training allowances and UI benefits (either partial or full) be made available to women who wish to attend BTSD part-time. We also 3 z continued on next page NORTHERN WOMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �continued from page 13 -UPGRADING WOMEN by Joan Baril recommend that the Province set up a study to consider the effect that. the UI regulations has on education. In a time of high unemployment, adults should be encouraged to use their (involuntary) leisure to upgrade their skills or participate in the life-long upgrading of education that to-day's fast changing society makes necessary. But the rule which prevents UI beneficiaries from attending school puts a brake on all education. Admittedly there are many ramifications to changing these regulations; however social benefits might result from a controlled change The Difficulty of Staying in BTSD The student interviews deliniated three areas of concern: money, day care and male oppression. Money Many students both male and female'make financial sacrifices to come to BTSD. But there is some discrepancy between the sexes. Women CEIC trainees on unemployment insurance receive less than their male counterparts since U.I. is calculated on 60% of wages (up to a maximum of $450 a week) and because female wages are lower than male, their U.I. benefits are correspondingly lower. One BTSD woman has U.I. benefits of $43 a week, another $61, $54, $89 and so on. None of the men students I interviewed were receiving benefits as low. Women students who have been waitresses received U.I. based on minimum wage excluding their tips-which, if they were working in an expensive restaurant, could double their hourly rate. All students have a difficult time managing on CEIC training allowances which are $25 a week for a trainee who lives with a working spouse or parent and $70 a week for a student living independently. Surprisingly many do manage to scrape by on $70 a week with stringent economics and often some evening work. A student is allowed 24 hours a week's work without prejudicing the CEIC training allowance. The 24 hr. figure is the same for both men and women but 24 hours of work done by a man usually brings in considerably more money than if done by a woman. The fact that women attempt to live on such small amounts is a tribute to a determined ambition to get an education. Not surprisingly some women can't make it. They drop out. Even though women on family benefits also speak of a great deal of difficulty making ends meet, there is usually a strong determination to get off benefits in spite of the difficulties. Typically the solesupport mother receives $550 a month This is offset by a day care subsidy Her fee for day care is $25 a month. Life so close to the bone has no safety net. Typically BTSD women are in debt, often for children's clothes. They become discouraged and drop out. We recommend that family benefits be increased. Day Care Women with children find day care the biggest barrier to getting an education. Private day care costs about $220 a month. Municipal care starts at $300 a month for one child. NORTHERN WOMAN page As stated, women on family benefits get subsidy. However a time limit may be placed on the number of months. In one instance a woman could not graduate because her subsidy for day care "ran out". CEIC trainees with children are in a difficult situation. In June 1983, the Federal Government increased the training allowance for a woman with one dependent to $150 a week, or $600 monthly. This fairly substantial increase was gobbled by the municipal day care which then charged these women $200 a month for day care, an amount which is onethird of their monthly allowance. It can be stated that a woman with a child cannot go to school and make ends meet on $400 a month. We recommend that day care subsidies be completely redesigned in order that low-income women with pre-school age children can be eligible. We also recommend that innovative and flexible approaches be considered to bring day care to the campuses of Ontario. For example, z. Confederation we have a full-time nursery school on campus. It is used as training for the Early Childhood Education students. However the high fees make it far too expensive for BTSD students. We need to subsidize the children of needy students. Perhaps co-operative models, or work sharing arrangements would reduce the costs for campus day care. Male Oppression In the group meetings with BTSD women, problems with money and day care emerged as the focus. In the private interviews a third area of difficulty became evident-- which can be called male oppression. Here are some examples of the information I waS4given. M.'s boyfriend beat up her 12-year old daughter. She has asked him to move out but he refuses to leave. She is too terrified to move to a hostel. (Later she dropped out of school) K's husband drinks heavily and beats her. She said that after a beating last year she phoned the police who told her they could do nothing "because you are married and living at home". L's husband beat her so badly she had to be hospitalized. T's husband is a compulsive gambler- even the family allowance cheque is not safe. A common theme was the harassment suffered by separated women. Harassment by the husband after separation almost seems the rule rather than the exception. Whatever the truth of the matter is, BTSD women do not believe that the local crown attorney's office or the local legal system is serious about prosecuting for assault. In many of the assault or harassment accounts the women told me they believed it was no use to call the police or try to lay charges. They say the men know they can "get away with it". I would recommend that a preliminary study be done to discover if the problem of harassment of separated women is widespread and if so an in-depth investigation should be made. A study should be done to see how assault cases, especially assaults on women, are treated by the local legal system. Provincially the government should look at ways whereby the battered wife could remain inher home and the batterer would be made to leave. Perhaps we need hostels for men, with re-educational counselling or jail terms. We need to make men aware they "can't get away with it". Women need to validate each other. The strength and life experience of many BTSD women can be shared. One of the most revolutionary things a woman can do is to speak the truth about her life. This type of networking is built into the INTO and WITT curricula. BTSD men often make sacrifices to come to school but BTSD women climb more mountains than most of us will ever know. Let us not underestimate their ability to help each other. INTERMEDIATE WENDO COURSE Jan. 5 & 6 call Teresa 935-2371 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Pr allA=A1A-ik & ik C. , ' 0,_ OH, O .., ,S 0°0"cil'" A Y & POTLUCK FRIDAY DECEMBER 14th E -41 ..,,,q -4 1 :3 at 6:30 WOMANSPACE, 316 BAY ST. C LLOW" v "4 144-VVIVI-ke WOMEN IN DECISION MAKING C C. C. r. THAT THE NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL An interesting, new booklet enWOMANSPACE titled Women In DeCiion-Making has THE NORTHERN WOMAN BOOKSTORE just been released by the Economic THE NORTHERN WOMEN'S CENTRE Development Sub-Committee of the NWO Decade Council. The pamphlet are all moving to 69 North Court St., and expect to be settledWomen's by focuses on women's lack of input into January 1st, 1985 major developmental decisions in Northwestern Ontario. It outlines the present situation in which only 13.6% of municipal council members and 12.2% of economic development committee members are women. The barriers preventing women from becoming actively invol ved in decision-making bodies are described Part of the next step in encouraging women to become actively involved in decision-making bodies will be a workshop. Decade Council is sponsoring Women "n Decision-Making WorkshoP-s throughout the region in the winter of 1984. The workshop will take participants through a process in which they examine how decisions are made in their communities; the impact of these decisions and the value of women's experience and perspective to community planning. A major portion of the workshop has been set aside for participants to look at the barriers which keep women from being involved and to decide what skills they need to develop in order to become involved Women in Focus is a women's alterin decision-making bodies. The worknative arts and media centre in opershop will be presented in Ignace, ation sonce 1974. Involved in presentUpsala, Dryden, Siou- Lookout, Vering the varied expression of women's million Bay, Ear Falls, Red Lake, imagery through the production and disKenora, Rainy River, Fort Frances, tribution of videotapes, films, slideAtikokan, Nipigon, Geraldton and Thunsound productions, workshops and a der Bay. women's art gallery, Women in Focus Fcr more information about the offers many facilities and services Pamphlet or workshop, contact Pat which are not duplicated elsewhere in McInnis, Res-,a---.-h Co-ordinator, NWO We are Moving Vancouver Women in Focus Society Canada. Women's Decade Council, 221 Bay St., Thunder Bay, P7B 5N1. 345-3606 Arts and Media Centre Suite 204-456 West Broadway 3 Please send me ( ) copies of RISING @ $5.00. Enclosed is a cheque or money order for ( ), which includes postage, payable to: 72-2250 NORTHERN WOMAN'S JOURNAL, 316 Bay St., Thunder Bay, Ont. P7B 1S1 Vancouver BC Canada Northern Woman page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor GWinter 84 unity Canada Employment & Immigration may offer BASIC TRAINING IN SKILL DEVELOPMENT (B.T.S.D.) Academic Upgrading Grades 8-12; English as a Second Language; Introduction to Non-Traditional Occupations (I.N.T.O.) and Women Into Trades & Technology (W.I.T.T.). For information contact your local Canada Employment & Immigration office, or the Women's Employment Centre, 130 S. Syndicate Avenue Thunder Bay, ON P7C 1C7 (Phone 807/(123-2731). CANADA EMPLOYMENT & IMMIGRATION COMMISSION rmation ns Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. January 15, 1985 March 19, 1985 Margaret Phillips ROOM: 258, Shuniah Bldg Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. January 22, 1985 February 26, 1985 Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m. January 21, 1985 February 25, 1985 INSTRUCTOR (Both Sections): Al Bonazzo FEE (Both Sections): $20.00 Auto Shop, Dorion Bldg ROOM (Both Sections): : : SECTION 98 DATE & TIME: START DATE COMPLETED : : SECTION 99 DATE & TIME: START DATE COMPLETED In this elective post-secondary credit subject the student will learn the basic procedures of car maintenance and general operation. MOTOR VEHICLE (WOMEN KNOW YOUR CAR) WT 843 : nts : DATE & TIME: START DATE COMPLETED INSTRUCTOR FEE: $30.00 This elective post-secondary credit subject will expand awareness of the role of women in development (economic, social, cultural and political) by: - exploring activities, concerns and issues regarding WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT in the Third World, and - examining links between development issues affecting Third World and Canadian women. : g and,, Thursdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. January 17, 1985 March 21, 1985 Pat McInnis ROOM: 267, Shuniah Bldg WOMEN & INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT GS 144 (99) : : : DATE & TIME: START DATE COMPLETED INSTRUCTOR FEE: $30.00 Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. January 22, 1985 March 26, 1985 Anna Melville ROOM: 362, Shuniah Bldg Thunder Bay Mall-Dec. 11,12 (loam -8pm) Intercity Mall-Dec.13,14,15 (9:30am-9:30pm) County Fair Mall-Dec. 7 & 8 (loam -8pm) MALLS: Registrations for all subjects will be taken commencing December 5th from 9am7:30pm Monday to Thursday and Fridays 9am4:00pm in the Registrar's Office, Shuniah Building EXCEPT on days when registration is in the malls. Post-Secondary (Credit) Subjects: December 4, 1984--5:00pm-7:30pm Registrar's Office, Shuniah Building Non Post-Secondary (General Interest): December 3, 1984--5:00pm-7:30pm Registrar's Office, Shuniah Building REGISTRATION DATES: EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS WELCOMES YOUR SUGGESTIONS, CALL (807) 475-6232. : : : DATE & TIME: START DATE COMPLETED INSTRUCTOR FEE: $30.00 FIRST STEP-Computer Programming for Women An introductory course in computer fundamentals designed to give women an understanding of the capabilities and terminology associated with computers. Upon completion, students will be capable of designing some of their own "BASIC" programs such as budget or mortgage payment Students will have hands-on calculations. experience with computers. This elective post-secondary credit subject is intended to examine situational stresses in our lives-family, job, social relationships, conflict, change, developmental crises, as well as potential sources of stress they bring to every situation because of their personality, their own belief system, their life rhythms and their style of problem-solvin g. A lifestyle and attitude approach to changing their stress response will be developed by each individual. ZB 293 (99) 331, Shuniah Bldg : GS 143 (99) ROOM: Ivy Cook : : DATE & TIME: Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE January 21, 1985 COMPLETED March 25, 1985 INSTRUCTOR Mary Fedorchuk FEE: ROOM: $45.00 234, Shuniah Bldg PRE- REQUISITE: Assertiveness Training Pt.I WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT : : : Wednesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. January 16, 1985 March 20, 1985 This non-credit (general interest) subject has been developed in response to growing requests from participants of Assertiveness Training Part I. It provides an opportunity for review and develops advanced assertive skills. DATE & TIME: START DATE COMPLETED INSTRUCTOR FEE: $30.00 ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING PART This elective post-secondary credit subject will provide the student with the skills necessary to negotiate honestly for the things he/she wants--on the job, at home, in the community. Assertion is not to be confused with aggression. Assertion takes into account the rights feelings of others. I I ZA 350 (99) GS 026 (99) EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING PROGRAMS mploy helps PATIONS dge ons e- hts ing WOMEN INTO TRADES & TECHNOLOGY (W.I.T.T.) is an 18-week program designed to *pose women to all aspects of practical *ides training and the world of High -Tech. For information contact the Chairperson Industrial & Motive Power (807) 475-621S. INTRODUCTION TO NON-TRADITIONAL OC (I.N.T.O.) is an 8-week program th women to explore opportunities for St ment in non-traditional jobs. study job search skills, goal sett plot a career path. Work placemen For in women real job experience. contact the Chairperson Communicat Arts (807) 475-6210. ( Ministry of Colleges & Universities) TECHNICAL UPGRADING PROGRAM (T.U.P.) facilitates the entry of individuals, particularly women, into the workplace or technical/trades The program has two comtraining programs. ponents: --Career Counselling provides a "training path" outlining the training necessary to enter the intended workplace or technical/trades training program. --Academic Upgrading provides 8-40 weeks of upgrading in related certificate and diploma programs in technology or business programs as well as selected apprenticeable trades. For information contact the Associate Registrar Adult Training & Special Programs 807/475-6302. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS may be taken full-time during the' day or part-time (evenings) through Continuing Educatio These subjects are identified as "GS" (elective post-secondary credit). For information, contact the Program Co-ordinator (807) 475-6390. GENERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE DIPLOMA PROGRAM emphasizing Women's Programs Curriculae ' What 16 The Future in Tka Atea? The Charter of Rights & Freedoms, the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Provincial Human Equal Opportunity Program Managers will be required to im Codes prohibit discrimination. ment policies arising from legislation or governmental directives. Equal Opportunity Management Program subjects will also be of interest to p PLEASE NOTE: already working in personnel and management, who need to further their know and skills in the area of Affirmative Action-Equal Opportunity. For information, contact the Director of Equal Opportunity Programs (807) 475-6278. Why Do You RequL'te Levet4 3 And 4 Engei4h? The emphasis of your work will be writing reports and other publications, as well as desi You will also be required to do considerable public speaking. and conducting seminars. You will be a people person with analytical, interpersonal and organizational skills; you cipate a leadership role in a changing environment. What Penzoiutt Chanactem-i.st-i.c_a Do You Need? What Ate Typical. Job Reoon4inititie4? orkYou will be providing expertise in the area of Affirmative Action; planning and organizin shops and seminars, and developing and maintaining effective liaison with policy-makers in the public and private sectors, as well as labour organizations. Affirmative Action is a set of planned active strategies designed to identify and elimina barriers to the employment, promotion, training and development, as well as compensation women, ethnic and racial minority group members and people with disabilities. Equal Oppo is the end result of an effective Affirmative Action Program. What Is A15641.11matLve Action -Equal Oppottunity? QUESTIONS YOU MAY ASK BACKGROUND During the past decade, organizations have recognized the need to introduce programs toward equality for persons disadvantaged in education and employment. The new Equal Opportunity Management Program is unique in that it provides students with the skills to take advantage of employment opportunities developing in Human Resources Management that requires specialized training in this area. JOB AVAILABILITY The Equal Opportunity Management PrOgram will prepare the student to work in program analysis, development and coordination of Affirmative Action -Equal Opportunity for women, ethnic and racial minority group members and for people with disabilities; in government and non governmental organizations. BUSINESS DI yrs ioN---E9UAL OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATE PROGRAM (Post-Basic) at present offered part-time (evenings) through the Continuing Education Division. --NEW-- Thunder Bay District The Confederation College of Applied Arts & Technology �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: PAGE 3 - WHAT'S UP! PAGE 6-11 - POETRY PAGE 4 - BIRTHING HERSTORY PAGE 5 - DRYDEN CONFERENCE PAGE 13 - UPGRADING WOMEN ************************************* IS THERE AN ASTERISK ON YOUR. LABEL?? PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ************************************* Collectively produced RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316'B BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO P7B 1S1 Noreen Lavoie, Teresa Legowski, Anna McColl, Joyce Michalchuk, Margaret Phillips, Donna Phoenix, Rosalyn TaylorPerrett, Sara Williamson with help this issue from: Sally ClorLdenning Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 316 Bay Street Thunder Bay, Ontario P7B 1S1 (Six Issues) -$5.00 $10.00 Business or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 8 No 6 Description An account of the resource Vol. 8, no. 6 (December 1984) Title: Northern Woman Journal: Poetry Issue Topics include: Women’s Theatre Collective Pornography Action Group Midwifery Northwestern Ontario Women’s Forum with the Ontario Advisory Council on the Status of Women Poetry Art Gender roles Battering Women’s conference, Dryden Education for women Women in Focus Society, Vancouver Confederation College programs for women Authors/Contributors: Carolyn Campbell Margaret Phillips Carol Ponchet Gert Beadle Joyce Michalchuk Viola Nikkila Geraldine Van Cram Mallory Irma Johnson Bev Pudas Susan Collins Hawkins Nancy J. Zabirka Sammi Kakeeway Rosalyn Taylor Perrett Sharyl Thompson Kate Parkkari Pam Wilson Eve Pykerman Noreen Lavoie Teresa Legowski Anna McColl Donna Phoenix Sara Williamson Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1984-12 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2781/1984_Vol_8_No_5.pdf 026d94993a419eb1b0ce07731b30c9b8 PDF Text Text X0rifet ttorAtra Voinal April- A.2y, 1975. R)0 rola. S. NMS, 5')e'acitirocX - 1trrn ttorilern Vona?: 4rrtic 3 - " r dOttrri Jot 141IMINNIM "MOO 5/.5 021,0,110 11.505 400.5 KILLER fart' ART. 5(5,5551011 .5.105.1//145 511£1,20 .411 I /111,03Mrst ,P0 .1 55r lot SEE 1NG OURSE THE NORTHERN c,.), It1014A14 Cei1:11157' 1,501 the 1 111.51, miaryallem talloc51.. Item one. 1151.1,1, e. 0,511,a1 .111.d.lactser dm We) ...No Otortme aa dimmed. Ad S Waste. to .6 TM noon are 4 a.m.. relIrth Yrtado ...Maw el semodo vLstae ea , \ 417":1/-%. 74,4 ' numb Wows . ten.mnsma. .1 la.1.46.1,rtas poi Swam awl "Its Mar.-Apr.1981 Vol.6.No.5 Vol N I /el tis. '0a- afj4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Editorial To the Women of the Northern Women's Centre: July, 1974) Survivors! Determined, persevering, resilient Survivors. As the NORTHERN WOMAN enters our twelfth year of publication we conclude that we - that Northwestern Ontario women - that all women - are survivors. Preparing this Anniversary issue and consequently reviewing all our past issues, has prompted our mixed emotions! A joyful nostalgia for the excitement, the optimism, the birth of awareness that the early Journals evoked. A sense of pride for the creativity, the courage, the excellence of Northwestern Ontario women writers. A disheartening recognition of how little change has occurred in the institutions/attitudes/actions that oppress women. Be it 1973 or 1984 the issues remain - violence, reproductive rights, economic equality, health care, day care - and on and on. Thus as we observe our anniversary we do celebrate the courage, the strength, the survival of women; yet we understand the need for unrelenting analysis and constant vigilance. This NORTHERN WOMAN is primarily reprints and excerpts of original articles by N.W.O. women that appeared in Journals from our first ten years. (Current news/information is given on the centre pages). Our choice of reprints was difficult, as we discovered an impressive quantity and quality of original submissions. We have chosen material from each year and representing a variety pf topics. We also rediscovered wonderful poets in our midst, and their works will be reprinted in a future literary issue. We hope as our readers join us in reflecting on our herstory, a renewed analysis will be inspired, our determination strengthened, and that individually and collectively we will all be empowered. * + _ RS . .**************ic********. ,t .i. - Dear Sisters: A few days ago I received four copies of back issues of the Northern Woman Journal from a friend in Thunder Bay. Reading those issues was a very moving experience. My emotions ranged from anger and sadness to joy and exhilaration. The Northern Woman speaks the truth, not only of the anguish of women but of their strength and courage. I was struck by the incredible honesty of the accounts of women's experiences. This journal marks an important step towards overcoming the isolation of women which has prevented them from realizing and working to overcome their oppression. The Northern Woman is one of the best journals that I have seen. I intend to pass the copies on to the women in my consciousness raising group. I am sure they will be as excited about them as I was. In sisterhood, Stephanie Holbik May, 1978 ON THE. OMEN'S LIB SYMBOL -May/June, 1973) I thought I'd write and throw a "Yea" vote in the pot for the women's lib symbol on The Northern Woman. Just a few short weeks ago, I'd have said to forget the clenched fist in the symbol because it looked too radical. I figured it might scare off a few women, including myself. I thought a middle-of-the-road attitude might be best. As I said, that was how I felt a few weeks ago. I've discovered since then that there is no middle of the road as far as the rest of society is concerned. Either you are for women's liberation or 'you're not. Even if you don't consider yourself a radical, you get a libber label pinned on whether you like it or not. No amount of explaining changes it as I discovered. When some "conventional" people I know discovered that I was for women's liberation, they began to inspect me with their eyes as well as their words. One man looked me up and down (I wonder what he was looking for?) and said, "You talk as though you didn't have a husband or kids." Another man offered me a drink, and then watched to see how fast I'd drink it. When I didn't gulp it right down, he raised his fist in the air and bellowed, "If you want to fight with the men, you've got to drink like the men." To these people, I had suddenly become that strange, frightening phenomenon--a libber. My feelings hadn't changed, and I didn't feel any more radical than I had before their discovery of my feelings. The difference was in their eyes and their minds. Quick as a blink, I was labelled. And my "Nay" vote changed to a "Yea" vote. We are women; we are for women's liberation; therefore, we are women's libbers. It is said that the best defence is offence--and we're offensive because we're women for women. Up with women: I am absolutely appalled by The Northern Woman's suggestion, in its June issue, to buy the poster, "Kill a Man for Motherhood". The rationale behind the slogan itself or buying the poster escapes me entirely. How could it possibly benefit anyone to kill a man for motherhood? Do you believe in dividing the human race into two warring camps: male-female, us-them, for-against? That seems to me to be a rather simplistic approach. Women are oppressed, to be sure, but not by men alone and NOT BY ALL MEN EITHER. Believe it or not, men too are oppressed--in their jobs and in roles which they are expected to fulfill just as much as women are expected to fulfill theirs. I personally do not find a man's position in this any more enviable than a woman's. I would not want to grow up believing Chat, as a man, I was responsible- no matter what--to take care of the needs of my wife and children, any more than I would want to grow up believeing that, as a woman, I had to stay at home and take care of the house and children while my husband was out supporting us. The bind works both ways. If women have finally awakened to the problems facing them and are beginning to take action--fantastic. If men and women both began to tear apart the structures confining ALL OF US, I am convinced that overwhelming changes would occur--and much more quickly than if one group attempted to overturn the status quo alone. I do not believe, as does Valerie Solanas, that all men are SCUM; nor do I believe that all women are radical feminists. At one point in my involvement with the Northern Women's Centre, someone told me that the group did not want to drive anyone away who might be interested in coming to the meetings. Well, you have driven ME away. I do not wish to receive the newsletter anymore. I absolutely refuse to support a group which accepts--or even tolerates--such a reactionary viewpoint as killimg,a man for motherhood. Susan Campbell REPLY TO MS. CAMPBELL Dear Susan: Thank you for your letter regarding the poster, Kill a Man for Motherhood. It may interest you to know that many women reacted equally strongly to the item and have expressed their views to us. We feel that your letter expresses well the reaction of most women. One small point I wish to make is that it was not put in as a "suggestion" and nowhere did we try to give the impression that we were condoning it. As you know, the newsletter is an open forum to which all women may contribute. This does not mean we either "accept or even tolerate" such reactionary viewpoints, but we do publish what is submitted. The one thing the editors reserve the right to do is comment on submissions. I hope that this month's editorial will make our position clear. Deanna Kappel In sisterhood, Helen Halet WOMAN page 2 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION NORTHERN PDFCompressor �SHADES OF REGRESSION EDITORIAL-- by Teresa Legowski August 1982 Birth to get a driver's license. Legally, equality underisthe control practices an constiarea where Are we still back in 1975? From tution is essentially a paper tiger. Medical the sounds of the recent swing to many men are uncompromising. Provinces play the major role,in practices continue to abuseenthe woman. liberalism in the women's movement, fOrcement of human rights. Socially, And then there is physical beating, with the publishing of Betty Friedan's women are losing their traditional even during pregnancy, when a woman The Second Stage; and the unsuccessIN power sources, but are NOTthe GAINING iconsidered to be most powerful attempts in the U.S. at E.R.A., TRADITIONAL MALE POWER STRUCTURES. less. one would think that feminism has These economic hard' times are makbeen stagnant for the last eight years. ing the feminist take a back seat. The liberal feminists in Canada, This is are reality. These things hap.,. Welfare mothers being forced to on the other hand, have made their pen to us, our economic mothers, markets our sisters. find work in jobless presence felt. TO them, women's opabhorrentofconditions still-with noThese availability child care. pression is a twofold manifestation: exist. Men as a class are coming down hard legal and societal. On the legal feminists dopoor not shareon women The as aliberal class--especially battlefront, women are now officially the feminist viewpoint of male women--because we still are basically power equal in the eyes of constitutional structures. ;So how do we, as femin-powerless. Socially, men are beginning to law. inists,there get this to Of course, are areality few of across us participate more and more in the other who women? lucky women "know some reallyraising of their families. The conThen again, there are mice men". ventional female domain of home and those of First, us who we think that all men( must-stop compromising. family is slowly becoming a shaied continue to be be the epitomeWeofmust machisWe must vocal. make our responsiblility of both the 'mother" mo. What is needed is a balanced perstance unequivocal. For this, all woand the 'father'. This perspective maintains spective. Secondly, we must draw attention to men need heartily express our gratithat men, matter how "nice", conthe no injustices that continue to exist, tude to the liberal feminists. tinue as a class to perpetuate their despite our token legal and social However, we have a suspicious feelpower over women as a class. gains. Perhaps the loss of the E.R.A ing that these "libbers" think that As feminist women, changing ourshake own the in the United States will What the battles are finally won. The personal situation is not enough. liberal- Betty Friedanites. Perhaps they do not perceive are the realities "nice" they men we live and love with may will realize that there is more of power. lead ustotofeminism a selective perspective, than role stereotypirii* women's Men as a class are taking over one that shuts out the madness and equality in the law. of traditional strongholds, but they are reality. Thirdly, we must offer SuppOrt to not sharing their realms of traditionThisour gruesome reality sisters on an maintains individual basis. al power., Politics, economics, eduthat control over women by men ranges Alienation is not advisable at this cation and the military continue to in degrees. Some men may not necespoint in time. be heavily dominated by-men. sarily 'Fourthly, approve of we violence as athe means must show wide Women still earn 40% less than men. of control, but do look for some kind extent of support that feminism Women are still herded into pink job of control over women. can noeperbe ceives from women This who may Women still hold no deci.,ghettos. deprivation of-economic independence. ceive themselves as feminists. Women sive political' positions. It can be isolation together by limiting time Ultimately, we progres6; educatstill are not influential in spent with divided, friends,, we regress. the kinds of still hold friends, or by Women not "allowing"the-wqmen ional institutions. only token positions in the military. - - . my biseXuality hai done to my relations with my friends and-family. have an awful feeling of isolation because can't really get close_to,' family or be completely Wenest and confide in them. ,1 haVe friends bui discuss bisexuality whIC how can them when they openly lOkeand= - I I I ile I this (Time ridictile gays.' - Sure have liberel-lriends who consider themselves oPih-isinded but even so, I know if confide in thorn, even if they don't prejudliceJ themselves I a ur each t ril's ner t but it an I Although it is the policy of this collective not to print letters that are unsigned, from time to time we receive a letter that cries out to be heard, -not just by the ears of I would feel-thatoevery time joked with them or put my arm around their shoulder in sfriendshtk_-, agiinst me, I they might feel uneasy, as to it symppthy and understanding,' but by,i know guess. Pin trying to my situation__ What motives. say is that tha"general public who are all, I - ion obscene o stop d ready d there some fact he nd enity. alive - and who would can hardly-be u too eager to dismiss from their minds any subject that doesn't fitof into A lot my problemi could have _ the lifestyle-of their been choice. gotten rid of a long time ago if The subject matter of the Northern could only have spOken tb'someone in Woman Journal is "Women who isDistresS", bisexual and learned to deal and we feel this letterwith fitsit. well" There is- counselling ser4ices within that frame. for just about any problem an ' - I adolescent can come across except Drugs, family problems, alcoholism, you with name it, the high-school counSellor am writing this letter is prepared sincerity, hoping you do not thinktoitdeal with it, but how can homosexualrty don't even knowyou if cure my ridiculous. can't think of myself as-being Sick. problem will be of any interest Unfortunately, it is hard to maintain,, truly hope it does for to,you. homosexim s this belief when one is told, feel you are the individuals who will plain are sick and deprived and just be able to do something positive wish the Northern Woman queer. about it. couldstudent set up a place where kids/could go am an 18-year-old,female freely, without being slandered or who is finding it extremely difficult Kids-in an identity crisis, ridiculed. to deal with m_y bisexuality. are the most vulnerable of all andhave never had relations with the ones most in need of help. another woman, - my lack of lovers is not the problem, the problem is what NORTHERN V OMAN pa ge 3 Ditr Sisters; I I - I I I I I I PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �AN OPEN LETTER FROM _KATHIE February 1981 Dear 'Women: This is one of those intense, emotional-moments when I yearn for that warmth of the northern women. It seems I've spent the last two years in a struggle against oppression, and have discovered that effort being scoffed at-by those around me. Do you remember the line from Desiderata: "Avoid loud and obnoxious people...they are vexations to the spirit"? I have just spent the last "two hours with "loud and obnoxious people", and they have managed to suck the energy from,me. It was one of those "friendly" Grey Cup parties of "in-laws"--they had had a few to drink, made a few disgusting sexist jokes, and the men decided to bring out some "girlie" magazines to present as a gift to one of the men present. Everyone thought it was a great joke; consequentlY, the magazines were flipped through with much vigor and commentary.,Some men even haa-the gall to ask me--upon seeing the look of disface--what were "wrong" may on with some of the pictures. 'And so, the inevitable question is: ii What does a strong feminist, sitting in the midst of intoxicated, yet rational "in-laws", do? I could feel the anger build, and wanted to scream at them: WE ARE NOT. SEX OBJECTS!- WE DO MOT WANT TO BE DISSECTED INTO BREASTS ,AND ASV- WE ARE PERSONS! an But alas, my, mouth was "in-law" happily stuck a grotesque, I nude picture in front of me. I could t only mumble, "I'have an opinion too" and give him a cold stare. - The question is, "How can wecon6 front--and do It effectively (even if we can't convince these morons of their shortcomIngs)--how can we 'confront thei4 alleviate our pent-up anger, and feel good about it? Upon leaving this mess of affairs, a,fewmoments later I blew up in front of 4 male companion. Oh yes, he agretd,it was "awful", but was . n't I "over-reacting"? This is the inevitable reaction. 1 Goddamnit, I was mad, and still. am--not just at that pakticutat 44uation, but at our society that taughs at women being victimized, and then tnies to make women feet vittq because we "oven. -Aeact". (Ed. italics) ' I was also accused of being "judgemental" and "moralistic'. But alas, when men make similar kinds of condemnations, they are being "rational", and are condoned for attacking the root problem and the evils in -society. So what if I am being "judgemental"? I am trying to stop violence and oppression. If we all merely shrugged our shoulders and made excuses for people's behaviour, women would still not have the vote, and blacks would still be enslaved. Why mat I accept everyone? Why must (Ed. I Love my Op01440A4? 1 can't. itatit4) That brings me to another point: people claim "the oppressors are oppressed themselves". How can. this be so? They have the wealth, the power and the tools to liberate us all, but they will not--their world is too comfortable. They are not oppressed- they are content. We are in the Tidst of a battle to save our local Planned Parenthood from the terrible onslaught of Campaign Life. Campaign Life has "requested" City Council to withdraw funding from Planned Parenthood, because they are manti-chuch, anti-state and antifamily". I use the phrase "request" loosely-.-the Knights Of Columbus, as well as private citizens in Saskatoon, have threatened to withhold taxes, both municipal and federal, if the governments continue funding. The Campaign Life group has money to pay for a "campaign", while they print information out of context and publish pictures of alleged "abortions". They are free to distribute their information through-the mail because they have "paid for it". They are free to make false allegations in city council briefs because they have "contacts" who can get them on the agenda. Meanwhile, where is the rest of the population that disagrees and wants continued support for Planned Parenthood? The press gives them no time, and they have no funds to help them organize. Despite this, we are trying and we will be damned if a few boisterous, wealthy, misinformed, misguided individuals will have their way. How can 1 Love these people and be non-judgemental when I must-Aight so 6eveti6h- ty to Atop the 't opimiAAive match? (Ed. itaticA) I cannot even be accused of emotion aliam, although I am angry and will occasionally erupt, for I've studied the reasons for the oppression. We feminists have analyzed the social, political, economic and psychological structures of society, and know from our historical analysis who controls these structures. We know that the male obsession with power, wealth and competition is destructive and unhealthy. We want these structures changed. We are not interested in replacing the men in their positions of power. Simply put, we want egalitarianism- equality based on co-operativeness, and that is not "emotional". The questions for me, as I am sure it is for other women, are: Where do we put our energies so that eventually our ends are met? Do we surround ourselves with those who agree and live in our own constructed, co operative world, or do we fight this monstrous "system", multi-headed, strong and wealthy? If we choose to' . fight it, how do we fight it, and from what vantage point? Do we ocasionally compromise working within the system, turning its own tools upon itself to gain power to change it, or do we fight from without, attacking and invalidating the system when we can? I am not sure I know where to place this energy ready to erupt. I am still young--even an infant in the feminist movement- -but I am not always content to-follow the advice of more vell,seasoned feminists. It if inevitably, a personal choice, and I guess in order to satisfy my own curiosity, I will try both at different times in my life. As long as there are women like yourselves who are there for support, there will be solice, even if only occasionally. I can remember hearing other women talk about "the struggle" and wondered what they were talking about. Itcs all beginning to take form; slowly, I am beginning this journey of struggle. Thank-you for taking my hand. In sisterhood, Kathie 1 THUNDERCLAP THUNDERBOLT (Vol. 2, Issue 2--April, 1975) To the banquet manager of the Royal Edward Hotel, for perpetuating the stereotyped, false image of a "women's libber". He was overheard spouting off, during the I.W.Y. Women's Centres Conference held at the Royal Edward Hotel, about the braless, intimidating, jean-wearing females that invaded the hotel for the weekend. During his derogatory comments, the woman involved in the "conversation" with him asked with trepidation if they were all from Thunder Bay--and sighed with relief at his reply, that no they were from all across Canada. To further mention perhaps for our ... protect your eyeballs from strain, Mr. Manager--not to the hotel'S "reputation"we will choose another hotel next conference. And we all know what happened to the Royal Eddy in '84. P.S. For Danalyn MacKinnon,Margot Blight, and Mary Rakowski who have been active on women's issues in Thunder Bay and are now headed for Law School. August 1984 photo credits Many of the photos on page 21 were taken by Joyce Michatchuk. Uniontunatety, we ate unable to ckedit the othelt photogitapheA as they ate unknown. NORTHERN WOMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �roman Jourtict(ay Editorial: Our Heritage True to her Taurian nature, the paper has stubbornly persisted, bouncing back into publication from innumerable bouts of self-criticism, colic, fractures, diversity diarrhea, and funding influenza. Her health has stabilized for the time being and we, the bright-eyed collective, hope, from past experience, to have learned the proper perscription to ensure the well-being of the Northern Woman. Since May 1973, her birthmonth, the paper has changed in her intent. Originally conceived as an attempt to keep communications open among those who attended the Northern Women's Conference at Confederation Collegeduring the previous month, the Northern Woman's Newsletter served as a "bulletin board of events". The first subscription list (approximately ZOO in number) was, in fact, the list of registered conference women. A donation of one dollar was requested from the readers. With the help of a feminist government employee_, the paper was able, to get free paper and nostage, as no funding was available. By October of the same year, the collective publishing the paper had grown to ten women and a decision was made to use the publication as a fortm for "free and open exchange of the views and opinions" that unified women of Northwestern Ontario in their attempts for political and personal emancipation. During that first year, the Northern Woman had already begun to display the first signs - teething pains then - that eventually lead her to death's door three times. The major problem, demonstrated by the Journal's turbulent health status, has been the functioning of the collective. In June 1974, September 1977, and once again September 1979, the collective had not been able to resolve the contradictions of "collective development" and journal "publishing". For the most part, a lack of balance developed./ Women were using the collective for support to offset problems not related to 'publishing the paper. There was a strong need for the collective to equalize the consciousness of its members through discussion of feminist, socialist issues. Some women felt intimidated by these concepts and could not accept them. Yet the needs of the readership (receiving the newspaper to which they subscribed) were not met, as a result. These different levels of consciousness also lead to a conflict of opinion on content. How can we not threaten the conservative feminist and yet still be radical? The collective wanted the Journal to reflect feminist opinions with as much original material as possible, but these varied greatly ' in scope and perspective. Achievement of consensus took a lot of time and energy. As well, the various collectives that were born and reborn, did not have an understanding of the group process, Many women experienced the inability to develop bonding and mutual trust. Many did not know how to give and receive constructive criticism, and ' there was no vehicle to facilitate this type of expression. A lack of continuity in membership emphasized the problem. Originating from the background of a patriarchal society, the collec'Ave had a tendency to delegate power to one or a few people, and expected strong leadership from her (them). This added a case of acne to an already chicken-poxed situation. After operating out of members homes, the Northern Woman moved to the newly established Women's Centre located at the YM/YWCA building on Archibald Street in Apri1,1974. By October of the next year, the Journal moved again to her own, larger space at 316 Bay Street. The collective felt inhibited by the Women's Centre, seeing it as a place for women just beginning to consider feminism. These women would feel intimidated by a radical feminist paper. (In May 1977, the Women's Centre joined the newspaper at Bay Street.) Additionally, being so closely related to the Women's Centre, many lastminute decisions fell into the hands of the Centre, with no collective consensus possible. Time pressure manifested itself in other forms, too. The long and tedious process of developing the collective; equalizing its members' awareness; accomodating consciousness raising; all these contributed to burning the midnight oil before the printing deadline. -And we all know what lack of sleep can do for one's health. Volunteers had other commitments also, and could not spend all their time nursing the newspaper. In the past, government funding was seen as heaven-sent. Paid staff were viewed as the necessary blood transfusion that alleviated the sparcity of volunteer donor time. The Northern Woman has received government assistance on four .occasions : in October 1973, $1,200 from the Ministry of Community and Social Services; in April 1974, $10,000 granted to the Women's / Centre from the Secretary of State's Women's Program, shared with the newspaper collective and helped fund the purchase of a Gestetner machine; in January 1977, L.I.P. paid salary and expenses for two workers for six months; in October 1978, Canada Works paid for one salaried worker plus materials and supplies. Unfortunately, accomodating a combination of volunteers and paid staff followed with too much responsibility being placed in the hands of the salaried women. The volunteers saw no need for their services now that someone was being paid. to do the work. - Furthermore, the old problem of al accepting government legiance arose: money in one hand, and being a thorn in the government's posterior in the other hand. This, no doubt, is the dilemma for countless community ggen-: cies and_organizations attempting to stay alive and well. The present collective is hopeful for the continuing livelihood of the Northern Woman. We shall continue, in the past tradition, our editorial policies: encouraging feminist awareness seeking articles of particular relevance to Northwestern Ontario women, portraying women in a positive light and promoting the development. of feminist analysis in writing. Throughout our herstory, the recurring maladies of the collective have been twofold: not enough women were involved, and, there'..lever seem- ed to be anytime to spend on the collective (as opposed to the production of the paper). From June to December, 1980, the collective regained its stamina. advertisements for midwives to assist in the rebirth of the paper were sent out. The born-again collectivist worked on issues of the fainily, sexuality; was urged to read feminist books; and basically got to know herself and- the other members. 44101W Based on this, and our former experiential knowledge, we have attempted to introduce some positive developments. We are not accepting any government support (for the time /being) and are promoting financial independence. - We are sure that feminist publications in the journalistic never -never land have experienced similar illness es, if not'the same epidemics. Hopefully we will be able to share their experiences and remedies for the encouragement of sisterhood in better health. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISIONNORTHERN PDFCompressor AT OMAN page 5 �Health Dear Readers: This is the second issue of the Northern Woman to be put out by her newly formed collective. It is also the first paper for 1980. The collective is very busy both studying feminist issues as well as soliciting articles and writing for the Northern Woman. The major focus for this paper is Women and Health. Our intent, through these health articles, many of which are personal experiences, is to begin a process of women sharing - sharing our concerns, our anger, our fears - and through this sharing obtain the strength to take control of our bodies, our minds, our health, our environment. The issues are broad and the implications far-reaching. Women, when dealing with their bodies and their health must realize that they are facing patriarchy at its worst. Male myths about the female body, the female psyche, have subjected women to mistreatment that we can no longer ignore. The medical profession and the drug industry is a powerful force which claims to own a body of knowledge that the average lay person is unable to comprehend. To do this they have convinced the general population that-our untrained minds are not prepared to deal with the many complex problems of our bodies. Women must question the existing system -- a system that centres on curing illness, rather than on promoting wellness. In this system, which forces us to rely upon hospitals and doctors, drugs and drug companies, the victims are more than often women. The documented evidence of the damage to women grows every day. We are shocked and distressed by the thousands of thalidomide babies, and the millions of women who were given the drug DES. We roar for the thousands of women who have become sterile from the use of male-oriented birth control, as well as dozens of other severe problems. We rage at the control the phallotechnicians have over our reproductive power. They have taken birth, a celebration of life and turned it into a medical/surgical procedure and have done this with great pride. In earlier times healing was a traditionally female domain - female lay healers operated within a network of information sharing and-mutual support. With the onset of modern medicine - male doctors have hoarded knowledge, restricting access to an exclusive minority. They have created in scientific and medical knowledge, a valuable and limited commodity to be traded on the market -place. The wisdom of women is growing and thus our power is increasing. We must now allow the destruction of our minds and bodies to continue. It is crucial that women take responsibility and reclaim our rights/knowledge. The few articles in this journal only scratch the surface of this important subject but we hope they will cause women to question and learn and be strengthened. February 1980 In Sisterhood and Strength, the Northern Woman Journal Collective. 91011111111111111111. Power As the Women In Transition project moves inexorably to disclosure, and we in turn play our full part in exposing the magnitude of violence against women in our community, we have a strange feeling of relief that is echoed over and over again in the personal documentations, Thank God the secret is out, no longer any reason to pretend, as one minister who said, "There are no battered women in my congregation, Our women fear the Lord." One can readily see how difficult it would be for a woman to ask for any kind of help_ It is not easy for society to face up to its own violent instincts. It would be so simple to believe that only the base and deprived had cultivated the art to its present form. So simple to say, it's the drink, it's ' the drugs, its the money, it's the nagging, it's the woman's movement, it's the moral permissiveness, if we didn't know in every case it's the stronger against the weaker, the independent against the dependant and whether it is man against woman or woman against child it is rooted in the drive for independence on the one hand and the need to control on the other. It was inevitable that one day the lid would fly off and we would be forced to recognize and deal with the cycle that pits social pressure against men, men against women, and both men and women against children who in turn:are at war with society. In the past woman has dealt with this brutal part of her reality by turning inward, going mad, protecting the source of her dependence and whether she has done it out of fear or love, the deterioration of her spirit and her loss of self-worth has been reflected in the family. Perhaps this first real break in the cycle comes when women are no longer ashamed to say, "This is the way it is in my life and I see no good and sufficient reason to conceal it or continue to endure it." Our Society has an obligation to provide 'an option, a place of refuge in the immediate and the support structures that encourage her to believe she can make changes that will restore her This is short term for self-worth. the fundamental change has to come from a re-examination of the power structure 'as it applies to personal relationships, and more specifically Gert Beadle May, 19 78 the sexes. I.U.D. P.I.D. Dear Editors: Thank you for the complimentary Enclosed copy of "Northern Woman". Please enter me as a subis $4.50. scriber. Thank you for printing Sandra Steinhause's article on the I.U.D. I had a similar-experience and have been very lonely in the anger and frustration I feel with the medical establishment. I am also a woman who is very conscious of her body and health care in general. Before my decision to have an I.U.D. (CU7) inserted in 1973 I had a lengthy discussion with my gynecologiSt..,I felt fully informed on the pros and cons of this method of birth control. I was told there is a high rate of 'infection' but was not told that this meant pelvic inflammatory disease -- a fertility threatening infection. Nor was I told to contact a doctor upon the first sign of abnormal pain or bleeding. On a Monday in November, 1976, I experienced abnormal bleeding. As I live 10 miles from my gynecologist and planned a trip to town on Friday, I decided to see him at that time. He did, when I saw him, give me a full explanation of all possible conditions that could be causiiig my symptoms. However, he instructed me to check into a hospital on Sunday for a laporetomy This (exploratory surgery) on Monday. three day delay allowed the infection I had to ravage my reproductive system that much longer. On Monday my condition was diagnosed as pelvic inflammatory disease and I was prescribed a high dose of antibiotics. The infection did clear up and my doctor suggested that after I was completely healed I have d test done to see how badly scarred my fallopian tubes are. I had this test done and learned that my tubes are totally blocked with scar tissue, preventing However, he also informpregnancy. ed me that there is surgery that can be performed to remove this scar tissue, which would increase my chance of becoming pregnant to 20%. As I said, my reaction to this whole nightmare is complete horror I feel like a vicand indignation. As I am a woman who prides herself on being in control of her life, this was an extremely demoralizing experience. I am left cynical and bitter towards the entire medical profession which, in the long run, may be better for my health. I must, however, say that Sandra Steinhause's experience surprised me in that I have always felt the best medical attention is to be found in the larger centres. Though,I am not satisfied with the doctor who inserted my I.U.D., the doctor who attended me during my infection, laporetomy and testing is to be highly commended when compared with Sandra's medical tim. team. Thank you, Northern Woman, for allowing me to tell my story and to relieve some of the anger I feel. Sincerely, Marsha Michael Cunningham May 1978 NORTHERN WOMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �the DES story February 1981 by Louise Nichols 9 ** For a full account of the story of DES - including why it took so long to stop doctors and the drug companies from promoting its use in pregnancy, I highly recommend the book "Women and the Crisis in Sex Hormones" by Barbara Seaman, available at the Co-op Bookshop and the Northern Women's Centre Library. But be prepared to become very angry as you read. This book also goes into, in more detail than I have space for, the various treatments and followups for those womenare whofound, are found to a careful colposcopic exhave cancer or abnormalities of vaamination yearly should be sufficient, ginal and cervicalalong tissue. also crap test. FortuwithIta is yearly one of the best information sources nately, Thunder Bay has recently acon birth control and menopause that quired a colposcope, and a local I have found - important reading gynecologist isfor able to perform this all women. procedure. In 1966, a doctor in diagIf Boston adenosis is present, many docnosed a case of adenocarcinoma inconservative a tors feel that management 15 year old girl. by In frequent the next re-examination three is all that years he found sixis similiar cases in necessary; others feel that any women aged fifteenabnormal to twenty-two. tissue should be cauterized He conducted a careful search and or biopsied. In any case, it would be finally made the connection - alla the safest to find doctor who is a DES mothers of the women had taken specialist to DES follow through any during their pregnancies. Since then treatment - this is no time to trust there have been over 250 family cases of in the doctor or any old gynvaginal cancer, the youngest in a ecologist. 7 year old girl, the Since oldestthis in aadenocarcinoma 29 is being year old women. All their found in mothers such young women, checkups received DES during the first should begin 18 by age 14, or earlier if weeks of pregnancy.any symptoms such as abnormal bleeding Adenocarcinoma or is bloodstained a previously discharge between rare type ofvaginal cancer that ocperiods are present. curs in glandular tissue (adeno = And the mothers should be aware gland, carcinoma =that cancer). northere The is suggestion of a slightly mal vagina has no higher glandular tissue; risk of breast cancer or canDES interferes with the of of the uterus in cer offormation the lining normal genital tissue of the fetus. women who have taken DES; this makes Up to 90% of DES daughters have for glanit imperative them to have regular dular tissue (adenosis) in theirexams, vagynecological and to learn and ginas, and a smallpractise percentage of monthly breast self-examinathese have cancer tion. of this glandular tissue. It is not known whether There is some encouraging news. It presence of the adenosis is a many signal seems that cases of adenosis heal of a precancerous state. Incidentally, themselves gradually with time. But it has been found there that male children are also other considerations for exposed to DES in utero are also DES daughters, showwhether they have noring effects. Theremal is checkups a higher or incinot. It seems clear dence in these males of no undescended that DES daughter should further testicles, semen abnormalities, expose herselfand to hormones in the form possible sterility.of birth control pills, post-menopausal Now - assuming that you've talked estrogen replacement therapy, the to your mother, and"morning that sheafter took pill" (which may be DES during her pregnancy you, DES:), with or the hormones used to dry up and that she was told what it reallywhen the woman milk after birth was - what should you do from doesn't wishhere? to breastfeed. And the There is a veryIUD specific examina-complicate the chroncould further tion procedure that be followed icmust cervix inflammation many DES in checking DES daughters - anything daughters have. On the other hand, the less is not good enough. Because jellies the contraceptive used with the adenosis and/or cancerous cells of diaphragm seem to the have a healing efvagina are not visible to adenosis, the naked because of their fect on eye, a special instrument called a acidifying effect. So there is availcolposcope is used. This is in essence able a non-harmful method of birth a kind of magnifying instrument control which speccan actually be benefiifically designed for microscopically cial. examining the vagina and cervix, Finding out and that you are a DES will show up any areas of abnormality. daughter, or that you have taken DES A regular pap test, while excellent for yourself, is a frightening thing. detecting abnormalBut changes of the cerit is important that you become vix, will miss such changesabout in the informed the problem so you can vagina. Colposcopic examination is necbe sure you will get proper care. essary. In addition, many doctors Knowledge helps also you to deal with fear. use an iodine stain solution to paint I am a DES daughter. If anyone the vagina and cervix, since any would like moreadeninformation, or needs osis does not pick to up talk the stain and about her own sitto someone can thus be distinguished from normal uation, or necOs to.know where to go The woman's movement has had an incredible effect on the way women approach the health care system. No ;longer passive consumers, women are learning how their bodies work, demanding information, finding out about alternatives, confronting patronizing and sexist attitudes, and asking lots of questions. One of the important questions for many women however, those born from the late forties to about 1971, is one they should be asking their mothers. In the last five years or so, there has been some media exposure of the discovery of a rare type of vaginal cancer in young women whose mothers took the synthetic estrogen DES (diethylstilbestrol) during their early pregnancies. First used in a study of 632 women in Massachusetts in 1943, DES was thought to be effective in treating threatened miscarriage, enabling the woman to continue her pregnancy to term. It was subsequently used to treat an estimated six million women in the US., Canada, Australia, Mexico, Belgium, France, and Britain. The story of DES is truly astounding. The earliest studies, despite the claim that the researchers felt it could be effective in maintaining pregnancy threatened by miscarriage, undertaken on women who were were having normal pregnancies; none of the women were informed that they were receiving DES -- some recall being told they were being given "vitamins". A subsequent study in Chicago in 1952, comparing a group of women receiving DES and a control group receiving a placebo (an inactive substance), showed that not only did the DES group not have healthier pregnancies, but that twice as many DES mothers had miscarriages as the control group; they also had more high blood pressure and smaller babies than the mothers receiving 0.acebos. Another study in New Orleans confirmed these results. So as early as 1952 it had been shown that there was no value to using DES in pregnancy. It had also been proven as early as 1940 that DES caused cancer in mice. But DES continued to be used until 1971 to treat pregnant women, exposing a possible 25 to 30 thousand women per year and their fetuses to a hormone which by 1969 was clearly proven to tissue. be carcinogenic in humans.** If no adenosis or abnormalities ' , . foLa -'... up, I can be contacted through tiiis paper. NORTHERN WOMAN page 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �HORMONES so much for miracles? by Gert Beadle they encourage, such as fluid reten- February 1980 tion. The questions I ask myself are My personal experience with hormones for menopausal distress began as I neared fifty. After having a hysterectomy at thirty-four for fibroids, I had, it seemed to me, a never-ending condition of hOt flushes, nervous exhaustion and continuous nausea. I was employed full time as an R.N.A. and although I am an energetic person mentally, I found myself struggling to maintain that posture physically. When it was suggested to me by a doctor that hormones might solve some of my problems, and I was assured that a refusal at the time of my surgery was no longer a factor, I gratefully began to take 1.25 Premarin in the prescribed small price to pay for this new health, but no one told me what the consequences of going off them would be. After taking them for fifteen years, I felt that they were contributing to fluid retention, which had become a problem. At the same time I became more aware of the dangers inherent in birth control pills, and so, without consultation with the medical authorities, I took my last pill and said, "That's all". The results of this decision were catastrophic. I went into shock of withdrawal and was delivered to Emergency without body temperature and cyanosed I had begun to perspire in the morning in no ordinary way and throughout the day continued to try to soak up the perspiration with towels, but by 7 o'clock I was flaking out,and was sure I. was having a heart attack. I am now taking o.625 Premarin which is equivalent to half of my former prescription and have gradually cut the need to 2 weeks out of 4 but I was reminded just this last month that to cut it further is'to revive all the old symptoms of hot flushing and depression. At sixty-four, I have come to the realization that I may well have to take them as long as I live, regardless of any other symptoms a ' dosage. Hormones at this time were enjoying a period of approval by some medical men. I was, for instance, given a book to read on its magic powers. Good for the bones, good for the nerves, an elixor of life. If it couldn't save your marriage, it would go a long way to making your husband happY. So I was prepared for a miracle and it seemed to happen. The difference in my physical wellbeing was spectacular. I ran cool, energy returned, mental stress and nausea abated. I was told once starting that I would probably have to take them all my life and at the time I felt it was these. 1. Had I not taken them, would the cycle of discomfort have come to an end in a short time and made them un necessary? 2. How much did my needing to work for financial reasons pressure me in to the decision?? 3. How much of my battle with weight gain do I owe this magic pill? 4. How much blood pressure and fluid retention? 5. If I had known what I know now, would I have made the same decision? I have learned since that having had a hysterectomy some of the danger inherent in the pill is not a threat to me, but we ought to know more about chemical imbalance and the withdrawal that accompanies what we often think of as common medication. It is not in my nature to be depender, and hormones are one dependence I have had to settle for. One plus that I have granted the pill is that I shall be a pensioner before my hair turns grey. 4;117::Ittii.treArC->Q)....44kitO. ) ';' , ottril Vracif trpoe N11" f/44'01,ficlif 4<4./V/flY (itt Wo+ Wee, ,X 9Le ty/6, o MIRROR MIRROR ON THE. CERVIX o JC_114 gRc911-t&M At the Duluth CER4g.9( before Community Health with myrestrictio government Centre I was expertly no fitted use ain Canada. own cervical cap by Jan, nurse pragtitioner. During the As twowehour proceeded, I pl fitting we discussed my reasonsinfor speculum my vagina an the wanting the cap -- mainly to avoid mirror positioned betwee of extensive (also expensive) use could watch as the nurse spermacides when-using routine my diaphragm. pap smear and pe The American Food & Drug Administraamination, (as reguired tion (F.D.A.) recommends one drop of The pap results are sent Non Oxynol 9 spermacide in the cap family doctor or you may and to leave the cap on the cervix the clinic, whichever yo effective for three days as it is US,cervix clea for that peroid of time. To In see the my since July 19, 1981 cervical caps the flashlight onto the m only by those proThe nurse deliberately c may be dispensed viders who have obtained Investone an size smaller than ex and igational Device Exemption number fit and placed it on my approvedmystudy. are conducting an FDA Feeling cervix with m So to comply with the FDA regI could tell that the ca ulations I had to sign a consent form PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Midwifery : a labour of love The following are excerpts from a conversation between Barbara Kemeny and interviewer Melissa Tefft. so the midwives role was one of support and reassurance For most North Americans midwifery is a very unfamiliar concept. Would you describe your work and the heritage of being a midwife in Europe? In Germany the midwife has maintained her tradition for hundreds of years. She is first of all a woman. She is educated in and responsible for the physiology of preg-, nancy, birth, and post natal care of the mother and child. In the old days, birthing was an accepted part of life and the midwives were healers and highly respected members of the town. The midwives role was one of support and reassurance to a natural process. Once the child was born she supervised the expulsion of the placenta, tied off the umbilical cord and cared for the mother and infant during recovery. She based her work on the idea of permitting the birth to unfold with little or no interference. Once the child was born she supervised the expulsion of the placenta, tied off the umbilical cord and cared for the mother and infant during recovery. She based her work on the idea of permitting the birth to unfold with little or no interference. During the 1500 and 1600's leaders of Christianity linked the midwives with the witches and proclaimed them demons of the church. The atrocities.. committed to ensure the elimination of the women healers often left a village with only one woman. Through these extensive burnings continued over centuries, the babies continued to be born and the women continued to secretly teach each other the birthing process. With the rise of medical schools and medical technology, doctors made themselves available to deal with complications of delivery. With the invention of forceps in the 1720's, the midwife/doctor debate began as to who was to have control over attending births. Fortunately, in the mid 1800's in Europe the importance of the midwife was finally recognized. Training became subsidized by the government and midwifery was now part of the medical profession. The midwives maintained control as overseers of the births and doctors were called in only for pathology or a very high risk birth. Such high risks and/or pathology were exceptions and not expectations. Today in Germany because of the technology and urbanization the midwife's connection with the commlunity has changed, but she still delivers most of the babies in hospitals and at home. The doctors are available for crisis situations but the midwife still makes the decisions. Legally a doctor cannot even examine, much less operate on la birthing mother except in the ;presence and with the approval of ithe midwife. tiMISISMISIISRWSGT How would you describe the midwife's work with one mother? First of all, especially with the home birth, the midwife is involved with the whole pregnancy. Visits start early in the pregnancy and become more frequent as the birthing time arrives. The midwife takes the time not only to do physical checkups but to advise and talk about nutrition, exercise, sexuality, fears, wishes, relationships; whatever is most on the mother's mind. The midwife develops a relationship with the partner or coach who may be assisting with the birth. When the birthing time arrives she aids the mother in labour and birth. Following the birth, the midwife stays as long as it is necessary and then comes daily to help with the adjustment, breastfeeding, questions, and any possible complications. You see the principle of birth is the same for every woman, and yet each woman's unique and,body how and she baby dealsare with her pregnancy too is unique. So here is where the midwife beside having her technical skills must learn to be very open minded and critical so that she may respond,torrespect the needs of the mother. 4416MMI00-4 With a birth by a midwife the woman has the opportunity to take full responsibility for her choices, her actions, her birth, and her child. She is not strapped down, drugged, cut up or rushed through the birth process. There is such an opportunity here for bonding and for the mother and father (should he choose to participate) to really know where this child has come from. Most important, the midwife does not deliver the baby, the mother does. The role of the midwife is to simply help and support using the power of her knowledge. How do you see birthing in North. America today?' That they have taken the control away from women is evident in most births in North America today. This is a system of maternity care which first of all forces most women to deliver in hospitals. The prenatal visits are quick and the pregnant woman has little opportunity to be informed of the process that she is part of. She becomes part of a dehumanizing, institutional assembly line where, instead of being part of a family drama where her work and wishes are respected, she is stripped of personal possessions and placed in stark, sterile surroundings as someone ready to undergo an operation or imprisionment. After her by APrii,a19,8,0,, hard work and pain of delivering, her child is whisked away. She faces routine shaving of her pubic hair, routine episiotomy, anesthesia, routine use of forceps and a rack like delivery bed. Only a few years ago it was routine to strap a woman down if she got too 'excited'. All of these procedures - rather than aiding the birthing woman, serve only the interests of the medical profession in pulling out the child. They are completely counter to the birthing process. They have transformed it into a feared ordeal. One has to ask why the doctors have fought so hard for control over our basic female function and can onl conclude they must be compelled to interfere with our birthing out of jealousy and fear of women's generative powers. You see the responsibility of birth i taken away by the doctors. We must take this power back and assume the responsibility once more both for our selves and our children. Because we have no training fac -. ilities in Canada for midwifery, many women have become lay midwives by apprenticing or training with each other and setting up in effect their own intimate schools. How do you feel about these lay midwives? On one hand it is so good that women are refusing the hospital and creating their own births. In British Columbia there is a group of women who organized themselves to learn birthing. They set up an extensive study group using medical books and had nurse midwives come and teach them and then they began delivering their own children. These kinds of actions are what kept midwifery alive during the witch burnings in Europe. The only warning I would have here is that even though birthing is natur there are ways to help a mother birth and there is much knowledge and experience that a midwife acquires after training and delivering babies. It is an art and great respect should be given to the training involved. There are some who think because they have attended a. few births they know all about it. Although their experiences are valid, the long experience is necessary to give the birOing mother the best care possible. I am always for personal responsibility and people being strong with themselves. In the case of birthing I would suggest that only a midwife with good experience and theoretical knowledge should attend the mother. I respect the technology that medicine has developed but in the hands of most doctors the technology is abused and over used. In the hands of conscious women or men this butchery would not happen. I would like to see willing/progressive doctors and nurse midwives open to sharing their knowledge and experienc with the lay midwives. I do know that the lay midwives are starved for more knowledge. My vision and hope is that women will take their power back and that the doctors will be forced continued page 14 311,11MIIIM111111111110, NORTHERN WOMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Findings & outcomes of the ROYAL COMMISSION . May 19 79 life in a small town Remember when the Royal Commission on the Northern Environment came trapsing through the north? If so, you may be interested in the background paper expresses the cumulative opinions the expressed at the various hearing held in the small towns throughout the region. The entire publication can be acquired by writing The Royal Commission on the Northern Environment, Manulife Centre, 55 Bloor St. West, Room 801, Toronto, M4W 1A5. However, to deal with it in part, the following is a representative portion of Chapter 5 from the section entitled WOMEN IN THE NORTH SEEK JUSTICE: ...the Commission learned that traditionally, it would be left to the native women to break camp, move family and belongings and set up another home following the seasonal pursuits of hunting, trapping, fishing and gathering. Trapping has often been a male-female team effort among native people, with'the women helping to set traps and retrieve the catch and invariably scraping the furs and tanAing the hides. Today in the north, trapping, commercial fishing and wild rice harvesting are usually partnership efforts for men and women. At the turn of the century, white women came to live in the north in some numbers during the second phase of "civilizing" the country, the period after the wilderness had been mapped. Traders' wives, missionaries, teachers--they all contributed to life in the north. Later came the miners' wives, the bullcooks working in the lumber camps and the women of easy virtue in the mining boom towns. For women, the north meant adapting themselves to a rough and narrow lifestyle created and dominated by men. It was not a comfortable life nor a familiar one... While there was some contact between native and white women over the years, close friendships were unusual... The division still exists to a considerable extent today in northern towns, i.e. white people live in towns, native people mainly in shanties on the outskirts or on reserves.... In recent years, some younger women of both cultures have been learning to recognize feelings and life experiences that they share in common, goals which can bring them together as women... Issues raised by women in the north were basically similar to those voiced by their sisters in the south. They need facilities for pre-school children to allow mothers freedom to seek employment or pursue cultural interests. They want interval houses to allow them protection from beatings or abuse. They want job opportunities to give them greater economic independence and allow them to have a greater say in the devel opment of the area. The problems northern women share with their southern sisters are compounded by the realities of living in a remote community. Isolation, inadequate housing, lack of cultural and recreational facilities and a shortage of activities and occupations outside the home all serve to make life harder for women in the north: "Fear, isolation, lack of financial resources, transportation and child care are all factors that make living in the north a very difficult place for women to grow and participate as citizens of Ontario." (NWO International Women's Decade Co-ordinating Council, Nakina) An almost total absence of paid employment opportunities for women characterized a number of communities visited by the Commission. One reason for this lack, the Commission was told, was the dependance, typical in the north, of an entire community on a single employer, generally a resource extraction industry: "In single industry communities... the majority of jobs will be male oriented and the traditional female employment opportunities will not be as prevalent as in a more diversified southern community." (Timmins Women's Resource Centre, Timmins.) In part, there are few jobs for women, daycare services and facilities are inadequate and costly; and without daycare facilties, the new jobs for women are further out reach... With few opportunities for employment outside the home, a northern woman is restricted to her home and family. Concern was expressed about: "...the alarming increase of mental illness of young women attributed to the never-ending stress associated with caring for small children in cramped company houses, trailers or mobile homes." (NWO International Womens Decade Co-ordinating Council, Nakina.) Not only do women experience the psychological strain of isolated northern communities. Men too suffer the tension of an unstable way of life. Tragically, the victims of their frustrations are often their wives and their children: "...The top priority expressed by women in the communities we visited was the desperate need for crisis or interval housing. Small communities lack even the minimal social support services.,;." The stresses of women living in' isolation are compounded for those who come to the north later in life, perhaps following a husband who has found employment: "Those of us born here are accusto ed to the conditions. We value our environment four independance, selfreliance and pace of life while recog nizing mutual dependency in times of emergency...TO newcomers...the weathe conditionsi can be debilitating, inadequate hoOsing...demoralizing, the ab sence of medical service close at han frightening; and recreational and educational facilities virtually nonexistent for women, depressing.... (Kenora Women's Coalition, Kenora) Many women are concerned that expansion and neat development would caus further probler-s. An influx of worker both single and married, imposes a bu den on a community which may not be a to support it. Once bgain, those who suffer most tend to be women and chid ren: "The social impact of (development) will effect all members of the commun ity, but it may have a particular impact on women, their children and their communities. Aggravated housing problems, the pressures of overcrewdi and the deterioration in the public ptilities...would fall mainly on wome who, during the long northern winters are often alone at home." (KenoraRainy River District Health Council) Native women in particular feel the negative impact of development. Sometimes an isolated native communit is forced to absorb an influx of people without any preparation or assistance... The Commission was reminded that development, with its influx of transient workers, creates other problems for native women: "We are concerned with the sexual exploitation of our native women, through the availability of alcohol and out communities being close to the camps; the evidence of violent attacks on women, rape, illegitimate pregnancies, unwanted children, prostitution and venereal disease wil rise beyond a social problem.(Ontaric Native Women's Association, Geraldton) Generally, the women of the north, both women and non-native women, recognized that industrial activities of some sort are inevitable. Consequently, they were determined that continued page 20 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN VOMAN page 10 �--- by JOAN BARIL "I've had a terrible, terrible winter", the young woman told me. "My husband was unemployed and he became very despondent, very low. It affected all of us. He's got a job now, thank heavens, so it's a bit better." These remarks could be seconded by many local women who are seeing their family happiness and stability being strangled by the economic system. This Second World Depression has women by the throat. In Canada, it has also caused the "feminization of poverty" - the growing tendency of poor people to be women and it has caused an increase in the number of poor. More than a quarter of Canadian households now live in poverty, states a report released in June by the Canadian Council on Social Development and young single mothers, their children and elderly women are the chief victims. The average Canadian family of three earns $30,000 a year. Women headed families earn much less, often under the $15,000 poverty line for a threeperson family. Mothers on welfare spend most of the money on rent and often do without food for the sake of the children, the report found oo The third annual conference of local and regional francophone women of the Comite des Femmes du Nord Ouest, held at the Ramada Inn in mid-May, started off with a dynamic address by keynote speaker Jacqueline Pelletier of Ottawa. At the pornography workshop, which was co-ordinated by Line Jolicoeur of Sudbury, the women discussed the movie "Not a Love Story" and a slideshow called "Sticks and Stones" which was prepared by Sudbury women. Also of interest was a workshop given by Blanche Doucette of Canada Employment which introduced the francophone program "New Start" to the women. Conference organizer. Carol Ann Collins, believes that the policy of giving money directly to mothers to pay their day care allowed several women ments June 11, 1984. Doreen Boucher of the local Physical and Sexual Assault Centre testified for the crown. She claimed that less than half of rape victims report their assault to the police at present and that publication of the victim's name would further deter the reporting of rape. The next day, Judge Coulter Osborne ruled that the relevant section in the Criminal Code was not unconstitutional. However the decision is being challenged by tilt- Chronicle- Journal in the Ontario Court of Appeals and will probably come up this fall. Because the victim's right to anonymity is important to all women, the Thunder Bay Physical and Sexual Assault Centre has begun fund raising to defray legal costs. (Send donations to #18 - 214 Red River Rd., Thunder Bay, P7B 1A7) hers of city council to frame a bylaw restricting availability of pornography to children. A draft of sue a by-law is now being studied The Decade Council in con- junction with the Ontario Advisory Council on the Status of Women is holding a "Women's Forum" in Dryden, September 15 & 16 at the Best Western Hotel. This is an opportunity fol northern women to present their concerns either orally or in a written brief. For information call Leni Untinen at (807) 345-3631 or 683-523( During the past winter, it became clear that the Ontario government's massive cut-backs and changes to the day care system will make quality day care less and less available for most children. Only the children of the rich and the very poor will be eligible. The local Women's Centre is studying the issue through it project Pro-Daycare. Part of the work is a survey of local needs using a random sample from the voters' list. Ruth Wells and Cary Marshall will co-ordinate surveyors Beatrice Donay, Jo-Ann Himes, Simone Desmoulin, Kaija Voulilainen, Karen Aylward and Cathy Arthur. In early August, two community forums will -be held to inform the public. Mary Rakowski and Margot Blight are asking women to get involved here to The Faye Peterson Transition House will be moving to Fort William because of zoning problems in their Port Arthur location. We need an alternative mode] for health care in Northwestern Ontario - a plan to focus on education, self-help, and prevention. This is one conclusion of the survey on Womer Health Needs in Northwestern Ontario done by Jane Ramsay for the N.W.O. Women's Health Education Project. Fif teen northern communities participate in the report which was released in early June. The report shows Northerr women suffering from many forms of isolation - isolation from their families and from other support systems. Many communities lack doctors, nursir homes, birth control clinics, obstetrical and childbirth facilities, day care centres, battered wives refuges and healthful environments free from pollution. As a long term goal the report recommends "Well-Woman" clinics run on a self-help model. In the short term, the Health project has offered several well-attended public forums and workshops. In the works are workshops on Patient's Rights and Responsibilities, Birth Control, Breaking the Diet Habit and help formulate methods to ensure our children and our sisters' children have access to good quality and available day care woe to attend who otherwise would not have been able to. She also credits Sylvie Gagnon, Secretary of State and Lise Provost from Atikokan for a successful Conference A recent conviction for sexual assault on June 15, 1984 marks the first time in Thunder Bay a husband has been convicted of raping his wife. The couple were separated at the time. He was sentenced to seven months with a day pass to continue his job plus a year's probation. The case is also notable for the constitutional challenge made to the section of the Criminal Code which can forbid the publication or broadcast of the name of a rape victim. Prior to the trial an application was made for non-publication of the accused's last name as well as the victim's since, because they were married, publication of his name automatically would make public her name as well. The Chronicle-Journal countered with an application that section 442.3 of the criminal code which allows the anonymity of victims, violated the Charter of Rights. A special assize session heard the argu- Pre-MenstruIl Syndrome a change in Prime Minister During the spring, Fiona Karlstedt of the Northern Women's Centre spoke to several community groups including the Rotary Club breakfast, the Women's Institute, various religious groups, classes at Port Arthur Collegiate and Confederation College including the WITT class (Women in Trades and Technology) On June 19, Fiona and Margot Blight presented the Centre's brief on pornography to two members of the Fraser Commissiot at the Red Oak Inn. They also presented the results of a survey made on local stores which showed that pornographic material was widespread and within easy access of children. Among other briefs was an excellent presentation by the Thunder Bay Police Department which pointed out that pornographic videos were widely available. The Women's Centre supports the attempts by mem- . and cabinet but still very few dresses to be seen in the suit and tie brigade. P.M. Turner says his party welcomes women candidates and Brian Mulroney says the same thing. The actors change but the river of political rhetoric flowing over women never ceases. Can we look forward to any concrete action from these parties? The provincial Conservatives whose activities to encourage the advancement of women in the party ar( just about nil,and whose commitment to affirmative action and equal pay for work of equal value is less than nil, now blame women for not becoming candidates. "They are" says Premier William Davis, "too sensitive for politics". It's the old one-two so familiar for feminists. One: keep women out of the old-boy club and two: claim it's the women's fault goo continued on next page- PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN :47 OMAN pa ge 11 �OUR TIME IS NOW woo If Canadian women as a whole are awash in a river of patronizing political platitudes, consider Native women who have survived NORTHERN WOMAN'S a Niagara of words on the question of status and still the whole issue is dead in the water. Late in June, much too close to the end of the parliamentary session, the government introduced several bills and, fighting for recognition among them, was a long awaited measure to allow her a status Native woman to retain non-status status if she marries a the the bill hitFriday 11.30 - 7.30 man. By the time open Thursday, short that it 11.30 - 4.30 Senate, time was soSaturday needed unanimous consent to pass. It was shot down by one vote. The Prime Minister has the ability to and start to SEPT, 8th ask the Senate to return 23rd AUGUST BOOK STORE . debate. Will he? The Canadian Women's Music and Cultural Festival will be held in Kildonan Park in Winnipeg, Sept. 1 & 2. An event expected to draw Over 20 acts from across the country, the Festival will feature women performers from diverse regional and cultural backgrounds whose musical styles range from folk, rock, blues and jazz to traditional. Art displays and children's entertainment also will be featured. The theme of the Festival - Our Time Is Now - refers to the great wealth of artistic and cultural expression emerging as women's voices start to be heard. Because it often deals with themes of particular concern to women, 'Women's Music" has begun to develop a distinct identity of its own,.similar to the way cultural groups have established their own musical traditions. 10% off all FICTION For further information contact: Kris Anderson or Joan Miller, Festival organizers at (204) 786-1921 20-40% off selected titles trizotpi 316 Bay St. 344-7979 Studio D, the women's pro- gram of the National Film Board have FOR catalogue CON COLLEGE been sending out HURRAH their new of women's films called "Beyond the set up a course Ruth Cunningham has Films about Women Image: A Guide-: to how to develop and to train people on excellent catalogue and Change. This Affirmative Action or co-ordinate NPR office, is available,at the localan Programs for Women, It's a must for Equal 900 Victoria Avenue. disabled people racial minorities or educators and organizations in government or private organizations. of the New If more folks know how to do it, mayould give Canbe it will get done. It is seldom ed of the feuation of the vealed. The ethnic pride evaluate women. Good news and happy reading for n the four women in Northwestern Ontario. m O'Young gave So that readers in the district of the belief communities may have access to responsible the wonderful feminist books said, "No, available, the Northern Woman's , and whatever Bookstore is offering a Mail been accepted Order service. The Bookstore is n males ... are presently preparing an annotated ... women are catalogue describing the varen. They are not ious books in stock: feminist a vindication theory, women's issues, health, ad endured two peace and non-violence, interstood through national women's concerns, etc., estimony. The and a listing of fiction, scid and although ence fiction, biographies and wn, her identity The catalogue will be poetry. became a scapeupdated (at least) semi-annually. atred. Ten thouThe Mail Order service is exmarched in suppected to be op erational by claiming their October. To re ceive a catan was "an attack logue, please s end $2.00 to ge". The fact Northern Woman' s Bookstore, self was Portu316 Bay St., Th under Bay, Ont. he state prosceP7B1S1, phone ( 807) 344-7979. an nothing. Beand death threats, New titles recently obtained hiding. A feminby the Northern Woman's Booker" reports that store include: ed in New Bedford Women Who Do and Women Who Don't ey to hire a hit (Join the Women's Movement) WOMEN IN COMMUNITY A three-day conference exploring communal life as it affects the lives of women, August 31 to September 3. Workshops on women's culture, women and work, feminist therapy, communal childrearing, relationships, women's health, etc. Facilitated by women living and working communally. Fees on a sliding scale $35 to $75. For information or to register, write: DandelioRgqinggauAwR-. 1, Enter(613) 358prise, Ontarid KOK'1Z0 2304. Mail Order Service edited by Robyn Rowland epression in women: Writing Women Women Writers functional to and Women in Literature Medire of 'depeval to Modern, by Sheila concept Delany use 'oppression' enraging factors in Girls Are Powerful Young Woperson". men's Writings from Spare Rib the ein PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using Sexual Violence The Reality for Women, London Rape Crisis Centre Office Work Can Be Dangerous to Your Health A Definitive Guide To A Better Workplace with the latest information on: video display terminals, indoor office air pollution, the hidden effects of faulty office design, and more by Jeanne Stellman, PhD and Mary Sue Henifin, M Ph. Women of Ideas (And What Men Have Done to Them) bv Dale Spender Intruders on the Rights of Men Women's Unpublished Heritage, by Lynne Spender Growing Up Free Raising Your Child in the 80s by Letty Cottin Pogrebin Shadow on a Tightrope Writings by Women on Fat Oppression edited by Lisa Schoenfielder and Barb Wieser, foreward by Vivien Mayer The Northern Woman's Bookstore also carries a quantity of femin ist peridica is including HERiz ons, Broadsi de, Kinesis, Voice s, Healthsha ring, Room of One's Own, Women and EnvironFireweed, Canadian Women ments , Studi NORTHERN WOMAN page 12 a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �The Lesbian Archives magazines. Few of these collections are complete, so if anyone has any to donate, please contact us. We need your assistance and ongoing support in the form of materials, free advertising, or money. We would like our existence to be made known to all lesbians who are living in, or who once lived in this area, so please spread the word. We also appreciate assistance from The Lesbian Archives of Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario will officially open in September, 1984. It will be This prolocated near Kenora. ject is coming into being through the efforts of many women who have preserved our holdings some of them for over a decade, and through the efforts of lesbians in Kenora and Winnipeg who are working to combine all these collections. ATTENTION ALL NATIVE WOMEN Fireweed, a quarterly feminist journal in Toronto, has invited a guest collective consisting solely of Native women to edit a special issue of material by Native women. We welcome lesbian/heterosexual, unknown and established writers to submit short stories (5000 words maximum), poetry, biographies, storytelling, songs, drawings, photographs and articles. "Sister." The word comes easily to most. Sisterhood. What holds us to that word is our commoness as Indians - as women. We come from different Nations. Our dress is not the same. Our stories are not the same. Yet we are the same." Beth Brant/83 We want this issue to exist as an extension of not only our own lives and struggles, but also those of our grandmothers and the spirits that continue to guide and walk before us. Please send all manuscripts/ artwork with a self-addressed envelope before August 1, 1984 to: The Native Women's Collective c/o Fireweed Box 279, Station B Toronto, Ontario M5T 2W2 NUCLEAln elsewhere, especially publications, books, tapes, records, jurnals, posters, art - and The goals of the founding archivists are to preserve, honour and share the herstory of gay women and to make this herstory accessible to both rural and urban lesbians. Too often there is no accessible community or recorded herstory so a lesbian mistakenly feels she is the only one. For too long cities have absorbed most of our lesbian energy, but in some parts of this continent the trend is now beginning to reverse. We acknowledge the importance of this change by housing the archives in a RURAL location. It will be easily accessible to many urban women since we are located on the Trans Canada But if there is to highway. be an imbalance in accessibility, we have decided that for once, it will favourrural les- WEAPON visits: From lesbians in this region we are asking, in addition to the above, for journals, autobiographies, and other unpublished writing or art, organizational records, buttons, posters, t-shirts, photographs and any other memorabilia. If you are cleaning house, don't throw things out: Instead, give us a call. In Winnipeg, call Erin Cole, (204) 256-7740, in Kenora call Isabel Andrews (807) 5484325. bians. Our present collection consists of publications, books clippings, unpublished papers records and memorabilia. The holdings include a number of Canadian lesbian and women's periodicals published in the early 70s (Pedestal, The Other Woman, Long Time Coming, Belly Full, Velvet Fist, and newsletters from across the country.) Also there are lesbian and women's publications from the mid and late 70s from Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Vancouver, Thunder Bay, Toronto and Montreal. We alSo have a number of American papers, and HERB CLASSES FOR WOMEN - Field trips, fundamentals of herbal medicine, preserving herbs. Will travel to your area. Contact Isabel Andrews,R.R.#2, Kenora, Ontario P9N 3W8 (807) (807) 548-4325 , Donors may categorize their materials as 1) open, 2) restricted access (specify) or 3) no access for a specified time period. In the case of photographs and other unpublished material which identifies individuals, donors should ob-' tain the permission of these individuals before sending this to us. We plan to publish a short newsletter listing our holdings. The first issue will be mailed out with VOICES and to newsletter subscribers later this year. All donors will receive a copy listing their contributions to our holdings;. please let us know if you are agreeable to publishing your name with these acknowledgments. Subs will be $5 for 5 issues; sustaining,subs $20.00. For more information or to make a donation, contact: PEACE PETITION CARAVAN CAMPAIGN The Peace Petition Caravan Campaign is in full swing. If you haven't signed the petition, please do. Canvass your street or your workplace. Let's show our politicians that Canadians want nuclear disarmament. Petitions are available at Northern Women's Bookstore and Women's Centre. Call Miriam at 345-2432 for more information. 11-1-"in Cole, L.A.W.R., P.O. Box 147, Winnipeg, Man. R2M4A5, or Isabel Andrews, R.R.#2, Kenora, Ont. P9N3W8. Please make cheques payable to L.A.W.R.(Archives). reprinted from VOICES NORTHERN WOMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �my vision and hope is that women will take their power beiG.% midwifery continued from page 9 to rethink their whole approach to birthing and stop flashing around in their white coats like gods, being paid extra for every complication. I would hope that women go beyond this fear ye have been taught around birth and learn to see it not as a disease but as our own birth right. When enough women take the responsibility and control, there will be fewer victims of the hospital drama. elude that these northern regions would not be economically profitable for the doctors, so they do not exercise their power there. What is the legal status of midwives in Canada? Legally we do not exist because we are not a registered profession. It is under provincial law. In February. I attended a midwives conference in Vancouver and the B.C. midwives are the most organized in Canada. They are growing in number and they are united in their goal to legalize and regulate midwifery in their province, hoping the other provinces would follow them. They are publicly gathering respect for themselves and have the nursing association backing their proposals to the provincial legislative for legalization. As yet though, a midwife attending a birth without the presence of a doctor is practicing medicine without a license. Nursemidwives who train overseas can only get jobs as obstetrical nurses, which means they are assistants with very little responsibility. Most refuse to assist in the normal North American type births and some have gone up north where midwifery is legal because This there are no doctors available. law states that below a certain ged-: graphical parallel, the midwives are once again illegal because doctors are So we -)conavailable in these areas. t ' A C4' I LY ;'\t" . `irC .0 . Z.:-\--41:---..; ' 1.." what could a woman in this region ..do if she wanted a home birth? 'So A ." ; .).- c) . 1.5 (.4 L....) ). CONGRATULATIONS r SEPTEMBER to Elinor Barr on her recent publi tion "White Otter Castle". men's Centre regular meet.,for location ph.345-7802 Elections,8a.m.-8p.m., he party for CHOICE! Canadian Abortion Rights eague,Womanspace,316 Bay h:Dryden Date,Northwestern Women's Forum with Advis ncil Status on Women. elcome. Contact NWO Decade Council, ntinen,R.,11.#16 Mitchell Rd. Bay. Forum will be at Best Hotel,Dryden,noon to noon. Potluck,Womanspace 316 Bay . "Stories from North & South" ion film, Womanspace, 7:30 p.m. 29th: Women and Affirmative Red Oak,Thunder Bay,(see this page) v.6th,& Dec.4th: Women's regular meetings, 7p.m. ation phone 345-7802 First the woman and her partner have to examine their choices. They shoul talk to a good doctor or gynocologist if one is available, read as much as possible and talk with a midwife. Th have to take on the responsibility of the birth and know that they have no legal support. If a home birth is chosen it is important to have an experienced midwife and other supportiv mothers around. The pregnant woman considering a home birth should make sure she has a healthy pregnancy. This is one of the most important fac ors going into a home birth. If she can get backup from a progressive doctor that is good. Women with tom emia, over weight, diabetes, breach, any serious problems with inner organl or any pelvis pathology should not ha' a home birth without good medical bad up. Women with previous abnormalities or frequent miscarriages should consi( a hospital birth. I personally would recommend a hospital birth for all the above pathological conditions. Women with previous ceasareans should consu: their doctor. In most of these cases i.e. ceasarean cases, a spontaneous delivery is possible, but it is considered a high risk birth and would need medical supervision. When the woman is healthy and is prepared for birth, a home birth is a very real and available alternative. Women and Affirmative ActionWhat does the future hold for affirmative action. Date: September 28-29 Place: Red Oak Agenda: Friday, September 28 Registration 6-8 pm. Keynote Speaker Wine and Cheese Saturday, September 29 Panel 9.00 A.M Workshop Buffet Lunch Workshop Adjourn 4.00 P.M. Fee: Registration is $20.00 The Workshops Are: 1. Basic Affirmative Action 2. Mandatory Affirmative Action 3. Equal pay for work of equal value Support systems for Affirmative 4. Action Further Information: using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor PDF compression, OCR, web optimization irth Education and Support Thunder Bay & District Labour �May_1979 Findings & outcomes of, the ROYAL COMMISSION life in a small town Remember when the Royal Commission on the Northern Environment came trapsing through the north? If so, you may be interested in the background paper expresses the cumulative opinions the expressed at the various hearing held in the small towns throughout the region. The entire publication can be acquired by writing The Royal Commission on the Northern Environment, Manulife Centre, 55 Bloor St. West, Room 801, Toronto, M4W IA5. However, to deal with it in part, the following is a representative portion of Chapter 5 from the section entitled WOMEN IN THE NORTH SEEK JUSTICE: ...the Commission learned that traditionally, it would be left to the nativewomen to break camp, move family and belongings and set up another home following the seasonal pursuits of hunting, trapping, fishing and gathering. Trapping has often been a male-female team effort among native people, with'the women helping to set traps and retrieve the catch and invariably scraping the furs and taming the hides. Today in the north, trapping, commercial fishing and wild rice harvesting are usually partnership efforts for men and women. At the turn of the century, white women came to live in the north in some numbers during the second phase of "civilizing" the country, the period after the wilderness had been mapped. Traders' wives, m'issionaries, teachers--they all contributed to life in the north. Later came the miners' wives, the bullcooks working in the lumber camps and the women of easy virtue in the mining boom towns. For women, the north meant adapting themselves to a rough and narrow lifestyle created and dominated by men. It was not a comfortable life nor a familiar one... While there was some contact between native and white women over the years, close friendships were unusual... The division still exists to a considerable extent today in northern towns, i.e. white people live in towns, native people mainly in shanties on the outskirts or on reserves...: In recent years, some younger women of both cultures have been learning to recognize feelings and life experlances that they share in common, goals which can bring them together as women... Issues raised by women in the north were basically similar to those voiced by their sisters in the south. They need facilities for pre-school children to allow mothers freedom to seek employment or pursoe cultural interests. They want interval houses to allow them protection from beatings or abuse. They want job opportunities to give them greater economic independance and allow them to have a greater say in the devel opment of the area. The problems northern women share with their southern sisters are compounded by the realities of living in a remote community. Isolation, inadequate housing, lack of cultural and recreational facilities and a shortage of activities and occupations outside the home all serve to make life harder for women in the north: "Fear, isolation, lack of financial resources, transportation and child care are all factors that make living in the north a very difficult place for women to grow and participate as citizens of Ontario." (NWO International Women's Decade Co-ordinating Council, Nakina) An almost total absence of paid employment opportunities for women characterized a number of communities visited by the Commission.' One reason for this lack, the Commission was told, was the dependance, typical in the north, of an entire community on a single employer, generally a resource extraction industry: "In single industry communities... the majority of jobs will be male oriented and the traditional female employment opportunities will not be as prevalent as in a more diversified southern community." (Timmins Women's Resource Centre, Timmins.) In part, there are few jobs for women, daycare services and facilities are inadequate and costly; and without daycare facilties, the new jobs for women are further out of reach... With few opportunities for employment outside the home, a northern woman is restricted to her home and family. Concern was expressad about: "...the alarming increase of mental illness of young women attributed to the never-ending stress associated with caring for small children in cramped company houses, trailers or mobile homes." (NWO International Womens Decade Co-ordinating Council, Nakina.) Not only do women experience the psychological strain of isolated northern communities. Men too suffer the tension of an unstable way of life. Tragically, the victims of their frustrations are often their wives and thei-r. children: "...The top priority expressed by women in the communities we visited was the desparate need for crisis or interval housing. Small communities lack even the minimal social support services.:." The stresses of women living in' isolation are compounded for those who come to the north later in life, perhaps following a husband who has found employment: "Those of us born here are accustom ed to the conditions. We value our environment four independance, selfreliance and pace of life while recognizing mutual dependancy in times of emergency...To newcomers...the weather conditionsi can be debilitating, inadequate hodsing...demoralizing, the absence of medical service close at hand frightening; and recreational and educational facilities virtually nonexistent for women, depressing.... (Kenora Women's Coalition, Kenora) Many women are concerned that expansion and new/ development would cause further problems. An influx of workers both single and married, imposes a bur den on a community which may not be ab to support it. Once again, those who suffer most tend to be women and child "The social impact of (development) will effect all members of the community, but it may have a particular impact on women, their children and their communities. Aggravated housing problems, the pressures of overcrewdin and the deterioration in the public ptilities...would fall mainly on womer who, during the long northern winters are often alone at home." (KenoraRainy River District Health Council) Native women in particular feel the negative impact of development. Sometimes an isolated native community is forced to absorb an influx of people without any preparation or assistance... The Commission was reminded that development, with its influx of transient workers, creates other problems for native women: "We are concerned with the sexual exploitation of our native women, through the availability of alcohol and out communities being close to the camps; the evidence of violent attacks on women, rape, imate pregnancies, unwanted children, prostitution and venereal disease wit. rise beyond a social problem.(Ontario Native Women's Association, Geraldton) Generally, the women of the north, both women and non-native women, recognized that industrial activities of some sort are inevitable. Consequently, they were determined that continued page 20 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN VOMAN page 10 �toours by D. Winko,(based I14:20,;i! on an actual rape case), from Issue 12, August 1974 Thoughts seered through my brain. This couldn't be happening to me! I looked toward the door. They must have sensed my intention as I was informed that no one was in the house and it would be useless to try anything. That was a joke! I might have stood a chance with one man...but three? What utter helpnessness can compare to this! They started taking my clothes off. My brain, somewhat overloaded with the weight of my situation, repeated over and over that it was an impossible situation. I didn't hear anything...just their voices that seemed to echo from a different realm. This was indeed hell. I try not to think about that night (was it that long?) but it's hard to forget within the closed boundaries of this courtroom. It's a crazy situation, you know. I find myself questioning the reasons behind it all. Was it my fault? Did I, in fact, deserve it? Had I encourazed an attack? I have to stop degrading myself! Do people actually believe I wanted to get raped? As a native woman, should ."'" I have been fully aware and prepared Kinesis am a %Omar% for the consequences taking into conApr/77 and IF I Live sideration I am a woman, especially an Indian woman. and iGht God damn: Self-doubt is so cruel. Why must I feel guilty? I did nothing! Those men did it...they did it I must tell you what happened aLL woman Although you might not believe women to be innocent of inviting rape, is bon.% even in please try for your own sake to put yourself in my position. You might have found yourself at one time or another in a similar circumstance, (Editor's Summary: Despite begging to but only a slim line separates what be let go many times throughout the happened to me from what can happen ordeal, our sister was forced to have to you. oral, vaginal and anal intercourse It was getting late...the bar by the three men. Bloor suggested was going to close soon. I had been shoving a bottle up her and killing waiting for a girlfriend who didn't her. He urinated on her and boasted show up. I had a few beer but I was that he had scalped an Indian after not drunk. he had cut her hair. He then beat her A man Came over and we began to with a rope strung with bells and talk. I can't remember if we'introdukicked her head until she was bleedced ourselves.; but his name is now ing and nearly unconscious. Caine well-known to me. Bloor. stopped the attack.) He seemed nice enough. He asked My mind hesitated in acknowledif I would like a ride home, as he ging that the ordeal was over, but lived close to the home where I was my main compulsion was to run even to staying. I said yes. What would you the point of begging for help from have done, truthfully? the rapists. We went out to the car alone. I begged Caine to walk out with I remember feeling a closeness to me. Bloor was evil...a sadist, more him; the kind that accompanies a kind so than the others. My body warned me, gesture toward you. Everyone enjoys my mind warned me. Caine knew and being a matter of concern to someone .1 iF I richt I Coritri6utet. the Lilerat ion of and so victorY else. A matter of minutes later, he asked if I would come to his house for a drink. The night was pleasant ...so was he. I consented. Was that wrong? Are all women hopelessly naive to man's intentions? Are you asking if I had intentions myself? I am not a child. My sexual drives are as any other woman if you are truthful about it. I can assume the responsibilty of wanting to sleep with him...but not that which actually happened. Is there some codified law or language of man that ensures sexual access to any woman by any man within the range of 500 miles merely by accepting a drink in a man's apartment? I must go on. We stopped at a house and I followed him down to his basement suite. I sat down on the bed and seconds later I heard footsteps approach the room which Bloor and I occupied. Then they walked in. Many of you might recognize the rush of fear that envelops you.I felt as if someone had kicked me in the 1 stomach. There was a reason for this fear...instinctive...rational? No matter. It was there. One man whose name I did not know then but I do now, Cotter, said "Shall we strip her and rape her?" .t. complied. I remember looking for my clothes,_ but I don't recall when I dressed. Caine and I somehow ended up in the street. He walked me to the end of the block. I started to run. How long I ran I don't know. I stopped and looked behind. What if they followed me? Perhaps they changed their minds about killing me. No one was there. .My lungs were bursting; my body wracked with feelings indescribable. I ran toward the bushes and there in solitude I sat on a rock and cried. The emotional release was painful and yet welcomed. Somehow I knew that I should and had to do something. Feeling alone and yet determined nevertheless I decided my course of action. I phoned the police. The ordeal had lasted 21/2 This is only one of the legal loopholes present in our legal system. The one that hurt the most was "the question of consent". In plain language that might be interpreted as ...was she asking for it? Women can comprehend to a point what happened to me...but I am sure you cannot begin to imagine the full extent physically,.emotionally and mentally that this experience was then and is even now. - These atrocities have occurred before and will happen again. Women must get angry; they must be made aware that according to the law only vaginal penetration constitutes rape. If you can prove you did not consent. In accordance with this, in my situation, only one man raped me in the eyes of the law. But emotional, spiritual, mental rape is possible. A Anal, oral penetration, whatever, it is still rape. There are four different strands of hair on that ornament. What happened to those victims? How they must suffer in their silence! Were they made to believe that they asked for it? Is it better to remain silent rather than lay your guts on the table and hope to hell that it is treated with respect and dignity? In this society, any situation is a come-on for rape and only one criteria seems necessary...be a woman. Regardless of your past, your age, race, etc. AS A WOMAN YOU ARE A POTENTIAL RAPE VICTIM AND THE SOCIETY THAT IS SUPPOSED TO PROTECT YOU INSTEAD ASSUMES THAT YOU TAKE THE1RESPONSIBILITIES OF BEING WOMEN, OPPRESSED WOMEN. I can still hear the crown attorney's words --"Now, Mrs. C, you're a married woman with two children... you knew what you were doing when you accepted a ride from this man and agreed to go into his home." Indeed the onus is on us. The crime committed was not against the state, it was not against me; it was a crime against women...all women. We can fight these men, but that is not the answer. The laws governing women and rape and the interpretation of rape must be changed. For OUR sake, in the name of humanity and sisterhood...UNITE! (The above was based on an actual rape case. The laws have since been changed to reflect the degree of violence rather than vaginal penetration. Proving lack of consent is still an issue.) . May 1979 Live new knagwhat you have done teatize you have aiiected a tiie mint. nememben my tmonizing moments the emotionat pain wite .asst iotevet. in yam sick mind . hours. Those men are in the courtroom now. I. just heard that they have been acquitted on the rape charge. They have been sentenced on the lesser charge of "gross indecency and common assault with intent to wound." So this is justice! These men who raped and defiled me are to be let off that easily. They say that the jury was trying to establish some kind of terms by which they could charge the men if not with rape, then with a lesser - 'aims tovemaking simpte iucking 4:twas much mote. ct "was opptession degtadation humiliation violence. knao this. understand. and then with you' conscience i date you, tive. gayte o'hanton crime. NORTHERN :a OMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �A FE LIKE STONE ( by Joatilkitll November 1982 It's-a,"Tilot Project" and - .many- people fear we'llrbe -taken for a ride. In-October 1982, lured by the carrot of provincial money and the stick of provincial pressure (and ultimate power), the City of Thunder Bay has agreed - 'to,:-take on financial respon- sibilityforsole-support 'mothers who are at present ;receiving .provincial Family ene-tits lar "mothers' allow,snces". -The pilot, project is expected to fly well for the first eighteen months but it is feared that once the City takes it over it won't be able to hand it back. it is also feared that the province will eventually pull back funds and the whole contradictionridden structure will come crashing down, right in the middle of the City's budget. A spokeswoman from the Single Parents' Coalition of Toronto outlined to me what is happening now in Toronto when a woman-just can't hold on.- She calls it the Toronto Scenario input into themay be the of the an&At the brunt scenario of economic crunch is especially In the United States, one idea the future. There are five make sure that is to cut the living allowance steps, all leading down. in welfareOne: policy as support soon as mother the child reaches A solen conditions in two years old. finds she just cannot manage In various er, it should American states, provinces, and she on the be bone- scraping money he present "pilot officials are considering many gets. Perhaps an emergency; eme was adevised ways to cut back, cutoff, or rent a cessation input at all from make ineligible funding to of a husband's support money, ost affected... mothers. a combination Of port mothers. In reasons, Ontario, the new program Two: She-loses her apartwill allow mothers to be ment. issue has been classified as "employable". Three: She gives her childded by sincerity The province claims that this ren to Children's Aid. She g, rhetoric and is for "statistical purposes Moves or awill friend's compassed in ato a hostel only and not affect the place. ,,Without an address she itico-babble. benefits." Single parent orat the can't Vale get benefits. ganizations, such as the Mothers Four: 'Sht Action shows up at the ntre, organized Group of Toronto, don't legal the Manpower ofrned. Moms in clinic,belieYe it for a minute. People the women's centre, he localfice, Family classified as "employable" re6socialTservice office trying icials sincerely ceive much less in benefits Shelabeled says, "unemployable mothers to'find that thea solution. than those "When I get a place... if:I would not reduce Privately, the women were told could only find something so might even prothat "by the Fall of 1982; there I could place...".1. services. Yet get a would be no further referrals kids are tw.foster 982 COMSOCFive: Her of mothers to Family Benefits ", dare. goes on--she ank Drea, stoodAs time andshould that during the reclassifiwonders just let of Queen's Parkif she cation period, only, those them at get adopted. She thinks, nd screamed "obviously unemployable" or who "-If they I could just get a place..." others that insisted on family benefits There is a bizarre footnote s who didn't want would be referred (for. more, to this story. In Toronto, estions from the .see P.26 Our Own," there is a shortage of"Protecting foster the availablity report of Mothers Action Group, which and jobscare. were Our province, Available at Women's Toronto. cannot afford to keep mothers . Drea continued Centre). and together, Thistheir type children abuse. In fact, the difference beis spending a: lot of money on the part of tween what the on a women promotional campaign togovernment is makes many saying publicly, andwhat offoster parents. e "Pilot attract Project" ficials are saying privately are This opinion the has chief been exep to dismantling cause of the confuby many citizens, owances pressed in Ontario. sion and fear surrounding this including theissue. sole-support owance is based on mothers, who call Butthemselves underlying all is a deadly fought "the for-by the Concerned Moms", who like stone in the fear--a fear S movement: tried - unsuccessfullyhearts -. -of the mothers I talked have to turn bring up ity to to at Vale Community Centre and their own need Other the women at Queen's Park--the pport. ng some Just fear of losing their kids. esent economic changes in scraping by on Mothers Allowance ore and more system are people now, what will happen if their for city ting the welfare. benefits are reduced-through is goingbelieve, to be a , they such ploys as a reclassificaU.I.C. claims ed and there tion as "employable" or a the same time change-over to the lower city evenue is declining. welfare rates... how to holda various schemes PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using on then? ontinent that would watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �-Women in the Trades April 1980 second is Great West Timber and then Canada Car. Roland, one of the instructors is responsible for digging up these placements and has gone out of his way to try to sound out people Joan: (admiring a wooden table Kay has to find what kind of reception they made) Do you think all the carpentry give women but also to consider my you did has helped you in the millhave a light build j personal needs. wright course? and this is often considered a heavy labouring position and I'm older too No, not really. Living out in Kay: and both will militate against me the bush did, because you became famfinding an apprenticeship opening in iliar with tools just because you had millwright work. think it's But to get things done. (Kay describes meeting a woman more having to get things done and welder working in the trade). It was having to do things by necessity, a real lift. She is such an inspiraShe is a welder and has been tion. found that my personal life Kay: working'in the field for a few years has been enriched by the course as and thoroughly enjoys her field. They do what they can to help Kay: I'm introduced to various things Speaking to a person like that is very That's really the My perspec- you find a job. such as the use of tools. exciting particularly because I'm hardest part - looking for a job but can tives immediately grow because trying to get into the trades, too. from what I've heard and seen, the can do see all kinds of things that guess a lot of women did Joan: was College is really excellent. want For example, if for myself. Have you these jobs during the war. talking to Lillian, the Student Awards to build something or have someever met any? have so much more Officer at the College, and she told thing constructed me the girls that are in technology can make tools for information. don't think so. Kay: and by and large very successful and instance. sure would like to interview Joan: giving the boys a real run for their Is that what a millwright does, Joan: one. money and everyone is really pleased make tools? Not just Kay: the These are the people we have to with what's happening. people in the College but the employThe millwright course is for That Kay: hear from now as a voice. ers who hire them seem to be tickled malty listed as industrial maintenwould be terrifically supportive. ance, mechanics and so on. On the job, too. But in a lot of ways it was Joan: there are a lot of things that might I'm really glad to hear that. Joan: easier for them because there were have to be repaired. Some things can a lot of women in the plants and a be constructed, welding construcOh, it makes so much difference Kay: lot of support. Just It's so encouraging. tion, fabricating supports and so on. to me. Depending on the plant-you are working hearing about other women in the Kay: Oh yes, the nation needed them That's the and industry needed them. trades and their experiences makes in you might send some of the,jobs to key. Industry needed them and made it you feel you are not isolated. It a machinist or you might be doing welcomed them. as easy as possible, raises your morale a bit. most of it yourself, Is there another woman in Joan: your And then afterwards ... Joan: Joan: So in other words you have to course? learn how to repair almost anything. Do you know afterwards it got Kay: remember in In our program we are getting Kay: Yes, there is one other in so thebad for women that Kay: was living there was an exposure to the different basic She's very successful. the She town where program. a reluctance to hire a woman teacher skills and anything beyond you would has had some background already and if she was married. learn on the job. This course is one so she's familiar with some of the of the pre-apprenticeship programs, work, but it's a little bit differDo you find being in school Joan: It's an introduction to the basic ent for me being an older person relaxing. and skills and if a person is lucky they being in a group that has the assurwill find an apprenticeship opening Self No, being in school is not a ance and the certainty of youth. Kay: and then they will work with a jourrelaxing experience. It is stimulaconfidence is one of the most essenneyman. ting. It is rewarding because you can tial things to being successful. see things are happening, but never So how many hours do suppose you get this applies no matter what Joan: relaxing. In many ways it is stressyou do. I've noticed that if you subtracted from your apprenticeship feel ful and so every now and again don't know how to do something that, by taking this course? think, "Why does it resentful. if you have.the buoyancy that selfhave to be such a burden, why couldn't 1800 lout of 8000. Kay: confidence gives, you can deal with the because they a person feel uplifted problem The course is forty weeks andin a very positive manner. Joan: and that's are learning new things - it's the key. after you have to find your Self-esteem own apexciting." But it's that fact that prenticeship? What's next in the course? Joan: everything is being learned and everything is new which causes the That's right. Kay: After this section of the proKay: stress. It's no light undertaking. gram will be a field placement Do you think that will be there a Joan: was ever had, Every single job and then a section in the welding problem? winging it and it's just such a reshop and then in the machine shop. freshing change to walk into a situaThere might be a few openings Kay: How long is the field placeJoan: tion where you are presumed to be Otherwise around the countryside. ment? untrained and that it's all right can find a regular job and bide that is such a relief. time until you find an- ,apprenWe are all scheduled to go to Kay: My classes start at eight in the There was a woman in the ship. three different local plants and we'll ram last year and she was offered spend three weeks in each and it will morning but some of the trades courses b as a millwright at two local start at seven. If a person had to be my first time I've ever seen-ints. So it isn't impossible loside an industrial plant. (Laughs) I'm take a bus they wouldn't be able to don't know y such a complete greenhorn It takes me an hour to get there. what questions to ask to find out about How about moving? Would you get to school by bus. The buses don't feel pretty silly a lot to go out West? things. run that early. of the time. That's why the field Oh not just now. My two daughSo you would have to have a, Joan: placement will be such a valuable thing are both in high school and car if you had to start at seven? think a move would be good Joan: Do you know where you're going? Right. Kay: hem. Is the math the same as you Joan: The first one is going to be Does the College help you try Kay: had in school or is this all differthe machine shop at the College. The t an apprenticeship? ent math? continued page 19 Kay Andrews is a student in the Millwright course at Confederation College. here with Joan Baril. She talks I I I I I I I I I I I 1 I I I I I I I I I I I PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copyNORTHERN of CVISION PDFCompressor WOMAN page 17 �Sexual Harassment By Kathie Cram Edited from original in April 1980 "Sexual harassment is any repeated and unwanted sexual comments, looks, suggestions or physical contact that you find offensive and which occurs on the job or in a classroom situation. Sexual harassment can also occur during a job interview, where sexual favours are expected as a condition of employment." This is a definition of sexual harassment used by a committee formed to study the problem of sexual harassment in Northwestern Ontario. The exploratory study has three purposes: 1. To investigate the extent of sexual harassment experienced by women in Northwestern Ontario. 2. To raise the consciousness of women regarding the definition of sexual harassment and to inform them that they are not alone. 3. To determine whether the extent of sexual harassment in the region justifies the establishment of Northern Women's Centre as a place of complaint and support for victims of sexual harassment. The responses have yet to be analyzed, although a few initial observations may be made. The majorityof respondents consider the problem serious, SQ serious that most women quit their jobs. Most experienced the harassment at a place of employment. The majority are employed as secretaries. When asked if they reported the harassment most responded they had not and cited the major rea- .--- son for not reporting it as being "would not be believed". The harassment was ongoing, experienced at least once a week, and lasting as long as four years. Several of the women added letters explaining in more detail their plight. One woman told the story of how she was sexually harassed by two men at different locations. The harassment began as the occassional pat on the shoulder, an was "even a bit fatherly". But it soon became blatantly sexual. One man began grabbing at her breasts and t-cied to kiss her. When she responded, getting "verbally abusive", he reminded her of his friendship with the supervisor. "I was told", she said, "to be a good girl because he controlled an evaluation report". The woman was emotionally and physically affected. "I felt physically ill that I could be so intimidated and handled. I got edgy, cried at home to my husband, depressed", she said. The abuse is still ongoing; her only recourse she believes is to quit. Another woman tells of her sexual harassment experiences with a boss, boyfriends and married men. She tells of her loneliness in trying to handle the problem. Her friends would listen, but it was of no help. She thought of confiding in her parents, but "all they would say is that I probably deserve it, or it was my Both of these women had a sense of self blame, almost guilt for accepting the abuse. It is a sad comment on our society when the victims are the "guilty", and the guilty have the power to control. McKellar Hospital, as well as McKenzie Forest Products in Hudson, refused to dispay our questionnaires, The director of employee relations at McKellar, simply stated, "No such behaviour is practised nor tolerated at this hospital and I do not believe that we should suggest such practises exist by displaying your literature." His comments are indeed interesting considering that some of our volunteers are ex-employees and have witnessed sexual harassment on the premises. Sexual harassment is a serious problem. Women suffer physically, emotionally and economically. They are forced to quit well paying jobs primarily because our patriarchal society view it as a joke and thereby condone it. A few years ago rape and wife battering were neatly swept under the carpet; our society claiming that "good girls don't get raped" or that the beaten wives yearn for physical punishment. Sexual harassment, like rape and wife beating is an aggressive, powerful act, meant to humiliate, degrade and control. Stand up, gather your courage, organize and fight: rmrn WOMEN AWST VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN December 1981 by Joan Williams "Take Back The Night is a protest against the victimization of women. The fear of being alone on the street in the darkness that has been engrained in us since we were small children is a constant debilitating aspect of our lives. It is a necessary response to the omnipresent violence against women which pervades our society. Women are vulnerable everywhere- in public and in private, in our homes and at our jobs. We must fear for ourselves, our mothers, our grandmothers, our babies. We fear in our dreams. On this night we take back the right to be safe. We who have -survived, march in the memory of those who have not and for the thousands of women each year who are raped, mutilited, assaulted and battered. We march for criminal justice reform, which will protect women from the convicted rapists who walk the streets. We strive to eliminate the causes of this hatred toward women. We fight for the right to live and grow in dignity and safety as strong, . surprise4 20 all: unirl nearly 100 women ..,aout their anger and cel- their power in unity. A power which was no doubt felt by more than one sneering passerby who squealed his tires or muttered insults before retreating to the more familiar stale airs of local taverns. The attitude of most men was summed up rather succinctly by Dan Pilton of the Times News who asked at the onset of the march for a "pose of the 'girls' before the race begins". Of course Mr. Pilton's perspective did seem somewhat limited when he could only count 19 of us for his report in Saturday's paper. Perceptual handicap perhaps. Our uprsing was long overdue. Rai and assualts against women are on a Steady incline in Canada and ThundeBay was no exception this summer. Our march was meant to bring this grievous violation of human rights those who have accepted this victimization of women as something beyoni their control. It was evident by thi resonating echo in Thunder Bay's streets that Friday, that we did have control. On a personal level, the express. Ion was exhilarating; a reaffirmati, that we have a strong, active base of sisterhood on which to build. t healthy women without fear. WE WILL WIN!" The above was an introduction to the first annual 'Reclaim the Night' march on October 2nd, 1981. Thunder Bay women came out in numbers which PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAN page 1 �women in the trades continued from page 17 never had much math in school. Anyway it was so long ago that it never had a wouldn't matter. But decent math background. All my former education was for a different purpose. It was in a different area.-It was in the arts and so it developed a more intuitive type of thinking. There was evaluation and critical analysis and things like that but it isn't the type of learning have come that is involved- in math. to appreciate a lot about learning think things Today mechanisms. I: are taught better in school to give a person a spectrum of math and science would have and not just the arts. liked to have had some kind of shop training in high school too. Kay: I I I How many women are in trades training at the college? There are a few in welding. Kay: There are lots of women in the technology courses and surveying. There are a lot of omen in auto parts. About a third of the students there There is a woman going are women. into diesel mechanics. There are two in cutter and skidder. But this is a course that is reluctant to accept women because there are so few people willing to employ women. got mine on sale, so I had a bit of luck. Joan:-, What about the Women's Credit Uriiop?t haven't gone to them and I'll ammgetting tell you. 4le reason. didn't so little tb live on that dare to even try to get a loan becouldn't pay a loan back cause you see how stringent my situation is. And some weeks my money wouldn't arrive and then we had some pretty lean weekends. Kay: I I I I I I The girls in high school have believe. that opportunity now, Joan: I My kids had that option but was asking them and the girls still tend to pick domestic science. guess home economics is just something that is already familiar. Even now for girls some things are more familiar than others. Kay: I What made you decide to go back to school? Joan: It's been about five years left university and I've done different jobs since then. It became fairly obvious to me that the only people who were making a living wage were skilled tradespeople and that's what a person has to do to survive and provide a decent environment for their family. Precious few women have had the opportunity. So might be out in the forefront but it's necessity. The trades -- that's the only hope for women. Your daughter is an apprentice, isn't she? Kay: I I Yes, she's an apprentice printer. She was working as a clerk and she moved from the clerical side .of the business to the trades side and that's a move a lot of women don't even think about. Joan: awartroompermik April I 1980 Isn't that a catch-22 sltuation for women? Joan: Oh, yeah. The women ekey will accept are those with any possibility of becoming employed, there was one woman who was working with her husband and they could be employed as a team. always thought that this course Joan: should be cutter and/or skidder, so that people could have the opportunity to just learn to run one machine. More women could do that than do both. Do you think it would be helpful if all the women at the College in the trades could get together to talk? Do you think the women would There are a few,fee payers. But the other students are on,unemployment insurance and all of then, even those who are single, get more do. money than Kay: Kay: I Joan: Do you regret going back to school? I I since How do the other students support themselves? Joan: just can't beNo, (.don't. lieve it. It has been a wonderful Ka y: I experience. Everyone is so encouraging. It seems that the people at the College have gone out of their way. No, it's the right move for me. be interested? think it would be helpYes, Kay: ful. Some people aren't as outgoing as others and again you feel the need Somefor a little moral support. things that haptimes people tal- the ,st their lot pen to them as that's what people do - they do their course and try to survive not realining that things can be changed. (They discuss finances which Kay deI scribes as a tight s,,eak.) The first day of class you Kay: become aware that you have to get safety boots and you have to get coveralls so in those first weeks we were living hand to mouth. Joan: Kay: How much are safety boots? Around thirty dollars but I Because you are a woman you must follow proper etiquette at all times. You can't phone men and you certainly cannot ask them out. You have to stay home and hope they call you. When you do go out with a man, you worry about how you look, what you should wear. The iottaging atticee was on distotay ' And your hair must be clean and in a Local Ahopping matt in an ed'utationat exhibition ptmented by the shining all the time. As a woman you have to wear dresses UP_ztgate High School. ztudentz o that make you self-conscious and stupid It was written by Cyndi Otway a student panty-hose which make you itch all evenin Mo. Sancha Peteeniek's sociotogy ing. And you have to put up with men aa,54 talking about the car they ownor the porno flick they saw last week. physical features As a woman your This is pointed A woman always has to worry about her from men. are different during life. You reputation and she has to watch that out to you constantly clothing than men to men don't take advantage of her. A have to wear more (defects). As a woman has to know how to cook, how to hide these features make clothing, and how to do the you can play woman you have to prove just as well monthly budget. She has to make a good hockey, basketball, etc. You can't dive off a home for her husband. She must go throug as any man can. of fear of the pain of having a child and staying high diving board because he/she is sick swimsuit. up with that child when falling out of your talk back to and when he/she awakes in the middle As a woman you can't people (like parents, friends, teachers) .of the night. As a woman you are pushed into You have to be nice and take in all As a woman you going to those boring parties men want the yelling yourself. is school what I mean to go to. Or you go shopping with a man, must be good in desks or and he can't tell the difference bebehave. You can't stand on tween a slip and a bathing suit. tell obscene jokes; you have to be But yet, what would a woman do withgoody-two-shoes. out her man? 41=F What it Means to be a Woman NORTHERN WOMAN page 19 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Social Workers Dilemma late 1975 The high cost of being a professional social worker is not something the average person thinks about. That the cost is less for those mtoivated by economic status, professional recognition and other 'power trips is evident, but for the truly committed, those with a real desire to meet hu.man needs, who have to jettison many an ideal for a computerized formula, the price is exorbitant. As the young nurse is conditioned to examine every case in the cold light of reason, so the social worker can expect to be programmed to fit the system, to move among the victimized portions of society without questioning the criteria that has been formulated by a hierarchy that has in many cases never been touched by the desperation they have presumed to have all the answers for. The good and caring social worker doesn't last, she burns out, not from a heavy caseload but from the day-to-day struggle with a system mired in its own impotence, a system that gives neither the case-worker nor the case a right to their own individuality. What do you do, a caseworker asks, when ybu see a woman under the care of a psychiatrist with countless bottles of pills on her table, counter top, fridge and wherever else you could imagine. When her total income is. $179 and her rent is $170, when her psychiatrist is not even aware of her financial predicament. When the road she has travelled has been so bitter and cruel and so familiar to you for you have been down it, what can you do when you see what, for the Grace of God could have broken you, has broken her. When you know food is hard to come by but pills are in plentiful supply. What do you do, she asks, if you are a single parent mother, possibly handicapped, when you are faced with the departure of your last child and you realize with its leaving your basic source of income and security is gone. Would it be strange if you felt panic, fear, resentment for the years you played the role of mother? Could you be excused if you played sick to keep your child with you? What can you do if you can't work, for the pension, if your disability allowance is $130 and you have a notice of eviction? Where can you take the furniture you lovingly cared for, because it's the only thing you have ever owned? The answer lies in the hands of the social worker. She will find you the kind of place society thinks you deserve. She's a little handicapped, of course since if you are to eat she must find a place'for not more than $75.. If she is unable to do this, she must consult the big computer and it will tell her to be objective- in other words, forget it. The big computer is also the keeper of virtue it seems, and what goes on in the bedroom of a recipient of mother's allowance is a matter of grave convern. Straying from the straight and narrow may get you'evic_ . ted if you live in low-rental housing. Your mother's allowance may be cut off, you may have to pay back a suitable amount retroactive to your fall from Grace or endure the humiliation of signing an official document stating that you solemnly swear that you will not engage in common-law hanky panky. Although this machine is impervious to sentiment of any kind, gossip and innuendo will light up all its buttons and send it vomitting out eviction notices without having to justify its actions. Unfortunately we are not sufficiently civilized to have an appeal board that will hear your defence although, I understand there's a half-assed promise of one laying round somewhere. Information which is not'generally made public is the following criteria used to establish eligibility. for tenancy in Thunder Bay low rental housing. We believe it should be public knowledge, and perhaps it will be of interest to our readers. Ontario. Housing Corporation's (OHC's) Point System Upon acquiring enough, one can acquire an OHC housing unit. (The numbers listed represent the maximum number of points. Judgement of the interviewer determines the maximum or less.) PRESENT CONDITTION.50EEM45IaG: There wa's an ad woman who tived in a 'shoe With at -hip, 'Led tape, what epe coutd --he do? The good and caring social worker must challenge the system. When she ceases to question she has become a robot and hence a liability to human progress. We can help if we are informed as to the role she uble plays and the _things that her about that role. If you ar social worker in Northwestern .'Ontsal404,-if ,youxs7area of corteevaies_ overcrowding..... ......0...5 points disrepair........0. OOOOO ....5 points people, you have something to contribute to this dialogue. inadequate bathroom facilities ..................5 points lack of recreation space..0.2 points other unsatisfactory conditions ..................2 points (must be specified) Receiving the maximum points for the above can total 30 points. Other ways to gain points: Residency in Thunder Bay (up to 10 years), (1 year =l point, 2 years=2 points; etc.) Notice to vacate other than cause (cause being drunken parties, damage etc...30 points) 0 to 25% ....... ............no 3 26-29% 30-34%...... OOOOOOOOOOOO ....5 10 35-39% points points points points ......... 15 points 50% or over.... ...... ......20 points Abnormal financial 15 points committments Separated,families because of lack 15 points of accommodation Aggravated health factors because of present accommodation......15 points The waiting period can be used to gain points if there has been no offer for accommodation--extra points for waiting: 1 2 3 4 year........0. ..... ...... / point years ......0 ....... ....2 points 6 points years 4 points years.. ...... .............6 points 5 points Small Town continued from page 10 future undertaking not bring with them problems comparable to those experienced in past developments... "Traditionally, economic development in single industry northern communities has not included the experience, knowledge and concerns of women. This has resulted in male oriented communities at all levels, economically, socially and politicall The needs of women and children have been given only marginal recognition.(Kenora Women's Coalition) From their submissions to the Royal Commission, it was clear that northern women want the opportunity t be involved in decision-making, to help determine the future of the communities in which they live and to secure equal rights for their sex. The story being told by the women in the preceeding report may not be exactly encouraging....But there may be hope. NORTHERN WOMAN page 20 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Celebrating 11 Years of Journal Women NO PHOTOS AVAILABLE Maition 8abcock Lyn Sihvonen CanAie Have en Catot. McCote. Pat Graven Pat Ryan Kathryn Brute Peggy Smi-th Shanon Lund ScoanDatzLin IF WE MISSED YOU WE'RE SORRY NORTHERN WOMAN page 21 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Memoirs of a Striker much for the good doctors to accept the fact that mere staff had decided to publicly stand up to them and horBy now, I guess the local women's rors! Women, at that! While waiting strike is past history - filed away to get into the mainstream of traffic in dusty archives. I won't ever forone day, one of them astonished us get it because I was involved in this all by suddenly throwing his car inmuch-publicized dispute which was to to reverse, when in his rear view become known as the "battle of the mirror he caught sight of a few of women versus the doctors". It was one us scurrying to safety behind his of the most frustrating, hilarious, car. The ecstatic look of pleasure inspiring revelations of my life. My on his countenance, made us positive determination and devotion to our that he had an orgasm every time he cause surprised me more than it did terrified us. A good many days theremy family and friends. I will never after looked like scenes from the regret it, and I would do it again. "French Connection" with tires squealThe grandmothers, widows, wives, moing as they chased picketers all over thers and daughters who spent six the parking lot. months on that line, through the heat We harboured no grudge against of summer, refreshing fall winds, and the patients - we accepted their need freezing gales of winter, pitted agfor medical aid. Many a day was spent ainst one of the richest, most powerlistening to elderly patients' tales ful establishments in the country, of woe, their loneliness, and their would all agree. I never once heard concerns over their illnesses. Perhaps any one of them express regret over they felt that no one listened to them the wisdom of their choice. inside. One day in particular, a very How did this conflict take that nice old gentleman stopped his car, little flame of feminism I think was rolled down his window, and in the always flickering inside of me and middle of the entrance to the parking feed it with a fuel so great, that it lot, launched into a sad tale of his is roaring furiously now, never to be past three operations. As cars piled quashed again? In retrospect, it was up on the roadside and the main thora pattern of slow plodding growth oughfare became bottlenecked, we starover the months, of struggles, of ted to get obscene gestures accompanigaining a painful new consciousness, ed by furious mutterings and shaking and then a gradual joyous affirmation - one which will never be denied again. fists, all of which we couldn't understand through closed windows. Despite repeated pleas from myself and fellow Perhaps the first that picketers to proceed, he would not shattered my sense of self-worth ocmove, for he had finally found a symcurred during the course of my daily pathetic ear. He was finally persuadduties when I heard one of the 'healed to move on when a very angry young ers of humanity' confide to one of his most learned colleagues - "I don't woman pulled up, rolled down her window, and promptly went up one side of know why they want a union, after all, us and down the other, for harrassing we hire monkeys here, that's why we and intimidating such a sweet old man. pay them peanuts!" Oh well, --- you win some and you Our polite, apologizing picket lose someJ line started with everyone feeling We did have one pet peeve, however. nervous and ill at ease, suffering The mockery that organized men and from that chronic disease called guilt women had of their own union member- an affliction particular to women. ship when they crossed our picket As we tried to hide behind our picket line..many themselves were on strike signs from a group of annoying reporters with popping flashbulbs, I reflec- at the time. Perhaps they would have been more appreciative of the benefits ted on how difficult it was to ignore they enjoy by belonging to unions that drummed-in bit of sexism. After if they had all experienced our strugall, nice girls live in an eternal gle. state of subjugation - they accept I think perhaps the action I felt without question, and HOLY MOSES most difficult to accept was how wonice girls lust DO NOT parade around men could betray other women by crosswith picket signs plastered with big yellow tweety birds under the captions ing their co-workers' lines. Many of the striking women were single, widowof "No quack-quacks here! Just cheeped or single parents. Perhaps the cheeps!" To quote Robin Morgan from women who crossed the lines to work "Rights of Passage"-"...we DO need to throughout the duration of the strike create a new code of ethics for women, would have joined their sisters on the we DO need to create a new women's picket line if they had experienced morality..." so women won't have to living on one source of income suffer that soul-shattering pain of clinic wages. Women must learn to realization when confronted with the realize they will continue to be segsituation we found ourselves in. regated in dead-end low-paying job The hostility of the doctors beghettos until they can express solidcame evident on the first day. It arity and support for women who are must have been difficult for them to enlightened enough to fight for change suppress their fury. After all, M.D.s We can't waste our energies fighting are notorious for barking orders and each other. having them followed promptly and As the months wore on, we didn't without question. Come to think of it, cry as easily as at first. We got used in all my years at work with the profto being called bitches,whores and ession, I can't think of a single inphrases like "Go home to your kitchens stance when a doctor had the courage you sluts!" rolled off our backs like to treat male staff as condescendingly water. We became adept at dodging pop as female staff. To get back to the cans, beer cans, fire-crackers and first day, I guess it was just too even human spit. We learned what the by a former employee, late 1976 obscene gesture for every finger on the hand meant. We were bumbed by cars, knocked over by trucks and flipped onto carhoods. One day, a huge brute stopped his truck, leaned on the horn and bellowed his desire to drive over the two feet of sidewalk we were standing on, because the fifteen feet of entrance just wouldn't do. These day-to-day happenings just strengthened our convictions. We could not and would not give up because we were right. If in the event of a first contract dispute, no settlement is reached at the end of a six month strike, the employers can legally hire new employees to fill in the strikers' jobs. We wouldn't give them this satisfaction ancl retuned with no protection whatsoever and needed all the toughness and tenacity we had acquired on the picket line. Laws prohibiting discrimination against employees for union activities were all but -trampled by these dedicated humanitarians, A book could be written on the repulsive behavior of some of the employers on our first two days on the job. Half of the thirty-six returning were driven out, and the remaining could easily be outvoted in a decertification vote. This did become a reality a few months later. I don't feel any bitterness any more, only pity, and the realization that they aren't gods after all, as they would have us believe. One year later, the remaining dozen or so remember their struggles in silence, but their presence acts as a reminder to those who labour inside. Working conditions and salaries improve daily, although they still have not achieved parity with other women doing the same jobs elsewhere. It has been made a better place for those who follow. My deepest sorrow is for the women who gave their all for what they truly believed in, and had their careers smashed as a result. Revenge is sweet to those who had their absolute power challenged. Despite the scars accumulated by a long battle fought and lost, I still believe that women will never achieve economic equality in the work force until they employ the clout of collective action. Earning a decent wage is perhaps one of the most fundamental issues in the women's movement. The shortest route to achieving that end is to organize. My energies will forever be devoted to preaching that litany. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISIONNORTHERN PDFCompressor WOMAN page 22 �In It Together 011 BROTlin Not an ,Ordinary by Penni Burrell, January 1979 Dear Viola: 1Movie by Joan Baril, Feb.-Mar/84 (excerr,t) Group discussions were shown in i which men described how porn dehumanized them as well as women. These particular scenes might well have never been if one reads the reviews by male critics who condemn the film for not mentioning how pornography dehumanizes them as well as women. I - I wonder if these men "saw" the film at all, or only their own fears. Their shrill attacks makes one wonder, as Judith Finlayson observes "Why masculine aggression and violence against women seem far more socially acceptable than female anger"The difference in perception extends to the viewers. At Lakehead !University some.male members of the !audience sniggered and whistled; the !women were visibly moved. At the 'showing I attended at the National Film Board offices on Victoria Ave., the audience (mostly women) was silent ! as it filed out. As in all showings iof this movie, some,women wept. "Not a Love Story" is not an' ord- i , linary movie. , i In response to your request for written support regarding a name change for the Lakehead University's "Man In Society" course please allow me to explain that the'term "man in the'phrase "Man and Society" is in this instance, the generic term mean-, ing "all people". Similarily, the pronoun "his" can also be used generically as in the common phrase "Man and His World". We must never forget that the word "man", when used generically, includes, the female, I have not seen the course outline for "Man and S-ociety" but I imagine it covers-all the aspects of a man's life. No doubt it deals with basic anatomy. For example, under the heading "Man's Body" (which of course refers to male and female -) one could study man and his heart, man and his ovaries, man and his fallopian tubes, the breasts of man. The life stages of man would be included. Topics would be: man at puberty, man's menstruation, man as father, man as mother, man as husband man as wife, the end of the-childbearing years-the menopause of man. As one man to another, Viola, I am interested in all education which promotes the brotherhood of man. I have disCussed this with other men of good will including my sister. I.am a man of tut minds about this question but I am also a daughter. I will abide by my mother's opinion for I believe that, when tinkering with the language, all generations should be consulted. Besides, isn't it true that We are' not the men our mothers were? If_I could consult her man to,maii, I know that she would firmly state that the use of the word generically to mean all people somehow--illogically perhaps -- leaves out half of alf Mankind. Yours sincerely, Joan Baril a meeting Friends, you really knocked me off guard. Here I thought I was attending a meeting that would slot each person for a particular assignment. I thought for sure I would just observe the procedure like a behavioural scientist. I even came to the meeting with a notion that I would be a curly-headed, bespectacled stranger. I expected to offer the occasional timid suggestion but only if I didn't have a scratchy voice. I did not have much time to feel left out. After my sketchy, clumsy introduction, I realized I was more than initiated, I was feeling part if not all of the emotions charging up inside us all. Damn it people, such raw honesty. I haven't discussed any issues more vital than my shopping list. I'm out of practice, rusty. My feminist leanings have been stuffed into 'cushion covers and naturally I've dusted off and flicked away anger or My picture is in this issue with a group of women from Women's Place. At first, I thought it didn't belong. I'm new in this area -- a woman, yes, but not a Northern Woman. And I certainly haven't done anything for the Journal, except buy it at the odd time. A fifth anniversary issue should congratulate all those who saw the Journal through its rough low energy times. Me?, then, in the picture? What right, what place have I? Wait a minute, I thought to myself. I may be new to the district, but over the past five years, I have been around the women's movement. Not one thing consistently. Not even one city. I've travelled into different places and groups to suit my needs and mood at the time. Like the movement itself, I've grown, lost initiative and gained it in other ways. So, what is the point of this issue? For me, it's to commemorate not just the existence of one journal at one place. It's to celbrate that it, and many other offshoots of the movement still exist, still function, and still give birth to other projects and and groups. Just think of the conversations you've had (or may have, if this is your first introduction to the movement) because of the Journal ... or that co-worker who got fired for asking for equal pay or that mouthy woman that really said a couple of true things. Think of the ,growing, painful and joyful feeling that's come about after you decided that you wouldn't put up with that guy (who thought you were cute when you were angry) ANY MORE. How far have we all come? I know I won't go back. And I've got the Northern Woman Journal and my friends and the other groups, both existing and gone, to thank for the last few years. My picture could be that of anyone ..a of you. March 19 82 any healthy soul-searching. Everywhere around me, friends and acquaintences have settled into a set routine. I don't keep proper hours. I am becoming a neighbourhood pest. I'm suggesting to some of my friends that keeping house and feeding baby might be fine right now but later they will have a gut feeling that somehow, somewhere, they missed the great variety life has to offer. Lately, I haven't been asked over for coffee. I began to think that I was ungrateful. I have my healt1, I think.I have a fine husband and a loving mut of a dog. My well-meaning friends think I'm acting like a whirlwind because I'm frustrated. I haven't been in a 'family way'. I have been kept at a distance. No one wants me to rock the boat. It has been light years away since a friend has really opened up, showing ho' vulnerable she can be, asking for help. I have suddenly grown proud, not wishing to weep on anyone's shoulders. Naturally I was not prepared for women even more intense than I ever could be. I understand how important it is to reach a common meeting ground regarding the journal and each individual involved. The feminist issues should never be abandoned. I'm still searching for a dictionary definition of a feminist. Let me say that it is the healthy emotions that should never die. Don't ever hide anger or sweep it under the rug because it will explode inside of you instead of on the outside where it counts. Don't be afraid of losing your guts because you'll find them again. Just don't lose your perspictive. Just don't lose your mind. Thanks for waking me up. I was beginning to think that women could not reach this plateau of conversation with each other. My other friends made me look twice at myself so I spent mon ey I couldn't afford trying to find out what was wrong. Now I know that searching for the ingredients of inner peace is part of growing up. December 1979 Rosalyn Taylor Perrett PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAN page 23 �Ft O R. A WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS The Confederation College of Applied Arts & Technology This elective post-secondary credit subject is intended to examine situation stresses in our Thunder Bay District lives-family, job, social relationships, conflict, change, developmental crises, etc., as well as potential sources of stress they bring to every situation because of their personality, their own belief system, their life rhythms, and their style of problem-solving. A lifestyle and attitude approach to changing their stress response will be developed by each individual. DATE & TIME: Wednesdays 7:00-10:00pm INSTRUCTOR: FEE: Bert Hopkins $30.00 BUSINESS DIVISION -EQUAL OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATE PROGRAM (Post-Basic) START DATE: September 12, 1984 COMPLETED: November 14, 1984 ROOM: 258 to begin in September 1984, offered part-time through Continuing Education Division. THIS IS BELIEVED TO BE GS 159 99 A FIRST IN CANADA. For further information, contact the Program Co-ordinator at (807) OPPORTUNITY 475-6140. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION-EQUAL Upon successful completion of this elective post-secondary credit subject, the student will be GENERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE DIPLOMA PROGRAM emphasizing Women's Programs Curriculae able to participate effectively in the planning and development of an Affirmative Action Plan. may be taken full-time during the day, or part-time through Continuing Education Division. DATE & TIME: INSTRUCTOR: Mondays 7:00-10:00pm FEE: Mary Fedorchuk $30.00 These subjects are identified as "GS" START (elective credit). DATE:post-secondary September 17, 1984 COMPLETED: November 26, 1984 ROOM: 260 For further information, contact the Program Co-ordinator at (807) 475-6390. WT 843 99 MOTOR VEHICLE (WOMEN KNOW YOUR CAR) SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS (Ministry of Colleges & Universities) In this elective post-secondary credi t subject, students will learn the basic procedures of TECHNICAL UPGRADING PROGRAM (T.U.P.) car maintenance and general operation T.U.P. facilitates the entry of individuals, particularly women, into the workplace or technical DATE & TIME: INSTRUCTOR: Mondays 7:00-10:00pm FEE: Don Young $20.00 The program two components: -- Career CounsellingCOMPLETED: provides a October 29, 1984 or trades training programs. STARThas DATE: September 17, 1984 ROOM: Auto Shop "training path" outlining the training necessary to enter the intended workplace or technical -- Academic Upgrading provides 8-40 weeks of upgrading in related or trades training program; ZW 004 99 certificate and diploma programs in technology or LIVING business programs EFFECTIVE FOR WOMENas well as selected apprenticeable trades. A practical course based on sound psychological principles and finds. Women will be helped to For further information, contact the Associate Registrar-Adult Training through & Special Programs of solving personal problems, enchancement achieve greater life satisfaction techniques at (807) 475-6302. of sexual satisfaction, controlling bad habits and learning desirable ones, stress reduction, increasing learning effectiveness and helping other women through active listening skills. & TIME: 'Thursdays 7:30-9:30pm INTRODUCTION TO NON-TRADITIONAL DATE OCCUPATIONS (I .N.T.0.) INSTRUCTOR: Bert Hopkins FEE: $30.00 I.N.T.O. is an 8-week program that helps women to explore opportunities for employment in non- November 22, 1984 START DATE: September 20, 1984 COMPLETED: ROOM: 258 traditional jobs. Students study job search skills, goal setting and plot a career path. Work placement gives women real job experience. ZW 026 99 For further information, contact the Chairperson of Communication Arts at (807) 475-6210. TIME FOR LIVING 99 Are you drifting from day to day?' Are you ready to do something about it? Come and catch hold WOMEN INTO TRADES AND TECHNOLOGY of (W.life I .T.T.) by learning and applying practical management skills to your daily living. This goal W.I.T.T. is an 18-week program designed to be expose women to allthe aspects practical trades will reached through use ofofinstruction, exercises, films and discussions. training and the world of High-Tech. DATE & TIME: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: Tuesdays 7:30-9:30pm Ivy Cook $30.00 For further information, contact the START Chairperson Industrial & Motive Power at (807) 475-6215. DATE: of September COMPLETED: 18, 1984 ROOM: 346 November 20, 1984 CANAllk EMPLOYMENT & IMMIGRATION COMMISSION ZW 044 WOMEN HUMANTRAINING RIGHTS SKILL DEVELOPMENT (B.T.S.D.) Canada Employment & Immigration may offer& BASIC Do as youa know what your rights are as a to person? As a woman? This subject will enlighten you to Academic Upgrading Grades 8-12; English Second Language; Introduction Non-Traditional yourand rights are in(W.I.T.T.). the work force. Combat unfair treatment with the knowledge of where Occupations ( I.N.T.0.) and Women Intowhat Trades Technology rightfully stand'. For further information, contact youryou local Canada Employment & Immigration Office, or the DATE & TIME: INSTRUCTOR: Irene Mitchell FEE: $30.00 Women's Employment Centre, 130 S. Syndicate Avenue, Mondays Thunder 7:30-9:39pm Bay, Ontario P7C 1C7 START DATE: COMPLETED: November 26, 1934 September 17, 1984 ROOM: 346 (Phone 807-623-2731). REGISTRATION DATES: Non Post-Secondary Subjects (ZW) - August 7th (5-7:30); Post-Secondary Subjects (GS, WT) - August 8th (5-7:30); Keskus Mall - August 9th (12-7); County Fair Mall August 16th (12-7); Intercity Mall - August 23rd, 24th (10:30-9:30). For information about these subjects outside of Thunder Bay, contact your local Confederation College Office or call Toll Free: 1-800-465-6961 or 1-800-465-6962. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS AT (837) 475-6232 ZW 045 99 CONFLICT RESOLUTION PROGRAMS The students will develop an awareness of different strategies in managing conflict and will 99 GS 010 learn how to take responsible effective action in confrontation, both in personal and profesPERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING sional relationships. This elective post-secondary credit subject will give the student practical instruction in perTIME: Bonnie Satten INSTRUCTOR: FEE: Thursdays 7:00-9:30pm $30.00 sonal economics, the art of handling DATE money& and managing one's financial affairs. Topics covered START DATE: COMPLETED: November 8, 1984 ROOM: 331 20, 1984 and car ownership, include budgetting, banking and investing, credit, September housing, insurance together with other topics in which the student may express an interest. FEE: Lauretta Johnson DATE & TIME: Tuesdays 7:00-10:00pm ZW 047 99 INSTRUCTOR: $45.00 THE TRAVELLING ROOM: 258 COMPLETED:WOMAN December 11, 1984 START DATE: September 11, 1984 Due to popular demand, this new subject is being offered to help today's woman plan her business: or pleasure trip effectively. Topics include passport, visa and health requirements, the "do's" GS 052 99 and "don'ts" of travelling alone, planning and packing a business/pleasure wardrope, travel WOMEN, SOCIETY AND CHANGE insurance, consumer rights for travellers, coping with customs, popular travel destinations, best buys and travelling with special needs. Consideration will be given to individual needs and interests. DATE & TIME: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: Iva Wright $30.00 Thursdays 7:30-9:30pm START DATE: November 22, 1984 ROOM: 161 COMPLETED: September 20, 1984 post-secondary credit subject will provide an opportunity for participants to diss the rapid changes in society and to discover how these changes affect women in family life, sexuality, economic development, technology &,community involvement. FEE: INSTRUCTOR: $45.00 Oz Poulin Wednesdays 7:00-10:00pm ROOM: 265 December 12, 1984 COMPLETED: September 12, 1984 AGEMENT 84 post-secondary credit subject will deal primarily with the roles of women in manageparticular skills needed by women to effectively fulfill managerial functions under s which are from within themselves, as well as those imposed by the organizations. FEE: INSTRUCTOR: $45.00 Betty Chalmers Mondays 7:00-10:00pm ROOM: 342 December 17, 1984 COMPLETED: September 10, 1984 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 8 No 5 Description An account of the resource Vol. 8, No. 5 (1984) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: 12th anniversary issue of the journal Reprinted articles from first 10 years of journal Women’s liberation Heritage of the Northern Woman Journal Birth control Women in transition project (1978) Women & health Menopause Midwifery Rural living for women Marital rape Canadian Women’s Music & Cultural Festival Mail order service for feminist books Lesbian Archives of Manitoba Fireweed journal, Toronto, call for papers from Native women Peace caravan campaign against nuclear war Women & affirmative action Sole-support mothers Women in the trades Sexual harassment Women against violence against women Social work Labour striking Confederation College programs for women Authors/Contributors: Teresa Legowski Kathie Louise Nichols Gert Beadle Donna Phoenix Melissa Teffi Joan Baril D. Winko Penni Burrell Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1984 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2780/1984_Vol_8_No_4.pdf a6f0ec2844d8e7412ac6b119f6d522e9 PDF Text Text Northern Woman Journal VOL.8, NO.4 THUNDER BAY, Ont. \\ PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Editorial escalates, As the right-wing British Columbia political violence against the powerless Status of Women Council, and the we learn of the economic attempts to silence the Vancouver anti-woman lobby potential demise of our sister newspaper, Kinesis. While in Saskatchewan the women's options are being gets support from that province's leading politicians. In Ontario witness the legislated out of existence (see Day Care story). And, in our own community, we and grant the funds attempts of certain City Council members to abolish Women Centre's funding $1000 to an instead to the anti-choice lobby. (Willie this attempt failed, Council did provide anti-o_hoice group.) Any lingering misconception that women are merely the coincidental victims of a national/ policies evolve not from global economic recession must quickly be put to rest. Misogynist (male) policy-makers ignorance, but with the deliberate intention of forcing women into dependency/poverty situations. The backlash against women multiplies in direct proportion to the knowledge, the analysis, the articulateness and the strength of the women's movement. We dare not pause to take a breath.... lest oxygen itself be denied us. ************************************************************!********************************* become a Political On the flip side of the coin we suddenly find that wife-battering has with a score of issue in Ontario. The cause of battered women presumably a high priority Cabinet ministers. A victory for women's groups one might think. But let us not be deceived. What we are about to witness is the institutionalization of this urgent women's issue into a provincial/municipal bureaucratic morass that will create the illusion of service to women, harmed than at but will, in fact, leave women poorly served, perhaps even more seriously present. While bright young Toronto civil servants compete for brownie-points on the backs of battering in battered women, and as a gaggle of southerners trip over each other to research The years of effort the north, our Transition Homes are still scraping for funds to survive. communities, and sensitive by community groups to provide services relevant to our northern the depth of experience and to the particular situation of battered women is being eroded; instances, ignored. pioneered these services, in many the wisdom of the women who have intrusion of the provincial government with its There is no doubt that the poorly-planned pre-designed conditions, its lack of consultation, has caused a major set-back for the Transition'Home movement in Northwestern Ontario. The community support, so painstakingly nurtured, by community hosquickly eroded because of provincial largesse; replaced, in some instances, issue. While montility. And what assurance is there that battering will remain a Political ies may flow freely in a pre-election year, no guarantees exist that such funding will remain appeal, it will again There is great danger that, as battering loses its Political available. the trust --- with a legacy be left to women --- but without the community support --- without start all over. to of inappropriate service to overcome -- and with the reality of having will become an institution The even greater danger is that services for battered women controlled by men. --in the fossilized bureaucracy -- will become a "profession" battering remains a women's issue. strength to ensure that wife It, will require enormous a breath We dare not pause Dear Women: I'm just writing to say thank you for printing Josie Wallenius' article (in Sept. 83) Hold Your Children You Can't With Nuclear Arms, and thank you to Josie for writing it. If any woman wants to receive the Greenham Common newsletter to copy and shares write to Annie Butcher at the camp. gitaphic by Cakot love and strength Carol Newbury Berkshire England con.anued on Page 6 PDF compression, page 2 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN :4T OMAN OCR, �by JOAN BARD, be investigating the implications of the new provincial policy in its Day Care Project, Slated to start in April. Through a combination of interviews and surveys it will also analyse existing day care services and accessibility ooe see Spring and International Women's Day,.was celebrated March 8 by a luncheon of immigrant women at the Circle Inn, organized by the Multicultural Association. Then on March 10, the fourth annual Women's Day social at the Strathcona clubhouse, with pot luck food, and dancing .41, On the 15th was the official opening of the Northern Woman's BookStore (316 Bay St.), with music and poetry readings so. March 9 and 10, the feminist feature movie "Born in Flames" was shown at Lakehead University 000 which brings us to City Council. March is also the month the Women's Centre, the Physical and Sexual Assault Centre, the Social Planning Council approach for funding. Chief opponents of the Women's Centre are Aldermen Polhill and Reid, as well as former Progressive Conservative candidate Al Laakonen and P.C. party stalwart Dick Waddington. Picking through an impressive list of Women's Centre activities, Laakonen pounced on some pro choice talks as a reason to deny funding. Later he asked Ald. Betty Kennedy "What is pro-choice -anyway?" Uncomfortably straddling the fence is another Tory, Ken Boshcoff whose grudging support is belied by bhis iefprivate momentcomments ofslensf in sympat y or i a IA lora who hope to make the P.C.'s more sensitive to women's is- eee Ever get anxious about cancer - about losing a breast? What woman doesn't? But worry no longer. Two Montreal doctors have hit upon the "perfect preventative" and a sure-fire method to deal with the worry. They cut off healthy breasts. Now, that makes sense, doesn't it? It's all logic to surgeons Gaston Shwartz and Norman Beliveau at Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital. "We're treating women's fears", they say. In the U.S., more than 11,000 of these "preventative mastectomies" have been performed. A typical victim, according to a report on CBC's Market Place is a woman who has experienced cancer in her family, perhaps her mother or a sister. Reasonrr means, her fears vr.e...mmlmrtm!r s-.2es) ! About FAce c'e.. *oe° eels No fault divorce the tiniest social benefit announced with the biggest government fanfare. Now we can flash dance into court, say our marriage has broken down, wait one year and voila: end up as poor as ever. Unless, some sort of country-wide mechanism is in place to enforce maintenance and support orders, the enormous problems of mother/ child poverty are-not going to dance away sloe and just to. make sure that mothers know their place, the Ontario government is dismantling the daycare subsidy system. The effects will be to turn day care into a charity for the poor, and force low and middle income married women into the kitchen.... Women's Centre will - to the point where she agrees to what is, in effect, a,mutilation. 000 People: Nova Scotia midwives Donna Carpenter, Charlene MacLelland-Brent and Linda Wheeldon have had charges against them dismissed at the preliminary hearing into the death, six months after birth, of baby Darah Bracket on July 18, (1983. The case has been seen las an attempt to discredit midwifery in Nova Scotia 000 Laura Sabia, founder and former president of the National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC), has decided not to stand as a Conservative candidate in Spadina riding. Sabia, who ran .for the Tories in Spadina, lost to NDP Dan Heap. Her recent decision is probably due to ill-health ee ,Ann Cools, former student radical, black activist and founding member of the Toronto women's refuge, Women in Transition has been appointed to the Senate. She was an unsuccessful feder'al Liberal candidate arse the Kristina Potapszyk fund has collected more than $2000 to help her legal expenses in a complaint of sexual harassment against her former employer, Liberal M.P. Al MacBain. Her complaint, upheld by the Human Rights Commission, will be reviewed by tribunal April 9. The fund has a goal of $30,000 to help victims of abuse and harassment. All victims of harass- ment need moral support for they are often under stress. The immigrant women who bravely took on Commodore (and won) endured months of stress, including job loss and marriage problems oeo If you are in the market fora home computer, by-pass Commodore., The company is appealing the Ontario Human Rights Commission decision against their foreman, Rafael De Filippis who, after a long history of blatant sexual harassment of the immigrant women who work for the company, was convicted and fined. The company has also promoted De Filippis to assistant manager. The boycott of Commodore Business Machines is supported by many groups including NAC and the Ontario Federation of Business and Professional Women. In the meantime, new charges of harassment have been made against DeFilippis 000 eel, The Doctors' Trial has been called "the largest single constitutional court battle in Canadian history". Defense council, Morris Manning, for Doctors Henry Morgentaler, Robert Scott and Leslie Smolling has presented a massive amount of evidence and a long complex legal argument during a mini-trial before the trial, in an effort to have the charges quashed on the grounds that they are unconstitutional. on eleven points inc udng the assertion that the committee system is arbitrary and causes delays which may lead to medical complications. Even if Manning wins the motion, the federal government will undoubtedly appeal. 000 On the cover, a naked woman is spread-eagled and hung up in what looks like a complicated dog harness. A strange looking gag is stuck in her mouth. Inside are more women, all bound into grotesque positions. Always a gag. Some are being beaten, some not. Page after page. Ads for videosbondage: torture: chains! Fiona Karlstedt of the Women's Centre stuffs this magazine along with other exhibits into her briefcase. Another talk on pornography, this time to the United Church Presbytry. "There is no use talking about it without showing people what we are talking about. Some people still think we're talking about Lady Chatterley's Lover. These iliagazi-les are the kind found in transparent wrappirrgs, a lot of it at kiddie level." es. Meanwhile the Fraser Committee on Pornography and Prostitution is wending its way. NORTHERN V OMAN pa ge PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Update The issue of pornography pivots around definitions - the difference between sado-porn and sexo-porn. ACTRA (Association of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artist) sees sadoporn as akin to hate literature, It stated its members will refuse work in productions which advocate sexual torture or rape or where children are sexually exploited. The key work here is "advocate". Other groups would extend the definition to inelude dehumanization and deg- radation which brings us to the question of censorship. Should sado-porn be censored? If so, the problem is one of precise definitions in language woman and an outdoor fire, a woman stooping over a cooking fire. And there is something mythic about the place, Greenham Common Peace Camp where in spite of arrests, brutality, slander in the press, and the destruction of tents by local bailiffs, the protesters still remain after three and a half years o word about other women's peace camps filters in from feminist magazines. A small group of women have set up camp near Cole Bay, Saskatchewan, near Primrose Lake weapons range, where the first cruise missile test in Canada was held March 7 There are now a score of camps world wide at places like Pine Gap, a U.S. air base in Australia, Seneca Falls, New York State, Arizona, and even Sicily. The places are different but, "The women and the energy are thb same", Sue Harker, a peace activist who has visited several camps, .states in Kinesis (Feb. 1984). Women try to speak with their bodies; they lie in front of trucks, scale the fences and .dance on the silos, or link hands to encircle as 30,000 women did at Greenham in December. Women use their symbols; they make and exchange banners, that has specific legal clout. No one wants to close the library to get at a single maga- zine o What about education? Yes, but in a wider context. The enjoyment of cruelty is not a perversion. It is a potentiality in all of us, easily pandered to in a sado-machismo world. "Whips and Chains" videos give a "cruelty high". The plots of B-grade horror movies are series of mutilations and grotesque deaths. Outside the movie theatre lurks the 20th century where the most appalling deeds have been done by normal people o Internationally. Women voted for the first time in Jordan o A Swiss organization hang children s pictures and craft work on fences. At Greenham, the women crocheted the fence. The themes of spinning, webs, s,iders, the suffragist colours of purple and green give depth to the deadly seriousness ' of the cause o Quote: " My people up in Canada tell me the test went i very well -- a U.S. Strategic Air Command official referring A to the cruise test of March 7, "Sentinelles" has been set up to rescue Middle Eastern women who are in danger of being kil1984. led by their families in cases of "family honour". They cite, V00 as an example, a woman doused with gasoline and set afire for Cf4ILPIENTvi/ being pregnant. She spent two years in a European hospital recovering. Another young woman who was helped to flee her country after her father and brother had made plans to bury her alive for smoking a cigar- ette in a public place Another bombing by anti-choice supporters of an abortion clinic occurred in February in Norfolk, Virginia. No one was hurt. Anti-choice supporters provide the most active terrorist activity on the continent with over a dozen bombings in the past decade. epee There was something mythic about the tv scene, a Coerced to Conceive by anna mccoll Romanian president Nicolae Ceausescu, leader of the Socialist Republic of Romania, has decreed that the degradation of women is to be practised, sanctioned and enforced by the state police. In the article, "A War on Abortions" (Maclean's April /84), Sue-Masterman reports that in a new edict proclaimed on International Women's Day, Ceausescu states that every married woman employed by the state shall submit to a pregnancy test once a month. If her test is positive she will be held accountable should she be found not pregnant the following month. Should a woman claim to have miscarried, she will be required to produce written proof from her doctor. If a woman continually fails the conception test, that too will have to be accounted for birth control devices are not available. If a woman is declared to have chosen to abort, she is liable to a prison sentence of up to one year; a doctor performing an abortion may be sentenced to from two to five years. Ceausescu's hard line, anti-abortion stand is intended to raise the average number of births to at least two to _three per family from the present 1.43 per family. Women who fail or refuse to bear children for the state are unlikely to receive promotions, and may even lose their jobs. Romania is known for the strong links in the past of its ruling class with Nazi Germany. Could this be what we see surfacing-- fascism within a comI think not; it munist state? is merely a continuation of the subjugation of women regardless of which male ideology prevails. The Romanian regime, in a singular, simplistic and callous attempt to alleviate its economic plight through the physical and psychological oppression of women, proves once again that only we feminists can achieve the autonomy, the dignity and the self-determination that is the right of every human beinc, C. A. R. A. L. MEETING 14hesdav, May 23 8 P,M, 4ronspace page 4 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAN OCR, PDF compression, �Update Coerced to Conceive `.The issue of pornography pivots woman and an outdoor fire, a woman stooping over a cooking around definitions - the difby anna mccoll fire. And there is something ference between sado-porn and mythic about the place, Greensexo-porn. ACTRA (Association Romanian president Nicolae ham Common Peace Camp where in of Canadian Cinema, Television Ceausescu, leader of the Socialspite of arrests, brutality, and Radio Artist) sees sadoist Republic of Romania, has deporn as akin to hate literature, slander in the press, and the creed that the degradation of destruction of tents by local It stated its members will rewomen is to be practised, sancbailiffs, the protesters still fuse work in productions which tioned and enforced by the state advocate sexual torture or rape remain after three and a half police. years oeso word about other woor where children are sexually In the article, "A War on exploited. The key work here is men's peace camps filters in Abortions" (Maclean's April/84), from feminist magazines. A "advocate". Other groups would Sue-Masterman reports that in a small group of women have set extend the definition to innew edict proclaimed on Interup camp near Cole Bay, Saskatelude dehumanization and degnational Women's Day, Ceausescu chewan, near Primrose Lake radation o which brings us states that every married woman weapons range, where the first to the question of censorship. employed by the state shall subcruise missile test in Canada Should sado-porn be censored? mit to a pregnancy test once a was held March 7 oeo There are If so, the problem is one of month. If her test is positive precise definitions in language now a score of camps world wide she will be held accountable at places like Pine Gap, a U.S. siould she be found not pregnant air base in Australia, Seneca the following month. Should a Falls, New York State, Arizona, woman claim to have miscarried, and even Sicily. The places are she will be required to produce different but, "The women and written proof from her doctor. the energy are the same", Sue If a woman continually fails Harker, a peace activist who the conception test, that too has visited several camps, will have to be accounted for states in Kinesis (Feb. 1984). birth control devices are not Women try to speak with their available. If a woman is declabodies; they lie in front of red to have chosen to abort, trucks, scale the fences and she is liable to a prison sendance on the silos, or link tence of up to one year; a dochands to encircle as 30,000 tor performing an abortion may women did at Greenham in Decembe sentenced to from two to ber. Women use their symbols; five years. Ceausescu's hard line, they make and exchange banners, anti-abortion stand is intended that has specific legal clout. to raise the average number of No one wants to close the libbirths to a_ t least two to three rary to get at a single magaper family from the present zine 0.41 What about education? 1.43 per family. Women who fail Yes, but in a wider context. or refuse to bear children for" The enjoyment of cruelty is the state are unlikely to renot a perversion. It is a potenceive promotions, and may even tiality in all of us, easily lose their jobs. pandered to in a sado-machismo Romania is known for the world. "Whips and Chains" videos strong links in the past of its give a "cruelty high". The plots ruling class with Nazi Germany. hang children's pictures and of B-grade horror movies are Could this be what we see surcraft work on fences. At Greenseries of mutilations and grofacing-- fascism within a comham, the women crocheted the tesque deaths. Outside the momunist state? I think not; it fence. The themes of spinning, vie theatre lurks the 20th cenis merely a continuation of the webs, s,iders, the suffragist tury where the most appalling subjugation of women regardcolours of purple and green give deeds have been done by normal less of which male ideology depth to the deadly seriousness people ees prevails. of the cause 000 too. Internationally. Women The Romanian regime, in a 000 Quote: " My people up voted for the first time in singular, simplistic and calin Canada tell me the test went i Jordan 000 A Swiss organization lous attempt to alleviate its very well* -- a U.S. Strategic "Sentinelles" has been set up economic plight through the Air Command official referring A to rescue Middle Eastern women physical and psychological opwho are in danger of being kil- to the cruise test of March 7, pression of women, proves once 1984. led by their families in cases again that only we feminists of "family honour". They cite, BEAR oUR can achieve the autonomy, the WILL as an example, a woman doused YOU cOME HEu dignity and the self-determinawith gasoline and set afire for CYILDREN I tion that is the right of every WATFA being pregnant. She spent two NIGH human beinc, OR years in a European hospital recovering. Another young woman who was helped to flee her coun.,01) try after her father and brother had made plans to bury ,4. .4 her alive for smoking a cigarili__ C. A. R. A. L. ,v_.. ette in a public place 000 *oil Another bombing by ---> IV MEETN; anti-choice supporters of an abortion clinic occurred in 4-. wo Mui 23 LipWectesdav, February in Norfolk, Virginia. ,c_c_-. No one was hurt. Anti-choice ,ii))) (111, 8 Pin, supporters provide the most active terrorist activity on io G_Ii lArinspace the continent with over a do,c-. zen bombings in the past decade. 000 There was something VVOTY1/41,"1/41PVP CO (LIP") mythic about the tv scene, a o SIT reatAt406%(Atiht40 1.til___,.. c- - PDF compression, OCR, NORTHERN W OMAN page 4 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �by FIONA KARLSTEDT & !TARGOT BLIGHT Obscene Use of Power form of clear plastic wrappers was found in only one store and only on some of the magazines. It was obvious from the brutal and violent representations on the covers why. Magazine displays were generally visible and accessible to all customers. An example is a bookstore in downtown Thunder Bay North. Of five magazines displaying full covers at the eye level of the average thirteen year old, three had nude models on their covers. One showed a woman clinging to a parking meter with the caption "Sidewalk Slut: Two Bits Will Get You Two Tits." There is agreement among psychologists that changes in behaviour GG/LNS can be brought about as a result of exposure to the symbolic models porThere is no denying that we trayed in books, films, television live in a violent society. The images SURVEY OF LOCAL STORES and advertising. The fact that childare pervasive; the statistics stagWhen we learned that the Commisren learn much about the world through gering. According to recent national sion would be coming to Thunder Bay, such observation is well founded. estimates, 25% of girls are sexually the Northwestern Ontario Women's Centre And what are we telling our children abused before they are eighteen years sampled 22 retail outlets in the comwhen they see magazines such as the old, and at least one in ten cohabmunity. These included candy and smoke one mentioned above? We are telling iting adult women is battered. Sources shops, bookshops, drug stores, gift them that women's bodies can be bought for these figures include reports from shops and corner stores. The rule (with and sold. the police, courts and health care two exceptions) was that if a store In a corner store located across workers, rape crisis centres, transicarried any magazines at all, from an elementary school, Playboy a portion tion houses, and surveys done by acaof their stock was pornographic. There and other similar magazines are disdemics and agencies. Our own community was a large variance from store to played in a four foot rack placed which many once considered a haven store as to the number and type of magaimmediately to the right of the enfrom the type of violence and crime zines, display, and attitudes trance. It is the first thing a child toward charactericstic of larger urban centhe sale of pornography. sees when he or she enters the store. tres, has recently witnessed several With the exception of one store It is a silent form of conditioning. brutal assaults on women, one of which surveyed, all receive their stock In a gift shop located in downfrom resulted in the death of a 15 year old one area distributor, who provides girl. town Thunder Bay South, we found the whole "packages" to the outlets.Infor"Family Reading Centre" which conWe have been conditioned to mal censorship is practiced by tained such magazines as "Big Boobs", some accept violence as a mode of enterstore operators who systematically re"Girls on Girls", "Hot Ass", "High tainment. It is the stock-in-trade of view all the magazines provided Heeled and Dominant", "XXX Movies", to them the mass entertainment media and is by the distributor, returning just to name a few. The top racks those evident everywhere you look: in magathey find personally objectionable. hold most of the pornogrdphyrinIT-# zines, on television, in movies, in One drug store manager refuses to handle titles spill over into a section holdadvertising, and on record covers. any pornography in her store. ing computer magazines. Immediately Hard core pornography, in which we see adjacent to the magazine display are the female body stripped, bound, raped, What we have is a situation two video games. At the time we were tortured and murdered, could not have where store owners or their employees in the store, we noticed a boy of happened without the way being paved decide from their own value base what about fourteen casually leafing through for it through the seemingly antiseptic magazines will or will not be sold, one of the magazines, oblivious to the objectification of women in advertising and how they are displayed. sign in front of him indicating that and in such soft porn magazines as Not once in our discussions with those magazines were restricted to Playboy. store owners/employees was the issue persons "16 and over". For too long, we have ignored of freedom of expression mentioned Most of the store owners and the viciously sexist nature of pornowith regard to the sale of pornography employees spoken to claimed to sell grapy. One reason being perhaps that What was consistently mentioned was pornography only to adults, but one the producers and protagonists of the revenue it generates, and the commented that "anyone who could pornography often used the words porperceived unemployment which would reach the magazines" (on the top nographic and erotic interchangeably. result if sales were curtailed. One three racks) could buy them. Another This confusion has lead to the obscurbookstore owner advised that "skin" claimed that he didn't sell to thiring of the reality of violence against magazines accounted for over 50% of teen year olds "unless they had a women in favour of civil libertarian his magazine sales, and that they in moustache". arguments such as the right to freefact "paid the rent". A corner store It is quite common to see young dom of speech, expression and sexualoperator commented that she and her female clerks working in these outlets. ity. But pornography is not about husband would be retiring in a couple We have difficulty believing they sexuality or freedom of expression. of years and had to sell those magawould challenge a prospective customer It is about the obscene use of power zines to make a living. regarding the purchase of pornography. - the physical or psychic violence Many of those canvassed were There is no question in our minds done to one human being by another. uncomfortable talking about pornothat pornography, at least in printed The pleasure of the powerful in the graphy. Some were openly hostile, form, is easily accessible in Thunder humiliation and dehumanizing of the demanding to know what we thought we Bay. Overall, there were in excess of powerless. were doing in their store; others 100 different titles in the candy/ For our purposes, pornography were defensive and evasive, telling smoke/drug/gift/book and corner stores is defined as "a presentation, whether us to contact their head office in we surveyed. In one bookshop, where live, simulated, verbal, pictorial, Toronto for clarification of store half of its space is allocated for filmed or videotaped, or otherwise policy. pornographic materials, we recorded represented, of sexual behaviour in Several female clerks expressed the titles of 116 other publications. which one or more participants are embarrassment at having to handle Time and the hostility of the owner coerced overtly or implicitly, into pornographic materials. prevented us from recording titles participation; or are injured or abused In all but two stores that we displayed on numerous other racks. physically or psychologically; or in visited, pornographic magazines were which an imbalance of power is obvious not separated off from other types of or implied by virtue of the immature publications and in some cases overage of any participant, or by contextflowed into racks containing other ual aspects of the presentation, andin categories such as computer or sports which such behaviour can be taken to magazines. Special packaging in the be advocated or endorsed." continued on page 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN -IT OMAN pa ge 5 �PORN continued Ptorg Page 5 Many people in our community are tired with being confronted with pornogrEphy wherever they look. While awaiting more substantial measures at the federal level, a recommendation will be made to city council that a municipal by-law, similar to those already in place in other Ontario communities, be established requiring that pornographic material be placed at least 1.5 metres from the floor and behind barriers of a size and nature that only the titles are visible. A symbolic gesture but not much more. It is our conviction that we can no longer continue the pattern of paralysis by analysis awaiting conclusive scientific proof of the link between pornography and violence against women in the real world. We need immediate action. It is clear that without government assistance, the pornography industry will continue to grow. We support, as does the Canadian Coalition Against Media Pornography, the proposed amendments to the Criminal Code put forward by the Minister of Justice, and endorse the recommendations of the Coalition respecting further changes to those amendments. We also endorse the Coalition's recommendations calling for: (1) inclusion of specific provisions in the Criminal Code related to the protection of children; (2) the establishment of guidelines on sex-role stereotyping and pornography for all govei-nment-funded communications and cultural agencies; (3) amendment of the Broadcasting. Act to include protection on the basis of gender; (4) removal of the exemption for broadcasting in the hate message section of the Canadian Human Rights Act; (5) monitoring by the RCMP and other police forces of the use of pornography in sexual assault, wife battering, incest and sexual murder cases; (6) departmental directives to Crown Attorneys to regularly ask about the use of pornography in sexrelated crime hearings and trials to establish the connection between the use of violent pornography and crime; (7) reform and strengthening of customs procedures and policies, which emphasize the government's intention to stop the easy flow of pornograph into Canada; (8) the removal of pornography from stores licensed in government buildings and airports; (9) increased funding for sex education groups that teach a healthy alternative to young people. Your Voice continued N.WOJ Good news from the Thunder Bay delegation returned from the April 15 Project ELF demonstration in Northern Wisconsin! We succeeded in accomplish ing 411 our objectives on the weekend and there were no arrests and no violence! This is certainly an affirmation of much positively persistent work since last fall's demonstration when there were 150 arrests as well as an incident of physical confrontation by the area's pro-ELF'ers. It was an extremely reinforcing experience having had the opportunity to share in the positive energy generated by feelings of trust in people, hope in a loving world-sharing visions of peace, affirmations of life. We walked the cross-shaped network of power lines in all four directions (including very wet marshlands) planting seeds - peas and sunflower seeds which will grow up along the power line poles (and outlive their presence). The hopes of our symbolic gestures had already been realized (in part) before we planted our seedlings along the access road to the site. Where trees had already been cut down by the navy to build the lines we witnessed dozens of little ones already growing to replace each larger one removed. We sang and we shared. We invited the site workers to join us in breadbreaking. They came out and witnessed our celebration. A fence still separated us and they avoided sharing bread in our presence. We left a loaf by the gate. Several large holes were dug in the gravel in front of the main gate of the transmitter station and the trees were left (with notes of Peace and Love) for the site workers to plant. The work continues. C.A.T.EO (organizers of_this Celebration of Life) hold vigils at sundown, first Sunday of each month. Dialogue with security, ELF workers and area citizens continues. A Women's Peace Presence to Stop Project E.L.F. is beginning this summer (Chequamegon National Forest). All women and children are warmly invited to visit and share in the search for new beginnings from this part of our world, thereby joining in spirit and action with other women's groups internationally. Transmitting Love Thunder Bay Delegation to Stop Project E.L,F. Hi: I want to thank you for sending us a copy of NWJ. I find it to be one of the finest feminist (enlightened) publications anywhere. I'm not sure why/how, but it gives me very genuine feelings of sisterhood -- an essential part of everyday life and hope. I'm enclosing the most recent issue of our publication - Echolocation - I wrote the piece on Feminism in an attempt to appeal to people who support the motions but shy from embracing the word itself, thereby denying themselves a great deal of valuable works. The response has been wonderful. The feminist content of submissions has escalated and many misconceptions have vanished. The aim of Echolocation is to motivate creation/art/love of our planet through examination of the present ongoing Rape of the atom, Rape of the planet and Rape of woman. It really serves as a disguise to unify the collective which focusses on it. Our theme is 'Dare to Hope'. And we do. Thanks again. Dear NT,TJ: I allowed my subscription to the Northern Woman Journal to expire some time ago but I've had a renewed interest Mainly due to the Women in Transition Conference held in Dryden over the weekend... sot many people recommended the Journal that I've decided to renew. Please send me your next issue. Thanks. Patricia Johnson Dryden HELP PREVENT RAPE! SISTERS GIVE RIDES TO SISTERS photo by Joyce Michalchuk PornogrAphy should not be allowed to flourish as an accepted part of our society, To do so is to deny women their fUndamental human dignity.* CONGRATULATIONS Anna and Ma:A4atet on the opening o6 the NoAthetn-,. Woman'a Booh4toke. NORTHERN 17 OMANOCR, pa ge 6 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor PDF compression, �FACING It .(16 cteaAing The waxing moon is high ctouds shAoud its tuminezcence but a cold White tight seeps through the smoky baAtien Snow 6atting gentty means a warm night for a change my anxiety witt be at tow tide. I steep with moontight bAeaking at each dAeam's end awake ioA only a iew minutes between waves. On cleat, endless nights when stars petionm macabre dances Aeceding and pAoceeding within ocean 04 coldness the moan's tight Aeveatz iaces contoured opposites shadows oi mottatity and death. The hunten and the kitteA Aeitect the horror 04 my exposed ptimat darkness Waiting images surround my steeping presence Visions 04 gamed destruction 06 bloody carcasses invade my dreams. I sweat with banning I Freeze with tetton Atone, awake I stare at the lunar tight STEPPING OUT I WI out o6 myseti sometimes the gatheAings o6 my ti4e hurtling around the room -ciActes spinning 'bound a 6utt moon I ctimb out, dAowsiness swept aside goat and istAetch to touch the night I glare at he pate Aegection hen bloodless moontit 6ace stiding into hen: eyes and backing out when nothing theke I'm strong and witd but she's a4Aaid tugging at me, imptoAing she's a dusty shell without me I'm the 6iAe in hen Love the passion she strangles rarely sets ikee her angers never lost yet seldom teteased I climb Qat 06 her and Galt back in I'm she Rosalyn TaytoA PenAett OUR BODIES Out bodies ate owl. own Time wanders away I am .600ttess to 4ottow When it is so cad that trees crack When noises snap the soundtess night When otystat rainbows whip the alit I hear ate movements completely Like animatz seeking zhetten The liaceis crawl under my house and begin to ctimbwith footsteps echoing deadened thunder I Listen in bed gAipping Who are they? Neat? Where ate they? From? What do they? Want? Too ctose. So close. the blackness breaks to grey My day 6ace Aises as the sun The other visages As hide beneath theiA shetteted clutch Read -LLy awaiting the moonlight. Have we become too com6oktabte with ouAsetvez When we 40Aget the natunatness and independent beauty 04 our bodies? Have we become too com4oAtabte with ouAzetves When we 60Aget out bodies anent accustomed to being themzetves? OA - have we nevelt become com6oAtabte enough? ExpAession and movement, unencumbered deliy harm in any Iiinite zen4e When ineety gowing, size and shape need not - not can they, have boundatiez on end We must become comioAtabte with outs bodies They one OUA own - our tempoitat home. Out bodies ante our own Bean they another t16e - on 2,5 (as some think they ought to) - on mare an none They ate out own. They'te gipz given us to wean. on the occasion 06 our eaAthty biAth They'Ae auto to nuttute, Love and enjoy and to share IF WE CHOOSE Untit the day we Leave this earth We must temind out sisteAs and otheAs, too OUR BODIES ARE OUR OWN: Judy MdfaAtim Tenesa Legowski FUR WOMANSPACE; FOR WOMEN'S DREAM There must be this ptace to dream Where shared successes and support nuttute And discontent angers to act -ion claimant disquietude There must be this burning ground CauteAizing coniusion planted by the threatened In theit wry 6iebds Overturned by the damp and womb -Lush women With theiA most and seating speech Those who don't understand may never know Butning 6iads tike these I smite inwaAdty at our coLLectcive "secret" Which we do not keep concealed We hide nothing here but woman's dream, revealed. Joyce Michatchuk PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION NORTHERN PDFCompressor WOMAN page ; �Women Making Changesthe military component of the popular tures of the Death Squad. Military repression in El Salvador coalition. When the choice is to die by JUDY McMARTIN is genocide. The number of massacred of starvation or to die fighting to villages has risen in direct relation (Fading Backdtop) We aee a peAzon with keep them alive - it's impossible not to escalating U.S. military'aid'. Accora hand held out, waiting - one amongzt to make the connections: You do whatriing to reports by Amnesty Internationever- within your own individual capahundteda, thouaands on mittionz o4 otheAa. Waiting 4on the chance to have bilities- to help bring down the mighty al, America's Watch Committee, Human Rights Commission of El Salvador,etc. /Lice on potatoea military monster and to re-create a a meat - Aome beau the slaughtered masses have been, for strong foundation for the survival - whatever, /cot a tittte noutiahment. the most part, unarmed civilians, and and continuing life of your people. (Super-imp,ned) btuAting thin image, mostly women, children and older people. An important aspect of A.M.E.S. tinked up to brother Chattenget, we In El Salvador, repression comes in many work is continuing to increase their ee CanadaAm- waving -.to coateg mitivery ugly forms of inhumane treatmentinternational connections, by partitaAy hand in outer apace. Canada, women always being subjected to atrocicipating in conferences and other ztitt a co- onized eaAthting, atteady ties that go far beyond'simply' being attied with isupet-impeAiaUism pAoctaim- events of Solidarity with Central American Women, as well as touring Scankilled or threatened with death. ing a aupet-technoZogicat diapt.ay o4 Working within this framework of dinavian and European countries, the 4oneign aid' - Sotat Max tea cued! a military regime-fortified by more than United States and recently Canada. $1 billion US dollars worth of American Estela Ramirez, as person reseconomic interests- Estela states simply ponsible for A.M.E.S.External Rela"Killing is not the solution to our sotions Commission, visited Canada on a cial problems." An obvious fact to women two month educational tour, sponsored by the Inter-Agency Committee on Women -to grassroots workers-obviously, not a and Development. Estela came to us as concern to be considered by the military a connector - to educate us - to heigh- -money makers. Estela reminds us that ten our consciousness, in the hopes of A.M.E.S. is a social organization-women working together to improve social conincreasing our solidarity with Women ditions of all Salvadorean people. So, in El Salvador. The educational tools with these pictures, Estela does not companera Estela brought to Canada want us only to cringe at the horrors, were her person-emanating great strenbut to get a feeling for her people. gth of spirit (womanspirit herSelf) Pictures of children to remind us that - and two sets of pictures - brought the numbers of dead we read about in the from El Salvador (her native home) newspapers are human beings that deserve and from Nicaragua (where she is livthe attention and respect of their ing as a political refugee and working for A.M.E.S.). With these pictures, rights to survive as people and to selfdetermination as a nation. Estela shared with us the contrasting Self-determination in the 1980's dynamics of her reality - a reality, does not mean we can close our eyes to which as a member of A.M.E.S. she is this situation of extreme crisis and let working very hard to keep changing positively, through social development. them take care of their own problems.It by bharati mirchandani in manushi does include demands that foreign miliThe pictures from El Salvador tary intervention be stopped. told the horrors of the current situWomen know that the Crag Lc ahuAdity It does include economic support ation much more clearly than this artoi the contAazt -(16 inexcuzabte. Women from the international community to icle could possibly express. Amongst know that the)se two exttemez 0,6 out neighbouring Nicaragua whose people are the innumerable atroscities were dechanging teatity o441et a_ wide tanoe 04 struggling to maintain their successful picted dead bodies floating in a river, teaponaibititiea to chooise 4Aom. Thete'a social revolution. Respect for human children who could not swim, drowned much dynamic movement - women'z movein attempting the "river crossing, fleerights and national self-determination ment - going on .1n between - women ing the too well known horrors of the in the 80's does include opening our making connection. - making choice. eyes to genocide in Guatemala which by military, the security forces (of making changu woAtdwide. 1982 had already claimed 83,500 lives which there are 7) or the Death Squad. Being able to swim did not ensure the (13,5('0 in 1981 alone). It does include FOCUS ON EL SALVAVOR safety of others -- shot down by heliremembering that tiny Grenada's peacecopter fire from above. Others who do ful,social revolution, which was just A.M.E.S., Salvadorean Women's beginning and already showing signs of succeed in river crossings are met by Association, is transforming her socV6sitive growth, was tragically halted Honduran soldiers on the other side. iety within a framework of similar by the U.S. invasion and is-being in(Honduras'is the U.S. military base in extremes. A.M.E.S. was born in 1978, terrupted by continuing U.S.military this regional war, with 6 major airlegally recognized in September 1979 occupation. It does include withdrawing fields U.S. constructed or improved, in an assembly entitled "Isaura Gomez" of political and economic support from Canadian tax dollars helping with road in honour of a companera and her 12 the Honduran government which is involimprovements too.) (C.A.U. March '84) year old daughter who were assasinated Mothers deaths are multiplied, as ved in "unprecedented joint military by the repressive forces. A.M.E.S. is exercises with the U.S.Defense Dept.... they often attempt crossing several a democratic organization of strong, times, trying to save lives of their determined women, working within El children. We see one woman whose breast Salvador, externally in Nicaragua and has been cut off, after having survived abroad, organized and mobilized to imthe ordeal of torturous rape. plement social change. Repression in El Salvador, the A.M.E.S. educational role - "their smallest and most densely populated continuous effort to eradicate estabLatin American country, has 'displaced' lished feminine and masculine values" 1/5 of its 5 million population, has is an integral component of the revo'lost' another 3,000 desaparecidos -(unluntionary process. Simultaneously, accounted for human beings)and has taken they are working together with the more than 45,000 lives in the past 4 popular movement of peasants, shantyyears. Guerillas, left-wing rebels, intown dwellers, housewives, students strgents,or just plain"commies"-as poinand other workers, represented by FMLN_ ted out by the U.S.military(Washington FDR, to ensure the survival of their via training centres in -anama-U.S.Soupeople. thern Command)for 'disposal'by El SalWomen in El Salvador have made the vador's military regime- include any connections and are making positive religious worker who has taken to heart changes. More than half of the broad their commitment to social justice, ed-,coalition of social and political groups ucators, young children, foreign volunthat comprise the FDR (Frente Democrateer health workers, pregnant women cartica Revolucinaria) are women. Women rying "communist fetuses" and anyone are also actively participating in the courageous enough to offer a meal or a arms struggle as members of the FMLN night's shelter to a refugee from a (Farabundo Marti Liberacion Nacional), neighbouring village, fleeing the torNORTHERN W OMAN page 8 continuerl_ nex. -v,n( PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Focus on Women in El Salvador which has in effect made clear that they are establishing a permanent U.S. military presence in Honduras."(C.A.U. , Mar.84) The increasing support of international human rights groups, church groups and women's groups is vital to El Salvador's survival. The continued efforts of AMES, working on the struggle against machismo- a struggle within and at the very root of the struggle against a patriarchal, militarily-focussed world- is doubly vital. Women in El Salvador, sexually enslaved in 'modern times' (Past 415 centuries,since arrival of Conquistadors) via "pleasure of the master"-still commonly practised against women employed as domestics.Women and their children, economically enslaved as migrant family workers(not entitled to a salary)- 3 to 4 months work paid at $3/day/man. Women industrial workers( earning 25% socially productive, LIVING,WORKING less than men) have to leave their chilWomen.. Women are working as literacy and dren at home alone. health brigadiers, nutrition counselYoung girls becoming young women lors, giving assistance to refugees; becoming young mothers-11-13 year-olds caring for orphans. Women are working giving birth alone often lose their in self-defense training and educababies, if not their own lives first. tional workshops and production colGirlhood'being killed by rape, simullectives. Estela proudly tells us that taneous to assassination."Assassination a member of A.M.E.S. has been elected is the first cause of death amongst president in one of the FREE ZONES children. Formerly, it was diarrhea (FMLN-FDR controlled) in El Salvador. and anaemia."(E.Ramirez) A.M.E.S. women are making changes. Market and, street vendors can Faced with continuing genocide, organbring their children to work with them ization has had to become very soph-but only because they work at homeisticated. The Free Zones are growing on the streets- selling by day-sharing in number and strength. A.M.E.S. 'protheir cardboard box homes by night. paganda' of feminist democracy demands Repression/oppression pushing more and a basic right -- the responsibility of more women to city streets-many women full participation by women in creating including their young womenichildren' a new social order. The fundamental are working nights, as well. "Society changes needed urgently to transform encourages prostitution...but, repressociety for humanity's sake are being ses the prostitute!" (E.Ramirez) directed in El Salvador by A.M.E.S. European women imported to El SalTheir educational directives are emvador by the colonizers for economic phasizing the development of social reasons -as a primary commodity of relations-44 among this generation of trade-to create a new race of Salvadochildren, preparing them for tasks and rean people to become a class eligible responsibilities that await them in to inherit the property of their conthe new society that is being recreated quest and its wealth. This, only after Salvadorean women are not naive in the indigenous population had been detheir struggles -- undoing centuries creased drastically, native women and old repression and deeply ingrained their offspring having been raped and cultural traditions of sexual oppresworked to death. sion. They are not educating a generSlave trade of European women was ation of innocent children in isolation a prerequisite to ensure inheritance of a generation of adults who still of land, to keep up payments to the need educating. This determined women's Crown and to perpetuate exploitive work is not to preserve motherhood and profits. Rape of native women, which innocent childhood -- most of the worearlier needed no justification other ld's young people never knew the image than to satisfy whims, became'justiof innocent childhood. fied' in the name of economics- as it This perseverance of women is to became necessary to create a race to ensure that future generations will be deemed eligible as the working class know a balanced world. Respect for An over-simplification of,a multibasic human rights and social work ethnic society, created by empire-builare considered threats to national ding,but, women's problems today are security. the same, universally, borne of the economic structure of patriarchal domination. Women to satisfy sexual desires -women to bear the pains of childbirth - to supply workers and inheritors were prerequisite to the creation of an unbalanced economics system. Women and During her visit to Thunder Bay men bearing the pains of the resultant Estela Ramirez provided information oppression. about a project for day care centres Today, the creative powers of Salin the El Salvador Free Zones. A vadorean women-fortified by hope and Thunder Bay Committee formed to obperseverance, encouraged and enriched tain support for this project. by women's solidarity internationally. A.M.E.S. hopes to set up two -are transcending their ethno-economic day care centres in each village. class structure, having unified to reThe day care centres are essential create society. Testimonies of social to enable women in these areas to change being made by AMES women became continue their revoluntionary work evident in the pictures from Nicaragua - teaching, health care, community that Estela shared with us-pictures of development. Each day care centre . Regionally, reflections of similar mentality are evident in the plight of (lack of) day care facilities in Northwestern Ontario. Locally, echoes of the same insecure mentality are heard in Thunder Bay, where maledominated decision making withdrew funding from the Lakehead Social Planning Council. Yes, we are connected. * Knowing that we share common problems and that the fundamental causes are the same, in El Salvador, Northwestern Ontario and elsewhere. th * Knowing that it's natural to have fears, living in a world teetering on the brink of technological modernity (flames flicker some" times). * Knowing that women are strong and really holding the key to making the most vital changes this world has ever needed. * Knowing that women's groups are making positive changes all over the world to ensure equality as a' social base, and working from there in the direction of quality life. * Knowing that we're connected not marginally, from the outside world in, but from our very core outwardly reaching in solidarity. * Knowing that the same clock ticking on at 11:57 trying to tell us Doomsday's arriving in 3 minutes is telling some of our sisters that it's approaching noon. In knowing our strengths, sharing our hopes and dreams, overcoming our fears, sharing our problem-solving, learning together, re-creating -- women are con-. tinually growing in strength, making connections, persistently making woman changes. (Faded backdtop, pha6inq out ... vomanAi6e image phcusing in-women ap- uAoaching 4o/Leguund Wm many new ditectionz Day Care Project will be equipped to care for 50 children. It is estimated that each centre will need $1000 to purchase teaching materials, sleeping' mats, bed clothes and a basic kitchen inventory. The Thunder Bay El Salvador Day Care Support Project hopes to fund two lay care centres in one village. Please send your donation to: El Salvador Day Care Support Project, c/o NWO Women's Centre, # 4, 204 Red' River Rd. Thunder Bay. For more information please call Judy McMartin at 623-2894 or 623-9214. .,1ORTHLRiv W,../21(AN paye 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �PROJECT EL GREENHAM COMMON Recent news reports showed pictures of women at Greenham Common being evicted by bailiffs backed by hundreds of police. In fact, there are six or eight camps around the perimeter of the missile base. Although one camp at one gate was closed, those women will move to other camps at different gates. An interesting exerpt from the Green and Common newsletter: IumeGrigam lopment of offensive firststrike capability greatly in creases the risk of both int tional and accidental nuclea Nuclear alert...Practice wer. Runs? by MIRIAM KETONEN There have been four alerts so far. A siren sounds to recall USAF personnel who live outside the base. On three occasions, wives and children went in the cars with the men. Children in their night clothes were taken from houses on the base into the bunkers. Flags at some of the gates change from yellow to red (BOMBING IMMINENT) to black (FOUR-MINUTE WARNING). There is considerable activity inside the base. Presumably after the black Health Effects Recent studies in the U This summer in Wisconsin women from the midwest of theSweden and Britain have show: that exposure to ELF electroU.S. will come together to form magnetic radiation is direct] the Women's Peace Presence to linked to increased cancers Stop Project ELF. The presence birth defects. The U.S. Navy will open May 28, 1984 and will claims that exposure to ELF continue throughout the summer poses no unacceptable risk tc to call direct attention to ELF However, they cancel] as a first-strike weapon, tohumans. its a proposed human study of the effect on the environment and to the destructiveness of theeffects because the results c arms race. a monkey study indicated risk ELF stands for ext;emelyto the human sub4e:-s. If exto ELF is too dangerot low frequency. Project ELF isposure a U.S. Navy proposal to build for consenting human subjects a giant one-way radio transmitter in a laboratory setting, how in northern Wisconsin and thecan it be safe for non-consen flag ,has been flying for upper peninsula of Michigan.ing An and unwilling citizens of four minutes, those of us Michigan and Wisconsin? ELF test facility was built in not in bunkers are dead The people of Michigan a Wisconsin in 1969. It consists i.e. the British soldiers, of two overhead lines, each 14 Wisconsin have been opposed t the M.O.D. police, the the ELF facility from its inmiles long and crossing in the pe'Ace women and the local ception. In public referenda middle for a total of 28 miles population. of overhead wire. At each end80% of voters in the upper pe is a buried component of 1 toinsula of Michigan oppose ELF 2 We feel that attention miles in length. This system The is Governor of Michigan clai needs to be drawn to the to oppose it. Marquette Count now being upgraded. In Michigan fact that the Americans the Navy is currently constructsued the Navy to prohibit the are practising for a nufrom building ELF in Michigan ing a larger facility (55 miles) clear war. We are plannThe Navy used expropriation Together these two transmitters ing to demonstrate in powers to obtain title to 900 would transform the bedrock of Newbury when the next a acres of antenna corridor wit the Lake Superior region into a alert happens, but the out notifying the Governor, giant antenna. 2500-mile long rest of the country should ELF waves would be sent deep Attorney General, Michigan Co be told about the war ty or the citizens of Michiga into the oceans to be received games being played here. by Trident and modified Poseidon The resistance continues submarines. At present there CATE are (Citizens agailt Triden How will we know when the 5 Trident and 31 Poseidon subELF) has performed a series o alert is real marirles but the U.S. Navy has"alternate surveys" at the fa Who is cruise defendplans for 26 more Tridents. Each ility. On Palm Sunday CATE he ing Trident carries eight times a as "Celebration of Life" dun:: which they planted trees alon much explosive power as was used Jill and Ann by all sides during World Warthe 11.antenna lines. Some membe Orange Gate of the Thunder Bay Coalition Each Poseidon has the explosive for PeSce and Nuclear Disarma equivalent of three entire World War lls. ment travelled to Wisconsin t take part. We hope that a gro With the current communication system using VLF (very low of Thunder Bay women will be able to join in the Women's frequency) submarines must surface to receive commands. ThePeace Presence sometime durin ELF system allows subs to approthe summer. ach very close to the Soviet coastline undetected. ELF could "In an age of nuclear pro then summon all subs at once to liferation, women are equ Project Ploughshares meets the surface, where existing VLF with men in the threat of the second last Wednesday of signals could give them the fire annihilation. Nuclear wea each month at Wesley United order and targeting information pons do not discriminate Church on Brodie Street at 8:00 ELF signals, according to the on the basis of sex. But p.m. U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Kaufmann women are not equal in in Senate Armed Services Comr-t- the decision-making power Thu'er Bay Coalition for ,tee hearings testimony, are de- to reverse this destrucPeace and Nuclear Disarmament cessary to Trident subs attemp- tive trend. The arms race meets the last Wednesday of ting to strike "time sensitive" underscores the horrible every month at Confederation (i.e. military) targets. Trident fact that women are equal College at 8 p.m. missiles are first strike wea- in death, but not in the pons because there would be no power and means to choose Thunder Bay Peace Council point in firing missiles at siloslife." meets first Tuesday of every unless "enemy" missiles were month at 8 p.m. at Ogden School still in those silos. The deve--Patricia Mische 4 ) i ' 1 PEACE NEWS NORTHERN PDF compression, OMAN page 10OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Profoundly Prejudicial: edited by Teneza Legow4ki These ate exe.A0 4ADM a ispeech by Stephen Lao-vs to the annual genenae meeting, Manch 13, 1984, o4 the Lakehead Sociat Phumng Council!. in Thunthm Bay. (2) Of single parent families which are women led, 43% live below the poverty line. Men (who are legislators,too) cannot identify with unemployment and poverty. (3) The need for child care space for children of various ages ranges from 300,000 to When we discuss child care it is essential to understand the two basic concepts that have dominated political thought in Ontario for a long time. The first is that "the root of all social and economic evil is big government". How typically simple minded to put the blame on one, and- only one, aspect of a complex society. There has always been money for the private sector. The Tory wrath of political expedience is continuing this attack on the public sector. \ action The second essential concept is "nothing changes". The first push for child care was voiced in the Ontario legisla400,000 spaces in Ontario. ture in 1963 by Ken Bryden. In Right now across the province 1974, responding to pressure there are 41,000 full time day for child care services, Margcare spaces available. Of these aret Birch expounded her general theory that child care is an 20,000 are partially subsidized, indulgence of the middle class. 33,706 are filled by pre-schoolers, 4,088 by infants, 2100 by In 1984, a major revision of school age children. An estima= all legislative acts related to ted 120,000 spaces exist at children, child welfare and homes of relatives and private family welfare was conglomerated baby sitter arrangements, the into the Children's and Family type of service which is inciHowever, one, and Services dental and at times mediocre. only one, act was excluded: The Staggering facts! Day Nurseries Act, which deals (4) This society has a numwith provision of services for ber of repugnant and profoundly pre-school children. What kind of attitude does prejudicial features concerning. the following elementary issues. this indicate existing in the Where are Tory legislative assembly? It (a) women's rights? certainly demonstrates obtuse(b) birthing rights? ness and insensitivity. (c) midwifery rights? Now child care is left out in a fragmented limbo. (d) children's rights? Bearing these concepts in (e) maternity leave rights? mind, a brief review of facts (f) affirmative action is necessary. The actual cost rights? of child care presently hovers How can equality in income, around $21/day per child. By in politics, in health, in opp1986, a $30/day per child miniortunities be achieved with mum is projected. The Ontario "voluntary" guidelines? government funds 310%, the fede(5) There is enormous value ral funds 50% and the municipal in child care. The basics for funds the rest. any child care program are music, Women working with childreading and play, in a caring ren under 16 yrs. old represent environment that facilitates affection, curiousity, creativ-35.8% of the labour force. Broity, awe and wonder. ken down further, women with Here the children under 3 years of ages poisonous consequences and culworking in the labour force, tural deprivation of hours and hours of television --- brutalhave increased 26.7% from 1975ity, sexism, racism, -- are 1980. Women with children bediminished. tween 6 and 15 years old have A st.uong learning componincreased labour'force particient is necessary, bringing a pation by 19.8% during the same thoughtful, artful and conscious time period. continuum, It requires imaginIs child care at risk? .tive design and application. Lets examine eight issues to' ,As .demonstrated by World answer this question. (1) The need is overwhelm-, War II, where women were active ing. Income is the rationale for Iy recruited into the workfovce, female participation. in thework exigency exists when society is force. The majority of women Pressed to respond to a need. with children under 6 work;. It's `Child care was set up in a matnecessary for economic survival. ter of months with no money Does the present child :are ap7 paratus speak to social needs? .(6) There has to be a ranWhat are the implications of ge of child care: infant care, this? young children and ore- school \ daycare Childcare in Ontario nurseries. Child care workers must be licenced an receive adequate pay. Without this, children are put at risk. General guidelines and minimum standards are required. Private, profit making child care is not necessary. Child care for shift workers, on a 24 hour schedale is needed, at the site of employment. Recently, the United Auto Workers negotiated a contract for a Stratford plant employing 90% women, to supply child care at the work place. Child care should be universal and non-compulsory. It should be an extension of the Ministry of Education at the lower level, as universities and colleges are extensions at the higher level. (7) Is there a plot that lurks in the legislature? Here's the rub, which puts most people requiring child care in the "legislative bind". By 1986, the only way a person can get a subsidy for child care is if that person fits the Tory legislator's definition of "need": (a) You are on Family Benefits Allowance, (b) You are on General Assistance (welfare) (c) You submit yourself to a needs test to prove financial hardship. Partial subsidies will no longer be applicable. Eligibility does not guarantee availability of space. So either you're so poor or you're so rich that you can afford child care. Is this a conspiracy directed at children? Why is there this unrelenting passivity, this gratuitous neglect, in this society? (8) A crusade could be legitimately mounted on any is sue and concept mentioned. There is a need for advocacy in child care. So what are you going to do about it? NORTI.ZrAT OMAN page 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �The Lockup of Sexual AbuseVictims 'Blaming Women for Anti -Woman Violence by JOYCE MICHALCHUK Over the past winter, a disturbing trend has been developing in the courts of this women are being imcontinent: prisoned for refusing to testify against their sexual abusers/ attackers. For whatever reasons (second thoughts about personal safety; publicity; intim4dation by the attacker or the imposing legal system et al.), women are dropping charges although initially motivated to begin proceedings. I agree with Elsa Schieder who wrote in her article, "Victims on Trial" (Broadside-Feb. '84) that such women are being viewed by some as "crying wolf" and, in her words, as 'conforming "to the stereotypic image of the unreliable rape faker...so, as the myth goes, how are men ever going to be ;sure they're safe?" Hence, the reason for the continuous and widespread publicity in the mainstream press: men's reputations are at stake. Alscr, here is yet another chance for those who are inclined, to play on yet another woman's "weakness" and on her inability to proceed with the grueling court action. Give a women her day in court and she can't go through with it. Further fuel to fire up redneck render ineffectual) the woman who is considering laying charges. ' This is not helped by the prevailing attitude of some critics who have publicly decried women who stop proceedings at some point. This is unnecessarily harsh judgement against a woman who is one of the 10% who chooses to prosecute her attacker. The system that blatantly continues to perpetrate violence against her is further victimizing her by incarcerating, and threatening to incarcerate, her. Although by refusing to testify, it may be true that "She isn't showing a high level of sisterly concern", as Ms. Schieder believes the legal sys- tem is essentially punishing her. What emerges is the fact that central to the judicial system is its authority, which, when threatened, exhibits vicious Justice and compassion teeth. flee when faced by a questioned authority. The legal system has now, ultimately (and in the name of common law; perverted its mandate and jailed the victim of the crime, while allowing the attacker/molester/rapist to go free. There is a grotesquely screwed up sense of justice in operation here, regardless of any tongues. procedural adherence demanded by What we really have here the judicial process. is yet another intimidated woThis becomes no more evident man--and isn't intimidation what than in the recent case of a 12this whole issue is about? Sexyear-old Fairfield, Calif. girl ual crimes are perpetrated unwho was recently jailed for nine der the threat of it and 90% days (in solitary confinement, of women do not report incidents no less) for refusing to testify because of it. Now, the le-al against her stepfather, whom she system is further threatening to intimidate (and in this case, alleged hat' sexually molested 210061101,0417" her. After she had refused the oath to testify, Deputy D.A. al prosecutor Kenneth Kobrin said "She is of the incarceration: a member of society. She is no being beaten. She is not being tortured. She has. been told to go to her room, as society requires of her, until she tells the truth." (What makes this case even more incredible is that Califo nia law requires that Nthe char be reported to the authorities This society which perpetu ates sexual molestation, -Ian( a victim of molestation; likewise, the society we have whic perpetuates rape, jails the ra victim in the name of judicial process. If the courts continue thi practice, what is assured is even lower percentage of rapiE brought to trial and convictec moreover, this insensitivity the courts toward women who hz fallen victim to this special crime against body/spirit wil] continue to provide the secon4 6. Did you stay be.cause you felt part of what amounts to doubt( responsible for the other person ? victimization. 7. Were you afraid of loneliness ? Obviously, not all of us 8. Did you stay because of the go the full route of prosecut children? to conviction (90% don't). If 9. Did you have gnawing doubts that she attempts to deal with thi you could not make it on your own in violation (by prosecuting), a the outside world ? woman can now look forward to 10. Were you afraid that ybu couldn't jail if the ordeal at some po earn a decent living and manage the breaks what may be a fragile The Problems of Assaulted Women are the Problems of ALL WOMEN Any4women who doubts this statement need only ask herself these questions: 1. Did you ever back down from an argument with a man because you felt intimidated ? 2. Did you feel that if you said anything more the situation might get out of hand ? 3. Have you ever felt threatened by children by yourself? a man's superior strength? 4. Were you afraid that if he became any angrier he might strike you? - Marya Grambs, cited by Del Martin 5. Have you ever stayed in a in Stopping Wife Abuse by Jennifer relationship longer than you should Baker Fleming, Anchor Books, 1979 have ? strength. But although it may be di ficult for some to see beyond the fact that she may be allowing a rapist to go free, s must not be blamed and punish for anti-woman violence,..esp ially by due process. 24214242000404000120030017 NORTHERN W OCR, OMAN page 12 optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor PDF compression, web �Books. Hard Earned Wages, by Jennifer Penney. Toronto; The Women's Press, 1983. Still Ain't Satisfied: Canadian Feminism Today, edited by Maureen Fitzgerald, Connie Guberman, Margie Wolfe. Toronto; The Women's Press, 1982. Reviewed by Susan Heald It is hard to read Hard Earned Wages without feeling that you are right there with Jennifer Penney in the kitchens, backyards, and workplaces of some very interesting women from all across Canada. The book is a collection of personal stories of women's struggles in the workplace, especially in unions, told to Penney apparently over large pots of tea, coffee or stronger brew. With only a brief introduction, each story is written -- or so it seems -- just the way it was told. As such, it makes for interesting, easy reading. While covering the experiences of only 16 women in 12 locations, it speaks broadly of the kinds of issues most women face in most workplaces. There is a lot of vivid detail about the skills and/or tasks involved in these jobs, which is a real asset of the book. Added to this are the stories of how these women tried to change the circumstances in which they worked. Two women talk about working and organizing a union at Lizmore Seafoods, a Nova Scotia fish packing plant; two Ottawa women talk about doing the same for daycare centres. Experiences with two other unions --Canadian Union of Postal Workers and the Association of University and College Employees in the Vancouver area are also discussed. All tell not only of the joys and frustrations of learning about unions, but of the larger issues that make union organizing both necessary and difficult. Two telephone operators from B.C. talk with exhilaration about the workers' takeover of B.C. Tel, and with anger of returning to work without having achieved substantial gains. Women who have entered 'non-traditional' occupations also--of course--have interesting stories to tell, and Penney provides us with the experiences of women in Inco, Stelco, as mechanics, in bush camps, and as squidjiggers. What is striking--though not surprising- is how similar are the trials of women in all-male workplaces to those of women in 'female' jobs with--usually--a male supervisor. It is a gift of the book, rather than a fault, that the reader is left with the sense of wanting more. I felt I could have read stories like these forever. And I realized I know a lot of women who could tell Besides more stories, it more analysis would have been helpful. I would have liked to hear more in the way of editorial comment from Jennifer Penney about the common threads and lessons learned. But then, perhaps it's already there. The understanding comes off the pages with the smell of coffee and the warmth of laughter as women try to make sense--for themselves and for us--of all the things that happen when you set out just to make your own work a little better for you and those around you. It is another example that 'the personal is political'. though, I think a Those who have been part of--or even paid attention to --the women's movement in_the last 20 years are not likely to find much that's new in Still Ain't Satisfied. But as a refresher--of both mind and spirit--it is just about perfect. Still Ain't Satisfied reminds us that we still aren't satisfied, but that doesn't make the road women have travelled and the struggles we have had any less interesting, exciting, and worthy of our notice, and our pride. It's like taking stock during a spring cleaning--realizing that some things are all used up, some have been on the shelf too long, some are there to remind us of the lessons we learned, and others just for memories. The book is divided into three main sections: "Out of the Bedrooms", "Into the Work Force", and "Onto the Streets". Under "Out of the Bedrooms" fall topics such as reproductive rights, violence, sexuality and feminist services. Kathleen McDonnell traces the rise and fall of abortion as an issue of the women's movement. As with most of the articles that follow, it attempts to answer three questions: where are we? how did we get here? and where could/should/ might we go from here? Another common aspect of the articles is the recognition of the connectedness of issues and the need for new ways of tackling problems. - Yet we already have developed new ways, as is discussed in another article which looks at the evolution of three Vancouver-based women's service organizations in search of the lessons we can learn from more than a decade of "Providing Services the Feminist Way". For me, outstanding among the articles in this section is Joanne Kates "Once More With Feeling: Heterosexuality and Feminist Consciousness" which, as the editors say "speaks of the complexity of combining a conscious angry feminism with love for a particular man..." (p76). It also demonstrates once again the power of a personal statement to speak to the experience of many women, which is another common feature of the articles in this book. Part 11, "Into the Work Force" tackles such topics as domestic labour, day care, sexual harassment and other occupational hazards, union organization, women in trades, etc. For my tastes, there were a few too many accounts of organizing in specific unions or specific workplaces, often without an analysis that connects these struggles with wider ones. There are a lot of new publications on women in the workplace -- such as Hard Earned Wages -- so that less emphasis in this area might have been preferable. And yet, they are all interesting tales needing to be told. When we get "Onto the Streets" we look at women experiencing 'double oppression': lesbian, immigrant and rative women, and then at "Tools for Politicization". This last is a fascinating and much-tooshort collection of articles on feminist publishing, education and art. The book begins with Naomi Wall's tale of her experience in the women's movement, and ends with a discussion by several women about options for feminist organizing. An introduction by the editors of each section and each article comp-7 letes the package. In the Editors' Introduction, they say "... we wanted to provide an overview of how feminist perspectives have changed. Both as editors and activists we were concerned to offer an analysis of how these changes have influenced our practice, the major obstacles to overcome, the successes that have been won, and the possible directions for the future... This book was undertaken to provide a comprehensive resource for both activists and those new to feminism trying to understand what this movement of ours is all about (p14)". A worthy goal, worthily met. them. NO-7.itiERN WOMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �_Books The Women's Workbook, edited by Patti Schom-Moffatt & Cynthia Telfer, illustrated by Deirdre Chisholm, Between The Lines, 1983 Reviewed by Margaret Phillips Comprehensive yet concise, practical yet analytical, easyto-read yet thought-provoking, the Women's Workbook provides a most valuable resource. That "women have the right to work, and to do it without paying a social penalty" require s awareness of the realities that Canadian women face, requires information about issues specific to women workers. Through a thoughtful examination of the issues the Workbook provides this necessary information and offers concrete suggestions for individual and collective action The Workbook, however, goes beyond being a practical guide to women's healthier, more secure, more satisfying access to the paid labour force. A recognition is made that "to change the nature of women's work is to attack the foundation of the whole sexist structure of society". This premise is well-integrated throughout much of the book, and as Helen Levine states in her excellent, article on stress. "Feminism helps us refuse tie guilt trip laid on us and begin to claim full 'citizenship at home and in the world at large". Resulting from a series of workshops held in 1981-82 the Women's Workbook is a compilation of expert articles that thoughtfully examine such issues as stress; women's double/triple workload; the effects of sexual harassment; the problems of obtaining quality child care. A new analysis of health and safety of "women's workplaces" is provided; the benefits and barriers experienced in union organizing, in non-traditional jobs, part-time work and jobsharing discussed; and the potential (positive and negative) of microtechnology examined. examples: how to analyze your stress; how to determine quali child care; how to job share; how to prepare for non-traditi, al jobs. Collective strategies to eliminate harassment in the workplace are suggested; a wor. place safety checklist provide The book is nicely balance with well-researched informati( interspersed with personal accounts. The unique illustratiot Provide a distinctive approach to feminist symbolism, In the final article Judith Merrill suggests three possible scenarios for the future - but real: she is challenging us to build our own future. The Workbook concludes with a very useful r( source section. I would like to see the Workbook in every high school/ college/univers*':y counselling The series is skillfully edited to provide recurring themes: the myths that restrict and inhibit women's equality; the invisibility of women's work, women workers - "In a socoffice, in every labour orr,.aniety where women are considered ization office, as well as wo less significant than men, much 'men's employment, health and of our real work has been rensocial centres. The Women's Wo. dered invisible" (Levine p 23); book deserves 7.P.,,dership and the particular experience of women in the paid labour force "In a society where much of women's work is unseen, and its value unacknowledged, its hazards are also invisible" (Jennifer Penney p51). All books reviewed this issue As an information source the Workbook is greatly strength- are available at the Northern Woman's Bookstore, 316 Bay St ed by the inclusion of "how to" . Who au these women? What au they 'doing? 14 you can anwen coktectty, a 4/tee subscAiption Oh gi4t sub L you x6- photo by Joyce Michalchuk The NORTHERN WOMAN'S _BOOKSTORE reports that to date the "best_ sellers" are: Non-Fiction Women and Male Violence: The Visions and Struggles of the Battered Women's Movement; Susan Schechter; South End Pornography and Silence: Culture's Revenge l'-,ainst Nature; WomeqamlEm4,mm01lits Susan Griffin; Fitzhenry and Whiteside Women and Children First; Michelle Landsberg; Penguin Salvador; Joan Didion, Paperjacks A Feminist Tarot; Gearheart & Rennie; Persephone Look Me In The Eye: Old Women. Aging and Ageism; Barbara MacDonald with Cynthia Rich; Spit ster's Ink Fiction The Color Purple; Alice Walker Paperj acks Obasan; Joy Kowaga; Penguin Durer's Angel; Marie-Claire Blais; Talon Books Moons of Jupiter; Alice Munro; Penguin Sarah Jane of Silver Islet; Elizabeth Kouhi; Queenston 7ani! Audrey Lorde Crossinc IVORTHERN -1.7 OMAN page 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Pensions Update Year of the Women Adequate pensions for women remain an issue that must be pursued. The pension reform implied in the federal budget speech announcements will be insufficient, and will not, in any significant way, address the concerns women have been raising for ANC DECLARES "YEAR OF THE WOMEN" In its new year message the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress declared this year the "Year of the Women". ANC President Oliver Tambo stated: "Our struggle would be less than powerful and our national and social emancipation could never be complete if we continue to treat the women of our country as dependent minors and objects of one form of exploitation or another." It will be ANC's special task this year to "organize and mobilize women into a powerful, united and active years. The Women and Pensions Committee is continuing its work and encouraging pension discussion and awareness (with recent meetings in Kenora and '-ryden as well as Thunder Bay). Monitoring of proposed pension reform' is an on-going task. As well the Committee is continuing to recruit "case histories", and would welcome submissions by NWO women who are willing'to share their pension exper- force for revolutionary change ". Since 1980, and particularly in the last year, mass-based women's organizations have been formed in al- most all the main urban centres in South Africa. No such organizations had existed since the banning of the Black Women's Federation in 1977. Although there is a strong cooperative relationship between the various women's organizations in the country, so far there have been no major moves towards the formation of a national united women's organization The ANC's call for a politically and organizationally united women's movement indicates a growing concern inside South Africa. that such moves should begin. from Solidarity News Service No. 2/84 ience. ATTENTION: WOMEN AT WORK! Attention: Women at Work is an exciting new film about successful women in "non-traditional" trades and professions. This 28-minute documentary profiles four women -- a search-andrescue Coast Guard Hovercraft pilot, two general construction journeywomen and an architect. Each offers encouragement and sound advice to young women choosing a career -- and mature women returning to the workforce. Between profiles, nine teenaged girls express their views on women and work. The film is an excellentaion 71111111111P BOOK SALE The Faye Peterson Transition House is holding a BOOK SALE at Victoriaville, SATURDAY, MAY 26/84 from 12 noon to 5 p.m. starter for many different kinds of educational settings. It probes such issues as the importance of selfreliance for women, the combination of work with family life, and the challenge of tackling new and unique career possibilities. Produced by NFB's Studio D, the film is available from the National Film Board. NATIONAL CAMPAIC4N TO RELEASE CLAUDINA CALDERON Write a support letter (as per sample) TO: PRESIDENT ALVARO MAGANA CASA PRESIDENCIAL SAN SALVADOR, EL SALVADOR CENTRAL AMERICA YOUR EXCELLENCY, I and many other Canadian citizens are seriously concerned and distressed by the constant reports of Salvadorean government violence and inhumane activities against women and children. On June 29, 1983, government security forces abducted fodr women, three of them pregnant - including Claudina Calderon - and along with them four children (two months-old infants, a one-year-old boy, and a four year old girl). I respectfully urge you to release Claudina Calderon and the other women and children immediately. Sincerely yours, in do CLAUDINA CALDERON * 29 years old pregnant, mother of a two-month old boy * fourth year psychology student at the National University of El Salvaldor * abducted from her residence on. June 23, 1983, along with her infant son, three other women and three children, by government security forces * recently seen in a clandestine government prison * subjected to constant torture Considering the pension reform recommendations advocated both locally and nationally, which have been re-enforced by our recent discussions with women throughout Northwestern Ontario, the Women and Pensions Committee is focussing on the following issues: - expansion of the CPP income security for immigrants inclusion of homemakers in CPP mandatory and automatic creditsplitting - income security for women aged 60-64 Representatives of the Women and Pensions Committee will be happy to meet with any NWO women's group interested in continuing the discussion. For more information contact Women and Pensions Committee, #4 204 d River-Rd.i, Thunder-Ba*,345,5444 ****** IS THERE AN ASTERISK ON YOUR LABEL? PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ****** Dryden Conference Enthusiasm prevailed when over 100 women from 15 NWO communities met at the Bicentennial Women's Conference in Dryden, April 6-8th. Keen interest was evidenced in the workshops that were ably conducted by resourceful NWO women. Family Law (Lynn Beak), Microtechnology (Joy Fedorick), Financial Planning (Lauretta Johnson), Women and Aging (Betty Chalmers), The multiple Roles of Women (Gloria Meredith). Liz Neville, vice-president of the Ontario Business and Professional Women's Clubs was Conference guest speaker. Following a delicious Sunday morning brunch, the Conference determined action on the workshop recommendations - with resolutions concerning equal pay for work of equal value; equal pay in replacement situations; improved retirement security provisions; inclusion of pensions in family assets; and the provision of crisis housing for women in their own communities; were adopted. Support was also given for the Ontario Day Care Coalition recommendations and for the Kristina Potapczyk Trust Fund. The energetic, hard-working Dryden women who organized this successful Conference are to be commended. NORTHERN ?OMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �radian Women's Movement Archives PRIEEDOM OP CHCI)ICIE The Archives has 4-10TH grown out of, and is part of, the women's movement in Canada. It is ours. It belongs ca -a' to all of us engaged in every struggle with other archivists, and is accessible to all unless donations have specific conditions to be closed to the public. Send us your material (clippings, photos, documents, posters, buttons) and use the resources. consultation I support the statement of purpose of CARAL and wish to become a member. Klurwe , Address: Postal Code: Phone: Occupation Office hours: Monday to Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm or by appointment P.O. Box 928, Station Q, Toronto. Ontario M4T 1P1 Tel. (416) 597-8865 3 alAill to safe, legal abortion. Our aim is the repeal of all sections of the Criminal Codce dealing with abortion and the establishment of comprehensive contraceptive and abortion services, including appropriate counselling across the country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abortion as a fundamental human right." It is an organized archival collection through ASSOCIATION CANADIENNi POWs Li °BOIT A L'AvORTZICINT po...vA) The Purpose of CARAL is to ensure that no woman in Canada is denied access which gives us more autonomy in our lives. maintained CANADIAN ABORTION RIGHTS ACTION LEAGUE (CABAL) Name of Federal Riding' Individual Member Limited Income Family Sustaining Donation ==-4 30==4N=4 $10.00 'MO $15.00 $25.00 S___ RETURN TO: CARAL, Box 935, Stn. 0, Toronto, M4T 2P1 RESOURCES FOR !MEN IN THUNDER BAY Beendigan (Crisis House for Native Women) - 622 -5101 Women's Health Education Project, #4 Ste.17, 8A N._ Cumberland 345 -1410 physical and Sexual Assault Centre, #18, 214 Red River Rd. Off.345-0894,Crisis Line 344-4502 JPAC Welfare Advocacy Group Maureen - 345 -_6777 ********* WOMANSPACE * Single Parent Support Group Eve Ojala - 76 7-4190 Free Clothing Depot, CNR Station, 9 Water Street - 345-9222 Women's Programmes, Secretary of State, 3rd Floor, 28 N Cumberland St., Lisa Bengtsson 345 -2316 Women's Programmes, Confederation College, Box 398, P7C 4W1 Ruth Cunningham - 475 -6278 Women's Bureau, Ont. Min. of Labour, 435 St. James St. ,P7E (E3 not luck MAY 16 guest JEAN CHRISTIE - from Intemares tonic: JUNE 6 Women and International Development - guest entertainer singer KIM ERICKSON Joy Fedorick - 4 75-169 1 Human Rights Commission, Ont. Min. of Labour, 435 St. James St., P7E 6E3 4 75-169 3 Northern Women's Centre, #4,204 Red River Road, P7B 1A4 Fiona Karlstedt - 345-7802 Faye Peterson Transition House 345-7456 IC=4 54=X3 4=X Northern Womangs BOOKSTORE PUBLIC TETINP, "RIMING FROM WAR" Refugees in Central America speaker: 316 BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO 344-7979 Jean Christie Direc or - Inter Pares Thursday, May 17th, 7:30 p.m. Ogden Cbmmunity School \)0i3" e,\""\s 00 1111'6)r /2(7 Sselot, .104 and much more ! OPEN Thurs-Fri 11:30-7:] Sat 11:30-4:] PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 ************************************* LABEL?? IS THERE AN ASTERISK ON YOUR PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ************************************* Collectively produced RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 B BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO P7B 1S1 Anna Noreen Lavoie, Teresa Legowski, Michalchuk, Margaret McColl, Joyce Phillips, Donna Phoenix, Rosalyn TaylorPerrett, Sara Williamson with help this issue from: Kristin Richards, Siobhan Farrell, Wendy Anthony Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 316 Bay Street Thunder Bay, Ontario P7B 1S1 (Six Issues) $5.00 $10.00 Business or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 8 No 4 Description An account of the resource Vol. 8, no. 4 (1984) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Government cutbacks to women’s centre funding Canada wide Economic recession & women Wife-battering & municipal policy Thunder Bay Multicultural Association International Women’s Day event Preventative mastectomies No fault divorce Midwifery Immigrant women in Canada Dr. Henry Morgentaler Pornography magazines Abortion in Romania Women vote in Georgia Norfolk, Virginia abortion clinic bombing Violence against women Pornagraphy availability in local shops Poetry Women & war in El Salvador Childcare in Ontario Victim blaming & incarceration of sexual assault survivors Feminist book reviews Year of the Women Women & pensions Dryden women’s conference National campaign to release Claudina Calderon, El Salvador Womanspace potluck events Canadian Women’s Movement Archives, Toronto Thunder Bay women’s resources Authors/contributors: Joan Baril Anna McColl Rosalyn Taylor Perrett Judy McMartin Teresa Legowski Joyce Michalchuk Miriam Ketonen Noreen Lavoie Margaret Phillips Sara Williamson Kristin Richards Siobhan Farrell Wendy Anthony Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1984 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2779/1984_Vol_8_No_3.pdf 1a2580ff571464226260997100c19714 PDF Text Text .90 Northern Woman Journal Vo1,8, N ,3 Thunder Bay, Ontario OUR LITERATURE MUST BE VISIONARY, A LITERATURE OF CHANGE THAT EXAMINES ALL ASPECTS OF OUR LIVES PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �PEACE FOR 1984 - " it has become clear to us that resistance to war and to the use of nuclear weapons is impossible without resistance to sexism, to racism, to imperialism and to violence as an There is a pro= everday pervasive reality. found relationship to the fact that vidual women are commonly attacked and beaten up and that a nuclear war threatens the entire world." Piecing It Together: Feminism & Nonviolence (p.5) Feminism and Nonviolence Study Group tookialiodiftwegitypilityiefitliaaratailetie/260000000/014100-it Your Voice Based on information available to the Lakehead Central American, support -Group by national and international sources we see it as our responsibility to alert the media and public of Thunder Bay that armed intervention into the affairs of El Salvador and Nicaragua by the military forces of the United States, Guatamala and Honduras is being actively planned and prepared for. According to news sources in New York and the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) in El Salvador, the Minister of Defense of El Salvador, Mr. Casanova, has requested armed intervention by Guatamala and Honduras against the rebels in El Salvador. This will allow a pincer attack on FMLN controlled territory and rear base areas in El Salvador bordering on the Guatamalan and Honduran borders. Unconfirmed reports state that 1500 U.S. troops are being moved into this area as well. In conjunction with this military build-up, the refugee camps in the area are being uprooted again and moved further into Honduras. On October 22 and 23 a meeting of the military leaders of the United States, El Salvador, Guatamala and Honduras was held, where they discussed and planned the co-ordinating of common action under the mantle of the revamped Central. American Defense Council (Mex ico, Belize and Nicaragua were not invited and Costa Rica declined its invitation). A document arising out of the meeting spoke of "an international pacification action" and "direct participation by the U.S.A. with all it's resources". In Honduras the rapid military build-up is continuing. It has been marked by a vast expansion of military bases, transfers of war material from the U.S. to the Hondurans and logistical support for the C.I.A. -Contra army. A major joint military exercise lasting up to six months is now underway. Involving 5000 U.S. troops, these exercises are taking place essentially on the Honduran/Nicaraguan border and consist of paratroop drops, jungle sweeps, quick reaction strikes and amphibious landings from the U.S. fleet sitting off Nicaragua's East coast. In addtion to this, the attacks by the Honduran based C.I.A.- Contra army on Nicaragua are escalating both in numbers of attacks and costs in Nicaraguan lives. All of this activity viewed against the backdrop of recent events in Grenada has convinced the ConsulGeneral of Nicaragua to Canada, Mr. P. Valle-Garay, that the Central American region will be the scene of a massive military escalation by the NORTHERN W OMAN page 2 turn of the new year at the earliest. The policy of the U.S., El Salvador, Guatamala and Honduras is, according to the Consul-General, flying in the face of the peace and negotiating proposals put forward by the Contradora Group (Mexico, Panama, Columbia and Venezuela) which Nicaragua has accepted. According to the Nicaraguans, it would appear that the U.S. is more interested in waging war than in waging peace. Barry Beaupre Chairperson, L.C.A.S.G. Reprinted from Chronicle-Journal 'Letters to the Editor" Many women today live in constant fear of being physically or sexually assaulted. We all know that you do not have to be "young" or "attractive" or "dressed provocatively" or out late at night alone for it to happen. For the most part, we try and push it out of our minds so that we can function like normal human beings. Your editorial of Oct.26 (Protection, for whom?) regarding the tragic death of Corina Carlson served as a grim reminder of our reason to fear. Immediately after reading your editorial, we came across an article written by Regina lawyer Morris Schumiatcher which had appeared in an earlier issue of your newspaper (The difference is in the asking -Sept.27) In it, he makes reference to an appearance he made in the Court of Appeal on behalf of "a young farm lad who had been convicted of raping an acquaintance a few years .younger than he". He then proceeds to expound on why, in an age of unprecedented permissiveness, complaints of rape should have become more numerous than in earlier years. No words can describe the chill and revulsion we felt reading it. Here is what learned counsel Schumiatcher had to say: "The difference between a sexual assault and a loving relationship is essentially a matter of manners... Most men have been charged and convicted of rape simply because they failed to say 'please' before they embarked upon their venture or because they failed to express a kindly human word or affection on parting. To be treated callously, as a mere thing, is an affront no woman will forget. Callousness is not a criminal offence, but it is a breach of manners that few women will forgive. A dictionary of words is not required. A few 'well chosen' phrases tastefully addressed to the object of one's passion may , prove sufficient... With the vast array of girls from which to choose and a million words in the English vocabulary to use, rape is for slobs and sexual assault for clods." In your editorial, you said that it was inconceivable that someone, somewhere, sometime during the investigation of the Bohatchuk matters did not see the pattern and suggest, recommend or order that he be separated from society and treated for his illness. We don't agree with you. It is quite conceivable if mindless attitudes such as those expressed by counsel Schumiatcher should prevail. Until physical and sexual assaults are dealt with as acts of violence and not as "interactions gone wrong" women cannot look to the courts for protection or to the wider community for support. Fiona Karlstedt, Margot Blight, Thunder Bay. ,,,orthern Woman Journal: Did you happen to hear that in the Finnish parlamentary election at the end of March 1983 62 'women were elected? With the total number of members being 200 it is still not a fair representation( =50% ),but it is about 30 %, a good step forward. In several previous elections the number of women has been around 40. In the Helsinki area majority of representatives are women. Maisa Martin Thunder Bay N-A#201044004-Alt-A POT LUCK SUPPER .411 Womanspace, 316 Bay St., Jan. 11/84 j followed by concert by JhNNIELR GARRETT VgliftelegbitegliM~PeCr PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Update by JOAN BARIL see The Toronto Women's Bookstore, which was destroyed by antiabortion arsonists this summer, is open again at 296 Brunswick Avenue, 2nd Floor, and will move to a new, permanent location at 73 Harbord St. (at Spadina) in February, 1984. The Bookstore has received thousands of dollars in donations from the women's community. They were much helped by a supportive article in the TORONTO STAR by columnist Michelle Landsburg. At present, they are operating with about a third of their normal stock It is the duty the judge at a prement held a Women and of Technology liminary hearing to if the eviworkshop NoveMber 5 and 6. decide They prodence is sufficient for a trial, not mised nirvana at the Valhalla. The to speculate on the verdict women participants were all invited The taboo against speaking about as "community leaders"; the general the gang-rapes on reserves in Northpublic, such as the interested, orwestern Ontario was broken by dinary Jill, couldn't get in. After Grassy Narrows Indian Reserve Chief Steve listening to the virtues of both Fobister at a meeting of the social technology and the Ontario government development committee of for quite a long time, the women the wereOntario legislature. Since his statement, asked to spend a couple of hours deFobister has on received all the criticiveloping strategies how women's sm usually heaped on people organizations could voluntarily im- who break plement silences. the government's programs. Wayne Spragge, counsellor at After talking it over, they avoluntaKenora's Centre, believes rily refused toMental do so Health o Ontario halfequal of all native are gangwomen want access to girls new jobs raped as a first sexual experience. but we will define our own solutions. According another informant, on one We insist on beingtoconsulted in the reserve the guys programs, band together to formation of government not "initiate" a overworked young girl and when she reachas volunteer clones, es puberty. underpaid, snapping into action to Christine a probation implement every program Strong, coming down officer at Grassy was quoted in the the pike "It sounds sick, but it's Times-News: This brings us to the government Almost everyResource weekend you hear proposalstrue. to build Family thisthe girl was for drunk and gang-raped by Centres and money running them. bunch of guys.The ButOntario no-one wants to Again, noa consultation. about and it."Crises GrassyHouses, has 600 resiAssoc. oftalk Interval which aredents. the women with all the experience -in the field, has not been Confederation College is offering consulted Apparently, some of the free courses to women interested in money is slated to be used for research careers in the trades or technology on family violence again. A great savfields. I,N.T.O. (Introduction to ing could be made here if the programNon-Traditional Occupations) starts mers would read the research on vioJanuary 2. A free W.I.T.T. course lence already published by their own (Women in Trades and Technology) government. And the federal government. And other provincial governments. And started November 28, For women without enough highscliool training, there the many books on battering, etc. are free upgrading courses 000 Women The B.C, or scientific who want high-tech education often worry about math. Women'smath Issues" and Collegetutionalizing Upgrading hasofpopular not a minute either. They classes running alltoo day soon, and evening. Both Fobister and Strong make it are also publishing "Impact of the If need be, a person can go back to clear that the purpose of raping is to Recession on Women work in Single Industry the basics. The students at shame the girl, to humiliate. "By Towns". Locally, Marita a summer their own speed. Women who are Maki, interraping, men make a fool out of her," student with thetheir Women's Bureau, has ested in refurbishing math said the chief. Being marked by shame a handbook decisionshould drafted phone the College for Upgrading makes it impossible for the women to makers on and Women Economic for a free test an and estimate on Developspeak up. "If I raised (the issue), ment e take to reach a how long it will my husband would be shamed and he Grade 12 level. The co-ordinator, would think it happened to me." Joan Baril, begs people not to leave Some observers linkthe high suithis until the last weeks in August cide rate of teenage girls to being and then hope for a quickie refreshraped. er, as sometimes happens "We can Edith McLeod, a native spokeswork miracles, but it takes time" woman, charges chiefs with being more concerned with "rice and land claims" Although major renovations are than sexual abuse. Fobister notes going on on the first floor of the that the gang-rapes are a subject of College, Ruth Cunningham, Director jokes in the Kenora area. When he of Women's Programs, reminds everytried to bring it up in council, people one that herThe office is still in bus- said that MacDonald Commission laughed. Priscilla Simard of the iness, the still in dialogue the samethey place buthad with best have Ontario Native Women's Association redecorated women so andfar with was a here different in Thunder Bay. mentions the other tragedies of resentryway. Fiona You Karlstedt enter the from office the Women's from Centre, erve life which destroy people: no the corridor Liz Poulin, on the Decade Balmoral Council Street and Ruth jobs (80% of Grassy residents are unside of Cunningham, the building Director o of Women's Progemployed), alcohol and solvent abuse, Film ramsseries at Confederation on violence College, are presenisolation and lack of recreation, being planned ted briefs. in the Theregion, brief by Kenora, the Women and do Sally Barnes, the Premier's Northshore Economic andDevelopment Geraldton Committee Prepar- of the hand-picked president of the Ontario ations Decade for a spring Councilconference noted how in economic Council on the Status of Women, got Dryden planning called "Women Transition" alwaysinmakes two assumptions the message from her constituency. are underway about women: s A note from Joy that they are dependent "Which side are you on, Sally?", the Fedorick, on men Women's and that Directorate, they are that in traditionwomen of Ontario,asked after she told the International Women's Cele- by the al marriages, being Day supported a legislature committee that the brationhusband. tommittee be only starting (Inwill fact, 12% of Canadpublic wasn't ready for equal pay for preparations ian women for are next'March in such 8marriages) moo 000 work of equal value--no, no, not even Joy has become a part of theVt. core In mid-October, Henry for a pilot project, said she. Ontario committee of the newly-formed local staffers Morgentaler and seven clinic women were angered. Several groups Human Rights/Civil commitwere sent trial after their prelimsuch to as Liberties NAC (National Action Committees einary She tee) has also helped organize hearing in Winnipeg. However, called for her resignation. Facthe December 5ththe Women in the Worksupporters were shocked to hear the ing music, Barnes performed the place meeting which focused on nonpresiding judge improperly comment that union workers Morgentaler The was Ontario "probably governguilty". CONT'D ON PAGE 4 o NORTHERN 'AT OMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Update by JOAN BARIL Davis sidestep and announced a newfound commitment to the cause. In a letter to Robert Welsh (Minister responsible for women's issues), she stated her council to be fully supportive of efforts to test the concept. She added it would be "tremendously helpful if...the government would go on record as supporting the principle". ihich it has, so presumably the pilot project will begin, but when will we get equal pay? "It's the government of an iceberg," said NAC President Doris Anderson A B.C. woman walks into her neighbourhood store last November. She is wearing a Solidarity support button. Someone rushes up to her and the Holiday Inn gift shop. They carefully pulled each magazine apart and distributed the pages to about 300 conference participants. A spokeswoman began to list some of the things they ha! found in these magazines. When she began to describe a picture of young children tied to the four bedposts of a bed, she broke down in tears o The women assembled in front of the gift shop, held up their magazine sheets in the air and chanted, "No more porn". This action was deliberately held for the media; it was the women's way of making a public statement so At the registration desk, the Holiday Inn staff and customers exchanged amused smiles and little mock sighs. But as the chanting got louder, business ceased and there was a moment of apprehension. But then the demonstrators started a song and business resumed... We avoid looking at porn magazines in stores, we turn our backs or stay on the other side of the room. We don't even have a vocabulary to explain what hurts and disgusts and shocks us. But we must try to find the language in order to explain to others. This, from Susan Cole, workshop leader. toss The End of the Decade. Nairobi, Kenya will be the site of the 1985 United Nations World Conference on Women. This conference ends the U.N. spits in her face. The atmosphere it. Decade for Women proclaimed in 1975 B.C. has been extreme this autumn- in Mexico City. The theme has been right -wing people quivering with hate, Equality, Development and Peace. The government workers becoming the new 'Mexico conference and the one in pariahs, being described as parasites Copenhagen in 1980 were both marred and bums. The settlement of the strike by governments who used the women's saved the public sector unions from congress as a forum for their own virtual extinction but did nothing to propaganda and priorities--hence, Arabstop the cutbacks in services to the Israeli confrontations, or the specpopulation.' Many of the cutbacks were tacle of the Iranian delegate proclaimdeliberately aimed at women and chiling the equality of women in her coundren's services and educational protry at a time when feminists were grams. The layoffs and closings will being jailed, silenced or killed. On now begin so. Judge Stephen Borins both occasions, parallel conferences has done all women a service by ruling had to be set up to allow a women's forum free from government posing. on October 24 that sexually violent Considering that in the past 10 years, video tapes distributed by two comthe women of the world have not achpanies were obscene because they deieved equality, nor been improved by picted the violent treatment of women development, nor, in many instances, and because they indicated women exbeen blessed by peace, a preparatory perienced pleasure from pain. The conference meeting in Vienna has protapes ruled not obscene, although posed that a second U.N. Decade for graphically sexual, were generally free from violence. These truly diswomen be proclaimed toss Some quotes: "The Moral Majority gusting tapes will now disappear is what our ancestors came to this from Ontario shelves but can still continent to escape." so. "Rich people be ordered from outside the province plan for generations, poor people plan from, such places as Red Hot Video for Saturday night." so "Rich cultures of Kelowna B.C. which advertises navalue thin women. Poor cultures value tion wide, just phone in your Visa or Master Charge. so' Video machfat women. All cultures value weak ines are the new toys for the boys, women." 'so "Fantasy for depressed the fad in this year's Christmas wish feminists: an army of women taking book. Video porn watching is a male over Saudi Arabia." All quotes from bonding activity. A local woman descri- Gloria Steinham. Phyllis Chestler: bed how her husband threw beer and "We are at war. It was declared long video parties for his male friends. ago by nameless others." so. In order to prevent her children from Such good news--a feminist bookseeing the tape, she has to sit in the store in Thunder Bay at last. Margaret bedroom with them until the tape was Phillips and Anna McColl have taken over so. On Remembrance Day a group over the small, streetside office of of women attending the Women in Ther316 Bay Street and are engaged in its apy Conference in Toronto purchased transformation to bookshop. The store every porn magazine on the shelves of will be open three days a week--Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays--and carries feminist magazines, philosophy and fiction, "especially Canadian novels", says co-founder Margaret Phillips. The plan (carried out by press time) was to open quietly in December, or as soon as sufficient stock arrived; the official opening will be after Christmas soo The Women's Centre held an open house for the Welcome Wagon Club. In fact, this autumn, the Centre has been very active. Over 160 people attended the film series on mental health. Speakers spoke on CKPR, to the Girl Guides and to College, University and highschool classes on such topics as Women and the Law and Reproductive Rights toss The Women and Pensions Committee of Thunder Bay have received funding to publicize pension issues and to discuss with women the issues raised in the position paper which came out of the pensions conference and which was presented to the Taskforce on Pension Reform. The Committee will be travelling in the region. Their aim is to alert women to the chief hazards of aging- no money. They plan to contact the politicians, too( A conference on Family Violence was held at the Airlane November 1718 and mainly attended by social workers and workers in various agencies. Fiona Karlstedt of the Women's Centre presented a paper on Community Agency Responses to Family Violence. Under the topic of housing, she pointed out that Thunder Bay has the second worst housing problem in the nation with a vacancy rate of less than 1%; there is a waiting list of 400 for subsidized housing and only 60 spaces available in crisis housing for women and children--a pretty grim situation for a woman to face if she has no money and wants to clear out of a house where she is abused. NORTHERN W OMAN page 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Regional Routes Sudbury Homemakers Conference One of the activities that is tentatively scheduled for February 1984, is a Homemakers Conference. Anyone who is interested in organizing this event may call the Women's Centre in Sudbury. In the mean time, ideas and input on guest sneakers, activities, workshops, and resource people are requested. Caregivers Registry by Dale Mansfield The Caregivers Registry, which started up last month, is progressing well. Currently there are approximately twice as many caregivers as parents on file at the Women's Centre. This is probably due to the high unemployment situation in the area. Consequently women are staying at ,home with their children. There is hope that as time goes on, more parents will call. It seems that publicity is 'the ',Pule of the game. Once people register, a follow-up letter is sent stating the terms of the registry, as well as a notice of upcoming workshops of interest to the parents and caregivers. Louise Dulude's "The Pink Paper", the minutes of the National Action Committee's presentation to the Task Force and the CPP Advisory Committee's presentation to Monique Begin on homemaker participation in the CPP. As a second part of the pensions issue, SWAG prepared a joint brief along with six representatives from different women's groups in Sudbury. Despite some rather large differences in philosophy and outlook, SWAG found itself able to agree on a surprising number of points. Although most SWAG' members had to make some compromises they were pleased with the result. This particular brief was presented in Toronto in October. North Bay To Have and To H-ld On the last day of November, the North Bay Women's Centre presented the film "To Have and. To Hold", a film about men who batter women. The problem of wife abuse was examined through the man's experience of it. Marsha Greenfield presented a report on the Nipissing Transition House. As well, a discussion was hel' on solutions to wife battering in its next phase - help for the batterer. The Nipissing Transition House by Nancy Bishop Canada Pension Plan and SWAG by Andrea Levan The Sudbury Women's Action Group has recently presented a brief to the Task Force on -Pension Reform in Sudbury. Of particular assistance were It's now a reality: a roomy,four bedroom house has been rented at 547 John St. in North Bay. The house can accomodate nine residents: women "and children in need of safe refuge from violent situations. Three full time staff have been hired and the house is presently open from 9-5 week days, with an answering service after hours. Since a nunber of structural modifications still need to be com4Ppleted, counselling services are pre-, sently being ofered. Once these changes are complete, the house will be fully operational. Putting Happy Into Holiday For those who wanted this holiday to be better than the last, a workshor was held on December 2nd at the India/. Friendship Centre. Discussion groups talked about: making children's expectations more realistic; dealing with loneliness during the holiday season; decorating and gift giving fo/ pennies; the Xmas spirit and where to find it; booze and happiness don't mix; family expectations and avoiding conflict. The workshops were sponsored by the Women's Centre and a number of other community groups and services. Longlac Child Care by Diane Parise A total of 77 delegates attended the 6th Annual Northwestern Ontario Day Care Conference hosted by the Longlac Child. Care Centre. Participants enjoyed a choice of 18 workshops ranging in topics from developing a playground site, child abuse, separation and divorce to puppetry and exercise for children. ANNINSWINION0810110104MINdigastrawsmila day event new trends, goals of early childhood education and phil-,sophies were discussed. Dryden INFORMED CHOICES by Jeannie Mascotto Nakina VIDA and GOLIATH by the Women's Group of the Nakina Anti-Run-Through Committee ready to fall again. C.N. will not give its employees any reasons or answers to their In 1923, C.N. uprooted everyone in questions; in fact, will not even talk with them. The word is C.N. Grant, Ontario, moved them up the will save money; no one knows how line and literally plunked them, much and/or where it will save it. houses and all, in the bush! The One company official said that,afC.N. employees and their families picked up the pieces and with great ter all, it's only good business to determination set about making Nak- make progress. Is it good business to do so at the expense of its emina a habitable place to live. Evployees and their families? Where, erything in Nakina is a result-of and when, does the responsibility the start these pioneering families that C.N. brags about, start? made. These people made this town! There are numerous reasons why we They did it willingly and for the do not want C.N. to "run-through" most part happily. They made the Nakina. Some of which follow: best of the situation that C.N. 1. As women living in Nakina,many forced on them. of us have jobs locally. In view of Now,for the third time,C.N. wants to-day's economy, these jobs are to run-through Nakina. Once again vital to the financial stability of the railroaders must fight for our families. When C.N. forces our their existance. This is extremely men to move, we will lose our jobs. upsetting, frightening and devastats We won't be able to find other jobs ing; the axe hanging over everyone' in the new townsite due to the rate head for approximately 20 years is Dryden does it again! Plans are in 71111 swing for the Bicentennial Women's Conference '84, to be held April 6, 7 and 8 at the Dryden High School. The conference's theme is Women in It will offer educationa: Transition. opportunities to women to enable them to make informed decisions on emerging issues. The line up of workshops look this: family law - property and marriage contract; microtechnology - impact on women; effective parenting - how to teach your child with love and discipline; preparation for aging - the Process of aging and resources needed for preparation; coping with inflation - investments and insurance; changing roles in responsibilities - the rights and responsibilities of single parents. Two hundred women from Thunder Bay west to Winnipeg are expected to participate. For out-of-towners, accomodations will be available at the Best Western Motor Inn. As well, day care services will be arranged. For further information contact Jeannie Mascotto, Co-ordinator, Bicentennial Women's Conference '84, Box 531, Dryden, Ont., P8N 2Z2. NAKINA - CONT'D ON PAGE 12 NORTHERN OMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor 5 �REACTION by ROSALYN TAYLOR PERRE A report on the Women's Inter-_ Agency Committee Meeting, Oct.24/83 As I attended the Women's InterAgency Meeting, I found out I was in for quite a learning experience, not just in terms of content but in the tight, bureaucratically imposed process which unfortunately places ironclad walls around even the most well intentioned, aware women. The Women's Inter-Agency Meeting was born out of a, need for a support system and a sharing of information in the women's community. The format of these meetings consist of information exchange on programs, activities and women deserving special recognition for their contributions. Future hopes and plans are also shared. Various participants can then take news back to their own groups for planning purposes, political action and/or personal participation. As an eternal optomist, I prefer to begin with the good news... A Women Through Film Series is being planned by the women in Red Lake. The content remains undecided at present. There is discussion about a new women's group on the campus of Lakehead University. The Women and Economic Development Committee are working on a handbook for decision makers in Northwestern Ontario on 'Women's Role in Economic Development'. The Employment Development Branch is currently undergoing consolidation.,The four new programs are Job Corps, L.E.A.P. (Local Employment Assistance Program), Canada Works and Career Access. The focus - for L.E.A.P. is community based economic development. For more information call Sandra Steinhause or Julie Fels at 344-0815. There will be a spring conference in Dryden called Women in Transition. Proposed workshops focus on women's social and economic independence. More information will be forthcoming. The International Women's Day Celebration Committee is in the works and hopes to involve many women's groups. Confederation College has some exciting courses for women who wish to pursue non-traditional occupations. For more information see Joan Bath's 'Update' column. It is important to register as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. The remainder of this report looks at current concerns. Family Resource Centres are receiving a lot of attention these days. There is considerable concern about their impact on Northwestern Ontario. Funding for Family Resource Centres and Transition Homes has been very scanty. The per-diem rate is a very awkward way of ensuring that each woman at the home gets basic room and board. Transition Homes are more than room and board, they offer counselling service and child care. A larger problem arose when Family Resource Centres were given a floating perdiem rate, meaning, the daily cost is figured and divided by the number of women using it. This means that Family Resource Centres get a different per-diem rate from Transition Homes. This move seems calculated to split women into two opposing factions - those involved with Family Resource Centres and those involved with Transition Homes. It is vital to keep the main issue in perspective Battered women need to have their The re-support services legislated. cent lobby was intended to ensure that any gains would be in writing. Over the past two years, new mental health programs have begun in most district communities. Their approach is largely clinical and there is concern over this isolated method of dealing with clients who are mostly women. As most of the mental health workers are male, and from outside the community, it is unlikely they will be able to relate to problems women face. There is not a lot of choice for women with no where else Alternatives are being reto turn. searched. It is felt that women's problems should be regarded as social, not personal. There were questions regarding the Women's Employment Centre report. More details were requested concerning Project Next Step. Further information is required on the local situation with INTO (Introduction to Non-Traditional Occupations) and WITT (Women in Trades and Technology). Plans for the future were missing in the report. It is hoped that more information on this and other issues will be exchanged at the next meeting. The mood of the meeting was subdued and there was only partial attendance. Those present seemed to be feeling the strain of too many meetinf,9. The age-old problem of commit- ting energy to so many equally impo tant issues while being one step ahead of the'fickle fist' of bureaucracy can rake the most optomistic person feel over-burdened. Sometime the gains are microscopic and other times the larger gains feel like grains of sand as the tide rolls ou It is like scrambling for grains before they all go out to sea. Personally (despite my gloomy introduction) I hope these meetings continue in order to provide some check and balance on the 'system', and keep women well informed about current issues affecting them. Networking allevites the isolation that fragments us, removes the bar riers erected by misinformation or There are total lack of knowledge. however, some dangers when women b come too insular. Even with this opportunity for exchange, there is a tendency for womens' groups to look inward and develop a protective, bureaucratic language that alienates them from the women they work so hard to support. I attended this meeting, a rel tive newcomer to the forma th tiny political seeds just beginning to sprout. I came to listen but I also came to try to understand. I was amazed at the ease with which initials were tossed back and forth It was as though I was suddenly immersed in a large bowl of alphabet soup. It is easy to be intimidated by the sub-language of meetings (d signed presumably to maintain-order and efficiency) and almost lose sig of their purpose. One has to.,plung into this curious way of communicating in order to survive. I learned much more information after the me ing by talking to various cooperat women and asking for their thoughts and feelings. Perhaps the language can be simplified so that it is mor universally understood. Communicat should bring us together not set us -. apart. Northern Woman's BOOKSTORE §,tztligage copies of ) Please send me ( RISING @ $5.00 each. Enclosed is a cheque or money order for ( ), which includes postage, payable to: NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL, 316 Bay St., Thunder Bay, Ontario, P7B 1S1 316 BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO 344-7979 ././2 sf, et. /;:c? and much more ! OPEN Thurs-Fri 11:30-7:3 Sat 11:30-4:3 NORTHERN W OMAN page 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �FRAGMENTS/BETRAYALS You took at me, and I know you see. I'm convinced brown eyes betray me, and I tAy to hide Hidden, the hunt una6iecting. OtheAz wilt not zee. I my to hide behind them Put glasses on them to shade me inom btindingty hot neatity which I conitonted (having /tun headlong) under which I paAtty buckled, somewhat stAong oven which I measuited a stunted tnwth, with an Ancient faith, untetigious but .integral, peAsonat and omnipresent Shattered, slammed, blown from bettayat to btundet Unp'wud but unashamed, adMittedty knuckted under. I wrap the ()toms and bruises in the womb of home and /Loom Re4ugee 6/tom a teatity too unteat Lon. me Eventuatty (as always) I tesume the plea F04 the peace AO cherished, so temoved, I grieve Winding me with barbed wine, they cannot and witt not Leave. I plead OA 4/Leedom, LOA Aetease But I cannot cry ion a Aightiut peace... Then, the teems 6o/tow Like OLagments oi iib/Legtass, itching and biting Angty and uncteanzing in eyes exhausted with fighting Eyes betAayed and betkaying Watching the could's, and the cutting Go on, deal the hand, but Lot now I'm folding Bone-cut with disittuzion, dissotution But hotding. A ONE NOTE CHORD I used the elect/tic d'LU. It didn't nun th/tough my feet and aftound My apartment. Not thiz time. My mind oven its matte/L. I put those ugly mugs away. I must Love het Less if I hate those blue mugs. I Love hen. It's those blue mugs I hate. I came home. Tined woman -chitd. I wanted my friend and my dinner, Now. Complete. Incomplete me completed dinner. Cried. Did the damn dishes. Survived. I went to bed. I touch my Seq. heel my Betio heat my Seti. I ALIA away. To AetuAn. Sometimes coming 6utthet with my Self. I sigh. I transcend. fact. touch. sptat. stumble. glide. want. speak. scream. dream. Aead, bang. white. I am tined. thAitted. stAong.atone. oteative. in pain. in the bath. in need. in sane. in tAoubte. indeed I am: An average exttaoAdinaty woman teaAning to Be. Sarson, Winnipeg NORTHERN WOMAN page 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Annex Oheeth (Ton. Many) I dance beneath you, swaying in the A.hythm o4 out two -6tep, hipA hugging,-Zip4 touching, Tuaning Oheoth tuaning Round Round wing ciacteh Spinning hpiaagh Spinning /wand tegA- teaAing. Foitwand, and aound Round, and /onward And /wand In hpiaath Tempting hungry hand4 to hoatd an inch o4 geAh with a moment o6 man caught in a wand o4 woman, catching u4 both battered into wanton warmth, .Leaving uA timp and penAive with peace. Joyce Thierry Yellowknife, N.W.T. Time. hpent Staength gone Riding my nightmare /wand In hpiaath Wheel's Within whezeh: Whiaeing. Spinning wheel re/Vah wheel aheet o/ /oatune: Sanity?/Inhanity Wheats whiating I teanna See my. cast Vheoth Tuaning .stoke Love glow /east seek Round... Susan Collinh Hawkinh hies tickle open - Live/inAwA4mAL4wiegadir- witch I am caeatiag cahtiag 'spelling changeing my /aces LaL Sanoon Winnipeg meeting /oa gaenwyn Nomanhtoaieh when the Red chip o/ pothhead heed warm in youa palm 'spoke to you ah it hpeakh to me i knew we.had met at eaht when you haw the woman o/ the coeoRndo can h. a thousand untold htoitieh the kid's, the home, the meats menial ta'sk's to cloud the mind to coal( the gottee o/ wihdornh /oa hake 'stowage 'she's a good wile and a good mother too hen taaided haia heir won,' heatea!h handh The Poman 4eZOIL4C-eA to Le tapped hea wipe tined lace i knew we had /inalgy touched when you haw hen ah i do molding clay into htaiph and the htaiph into a gowe hunk deep into the ahheh 01 a hot pinyon /ire i knew you and i were ah one when you haw the pot gaoken Pay a naaaow running htaeam the ancient woman gone the valley hieent o/ heft voice i knew what we had heed togethea ma's o/ moman'h Love Aging Like a ceetea o/ home made wine Don't wait any Longest, I Leg you Don't tet het /eament much eongea On it may Le too Late She may eohe that geauti/ue gouquet She may Lecome Litter, tor, She has an expiry date. The gaave'h a great peace /oa ha/e-keeping But where the here doe's age the potential energy go? Don't Let hen take het 'stony to hen grave! lady Ileaatin Diane Stein PittAbutgh PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAN page 8 �FOOLS BITTER SORROW Beloved together we ate outcasts cotouted a threat Beloved together we ate atone. I my to hide from so catted women Wends ieministz bighting each other - 4ighting mec, I tAy but I 6ai1 I want to embrace att. women. She weighs me down with het hatted She teats my eyes out so that perhaps I won't see 6ut I zee anyway I open my mouth to speak it She Aipa out my tongue, my teeth I bteed. Yet my heart stite opens with .Love (Such a 400t I am) She kittz me with vengence because T speak the unspeakabte I eat the inedibte I question She wants me dead, dizappeated I open out my hands palms up, no weapons but mysetli Myseti once again I must be myset4 (Such a painiut ioot) No tturt On'y those who are my beloved know me and know the bitten sottow. Beloved together we ate atone. Teresa legowski gRENADA BETRAYED caenadn eittte 444te4 I watch you as you teeed A woman .town and Eatteaed By a viotent heaat o, gAped. Litt& ziztea I murt match you Hetd down by ioteign need giants Ringed aaound Pith theia tomeaing phallic gazed. The 11.S. iz the 42ant With his zimpeaing gaotheaz zix They took a iLagite ziztea They eetaayed hen_ with all speed Canada and Cilia hea 4i steer and a Aiend Faiaweathea yeas But ztiet 1 hope 4 conzeience in the end. Reflections '. Rappea I take of my crapes. Remove mu wing. Pith my miaaoa, Ply .truth Naked. I touch my zet. Taace my pain. Kiss my eipz. Reaeing again. Phizpea.ing tongue. Tickeez my zout. Spn.ing 4ngeaz, Rememkea they know. 7ingee-ing with pteazuae. Ooze-ing with. We. Savouaing my See/.. Caaezzing to flight. Lae Swoon NORTHERNWOMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �MEMORABILIA...(as inspired by WCMANSPACE Rummage sale) Canto I (Allegro) Fancy, high-heeled shoes "Sexy", classy, and expensive, too $60-$100 a few years ago (Probably purchased at a "discount" though) Useless, uncomfortable "sexy" shoes ...something or other... IES DAVID embossed in gold How cruel I was then: How amazed I am now: (I took my warm, woolly work socks off to measure...) How did I ever put these broad, strong, sensitive feet into that pair of dainty little frames ?? and even with that task accomplished how to walk, to dance, to run??? The heels--3 3/4" from flesh to earthly contact point (probably 4" or so when they were younger when I was younger...) the left worn harder than the right (at least something's making sense: "Sexy" shoes? Token of payment dearly made for needing approval at the door once inside they were hidden under a table or kicked off on a dance floor Were their teeny little buckles made of gold? If I knew then what I know now... Well, I'd have bought hiking boots, of course: If I'd had another 100 or so I could've had a tent: (Reassuring at least that my Left made more tracks than my Right ever did - ever could!) (for metric conversion: (Andante) 10 cm "=" 4") Canto 11 I wonder now... How their factory-worker builders (knowing & imagining what's just been described) must have laughed & maybe cried inside wishing to be working/creating for themselves without someone else's crazy little rules crazy little frames.... Souls of sole builders (Bata and others) using other crazy little names Makers of uppers and lowers heels and toes straps and soles Somewhere in your world there's a wandering traveller looking for a pair of handmade soles so, 1 of you, at least, doesn't have to sell your soul! Judy McMartin Thunder Bay WOPTHERN WOMAN page 10 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Female. Frogs and Crumbs e-THE by TERESA LEGOWSKI s rn "Crumbs; we're all, scrambling after Crumbs. " ( Fiona Karlstedt ) It's easy enough to see the avenues for gaining power in the community for women are limited to about two, maybe three. It's easy enough to see that the structure for attaining power is imposed by the same patriarchal institutions which women are supposedly fighting. It's easy enough to see. It's called not biting the hand that feeds you. It's called funding. It's called money. All this is easy enough to see and analyze and get angry about. It's easy because it's intellect- Then - late one night - late autumn - 11:30 p.m. - the phone rang just as I was crawling into my lonely sheets. A voice I recognized. An occasional "fuck". He was miserable. I declined his invitation to join him at his place. With genuine sympathetic concern I suggested he come over ual. for coffee. So I'm a feminist. So I walked in-r to this community straight out of the bush with my skiis on my feet and my belongings on my back. I sure didn't see then what I see now. What idealistically I hoped would be an equal situation is in reality a hierarchy of some big female frogs in a little pond trying to out-croak each other. It's called empire building. I see these frogs getting read possessive about their particular lily pad. I see them real scared about any new frogs in"town. Once in a while a younger frog gets ousted by the old gang and decides to build her own new lily pad; a new little empire in thecfrog pond. Sometimes old frogs get the same idea when they realize that the younger upstarts are going to get them hopped. But all these new lily pads are kept floating by patriarchal funding, by crumbs from the bull frog Obscene Telephone Calls by GERALDINE VAN CRAM The bedside phone rang - eagerly I answered. Alas - only heavy breathing. "Disappointed" - again - I hung up. I tried not to wonder. I went downstairs to kitchen and put the espresso pot on. I had no idea what I was going to say to the guy - an American ex-G.I. in Canada working and looking =---BANG - through the backdoor. No nothing - just a very rough maul with the obvious intent of azfuck. He left after 10 minutes or so of my refusals. I was telephoning when he came in again. (I couldn't lock the door of my old house.) For the next one and a half hours I was subjected to tension of death-like terror and disgust. Vietnam visited upon me! During the ordeal I was ordered not to make any sounds. He held me by the throat as he attempted to get an ,erection. The entire event seemed to have something to do with an obsession with sounds. Rape of the body is equalled only by rape of the psyche. For the following year I attempted to lay charges. All the= procedures were followed. I went to City Hall. It is ironic that THE POLICE made the HIT Parade. There is MORE but details are now irrelevant - so if you get a "friendly fuck' watch out for obscene telephone calls. CASE HI pie. It doesn't matter who the female frogs are. It doesn't matter what empires they're building. None of that matters. The situation is universal. So what we have here is a pretty closed and stagnating pond. It's really sad to hear all the bickering and backstabbing and biting. It's really sad to see no room for new ideas or old ideas that have been suggested but never tried. It's really sad to realize there will be no improvement. There are the occassional croaks about who is the better feminist frog Who is the best feminist in this town? Who is the worst feminist? Who cares? These pointed questions are really saying, "I've got the best lily pad in town. So croak off!" After all, isn't the floating lily pad built on a foundation of feminism? Or is it? All it takes is the one and only patriarchal bull frog to pull the bucks and the little lily pad sinks. The truth is these little lily pads are built on dollars. Their purpose is not to achieve feminism, freedom, a new society, a new universal or der) a new religion, a new world, ribbit, ribbit,ribbit. Their purpose is to get ahead in a patriarchal ' . pond. And what about the actual female frog empire builders? Where do they see themselves in this pathetic scenario? I don't think they see themselves at all. They see red when their lily pad gets jostled or when their croak gets questioned& They're really good swimmers. But they don't seem to sit back, review the situation, analyze their actions and their behaviors, question their own conditioning and how it relates to the perpetuation of patriarchal bullfrogging. Instead they go home and hide in their slurpy, mud-bottomed bubbles. Who wouldn't? It's a frog-eat-frog pond. After all, once all the crumbs are gone, female frog legs for supper are the next best thinf. WOMEN AND PENSIONS After years of study on pension reform, the government is expected to act soon. Considerable concern exists, however, about whether the needs of women will be met by the proposed legislative changes. To encourage continued discussion and awareness of pension issues, the Women and Pensions Committee will visit a number of NWO communities during the next few months. Meetings will be sought with members of parliament to discuss the recommendations that deal with women's pension needs. Th pile a umentin respect the exp workers, dealing We feel women's forcefu improve man pers bate. If please w Committe tre, t der Bay, An is the r Continue women to If you m ful potl your Cha Jan, 11 Jennifer women wel PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Nakina THE 'COPING" COP-OUT by JOAN BARIL Notes based on a Workshop by Gerry Wine, O.I.S.E., at the Women and Therapy Conference, November 11/83 Toronto. Mental health workers are the new priests. Therapy cannot change history. Counselling cannot change economics. At best it can teach you to fight. At worst it can teach you to cope. "Cope" is a terrible bald word. Flat and defeatist. "Cope" means giving, in, capitulating in a war. It means you are colonized and oppressed from the moment of birth. The mental health system has two major lists of concerns to deal with. One' list is all the things it does badly and the second list is all tha things it does not do at all. Problems often not acknowledged by counsellors (or badly handled) include: 1. Women's low self esteem. Why don't mental health workers address themselves to the fact that many women have low self esteem? Is it because they are not convinced that women should have it? Is it because self esteem in a woman might cause problems for her husband? 2. Women suffer from a lack of intimacy. Husbands are often afraid of intimacy. The patriarchal family does not provide it. 3. Women's guilt and depression is not handled well, especially the guilt of mothers. They must constantly be on guard-against exterior threats to the child, poisons in the environment, unsuitable movies and TV, unhealthy food, poor education, trauma. They cannot veer from the accepted path of "good motherhood". They get tired. They feel guilty. 4. Sexual harassment of many . kinds. From a conference on Housework, part of a series of workshops on the international Human Rights of women as workers, sponsored by the International Education Centre, a bibliography on Housework has been published. The bibliography provides a comprehensive listing of articles and books dealing with various aspects of the issue of housework. Copies of the bibliography may be obtained free of charge from the International Education Centre, Saint Mary's University, Halifax, B3H 3C3 NORTHERN WOMAN page 12 5. The sexual deprivation of women is unacknowledged. Where are the houses of pleasure for her, the sensuous places with good books, conversation, massage, exercise, exquisite sex. 6. Once a woman is over 30 she comes to an age where she is no longer a possible sexual partner for a man. She fails all the cultural stan-. dards on beauty. Nobody looks at her, nobody sees her. To a degree she becomes a different human as if she mutated into something else. Things the mental health system doesn't deal with at all: 1. The obedience and conformity demanded of little girls who grow starts young and it is a serious mental health problem. 2. Lack of identification with women. Women's altruism and volunteer work is poured into men and into children and less often into other women. There is also the petty harassment of women by women. Feminists ignore this because they want to believe in the myth of sisterhood. 3. Inability to congratulate ourselves. Few women are able to take pleasure in their own achievements. 4. Women often lack compassion for themselves. They harass themselves. 5. Homophobia. 6. Racism and anti-semetism. 7. Women's inability to have a righteous rage against men. To say "I hate men" to the therapist or counsellor, to explain that this means I hate this male system and I hate what this male system has done to me. CONT'D FROM PAGE of unemployment. Our well-being,our standard of living, our economic security and independence will be destroyed. 2. Those of us women who own our own businesses in Nakina will be devastated. Who will be left to buy our commodities? Selling the business in a Northern Ontario community such as Nakina is impossible, in view of the economy, as well as the disruption of the C.N. "run-througl It will be a direct financial loss, absolutely unrecoverable. 3. Our children will lose the opportunity to grow up in a secure ark open community environment, as many of us did. 4. If the C.N. employees decide tc "pack-sack",which means we - the wives - live in Nakina while our husbands work elsewhere - the resul will be devastating to a stable f amily life: i)two living accomodations to keep up(ii)raising childrer on our own (iii)the burdens encountered of keeping the home front a alone (iv)where to turn should sick ness arise, as it will (v)the agony of being separated from our spouses (vi)will it lead to drinking proble (vii)will it lead to marriage break down (viii)lots of stress and its self-destructive'ramifications We refuse to adjust to being a "C.N. pack-sackers widow". The vice-president of C.N.,Mr.Var Water, is an example of the type of intelligence of the people running this company. He suggested_oommutir C.N. "gives a 2 hour call andit.wot take 4 hours to drive to HornepaynE The mathematics of this intrigues t ,Since there is no 4-lane, paved hig way from here to anywhere, this prc posal is totally ridiculous. The road is bad enough in summer, what with loose gravel and potholes. In the winter it is extremely treacher ous,with lots of snow,-30 C. weathE hard-packed glare ice the majority of the time. C,N. does not care that they are c stroying our livelihoods, our homes our marriages,our families and our community. Should C.N. have such cc trol over its employees and their families? It certainly owes us hum-. ane consideration. We are not robot Already we are going through unhe able anxieties and mental pressure; tie really do not know if we can endure any more heartache and stress. The thing that is keeping us sane .right now is anger and the need to fight this corporation. And fight will! Help us fight this giant! A poputaft. 6aying an Atdeuon went as 4ottowz: "They wotk u,o tike a houe, 4eed tike a biA.d, tteat u4 Zile a dte,s4 La -Eike a man - and then expect UZ to act tike a lady ". (nom the Atdeuon Stoty) PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �- GRENADA The Destruction of Hope by MARGARET PHILLIPS I am waking down the beach, the Might Cakibbean sun wakming my weary 4out. A young Gkenadian gikt puts het smart back hand in mine and we waltz togethet, joyiutty, in hakmony. It Lo Apkit,1981. I am marching through the streets of Thunder Bay, joining millions throughout the world who unite to demand the end of this nuclear madness that will destroy us all. We march and sing and shout NO MORE WARS. It is October,1983. Wendy Loofas dot me each a4tetnoon. Fot a kew minutes she teaves azide het motfz to visit and tett me o4 hen day. My day is btightet because a4 het welcome. We sit in silence in the Cathedral, each one of us maintaining our own vigil. Our lighted candles a flickering ray of hope for PEACE. While at that moment the Americans finalize their plans to invade Grenada. I come to Grenada exhausted - mind, body, spitit weany and wokn itom yeaA4 o4 iutite e44ott in my quest 4ot social justice in my city, my countty. Fok a 4ew weeks I am escaping my inability to countetact the in4titutionat viotence ditected against women, against pock people, against minotities in our ZOCiety. Fkom the moment I step o44 the smart LIAT ptane,a sense oi excitement 4,1-US me. Grenada is a country tike no other Cakibbean countky I have visited. Pethaps it is the quiet steady activity mo4t sttiking. And the sense o4 pkide, that 0,4 dignity o4 thepeopte. The cteantiness, the ondettine44, the absence o6 petty ckime, the absence oi pAostitution. The peopte oi Grenada ate peak, but they have hope, I come to Grenada when thein nevaution is just two yeak4 old. Grenada, most beauti4ut o4 att. the -Lands, yet one o4 the pootest countties in the would. Its histoAy one o4 4tavety, cotonization expZoitation, and in tecent yearns the despo:tic teadet- The media gives confused reports about Grenada... ., a coup .. a military takeover. Demonstrations supporting Bishop. Then the news - Maurice Bishop has been murdered. I visualize the panic, the despair the Grenadian people must feel. I exptote Grenada - what Lessons can this tiny, undekdevetoped countty pkovide? The 4ocus thA4 yeah tis on agkicuttuke - getting 4eAtite but Long -idle Land back into pkoduction - ensuting agticuttatat set4-su44iciency. So development stresses agticuttute, education, titekacy, health cake, co-op development, the new aitpott. They cektainty 4eem to have their pkiokitim ztkaight. Vet behind the hope and excitement is a constant sttain o4 4eat. Des abtization and invasion. It 4takted eakty with the te4usat 0,4 Ameticaneconomic aid, and when economic sabotage didn't wokk, the onset of phoicat viotenCe. It i4 commonly undeutood thtoughout the Ccv)ibbean that the tepeated attempts on Mautice Bishop's ti4e ate CIA inspited. The 1980 bomb exptosion, intended 4ot Bishop and his Cabinet membeko, but which instead ztat in people's kitted thtee young women, minds. The need to de4end theit tevotution ptompt4 the devetopment.o4 a stAong militia. With each achievement o4 the kevotution the thteat oi in- vasion gum 4tkongen. In an interview in 1981 Prime Minister Bishop replied to a question about the Reagan administration's outlook towards Grenada: "We are also concerned in fact about the increasing talk about 'linkage', that is to say linking developments in other parts of the world; let us sak in the Middle East, with what is happening in this region and direct threats that under this system of linkage some country in this region could be invaded as a result of what may be happening in a different part of the world" (Maurice Bishop, Caribbean Times, March 19,1981) zhip o4 Ekic Gave y. Grenada, the 4.ik.st Engtizh speaking Cakibbean nation to expetience-a 4ociatizt kevotution, Lead by Mautice Bishop and massivety zuppokted by ate sectou o4 the poputation. A tevotution o4 HOPE. "All the indicators are that it was to 'avenge' the Marines killed in Beirut that the American president decided to take the step [the invasion] and carry out plans that had been ready for a long time. But here again, the message is ambiguous as it is tantamount to an admission that the U.S. Our March for Peace is not allowed to assemble on City Hall property. City Council succqmbing to the Legion pressure. Do I really live in a city that believes it is subversive to protest nuclear war? "If peace fails; the plan is to run the Government of Canada from an aging underground bunker for about two weeks. The emergency planners, whose task it is to think about 'the continuity of government' during a nuclear nightmare, feel that after about two weeks the radioactivity levels would drop sufficiently so that the Governor-General, the can do nothing in Lebanon. As one U.S. senator put it on learning of the Grenada invasion 'You win the wars you can win'". (Manchester Guardian, Nov.6/83) I receive the news of the invasion of Grenada without emotion. Like the numbness one feels on the expected death of a friend. Several days later, war filming released, the agony fills me. Gunfire pounding the beach where I walked, bombs blasting the countryside I travelled. I scream. Prime Minister, a war Cabinet of at least three other ministers and the bunker support staff could emerge to see what was left and decide whether it was worth trying to carry on. For the first time I acknowledge the inevitability of nuclear war. The bunker Government would not have the niceties of parliamentary almost all isters and would have democracy. The leaders of the opposition parties, other MPs, senators, a majority of Cabinet minalmost all of the civilian population of Canada to fend for themselves on the outside, among the nuclear fireballs, flying debris, radioactive mushroom clouds and whatever other horrors the next war could bring." (Globe and Mail, Nov.18/83) The Leader o4 the nevotutionaky goveknment, Maukice Bishop, is enokmoustypoputak. I marvel as I heat the chems tesponding to Bishop's speech to a wotket's tatty. I ponder how it must fleet to have a potiticat teadek that inspites such Love and adMinationo "The U.S. Federal authorities have stockpiled 71,000 pounds of opium (morphine is a derivitive of opium) for critical civilian use, and have recently requested 59,000 additional pounds. The Pentagon has asked the National Funeral Directors' Association of the United States to prepare to handle mass burials; the president of the Association has asked for a training course in embalming radioactive corpses. One thing is certain -- unburied, buried, incinerated or vapourized, the dead will continue to be radioactive -- forever." (Wallenius, NWJ Sept./83) continued on page 14 NORTHERN ra OMAN pa ge 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �- Grenada continued nom page 13 "Perhaps the worst crime that Colonialism left our country, has indeed left all former colonies, is the Education System. This is so because that system was used to teach our people The Grenada peopee welcome me - as they welcome evetyone - be they tomists - mainly BAitish and Eutopean, on wonheAs - the U.N. oiSiciats, intetnationat aid people, and the Cuban wotkeu who have come to help build the new aitpott. And the 1000 Ametican mectLcaL students. Finding an Ameti7 can medical schoot in Gtenada a a shock - seAiouz young men ensconced on Lounge chants on the beach, a stack oi medical jouAnats beside them a an unusual pictute, but they soon become pant oi the landscape. I ask how many Gtenadians ate enAotted at St. GeoAge's Medical School ...someone thinks maybe two on there. an attitude of self-hate, to get them to abandon our history, our culture, our values. To get them to accept the principles of white superiority, to destroy our confidence, to stifle our creativity, to perpetuate in our society class privilege and class difference. The colonial masters recognized very early on that if they get a subject people to think like they do, to forget their own history and their own culture...then they have already won the job of keeping us in perpetual domination and exploitation" (Maurice Bishop, quoted in Grenada, The Peaceful Revolution, EPICA Task Force,1982) People taL(a iteety to me aboUt thein countty, -c-t4 idtute, and about theit peAsonat goats. The news analysis shifts. Criticism emerges of Reagan and the Pentagon. But not criticism of the invasion. Only criticism that journalists were denied access to-report the war first hand. A valid complaint, no doubt, but hardly the most basic issue. I'm pleasantly smoised at the openness. Most peopLe suppont the &evolution, although I meet sevetat ctitia - they miss the big U.S. to $. Reagan's mounted a huge ptopoganda campaign and scated okii the Ametican touAist.s. The legality of the invasion is moderately questioned. An occasional voice ponders the morality of the world's most powerful nation invading one of the smallest, poorest nations in the world. Not once, have I seen any analysis of the racism that underlies this invasion. The Peat point of the peopLe'4 optomism is the new international aiApoAt. Without exception Grenadians agree the new aitpoAt means iutute pAospetity. The aitpott a also the peas oS Reagan's patanoia... who confutes up a pictute oS a Soviet-Cuban mititaAy base. Obsessively, I read and watch reports about the invasion. I grow increasingly distressed about the inadequacy of the Canadian reporting of the GrenadiEln tragedy. Is it incompetence, ideological-fervor, laziness or fear that prompts Canadian journalists to simply regurgitate the political propoganda issued by Washington. If our journalists had deigned to visit Gtenada in the past four yeats they might have gained the insight needed to provide a thoughtful analysis. But war is news, while social development is not. So, in the first few days journalists are content to pass on the .distortion, the lies, the scare tactics, effectively manipulated by Washington. And some Canadians accept it as truth. Others know better, but they cannot, will not (understandably) think through to the real meaning of this atrocity. "While I was building neat castles in the sandbox, the hasty pits were filling with bulldozed corpses Each time I hit a key on my electric typewriter speaking of peaceful trees another village explodes" ********************************************* Heath cake, along with education was the Iiitst pAioAi-ty oS the Bishop goveAnment. I Leann about health carte advances since the nevotution: the estabtishment oS heath centres and dental ctinics in each paAish, the medical stations in each village. I think oS the yeaAz oS Sutiee eiSoAt we spent ttying to secute a community health centAz in our downtown cote. That aenada's poputation a 110,000'4.... - the same ass Thunder Bay's --a a iAony that does not escape me. T e ood and NutAition Council pAovides heath and nutAition education. TheiA program to encouAage new motheAs to breast Seed putts our Seebte eSSoAts oS a Nestles bouycott to shame. The initial rationale for the invasion -the safety of the American medical students gives way to Reagan's absurd assertions of saving Grenada from a Cuban take-over. After days of misinformation the U.S. military officials admit they exaggerated the number of Cubans in Grenada. They acknowledge the numbers provided by Cuban authorities were correct. (Margaret Atwood, The Animals In That Country, 1968) "The news seems vague and far off, not as if it were really happening. It sits on us like an ache. We are trying to ignore it lest the pain become unbearable" The only statistics on war casualities give the number of Cubans killed. No figures are provided about the Grenadian who died. Cuba seeks to return the Grenadians whose bodies the Americans shipped to Cuba. (Hundreds and Thousands, the journals of Emily Carr,1937) ******************************************** The beach a Wendy'4 woAkptace. VendbAs, oi att ages, daily mad set theit nags, thein pro duce, woAking ditigentey to meet that Samities needs. BeSone the tevotution Wendy and other 12 yea/ old (an even younger) chitdnen would be vending Suet-time. But now shealso goes to school. Ftee education, schoot Lunch oognams, mean the children Adam even the poorest Samities have a chance Son educa- A friend just back from Central America tells of the horror and tragedy she witnessed. The unbelievable violence in El Salvador, Guatemala, Hor duras. The desperate refugee situation. The increasing armed aggression of Nicaragua, the systematic destruction of the Nicaraguan economy. For Central Americans there is no doubt that GrE nada is only the first step. tion. Not only the children ate educated. The adult titeAacy campaign a one (IS the SiAst pAogAams of the Bishop govetnment. In one yeas adult ittitetacy a almost etiminated. Many analysts believe the U.S. will invade Nicar aqua before the end of the year. My friend talks about the fear. But also the determination. The courage. continued on page 15 NORTHERN W OMAN page 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �continued VLOM page 14 Women Step Fonwatd ... the biZZboatd on the outsk-i_Juts og St. George's inttiguez me. What's hap- The idea o4 braiding my ha-ijt 4dscinates Wendy, so one day I ,indulge het. I am newatded by the pening with women in Grenada? The National Women's 0Aganization L busy keeping women organize Local groups in vittagez ass wat as Zamet tawns. Day cane, school projects, tecteation, small economic gentle smaez oi the aZdet women on the beach who watch out puject with interest. I ignote the co -ops ate the pro jee to women otganize atound. Basic gitaiss tootz stu66. One especiatty hot day we wend out way to the ice cream stand, then Sind a shady spot to enjoy the cootLng tteat. We tdek about het Suture. "I want to be a nurse" Wendy tettz me. I learn about the ZegizZation aggecting women: equal pay, putection Strom sexual harassment, and a very ptogtessive matetnity .leave law. I visit the NatAona2 Women's Otganization oigce. I keep my 6eminism in check - recognizing that Caribbean women view ieminizm as a white, middeeceazs Amettican woman's luxury, But I'm anxious to discovet how they see women's tole. Despite the teatity that men dominate. the leadership, the women ate canvinced that they wilt. achieve qua.ity within the goats oi the revolution. My head tettz me it wiZZ never happen. My heant wishes it might be so. states (IS the other tourists, Huge military vehicles pound through the streets of St. George's, the American soldiers jeeringly brandish their powerful guns. The venom of their contempt seeps into me ... corrodes my very core. I think of the horrors forced on women in other wars. Women's bodies the victors reward. Prostitution inevitable for sheer survival. That rape occurs even more often in an occupation than in war. The U.S. military embark on a "witchhunt" in,Grenada, seeking out officials and supporters of the Bishop government. Grenadians are co-erced and bribed to inform on other Grenadians. Everyone with any association with the revolution is branded subversive, criminal - militia, development workers, co-op leaders - anyone. Kendrick Radix, the former Attorney-General is picked up without a warrant and detained in a 10 foot barbed wire and wooden crate. I think particularly of the American veteran's testimony at a forum on the atrocities witnessed and committed in Vietnam "It wasn't like they were humans.... they were a gook or a Commie and it was okay" (quoted in Against Our Will, Men, Women and Rape, Susan Brownmiller, 1975) The military is joined by U.S. AID who charts Grenada's. future. Health and education are to be re-structured. All education materials developed by Bishop's government to be destroyed. The director of the Food and Nutrition Council is I think of Wendy --- a young woman now. fired. Headlines of the Grenada invasion fade - to be replaced by more visible wars in other areas of our world. But war is only the most extreme form of organized violence. Just as insidious is the violence of poverty, of imperialism, of racism. The physical war in Grenada may be ending, but the U.S. invaders have ensured that the silent violence of imperialism will be Grenada's future. The Psychops (Psychological Operation Battalion) are in charge of "communications". The new airport is expected to become a permanent U.S. military base. The National Women's Organization, the National Youth Organization are eliminated. The Grenadian provisional council, sanctioned by the U.S. military has banned all public gatherings, all group meetings - except for the Rotary Club. ********************************************** ******************************************** U.S. "aid" to Grenada includes distribution of baby formula. The violence is just beginning. I Zook Sot Wendy to say good-bye. I encourage het to stay in school, putsue het goats. She asks me iS I wLU come and It tis my last day in Grenada. CUSO workers returned from Grenada hold a press conference. They attempt to focus on the social implications of the tragedy, as well as refute the distorted militarycontrolled information that has filled our visit again. I tetZ het Yes, yes, I veit# much want to come back to Grenada. media. They confirm my fear that the social developments of the past four years will all be stamped out. They also express their fears for the safety and freedom of the Grenada people with whom they worked:. the women who organized a food-making co-operative, women working in programs to upgrade education, to encourage non-traditional jobs. "We are concerned about those people because they will be identified as having associations with the revolution. We are really concerned, we are seriously concerned about this." Grenada, that tiny island that evokes in me such strong feeling. It is not likely that I will visit you again. But how grateful I'am for the privilege of being a welcomed visitor for a few brief weeks - to a country that tried against insurmountable odds - to build a social revolution. I cry - for a country that dared to dream of justice and equality. I cry - for a young girl who dared to dream that she might be a nurse. (Marlene Green, transcript of CUSO press conf.Oct.31/83) I cry. And I fear. The human and social consequences of the invasion that the CUSO workers describe receive little coverage from the mainstream Canadian media. NORTHERN WOMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �THE CONFEDERATION COLLEGE OF APPLIED ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY THUNDER BAY DISTRICT WOMEN'S PROGRAMS WINTER '84 In conjunction with Divizionz oi the CofJege, Women's P/Logums initiates, develops and Sacititatez subjectz, seminau and con6etences in response to changing needs in. education and in employment. Women's Pnogtams ptovides tesounces Son educators, students, individuals and community gtpups who tequite consultation about 6emini2 t -issues. Women's Programs Curriculae GENERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE DIPLOMA PROGRAM emphasizing seeking training for a future career through is designed to be of particular interest to women It offers subjects that develop an awareness of issues general study prior to career selection. field(s) relevant to women in the work force combined with the opportunity to explore career through additional subject selection. AVAILABLE POST-SECONDARY CREDIT SUBJECTS: GS GS GS GS GS GS 010 026 052 136 143 159 . PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING WOMEN, SOCIETY AND CHANGE WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION-EQUAL OPPORTUNITY For further information, contact the Program Co-ordinator at (807) 475-6390. BUSINESS DIVISION--EQUAL OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM (Pending Council of Regents Approval) will prepare the student to be a manager, emphasizing program analysis, development and coordination of Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity for women, ethnic and racial minority group members and for people with disabilities, in government and non-governmental organizations. Foe further information, contact the Program Co-ordinator at (807) 475-6140. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS * TECHNICAL UPGRADING PROGRAM (T.U.P.) _ technical T.U.P. facilitates the entry of individuals, particularly women, into the workplace or -- Career Counselling provides a The program has two components: or trades training programs. technical or "training path" outlining the training necessary to enter the intended workplace or provides 8-40 weeks of upgrading in related -Academic Upgrading trades training program; certificate and diploma programs in technology or business programs as well as selected apprenticeable trades. Associate Registrar-Adult Training & Special Programs For further information, contact the at (807) 475-6302. INTRODUCTION TO NON-TRADITIONAL OCCUPATIONS (I .N.T.0,) I.N.T.O. is an 8-week program that helps women to Students study job search skills, goal setting and plot a career path. traditional jobs. Work placement gives women real job experience. Arts at (807) 475-6210. For further information, contact the Chairperson of Communication Win- (W.I.T.T,) WOMEN INTO TRADES ANDTECHNOLOGY practical trades W.I.T.T. is an 18-week program designed to expose women to all aspects of training and the world of High-Tech. the Chairperson of Industrial & Motive Power at (807) 475-6215. For further information, contact * ZW These programs are supported by the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission, under the Canada-Ontario training agreement of 1982. the Women's Employment TO REGISTER, contact your local Canada Employment 8 Immigration o66ice, on (Phone 807-623-2731). Thunder Bay, Ontario P7C IC7 Centre, 130 S. Syndicate Avenue, 036 TOMORROW'S WOMAN New conliidence .through seti-awareness and zeq-esteem wia be achieved .through the exetcisez, group discussions, and skits. Each individevelopment o6 this subject in peAzonat gAowth. dual witt acquire a ptoSite o6 ate/Lutz and goats, _a sense o6 new options and a ctati6ication oS values. DATE & TIME: START DATE: COMPLETED: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: $30.00 GS Wednesdays 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. January 18, 1984 March 21, 1984 Liz Poulin 362, Shuniah Building ROOM: 99 026 ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING Provides the student with the skit Ps necessary -to negotiate honestly dot the things 4/he wants - on the job, at home, in Assention is not to be contused with aggression. the community. Aszettion takes into account the nights and ieetings o6 othets. DATE & TIME: START DATE: COMPLETED: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: $30.00 ZA Mondays 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. January 9, 1984 March 12, 1984 Pat McInnis 342, Shuniah Building ROOM: 99 119 FIRST STEP - COMPUTER PROGRAMMING FOR WOMEN An intAoductoAy subject in computer iundamentatz designed to give women an understanding o6 the capabititiez and tun& notogy associated with computers. Upon.compZetion, students wilt be able to design some o6 theft own "BASIC" ptogumz Students such as budget on mortgage payment calculations. GS 99 136 WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT This subject wia. deal pAimanity with the totes otc women in management, and the patticutat shift's needed by women -to e6iectivety iut6itt manageniat 6unctionz under constraints which are 6nom within themselves, as wett as those imposed by the otganizatipnz. DATE & TIME: START DATE: COMPLETED: INSTRUCTOR: $45.00 FEE: GS Mondays 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. January 9, 1984 April 16, 1984 Betty Chalmers 265, Shuniah Building ROOM: 99 143 WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT This subject is intended to examine situational stnezzez in out tivez - 6amiey, job, social tetationships, congict, change, developmental ctisez, etc.; as weLE as potential sources 06 stress they biting to every situation because ob theiA personality, theit own betie6 system, their hits rhythms, and theit style (16 problem A ti6estyZe and attitude approach to changing their stress solving: response will be developed by each individual. DATE & TIME START DATE: COMPLETED: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: $30.00 Wednesdays 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. January 11, 1984 March 14, 1984 Walter Martin 265, Shuniah Building ROOM: will have hands-on experience with computers. DATE & TIME: START DATE: COMPLETED: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: $45.00 Tuesdays 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. January 17, 1984 March 20, 1984 Marlene Walther 362, Shuniah Building ROOM: FOR INFORMATION, CONTACT ALIEN'S PROGRAMS (307) 475 -6232. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 ************************************* LABEL?? IS THERE AN ASTERISK ON YOUR PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ************************************* Collectively produced RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 B BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO P7B 1S1 byNoreen Lavoie, Teresa Legowski Michalchuk, Donna Anna McColl, Joyce Rosalyn Phoenix, Sara Williamson, Phillips Taylor Perrett, Margaret Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 316 Bay Street Thunder Bay, Ontario P7B 1S1 (Six Issues) $5.00 Business or $10.00 Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 8 No 3 Description An account of the resource Vol. 8, No. 3 (1984) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Armed intervention by Guatemala, Honduras, and US against rebels in El Salvador Violence against women Reopening of Toronto women’s bookstore after fire Women & technology workshop Confederation College free courses for women entering the trades Dr. Henry Morgentaler Ontario Native Women’s Association Women and Pensions Committee Thunder Bay United Nations World Conference on Women, Nairobi Political cartoon Feminist book store opening Thunder Bay Sudbury Homemakers Conference Nipissing Transition House Daycare Conference Dryden women’s conference Women’s interagency meeting Poetry Women’s relationships & power Rape Women & pensions Womenspace events Women & Therapy Conference, Toronto Nuclear war Confederation College programs for women Authors/Contributors: Joan Baril Dale Mansfield Nancy Bishop Diane Parise Jeannie Mascotto Rosalyn Taylor Perrett Joyce Michalchuk Lal Sarson Joyce Thierry Susan Collins Hawkins Diane Stein Judy McMartin Teresa Legowski A. Rapper Geraldine Van Cram Margaret Phillips Noreen Lavoie Anna McColl Donna Phoenix Sara Williamson Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1984 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2778/1983_Vol_8_No_2.pdf 6dea6f9141e512135b9a80662aff61f9 PDF Text Text PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor .90 �Editorial In June the Minister of Community and Social Services announced that his Ministry will provide capital costs for the con struction of 'Family Resource Centres' in twelve northern Ontario communities of less than 12,000 population. The Centre is to serve abused women, women under physical, social and emotional stress, single mothers and elderly women. The operation of the Centre is to be a partnership between the municipality and the province. Lest any of us be lulled into thinking that the government is finally taking action to benefit women, a careful analysis of the proposal is reciuire.d. In fact, for a number of NWO communities, the devoted work of Transition Home advocates will be put back months if not subverted entirely. This arbitrary government action came without any consultation with the affected municipalities or with concerned women's groups. Many municipal officials, understandably, are angered by the lack o consultation. Unfortunately, their anger has sometimes been directed towards the women's groups advocating Transition Home rather than toward the anonymous government official who devised this questionable program. While it has been difficult for concerned groups and municipal officials to obtain precise clarification of the proposal (And goals, we can assume from the available information that the implicit objective is to aid the construction industry. how many jobs for women do you suppose will thus be created?) clear That the construction industry--not battered women-- will be the beneficiaries of the government's initiative is from the qualification that the Municipality/Indian Band must agree to construct a new building. Renovations of an existin building will not be allowed--although in many communities that would be the desired approach. The problems attendant from the high visibility of this new construction (e.g. security, community acceptance) have been disregarded by the Ministry. For Municipalities/Indian Bands who are persuaded to accept this government 'gift' the construction of this visible fac ility will only be the first of many problems. A major concern is the on-going operational procedures. The Ministry antici pates inter-municipality/government agreements. But witness the extensive problems the Faye Peterson Transition Home has experienced in implementing such agreements. Without the resolution of this issue by the Faye Peterson Transition Home it would be fool-hardy for other communities to assume they could achieve appropriate responses. In considering the well-being of the women and children who will utilize these Centres, and the well-being of the staff working there, two issues immerge. Granted northern Ontario communities require a variety of social/health services. However, Transition Homes for battered women have evolved across the country because of the proven need for particular suppor services for battered women. Combining services for battering problems, with support for women whose concern/crisis is med needs ical, psychological or gerentological has the potential for serious operational problems. In presuming to meet the of all, it is likely no one's needs will be met. volunteer staffing. Inthe The 'second issue is how the Centres will be staffed. The government appears to be emphasizing guise of proevent of paid staff, (except for the supervisor) the payment will be minimum wages ($3.50 per hour). In the is deliberately abetting the exploitation of women. viding support services fol. women in crisis, the government For the municipalities/Indian Bands who accept the 'carrot' the Ontario government is offering, we anticipate a bureaucratic absurdity which will result in insufficient, inappropriate services for women. On the other hand, the communities who refuse to participate, but who wish to develop Transition Homes and other community-defined services, undoubtedly will have great difficulty obtaining provincial funding support. Whichever the choice, women will lose. When is this womenbattering going to stop: wy,0000, Your Voice Sidegialaaahatatladraaktalgieilleaddelb°41 "- To the Editor: REFLECTIONS ON THE ABORTION DEBATE At a time when the Nova Scotia Legislature is preparing to cut welfare payments to teenage mothers and their children from $390 a month to $85 a month, across the country, the Alberta courts are attacking, on be behalf of the rights of the foetus, the legislation allowing women to receive therapeutic abortions. In 1980, following an in-depth study, the Senate presented a report entitled "Child at Risk" which clearly and undeniably illustrates how important human life really is and how important it is for both mother and child to recieve proper prenatal and post-natal care. What do our "male" judges and "male" politicians throughout the country consider to be the moral choice in this debate? Cutting welfare payments to young women who choose the life of the unborn child and who receive no support whatsoever from the father of the child or sending these young women who cannot face the possibility of raising a child alone back to the quacks and charlatans who perform illegal abortions? I am ashamed and thoroughly disgusted by the manner in which our young women are treated in this country. Not only are they asked to assume all of the responsibilities for their actions because they belong to the female sex, the system NORTHERN WOMAN page 2 at the same time blithely ignores and absolves from any responsibility the individuals who father these children in the first place, individuals who, like the judges and The young politicians, are males. women are sentenced to 20 years of misery, hardship and privation. They are condemned to suffer primarily because they are women. My vision of a just society is one in which all individuals are treated equitably. What I consider immoral is the fact that for the sake of great principles, which may or may not be supported by our religious leaders, we often forget the most important thing a child needs to survive in this world, namely love. When a child of 14 or 15 herself bears a child and when the young mother is rejected by her parents for violating socalled "moral" principles and left to survive on only $85 a month, what chance does she have to love her child and bring it up to be a responsible adult? When will our "great thinkers" politicians and fathers finally love their wives and daughters enough to allow them the right to choose to be mothers and not merely reproductive "machines"? When are women going to be given the right to be human beings and not merely objects? Yours truly, Celine Hervieux-Payette Lawyer, M.P. for Montreal-Mercier NEWS RELEASE--MACDONALD SCEPTICAL ABOUT EXTENSION OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION--JUNE 30 Dear NWJ: Progressive Conservative Status of Women critic, Flora MacDonald, expressed scepticism today about the announced earlier this week that the federal government was intending to expand the Affirmative Action Program for the federal Public Service. "While everyone agrees that the goal of equality must be realized, it is understandable that this latest public relations effort is being greeted with cynicism by women's organizations, the Public Service Alliance of Canada, and all those who have reason to mistrust a government which has such a deplorable track record in this field," said MacDonald. Monday's announcement merely extends to other departments what was originally begun in 1975, and we are all very well aware just how unsuccessful that initiative was", she said. The 1975 policy on equal opportunities for women in the public service raised expectations, and led to the belief that the advancement continued on pg 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Update remarks made by the anti-Choicers picketing the Winnipeg clinic. In such an atmosphere, it is not surWhat is the real story behind prising that Morgentaler was attacked the burning of the Harbord Street personally by a man with a set of Toronto Women's Bookstore on July .The bookstore garden clippers. 29? As ususal with women's news, there carried comprehensive insurance on are two stories:' the real story, and equipment and stock, but the owners the media version. need about $20,000 to re-locate and re-statt. They expect to re-open in The facts are these. The arsonists (or arsonist) entered the bookabout three months. Bravo to Sally Ride, finally the store through a rear door. They crosfirst American spacewoman. In the sed the bookstore to the front door which opens out into a small foyer early 70's, N.A.S.A. had been traininside the main entrance of the builing a small group of women as possible ding. From there, they went upstairs astronaut candidates, but, it is now to Morgentaler's clinic. They probab- openly admitted, male hostility to ly intended to break into the clinic female participation in space succeedbut were deterred by the fact that ed in closing the program down. Forthe clinic was protected by an alarm. tunately, the policy was reversed Game" booth at this year's Canadian There was a small notice posted at Her achieveand thus, Ride's ride. . Lakehead Exhibition. The "game" was the entrance to that effect. They ment was slightly dimmed by a typical to throw darts at a woman's breasts then covered the clinic entrance with type of female trouble--her salary. which were really balloons positioned typical anti-Choice slogans--"murderIt was the lowest of the five astrounder a t-shirt. In a letter to C.L.E. er", "butcher" and so on--as well as nauts aboard the shuttle, at $42,653 administrator Bruce Lehtinen, the the curious notation saying that annually. The salaries of her male "dehumanization" and "gross insensipeople who use alarms are evil. They colleagues ranged from $48,950 to tivity" toward women. Local women re-traced their steps back into the $58,743. . told how shocked and repelled they bookstore, and, in the section on This summer, I dropped into the pregnancy and childbirth, set the were when they saw the "T-Shirt Winnipeg Women's Health Clinic, which Game". The booth was removed the next fire which gutted the store completeis downtown behind the Bay at 304-414 ly. day. Graham Avenue. I found a busy, spacious Sweden is having second thoughts upstairs set of rooms which last year served over 4,000 clients. Treatment about porno. After ten years of lobis covered by Manitoba Health Insur- bying, Swedish feminists have pressured the government to regulate the The Clinic gives general ance. medical care and aims at a holistic porn business. Porn shops are now approach and preventative medicine, regulated and nightclub porn is banned. The government is even considering but because it serves women only, there naturally comes about speciali- censorship for videocassettes which feature "prolonged or offensive viozation. For instance, -they fit the lence". Sweden was never so de-regucervical cap. Their full-time doctor, Judith Cracknell, visited thelated as Canadian pro-porners would English Dallin Clinic which speciali-have us believe, nor was there approNow for the media side of the zes in pre-menstrual syndrome studiesval from all sectors of society. story. Both the firefighters and the Women hated it and blamed it for rapes police stated they believed the fire and increasing was set by anti-Choice supporters in men. In Canada, a proposed amendthe hopes that it would spread to the ment to the Criminal Code would declinic on the floor above. This was fine as obscene material where the also the publicized opinion of dominant characteristic was any one C.A.R.A.L. was well as the bookstore of the following subjects: sex, vioowners, Patti Kirk and Marie Prins. lence, crime, horror or cruelty Yet, a syndicated newspaper columnthrough degrading representations of ist stated in the Chronicle-Journal a male or female person. Since the (Thunder Bay) that holding such an present imperfect law is inadequateopinion is an example of "feminist ly enforced, it seems that the most But after learning fanaticism". . Pre-menstrual syndrome (P.M.S.) important thing at present is imthe facts of the arson, many Toronto is becoming a recognized condition. proved enforcement. women believe that the anti-Choicers Not everyone who feels rotten in.the deliberately set out to destroy the. week before menstruation has P.M.S., women's bookstore when they found out but for many women, the severe psych. . they couldn't touch the clinic. . ological or physical changes endured Whatever the motive, the right-toby P.M.S. victims cause untold stress life supporters ignored the lives of in their lives. The Winnipeg clinic the people living in apartments in is helping women to find out if they the building. Luckily, there was no have P.M.S. and to set up treatment serious injury beyond hospitalization Also in Winnipeg, I visited the due to smoke damage. offices of the new women's magazine, The anti-Choice fanatics who use Herizons, and which, with only four language like "mass murder" and "holissues out, has already become a maocaust" are responsible for a climate The Squeal Reele screams to a jor magazine featuring national and of violence, says Michele Landsberg halt, stopped by the U. S. Supreme international news and articles. of the Toronto Star (Aug. 1/83.). As Court. The Reagan administration's Subscriptions are $10 per year to: an example, she mentions anti-Choice legislation would have required the Herizons, P. O. Box 551, Winnipeg, spokesman, Dr. Robert Mendelson's, parents of girls under 18 years of Manitoba R3C 9Z9. comment to the Winnipeg press, sugage to be notified if they obtained Guess who came to the Feminist gesting that the way to stop abortion contraceptives from tax-supported Reunion Dinner? June 11. Besides the was to buy a "Saturday Night Special" ninety guests who celebrated their clinics such as those operated by walk into a hospital and shoot the Planned Parenthood. Planned Parentcommitment to women's issues, two first two abortion doctors you meet hood, the largest provider of contramen, including one who referred to .Also widely publicized was the ceptives to teens, claimed that conhimself as an off-duty policeman, comment Manitoba judge Mike Baryluk fidentiality was crucial, and that handed out anti-women hate material made in a private courtroom converthey always have encouraged minors to at the door. One woman in attendance sation to the Crown attorney, which consult their parents, but they would protested to the local police force, was overheard by a Winnipeg reporter: never snitch on teens even had the and the complaint was handled satis"Wouldn't you agree that any woman . new law came in. factorily. The Northern Woman who wants an abortion should be given Journal, Northwestern Ontario Women's a razor blade?" said the judge. Centre and Faye Peterson Transition NORTHERN !V OMAN page 3 Also disturbing are the anti-semitic House also protested the "T-Shirt by JOAN BARIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . ' . . . . . . . PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Women and Words by MARGARET PHILLIPS One woman had an idea. A fantastic fantasy. So this woman, Betsy Warland, shared her dream, and one evening six women sat down to discuss the idea. Eighteen months later seven hundred women gathered at UBC for the first WOMEN AND WORDS/LES FEMMES ET LES MOTS Conference. A dream come true. Not only for Betsy Warland, but for hundreds of women poets, novelists, playwrites, journalists, publishers, editors, booksellers, reviewers. Women of all ages. From the east, the west, the north. From cities, small towns, reserves, rural areas. Women of different racial, cultural, economic and political backgrounds. Joined by a common love..Women and Words. A Personal Account Sometime last fall the first notice of Women and Words came to NWJ. I looked with longing at the information. But acknowledging my economic reality I reluctantly put it aside. Then, in the winter, Conference details arrived...outlining dozens of exciting workshops.. listing, as Conference participants, so many of my favorite writers. My dream of attending grew more and more vivid. FoCusing on the section 'some travel subsidies available', I sent off an urgent plea. I was rewarded. Yes, I was one of those 700 women. Happily, former NWJ members Estella Howard, and Helen Halet and Sharon Lund (now living in Vancouver) also participated. My most sincere gratitude goes to the Women and Words committee who recommended, and to Secretary of State Women's Programme who provided, my travel costs. Thanks also, Helen and Sharon for the housing, the hospitality, the nurturing. I really want to share my joy, my excitement about this remarkable Conference with NWJ collective members and readers, yet find myself groping as to what to relate. I believe it was important for the NWJ to be part of this Conference and I was glad to be your representative. Contacts made and discussions held with women from other feminist publications were certainly useful. Hopefully, some of my learning from various workshops will aid me to more effectively contribute journalistically to our paper. (More about workshops later.) But, to be perfectly honest, my chief desire to attend Women and Words was absolutely selfish. My creative writing..so happily birthed while at Women Writer's Centre.. has been so sporadic since my return to Thunder Bay. Yet the urgency to write causes me more and more frustration. I went to Women and Words for the stimulation just being with other women provides. What happended to me at Women and Words? A dozen new story ideas, for one thing. And from the "readings" ..most particularly Margaret Atwood and Audrey Thomas.. a renewed sense that whatever else I do with my life I have to finish "my novel". The other important thing that I learned.. rather, that was reinfor- ced..was that writing is a genuine, and a necessary, albeit unique, factor in the evolution of feminism in GOOD ART CAN AND SHOULD BE SUBVERSIVE AND IN OPPOSITION TO THE STATUS QUO Conference Content Orchestration of this mammoth Conference was extremely well handled. As well as extensive work by staff, over 10,000 volunteer hours styles, classes and our immense were spent in Conference preparation. creativity. Here is a few moments And many more will go into the folcollage of 44 diverse topics: low-up. All those responsible for - we need a new approach to critiConference organization are to be cism with critics open to new forms commended. without the distortion produced by My problem, also expressed by mainstream criticism. everyone I spoke to, was deciding - the aim of the artist is to dream which workshops to attend. It should alternatives; good art can and should have been a month long Conference. be subversive and in opposition to I wanted to attend 40 of the 44 the status quo political establishworkshop/panel choices, but had to ment. content myself with the 7 possible. - class does affect our writing. Fortunately, we were able to learn Where we have come from is integral the results of many workshops from to our expression of self; and the a very creative and succinct summary voice of working class women, women given at the concluding plenary sesof colour and native women is lacksion. This summary, prepared by ing even in our own literature -Women and Words committee member the literature of women. We need to Barbara Herringer is reprinted here appreciate our differences and not with permission. Shifting from being a long-time be divisive because of them. community activist to a solitary - creative mothers shared their struggles and successes and gained writer creates many contradictions strength from one another. and dilemmas for me, especially when I live in Thunder Bay. The sense of-mimoimommtugpmmsluxi-gmmr-fri-mg aflopplo the erotic workshop encouraged women hope apparent at Women and Words to create more space for our bodies was enormously reassuring. Confidence in our work. was apparent that women writers, reviewers, publishers, etc. can and - feminist publications highlighted the need to be financially viable, must and will create new structures, while a history of feminist presses new language, new values..encourafocused on the need for survival and ging a society that will allow women the necessity to support our feminto grow, not merely survive. The ist bookstores. statement from one workshop that - a feminist booksellers association "good art can and should be subverwas formed following the workshop on sive and in opposition to the status promotion and distribution of wpmen's quo political establishment" fills books to act as a lobby group as well me with peace. (Now all I have to do as a network for feminist publishers is write the damn book .') Another bonus...new authors to and booksellers. - there was a lively exchange of discover. Really, I could contentedideas and how-to's for survival in ly spend the rest of my life just the media as a woman reporter/jourreading. I haven't even half worked nalist while struggling against male through my list of unknown authors values in the media. I brought back from Writers Centre. From the Conference, a further list of nearly fifty poets/short story OUR LITERATURE MUST BE VISIONARY, writers/novelists that are new to A LITERATURE OF CHANGE THAT EXAMINES me. I question whether I'll ever read ALL ASPECTS OF OUR LIVES even an internationally acclaimed male author again. Is it unreasonable - sources, strategies and the need to become absolutely nationalistic, for patience and persistence as well (even more) womanistic in my reading? as ongoing personal contact, was With so many marvellous Canadian wostressed in the funding workshop. men writers, will there be time to - that same persistence is necessary read anyone else? in our professional associations as (Information about a number of well as in our schools and colleges the writers who participated in Women to ensure that we are on reading and Words will be included in this lists and on courses. and future issues so that NWJ readers - not only that -- we need to become may also explore new reading sources. policy makers, work collectively "We are more than 700 women this and push for new criteria in the arts. weekend---all of us involved with our literature must be visionary, words. We have discussed, argued, a literature of change that examines shared, learned, explored and straall aspects of our lives. tegized. We immersed ourselves in in that literature we must use language through theoretical,practical and speculative workshops. We continued on pg 5 shared cultures, backgrounds, life- WOMAN page 4 PDF NORTIERN compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �WOMEN 6 WORDS cont'd our language differently by restructuring vocabulary, syntax and symbolism in our different tongues. - again, our diversity was celebrated in an exploration of the need for lesbian writers to re-invent language and the world. - and, a greater need overall in our Canadian literature, to explore new directions such as greater freedom in both form and content. - with all this new language, we need alternative structures. The old ways are obsolete. But, there is a tremendous amount of energy needed to implement new structures to meet our needs---such as mentors, networks, and reading/writing support groups. - the relationship between writer and translator brought many of the feelings of translators out of isolation. There is a great need to bridge our language barriers and much of that has happened this weekend. - more practical issues were dealt with on the panel on the relationship between publishers and writers-- the need for good contracts and editors among other things. - the extent of censorship and selfn censorship was explored by a writer, critic and archivist -- our physical selves as well as our creative selves are censored continuously in this _ culture. This is a brief overview of an intense weekend." On-going Activities One of the most exciting features of Women and Words was the personal testimony of support and gratitude expressed by so many women. "I've waited all my life for this weekend", and "This is the greatest thing that's ever happened to me" are samples of the comments. Even the criticisms were constructive, with the theme of "next time let's also " There was unanimous agreement that there must be a next time. So plans are being made for the second Women and Words Conference, to be held in 1985, possibly in Mont-. real or in Winnipeg. Before comprehensive plans for the next Conference begin, an enormous amount of follow-up to this Conference will occur. Of great interest is the Anthology of fiction, poetry, theatre and critical articles (in English and in French) which will be published. The documentation of all workshops would be a tremendous resource to all of us, and hopefully funds to transcribe these recordings will be procured. Minutes of the business meeting and action steps recommended are being worked on now. West Coast Women and Words Society The Conference was sponsored by the West Coast Women and Words Society, which for legal and practical reasons is a British Columbia organization, but for networking and support functions is available to all Canadian women. On-going contact between Women and Words and The Northern Woman will be maintained. If any NWJ readers are interested in more information about the West Coast Women and Words Society, please let me know. Should Winnipeg be the site of \ 11 the next Conference we know many NWO women will participate. Several of us are discussing the possibility of establishing a NWO group/caucus and offering some specific help to the Winnipeg women re Conference preparation. Wherever the next Women and Words is held, as many of us as possible should attend. Perhaps we could collectively fund-raise to subsidize .NWO delegates. Again, if you have any ideas please contact me. ASIDES FROM MY B.C. VISIT It was nice to run into Bonnie Kreps and reminisce about the 1973 Northern Women's Conference. Bonnie, who was a member of several Women and Words panels, has just selfpublished 'Women's Lip', a collection of her feminist writings. Visited the collectively-run Vancouver Women's Bookstore and the woman-owned Ariel Book Store, and was pleased that each of them agreed to stock the Northern Woman. Met several women from HERizons (Manitoba) which is now publishing in magazine format. Learned that La Vie en Rose has a distribution of 20,00011 Very impressed with the work and philosophy of Vancouver Women's Research Centre. The Centre, a community based feminist organization focuses on action research. They work with women and women's groups that don't normally have access to research facilities. The emphasis of the Research Centre's work is on developing a descriptive account of how, rather than why, a problem or issue is experienced by women as the grounding for analysis and strategy development. They believe that process 'contributes to the transformation of problems as personal or individual to recognizing them as political, economic or social. Interesting Research Centre publications which I brought back include: Women's Perspectives in Research, How to Study Your Own Community, Women and Psychiatry, An Analysis of Ideological Structure and How Women Are Excluded. These papers may be borrowed from Northern Women's mate in B.C. is really quite terrifying--with rights of workers, and protections for disadvantaged groups eliminated overnight. First to go was the Human Rights Commission..to be replaced by a Council who reportedly will deal with human rights but not the "trivial issues such as sexual harassment". Consumer protection legislation was to be abolished, as were rent controls. Provincial workers including teachers, college and university personnel may be fired without cause. For starters 600 human service workers have been fired. The government's action seems to stem from not so much an ultra-right ideology, as from a paranoic power grab. The community activists I talked to were in a state of shock and despair. Let's hope that will be translated into anger and action. If the B.C. madness isn't curbed it bodes ill for all Canadians. YOUR VOICE cont'd of women would be rapid. But the intervening eight years have seen those expectations dashed. Government statistics bear this out. After eight years of so-called equal opportunity, only 0.2% of the women in the public service are in management positions; only 5.7% are in the scientific and processional categories. Yet, at the same time, the number of women as support staff and in the junior levels, has increased by 13%. Despite an equal program being in place, women have been unable to achieve significant breakthroughs in the federal bureaucracy. "What assurance do we have that a program that has not achieved its goals in the five government departments where it has been attempted should suddenly become successful simply because it is extended to other departments", said MacDonald. The expansion of the Affirmative Action Program offers no new initiatives that can, or will, assist women in the public service. No mandatory goals have been established and, once again, women are expected to be satisfied with vaguely-worded recommended targets. "We only have the promise of the Treasury Board President that Deputy Ministers will be called to account for lack of progress in their departments", said MacDonald. Other government initiatives are enforced by a Cabinet Directive or an Orderin-Council. In this case, the govern.ment did not see fit to take such action. "I might perhaps put a little more faith in the success of the expansion of the program, if it was backed up by Ministerial enforcement ",. MacDonald stated. "No Affirmative Action Program, however promising on paper, will be successful without the will of government to make it work", said MacDonald. Centre. The Research Centre is federally funded so hopefully will survive, which is more than can be said for most community-based services in British Columbia. The political cli- NORTHERN WOMAN page 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Women and Orgasm by Betsy Getaz and Carol Ehrlich An Interview with Terry Dalsemer and Judy Waldman Tetty DaUemet and Judy Wadman ate two ticenzed ctinicat. zociat wotketz who have tived and ptacticed in the Battimote atea ion a number o6 yeaA4. Tetty and Judy developed and oiieted gtouo ion pre-otgaismic women .through the Women'4 Growth Centte, ' f '.; : 'S ' a Batimote 6eminat therapy centte, and they continue -to give the gtouo in ptivate ptactice. The gtouo ate' baked on a model bake developed by Lonnie Gat6ietd Batbach, who wrote a book baked upon the expetience4 o6 the women in het gtouo, "Fan Youtset6: The FutiiUment oi Female Sexuatity." Q: What do you mean by pre-orgasmic? Terry: Pre-orgasmic reflects the optimistic attitude that women who do not experience orgasm are not psychologically disturbed, but rather lack the necessary information or experience for orgasm to take place. All women are, at some time in their lives, preorgasmic. The term actually came out of one of the original groups which was developed by Lonnie Barbach in San Francisco. It came from a group member who felt the term was more positive and quite different from other descriptions such as "frigid" or "an -. orgasmic ", which imply some sort of sexual dysfunttion. These groups provide an opportunity for women to explore and learn more about their bodies so they can become, orgasmic. Judy:-One of the most important messages in the group is that the orof a woman's orgasm, is, of course, gasm is yours. Only you can give of what happens yourself an orgasm - -usually nobody the can description give to a man. When a man has an orgasm, it'E it to you. If you have learned ways to much more obvious, because most likely relax, to turn yourself on, to be open he will ejaculate. That's a much more the things that turn you on, ho comes to to finding the workshops? obvious physiological experience. For then you can have an orgasm, or you can women, it's so different, and the varto with tell asomeone Judy: Wefind haveways women broad else what to iations are so great, that very often do to enable you to achieve that. e of backgrounds and experiences. they aren't aware of what's happening may be with partners or without. r age range has been between 20 60. We work with both heterosexualthem. They're looking for something other than what they're already expern and lesbians. Women want to exiencing. Again, the enphasis in our their options for sexual satisgroup is on looking for what is happenit ion regardless of their background instead of creating what isn't - - paychoices. I think through sharing ing attention to what your body is r experiences, the women in these doing, not looking for what it isn't ps have learned a lot about each r - - abbut their similarities,doing. r differences - - in terms of how Q: How do you deal with the fact that y relate to their own bodies and different people get turned on by difheir sexual partners. ferent things? hat impels most of them to come to Judy: In fact, this is what we try group in the first place? to emphasize in our groups: we are all Terry: It's a combination of unique. We need to explore, discover, and accept that which is uniquely ours. ngs, ranging from the most specific - - our bodies, our preferences, our ng, which is sexual dissatisfaction fantasies, even our orgasms. some sort, to difficulties in reionships. We do a screening inter- Terry: For example, towards the end of the group, we ask everyone to w before we run the groups in order bring in erotica, without defining what determine whether the focus of the that blem is a sexual one, or whether it is. (We do talk a bit later about what they feel is the difference betlly belongs somewhere else. We ask ther the woman is in a relationship, ween erotica and pornography.) if so, how are things going. Often That usually ranges from books to real problem is one between the pictures to feathers, to articles of ple, and not really a sexual issue clothing to whatever... Wonderful, all. Then we recommend that thedifferent things! And then, the following week, we ask the group to bring an and her partner seek counseling. in pornography, and we actually show stag films so that they can share THERN WOMAN page 6 their reactions with each other. It's really interesting to see the range of / what people define as erotic or port 9; ) nographic, and the range of what gives we look for are two different them pleasure or doesn't. exual One is the PDFproblems. compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked has had an orgasm at some Q: What are some of the techniques , hh evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �You Can't Hold Your Children by JOSIE WALLENIUS "In the event of a nucteat wan, there wLU be no chances; there wilt be no sutvivou--all wilt be obtitetated. Nucteat devastation is not science iiction--it is a matters oi iact. The wottd now stands on the btink oS the 6Znat abyss. Let us a.2 2. tesotve to take att possible ptacticat steps to ensure that we do not, through out own Sotty, go over the edge." Land Mountbatten Dear Mother: Sorry to be so long in writing, but as usual, it's been hectic. Anyhow, there's lots of news, and thanks for the dresses you made for Lyn and they can see things:-like a Trident submarine, in the Straits of Juan de Fuca. One submarine has enough warheads on it to destroy 408 Soviet cities. The U. S. navy has 17 submarines, and plans to have 30. There were 130,000 casualties in Hiroshima. If you want to try and understand Trident, try the following: In one second, try and comprehend Hiroshima. If you can do this, it would take 17 hours to comprehend Trident (if you can feel Hiroshima in one second). This is the navy. There is fierce competition between the navy, army and air force to see which can have "the best". Maggie. Maggie has been up to her usual tricks. If there's an accident going, she'll find it. She fell off the steps a couple of weeks ago, and I took her straight to Emergency, blood everywhere and her screaming like it was the end of the world. Anyhow, she only needed three stitches, so it wasn't too bad. Do you remember Mrs. Rhodes? She died a few weeks ago. What a long illness, poor soul. She was on morphine for the last few weeks, so Betty told me. I felt really badly, as she had no relatives left and the public trustee did the burial, which is always a shoddy affair. INNIMMI111111111111111 The U. S. Federal authorities have stockpiled 71,000 pounds of opium (morphine is a derivitive of opium) for critical civilian use, and have recently requested 59,000 additional pounds. The Pentagon has asked the National Funeral Directors' Association of the United States to prepare to handle mass burials; the president of the Association has asked for a training course in embalming radioactive corpses. One thing is certain--unburied, buried, incinerated or vapourized, the dead will continue to be radioactive--forever. "Aitet a couple of minutes,' I saw something coming up the /civet that looked tike a patade oS toast chickens. Some oi them were asking ion water. They wete att naked and they wete all skinned. The skins of theirs hands had been totn away at the wAists. It waz hanging Stom theit Singettips.just behind the naits, twined inside out tike a glove. In the dim tight, T saw many other chit&Len tying about the yard." 6ADM the book, We oS Nagasaki We had to wait for ages, though, for a doctor. There was a traffic accident, it seems, and a couple of people were badly burned. The B. C. Peace Movement is really strong. Perhaps it's because Mo., She had such a lousy life. Her husband was really up the twist. He Licked their daughter out because she was going out with an ex-Vietnam draft dodger. He called him a hippie pacifist and a disgrace to the name of humanity. In 1914, big billboards were erected in the towns and villages of by Joyce. Mix*. MembeAs of the Thunder Bay Coatition Sot Peace and Nucteat Disatmament protest the Cruise Missite testing in Canada, as pat oS a tatge Canadawide demonsttation July 16. England with the words, "Your King and Country Need You." Apple-cheeked lads from the farms and whitefaced boys from the slums, 16 pretending to be 18, and to be valiant and glorious--and dead. Slaughtered in thousands upon thousands. Headless, legless, buried in pieces in France. French boys, Canadian boys, German boys, English boys. Boys, not men. History showed W.W.I. to be a war about Africa, control of Africa, gold, minerals, and slave labour of Africa. For the few, not for the families of the dead innocents, the cannon fodder. Talking of pacifists, one of the women I work with belongs to the Thunder Bay Coalition for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament. She's O.K., I suppose, but a bit of a screwball. After all, does she really think she can change governments? (That mysterious, independent variable of political calculation, "public opinion"--universities, actual and ideal.) Anyhow, whatever it's all about, you can't trust the Russians, everybody knows that. "Who ate the demons who Si us with Seat? The 270 mittion people oS the U.S.S.R. ate not the warlike batbatian hordes pictuted in media caticatutes. They ate people and people who, quite untike people in the United States, have seen Sitsthand, in theit own country, the hOVIDA4 oS war, with the Nazi invasion oS Wottd Wat IT. Just think oS these iigutes which come 00M a book by Sidney Lens, entitled, The Fotging oi Ametican Empine. Considet these sta.tistics, and what happened to the Soviet Union duting the Nazi invasion: 20 mittion people dead, 15 major cities desttoyed, 1,700 towns desttoy-, ed, 70,000 vittages desttoyed, six mittion buildings demotished, 10,000 power plants desttoyed. It was the devastation oS a people and oS a country that we cannot even imagine occutting in the United States. Who ate the demons? Let us ask questions. Who built and used the ,6itst atomic weapon? Who buitt the 6inst hydtogen bomb? The answer: we did. Ask who, today, Sea's suttounded by 365 hostile mititaty base's atong its botdeAs? The answer must be the Soviet Union. Ask which country deploys most oi ti atmed Sotces along its own botdets, and the answer is the Soviet Union. Then ask which country deptoyes itz atoms and ,(It's sotdims in 2,000 bases around the wottd. The answer is we (ed. note: the U. S.) do. continued on pg. 11 With Nuclear Arms NORTHERN WOMAN page 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �An Eye Opener by Heather Woodbeck "While you are calming her down with a tranquilizer treat what may be her real problem with Premarin" "When she can't manage you can" (Premarin) "If she could cope she wouldn't have called" (Novane) These are some of the messages being given to medical doctors about women by pharmaceutical companies. This eye-opening survey of some drug advertisements that were found in, medical journals was one of the presentations at the recent Women and Pharmaceuticals Conference sponsored by Inter - Pares and held in Ottawa at the Conference suggested that marketing techniques in Canada are much more subversive. Doctors are given free samples of every day items like notepads, pens and desk blotters, each prominently inscribed with the pharmaceutical company's name. This method hopes by placing articles within the doctor's view he/she will be more likely to prescribe that particular drug company's brand. Pharmaceutical companies also sponsor conferences with in June. A major focus of the Conference was on the marketing strategies of pharmaceutical companies. The portrayal of women helpless invalids or alternatively bitter shrews was part of the method used to sell hormones and tranquilizers for women. The film "A Healthy Business" focused on techniques used by CeibaGeigy in the Third World. Deluging doctors with visits from pharmaceutical representatives (10-20 visits per week), giving interns free drugs which they in turn could sell, and treating to lavish parties were a few of the more appalling practices used by pharmaceutical companies to entice doctors to prescribe their the unspoken assumption that the doctors attending will support the company's drugs or at least refrain from openly critizing them. Even the Compendeum of Pharmaceuticals and Specialities (CPS), the medical profession's "prescribing bible" came under attack. An article from the Globe and Mail noted that pharmaceutical companies must pay to have their products included in this book. Companies which refuse to do this will find their, product descriptions deleted from the book or else shortened to such an extent that there is little more than the name and the strengths of the drug included. Another presentation at the Conference, made by. Harriet Simard, graphically presented the case history of a drug tragedy. While pregnant with Harriet, her mother was given diethystlbestrol (DES). Two years ago Harriet developed adenocarcenoma of the vagina, a cancer directly related to DES. The DES story is a classic example of how a dangerous drug can become available to an unsuspecting public. DES was marketed to control miscarriage, based largely on a poorly controlled study done in 1943 by Smith and Smith, two highly respected American researchers. The controversy about the safety of DES raged for 30 years. It was finally banned as a drug for humans in 1971. This was after a large numr brand. Comments from Canadian doctors ORGASM continued itom page 6 to feel they are not alone in their concerns. Although we stress the importance and uniqueness of each woman's experience, the common bond and support we can offer each other cannot be overemphasized. Then we assign homework. The group meets for 10 sessions and in between sessions we ask women to spend one hour a day with themselves. This is an important focus, the iaea of taking time for yourself. You'd be surprised how many women just don't take this time to give themselves pleasure, to relax by themselves. The homework includes specific exercises, but primarily the focus is on each woman spending time with herself. Terry: What we do is basically provide an opportunity for women to get to know and become friends with their bodies. We use a lot Gf different techniques to do that, but we start out with simply having the women go ome and look at themselves, nude, in a mirror. Just uncritically'at fltst - then, very critically. (All of the omework assignments are done at home in private, not in the group.) Next we ask each woman to exaggerate all the things she doesn't like about her body. We'll ask women to smear lipstick on the stretch marks they hate, or to shake the thighs that they think are 'too big. The idea is to make light of the part of the body that you can't stand. Then in the homework we have each woman begin to look specifically at her genitals - - what that's like - and to touch them, and then to draw them, again at home. And then we talk in the group about what that experience THEF?11 ,!7 OMAN page 8 continued on pg 10 was like. We even have everyone model their genitals in clay. That's always fun, because everyone always thinks that their paricular genital area is very unusual - - then they find out that maybe everybody else thinks that theirs is too! Judy: I've seen some women go from not knowing at all what a woman's genital area looks like (a lot of women have never looked at theirs, or to some discovery to anybody else's) what it looks like, sometimes with horror and shock, which is natural. And then eventually finding out that in fact there are interesting folds and curves and parts that are bigger and smaller than others, and finally a lot of beauty. That's a very positive experience women in the workshop have had: beginning to have some new information and experience with their bodies and then beginning to really enjoy a part of their body which for many has been taboo. Terry: In the process of sharing this experience, we are giving women information about their bodies. We talk about the physiology of sex, and give very specific information about the various stages that the body goes through in arousal and in reaching climax and resolution, what kinds of things tend to happen, and how in each woman that experience is very different There are general things that may or may not happen, but they will have some idea of what to look for. And we stress that they don't have to fit into a particular mold. Q: What is guided imagery, and how does it work in the group? Terry: One of the techniques that we use, particularilr-eren-we're begin-, ing to talk about fantasies, is a technique known as guided imagery and music, or GIM. After helping women relax, we set a scene for them - some sort 'of idyllic scene in the country or whatever. Then we turn on some music, which allows them to daydream and image their own sensual/ sexual experience. Then after they've listened to the music and had this experience, we have them draw it. We have pastels and paper, so they can draw something that symbolizes for them whatever their imagery experience was like. We then share in a group what each fantasy and experience was like. It gives people another chance to experience a different way of using their own richness, their own inner resources and imagination for fantasy and exploring another aspect of sensuality. Judy: We begin the GIM by doing a series of relaxation exercises before the fantasy; and it's something that we stress that women can do themselves, at home. Very often one to the reasons women don't achieve orgasm is because they're uptight and tense and there's a lot of pressure involved. "Oh, I should be coming - - it's taking too long! - -What will happen if I don't? What will so-and-so think? What will I think?" By the time one thinks about all that, it's very difficult to relax and feel anything else. So we really stress ways to relax and to take the focus off the pressure and to focus instead on the actual sexual, sensual feeling women have. One of our exercises involves touching our bodies, not Continued on pg 10 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Our CHOICE Threatened BEAR OUR YOU Wat. by Norma Scarborough CgILPREN The threat of Joe Borowski to the pro-choice movement culmintated in azHIGI4 COM5 If Porno Appears - IF PORNOGRAPHY APPEARS IN YOUR t Haj LOCAL VIDEOSHOP WATE4 Check the list of publications and tapes on shelves have a friendly male rent some likely titles. 1. .R.egina early in May. To recap, in 1980 the Supreme Court of Canada granted Borowski the right to challenge the abortion law in his attempt to have all abortions made illegal in Canada. As soon as the decision was made about which court would hear the case CARAL responded. Legal counsel was retained, a direct mail campaign for funds was organized and we prepared to make application for standing as intervenors in the trial. Three groups sought standing as intervenors. Civil Liberties and Campaign Life wanted to intervene with written briefs only; CARAL wanted to participate fully in the trial. In January 1983 all intervenors were denied standing by the Court. Our next step was to seek assurance from the Minister of Justice that his defence of the law would be adequate. As inadequate as we feel the current legistlation is, it is the best presently available and we wanted to know that even this limited access to abortion was not going to disappear. CARAL corresponded with the Minister of Justice through our lawyer and members of the executive spoke directly to the Minister of Justice in Ottawa. We were leSs than reassured about how the legislation would be defended. It was the government's contention that expert medical witnesses would not be allowed to testify for Borowski and that if they were allowed their testimony would be struck out before the trial ended. I was in the courtroom in Regina for the first day of the trial and before the day was over our worst fears were confirmed. The judge allowed .Schumiatcher, counsel for Borowski, to bring 9eXpert witnesses instead of the five normally allowed. Sojonky, the federal government lawyer, objected and was overruled. Sojonky's argument throughout the trial was that evidence about when life begins had no place in the testimony since the government already recognizes pre-natal life and already. protects pre-natal life by limiting access to abortion. After two weeks of a barrage of so called 'experts' giving evidence to prove that life begins at the moment of conception Schumiatcher rested his case and it was Mr. Sojonky's turn. His'evidence lasted for twenty minutes. Sojonky placed in evidence a copy of the Badgley report and two sets of stats from Statistics Canada. He attempted to have placed in evidence the information from the U.S. 1980 Senate hearings, which had heard many of the same so-called experts that Schumiatcher brought to the case. Mr. Schumiatcher objected to this evidence and the judge upheld the objection. When Mr. Sojonky asked if the paper could be left as information, the judge agreed but said that he did View films utilizing school 2. or library equipment where possible to save expenses. 3. Take the film to your local police or R.C.M.P. office and make a complaint, in writing if required. Mention the combination of explicit sex with violence, incest, child pornography, all of which are forbidden under the criminal code Section 159 COMPLAINTS ESTABLISH COMMUNITY STANDARDS. The police will view and 4. recommend to crown counsel for prosecution or non-prosecution. not have to read it. Mr. Sojonky sat down and 'our' case rested!! The final arguments were heard a few days later with the same perfunctory statements by Mr. Sojonky. Schumiatcher's final words in the court were that all they wanted was fetuses be allowed to develop into responsible men and citizens:: The case for pro-choice Canadians was not presented. The judge is expected to hand down his decision sometime in the fall. A serious concern is that even if Borowski loses he has promised to appeal. No further evidence can be brought before the appeal court - that court will hear only what was placed in-evicklhce at the first trial. If Borowski wins we have no guarantee from the federal government that they will appeal - abortion could be illegal once again in this country. But the Borowski threat will not go unanswered by us. I, as an individual and as president of CARAL, filed suit on April 29th to challenge section 251 in its entirety. We are seeking to have the abortion law declared inconsistent with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in that it contravenes the rights of women. We anticipate that our case and Borowski's will eventually be linked in the appeals process. At the present we are awaiting a reply from the federal government to our statement of claim. 6r-F C AWATAITATATATATO WOMEN'S POT LUCK il0 Whatever the decision, ask 5. for the reasons in writing. If you are not satisfied 6. with the decision, complain to the Attorney-General, whose responsibility it is to enforce the Criminal Code in the province. If you should get a charge 7. laid, pack the court, picket, let the community know that this is hate propaganda against women and must be regulated. If you get a conviction, 8. approach the municipality to lift the business license on the ground of criminal conviction. Lobbying local politicians is always useful because they are in contact with other levels of governConvince them that this is a ment. community issue. A. Consider actions to embarrass customers. B. Network with other groups using C. Jillian Ridington's Discussion Paper on Pornography as a resource - available from NAC or N.A.W.L. Some proprietors are anxious to avoid community disapproval and will let you view films and suggest which ones should be cut or removed. By all means go this route if you can. It is the fastest, but you have to monitor the situation constantly, and that shouldn't be your job, so continue to lobby for changes in the Criminal Code to make the offense more easily prosecutable successfully. D. IIITH SLIDES BY 00 Use us as a clearinghouse until E. someone better offers, or contact the Northern Woman Journal for further WORLD TRAVELLER action. MIRIAM KETONEN III WOMENSPACE, 316 Bay St. October 5th from 6:00 p.m. ovwivivpivpw lu 410 Prepared by NoAth Shake Women's Centne 600 West Queens Road NoAth Vancouver, B.C. V7N 2L3 NORTHERN V OMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �her specific goal. Judy: The sharing in group is essential. There is the feeling that "I'm not alone. Other women share this." so much in terms of what turns us on, but just really noting what we feel in Especially when women go back and talk about messages from their mothers or every part of our bodies. We stress getting away from the pressure of what religious messages or their first sexual experiences, you can hear moans "should" be happening and moving toand graons of "Oh yeah, I know just what ward what is happening. it was like!" That in itself is imporTerry: As the group progresses we tant. Also, there begins to be an effort begin to focus more on each woman's on the part of the group to meet these particular issue and problem. Each goals - - "Hey, I think you're getting woman in the group will determine a close." Or, "I think you did it. Conmeet by the end goal that she wants of the group. This should be a realis- gratulations!" When one person achieves her goal the other people want to do tic goal, generally one step above wherever she happens to be in relation- it also. Another important part of becoming ship to her own sexuality. For example, orgasmic is to release feelings that if a pre-orgasmic woman has never been have been blocked up. For example, if able to touch herself on her genitals, a woman has a hard time expressing a her goal might simply be to be able to very intense feeling like anger or saddo so, comfortably. For a woman who can ness, it may be difficult also to exhave an orgasm with a vibrator, but who perience intense sexual feelings too. has never been able to manually stimuWe may do some role-playing within the late herself to orgasm, her goal may be group to help each other express feelto manually stimulate herself to orgasm. ings that are blocked. If a feeling is A woman who can masturbate herself to blocked in one area, very often the orgasm in 25 different positions might sexual feelings are blocked too. In adhave a goal to teach her partner how dition, it's important how assertive to help her reach orgasm; to learn how we can become. Knowing our needs and to communicate to her partner in such desires and expressing them directly a way that makes it happen. Each woman is important in all aspects of our defines her own goal for the group. lives, particularity sexually. If we Then we begin to focus the homework don't assert ourselves sexually, if we assignments at the end of each group don't know what we need and want for session much more specifically 6n each our bodies, we couldn't possibly comwoman's individual problem. We can then municate that to another person and share in the group how everybody's expect to be satisfied with their progressing. The group begins to help response, and get those needs met. each woman - - and make suggestions - "Oh well, you might try this," or, Q: Would you talk more about how "I did this and it worked." Everyone lesbian and heterosexual women relate in the group begins to participate in to each other in the group? each individual woman's attainment of ORGASM CONTINUED FROM PAGE S Judy: Women in the group learned a lot from each other. For someof the heterosexual women it was enlightening to hear, for the first time, intimate details of what sex with another woman is like. They may have never known about that before; and now they can discover what the differences may be, as well as what the similarities may be. In general, the fears and desires and the vulnerabilities and strengths relating to sex are understood and shared by all women. Terry: Both heterosexual and lesbian women have the opportunity to be less threatened by or fearful of their differences and, more assured of their similarities. Heterosexual women discover that they may even be turned on by the idea of women making love with each other, and that it is not necessary to act on that. It's okay to get turned on and to think that it's a nice idea, and it doesn't mean you're a lesbian unless you choose to be one. A lesbian woman can also be turned on at the idea of a woman and a man making love, but it doesn't mean that they have to do it, or that they're wrong for not doing it that way. Again, there's an opportunity to dispel some of the myths and to begin to feel more comfortable with the whole range of sexuality. We do a lot of work with fantasies, which may not be just with women, or women with men. Women share fantasies about their pets, strangers of both sexes, and even some of the less "acceptable" fantasies - - maybe some sadomasochism, or bondage. We stress that you don't have to act out fantasies in reality; if it's a way continued on pg 13 X=IN:=41C:=4)00(=e14=4)=41=XX==.8043041=4 =mm===48c=====xic=x,x=i weight (mostly fat and water) and thus increased their market value. The Conference wound down with participants looking for ways to increase other women's knowledge about drugs and pharmaceutical companies. A group of women based in Ottawa are working together with Barbara Lysnes (formerly of Thunder Bay) of the Great Canadian Theatre Company. They are developing a play about women and pharmaceuticals. They hope the play will be ready to do in Ottawa in June 1984, then perhaps tour the country. Another group decided to work with Harriet Simard to publicize the DES issue across Canada. Other recommendations were to plan for the International Organization of Consumer Unions (IACU) Conference in June 1984 and to publicize information about the new health disciplines act and the patent act. Dag of Action for SHOICE on Abortion L ber of young women suddenly developed a highly specific form of cancer (adenouarenoma of the vagina) that correlated only their mothers taking DES early in pregnancy. Interestingly enough DES is still allowed in the United States as a hormone for cattle. It causes the livestock to gain SATURDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1983 ''latch Your Local Paper for announcement Health, Health, Hooray ! The Health Promotion Directorate of Health and Welfare, Canada has granted $230,619.00 to the Northwestern Ontario Women's Health Education Project for its next two years of operation. The Project will use the funds to deliver six healthrelated workshops to women in fifteen communities throughout Northwestern Ontario. The first series of workshops will focus on Women and Nutrition. It will run from September to November, 1983. In mid-winter, Cabin Fever 11, a workshop on stress and coping with small-town life is scheduled. A menopause workshop is plannec for April-May, 1984. Finally, a training session will be held in June, .1984 for regional women interested in learning how to deliver workshops. In 1984-85, tentative plans include a conference on Women and Health as well as travelling workshops on women's cancer, patient rights and preventative health care. During its first year of operation (1982-83), the health project !conducted a Cabin Fever workshop and an extensive survey of regional women. The survey asked women about their health status and what types ,of workshops they would be interested in attending. The workshops that are being developed reflect these women's wishes. NORTHERN WOMPNOCR, page 10 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor PDF compression, �Nuclear Arms continued from-pg. 7 Ftom a setmon veted by Philip Zwetling, ministet o4 the Fitst Unitatian Chutch o4 Los Angeles, Cati4otnia Match 14, 1982 President Eisenhower, in 1959, urged all men everywhere to work against the mistrusts and fixations of our times. All they are are the creation of governments, cherished and nourished by governments. Nations would never feel them if they were given freedom from propaganda and pressure. I was talking to Len about the woman I work with, and he got really angry. He said the nuclear industry ;created jobs, and did the country need more unemployment? Ditect and Inditect Jobs Generated by $1 Bittion: Mititaty Machinery Government TtanspoAtation Consttuction Health Setvices Education Tax Cut to ConsumeAz 76,000 jobs 86,000 87,000 92,000 100,000 139,000 187,000 112,000 church, and the pastor had a job to lose, too. Nobody heard about Peace and Disarmament. "The reason the Canadian government cannot say No to the Cruise testing is economic btackmait. Any countty that is economicatty owned by ("no -then "What the Chtistian conscience must lay cteatey to heant is that the kind o4 action invotved in the use o4 the nucteat bombs L an absolute detertent to the wank o4 God. It cannot possibly be neconcited with obedience to His witt. Fan the Chnistian, this is 4inal." Anonymous iz potiticatty owned aeso. 14 we say No, the U. S. wit impose tati446 on Canadian conventional weapons expoAts, most o4 which go to the U. S., and 4tom there, to the areas o4 congict-the 3rd Wottd. The people thete need weapons like a hole in the head, which is what they ate getting Son dating to want to eat. MIIIMMINms I'm reading a really good novel. I feel I must always have a book now, as T.V. depresses me--I can't stand to watch the news anymore. But Len will insist on telling me all the horror stories when he climbs in. It's all this controversy about the Cruise Missile now. Len says the anti-nuke lot are anti-American and the politicians know what they're doing. Besides, the Soviets have the S.S. 20. The Nuclear Freeze vote in the U. S. won 41 of 45 contests in the ballots held at state, county and local levels. There are 26 Peace groups in the U. S., with over 20 million active members. Speakers Ptoject Ploughshares Thundet Bay Actually, Mom, I wasn't going to tell you this, but seeing as its all O.K., I will now. I had a terrible scare last month and had to have a breast biopsy. Thank God it was not cancer, but for a week or two, I was totally distraught. You know how hopeless Len is with the kids, and I was imagining putting them into care and couldn't stand the thought. Anyhow, it's all over and all O.K., but what a worry. Mothers of young children in Great Britain and West Germany are making arrangements to put their children into care in the probable event of their being imprisoned this year, as they protest at the U. S. bases throughout Britain. They see themselves as an occupied country, in the words of a spokeswoman from Greenham Common. As a speaker has said, the argument is obscene anyway. You might as well say that if we could stop child pornography, it would do away with jobs, The cat had an awful accident last week. It was run over and had two legs broken. It seems stupid, but we are all so fond of her we decided to get the vet to mend her legs; cost a bit, but the kids were Do you remember Mrs. Stevens? Her son Jodi is giving her a lot of trouble. He used to be such a nice kid, used to babysit our children and was really kind them. Well, he's quit school, hangs around the house all day and won't speak to anyone. He just bites her head off is she so -much as talks to him, and sits up all night listening to music. Psychiatrists are stating that an increasing number of teenagers are showing despair at the thought a fu- so upset. Sue Coe, an artist who lives in two small rooms in Manhattan, depicts, in one of her works called "Vivisection", a room full of cages of cowering monkeys, waiting to be put on the table by two evil-looking scientists. She explains: ture. MMEMMOMMIIMMIIMMIIMMIMM "To test the e44ects o4 blinding radiation on pi ors, they use lawn beams to blind monkeys, then sttap them into simulated cockpits to see how tong they can gy." She sighs: "IS animats believed Ln God, the devil wooed took tike a human being." I have gotten Len to go to church with us at last. I think-its so important to belong to a church, so that the kids might get religion's concept of right and wrong. There are a lot of social benefits to it, too. A speaker at the Canadian National Disarmament Conference in Waterloo, Ontario, explained the hierarchy of church. One congregation was given a choice of whether they wanted to hear a speaker on Disarmament or not. 95% of the congregation said yes. 5% said no. The 5% controlled the A teacher asked a class of 30 8-year-olds if they thought there would be a nuclear war, and 29 said Yes. Intrigued by the one dissenter, she asked why he didn't believe it. He said with serenity: "Because my Mom and Dad are in the Peace Move"The new generation o4 missiles to match the sttategy o4 'limited nucteat wan in Ewtopei o4 Pte.- ident Reagan was in advanceci_ development in the mid-1970's. What has been ptesented Ln the West European media and debated in West Emopean pateiaments as a tegtettabte but necessary tesponse to Soviet S. S. 20, was set in motion be4ote S. S. 20 was heard o4. It is di44icoet to know whether their politicians (ed. note: the United States') ate ptain liaAs, ittitetates on the victims 64 civit setvice bnie4s." E. P. Thompson Pto4essot, Histmian and Committee Membet o4 Eutopean Nucteat Disatmament ment". Well, Mom, that's all for now. I'm-afraid this has been a despairing kind of letter, but the world seems to be a terrible place, really. But what can a person do? All our love, Mary, Len and kids A young university student, Patrick Chamberlain, is wending a long, lonely path. He is walking from Victoria to Ottawa, 4715 kilometres, to deliver a disarmament petition to continued on pg 15 W OMAN page 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISIONNORTHERN PDFCompressor �FAMILIAR PLACES CHANGE OF SEASON (A song about the nuclear menace, and other matters of lesser import.) All summer long in dormant lay my soul. The dreary hum and dreary heat Of much too much, too ripe, too soon, Tao all at once, Like dizzy ether swarmed around and 'round And closer 'round Until the higher part was fast asleep. And there it lay, And there it slept, And there it would have slept until eternity, Except...except for one small part That still remembered when it lived. While walking one time on that narrow line Sometimes separating girls from women And, holding on to that rule that says, "Once fooled-twice, no fool", I refused to get messed up in it again. I was holding, while things were folding, And counting on my better judgement to be there I was waiting--couldn't call it hesitating 'Cause I knew just what it was I was seeing there. CHORUS But now the world has turned, The wind has changed, And Fall is here. The air is fresh and crisp And now I can't hold still, But must be up and walking All the city through, Up hill and down. And now the verses that I could not write Came tripping fran my pen. And oh: My joyous, boundless soul: That swells and swells, With every step and every verse, Like it would swell unto infinity, Except...except for one small part That still remembers when it slept. And I tried to be light, but life seemed to be in such disrepair That it gave me such a fright to be witness to the despair -On the faces, in familiar places I didn't want to see what I was seeing there --On the faces, in familiar places Because I knew just what it was like being there. Someone that I knew, asked me if it was really true That things must get worse, to get better I said no, it couldn't be so, but I Couldn't predict just where it might go And she said, the times were really beginning to get to her. CHORUS 2 She said she, tried to be light, but life seemed to be in such disrepair That it gave her such a fright to be witness to the despair --On the faces, in familiar places She didn't want to see what she was seeing there --On the faces, in familiar places Because she knew just what it was like, Being there. Joyce Michalchuk Thunder Bay BUT ITS TOO LATE It seems you want me to become a blank piece of paper Marjorie Owen Thunder Bay COLD SEPTEMBER Cold September Leaves turning Gold like summer Fading... Autumn brings Cold tears And frosted fingers Treetops Bright scarlet Like summer campfires And winter firesides. Seasons sliding Through the bases Competing Placing... Like racehorses Neck-to-neck, Like sometime lovers Dividing up Their home. ... now we've net again You know the kind I mean Susan Collins Hawkins As blank as my expression when I look at you Thunder Bay Not filled with all these words of yesterday well written with indelible ink and restlessly tangling behind my eyes... I really don't know about you, babe Or if you've ever seen yourself as newsprint or oldsprint or no print at all And knew you could be used as paper; And sold...burned...or just discarded on a street... Yes, it seems you want me to become a blank piece of paper ... now we've net again But its too late. Violet Winegarden Vancouver, B.C. NORTHERN ri7 OMAN pa ge 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �ORGASM cont'd that you can get turned on, and you like your fantasy, it doesn't mean that you are wedded to that for life or that you are psychologically im,3aired for having a fantasy that is other than the "norm". Q: Still, why the focus on orgasm? What's wrong with cuddling, giving back rubs, getting those kinds of warm fuzzies? Terry: For most women it takes focussing on their so-called problem with orgasm to realize that all of that other stuff is equally important, that sensuality is as important as sexuality. The big "0" is not the ultimate goal. The real goal of this group is for women to discover what they like, and if what they like better is cuddling, then they've learned that, and they've learned that orgasm doesn't have to be important. The message from the outside world is that it is supposed to be important. Judy: There are many different and fulfilling ways to feel warmth, close- her own sense of self, and part of that is sexuality. so perhaps she is going to be making more demands on her partner. Depending on where the relationship is at the time that a woman enters the group, it certainly fosters those kinds of changes. We do offer an opportunity for partners to be involved after the group is over. If a woman feels that she and her partner need some extra work, we make ourselves available to do that, so there is an opportunity for couples whose relationships do get stirred up to work and focus on those things. Judy: Sometimes the group adds more stress, as Terry said, because there are more demands. Other times, though, there's more relief. No longer do partners feel that they should be doing. something that they just can't seem to do. The women in these groups are taking more responsibility for themselves, and giving specific information as to what they like and how they want it. Although initially the relationship may seem to be more stressed, ultimately, if the relationship is going pretty well in other ways, what gets worked out sexually is very re- resolution, and we encourage women to continue on their own or come for additional sessions. Q: So there's really a lot more to this group than focussing on one area of the body. It sounds like it can change a person's way of dealing with the world. Terry: Exactly. The excitement for me about The group is that it combines so many different ways of looking at things and of learning about yourself. It's a combination of a lot of different theraputic techniques, and it's also a basic consciousness-raising about our bodies, dispelling a lot of myths, demystifying sexuality. We've all been told that sex is A perfectly natural, normal thing - - and, at the same time, that it is dirty and awful. That paradox right there is going to cause complications. So the group gives us all the opportunity to share, as well as dispell a lot of myths about sexuality, and rediscover and reclaim ourselves. That's much more than just "How-to-do-Sex." It's a strengthening and supporting of one's own autonomy and definition of self. One of the reasons, for example, that lesbian and heterosexual women seem to do so well together in this group, where lots of people would imagine that there might be problems, is that we discover that the only correct definition of one's sexuality has to come from oneself. It doesn't matter whether you're a lesbian or straight or whatever. It's how you define yourself, not how other people define you. That means first learning about who you are and then choosing how you want to be defined. Reprinted from "Women: A Journal of Liberation", Volume 8, No. 2. ness and sensual pleasure - - alone or with another person. However, for women who do want to achieve orgasm, the fact that there is something that can give them pleasure that they have been closed off from because they feel that they can't do it is very important. Being able to do it gives them an option. There are also some specific benefits from orgasm. There's a definite physiological release. For women who have trouble sleeping during the night, very often a way to relax is to masturbate to orgasm. Orgasm tends, also, to release stress and anxiety. Q: Is going to these workshops ever threatening to the women's partners? Does it sometimes harm relationships? lieving and adds a lot to the relationship as a whole. Child Care Conference Q: Is there any follow-up? Judy: We have a reunion about three to four months after the group is done. One of the more exciting parts of the group is to come back together and.to have women share how many different ways the group has affected them beyond the sexual ways: that they've learned to be more assertive, that they have finally become friends and allies with their bodies, that they now are able to take time for themselves, that they feel themselves to be more sensual, that they are dressing differently, feeling more positively about themselves and their ability to change. Terry: Let's say it changes relationships. That change may be an Q: Do any women never learn to reach opening for growth, or it may mean the orgasm? termination of the relationship. Certainly, women with partners who come to Judy: Yes, that occasionally this group do go through changes in the happens. Remember, we work with a timerelationship. We often hear later that table of 10 sessions, and there is no the group either opens things up, or reason why they should become orgasmic it makes things that,had been shaky_ or fully achieve some other goal in that much more so. What's happening is 10 sessions. Sometimes other areas that the woman is beginning to reclaim affecting sexuality need more time for The Lakehead Social Planning Council, the Longlac-Geralton Day Care Committee and the Association of Early Childhood Education of Ontario, Thunder Bay Branch are sponsoring the 6th Regional Child Care Conference to be held in Longlac, Sept. 30, Oct. 1 &2, 1983. The objectives of the conference are to bring together those concerned and involved with the physical, social and emotional health of young people. Workshops are offered in the areas of health, child development, creative activities and administration. Some workshops will be in French as well as English. Registration forms listing workshops are available from the Lakehead Social Planning Council office 221 Bay St. and there is some limited financial assistance available for travel, accommodation and registration subsidies for non-paid staff, parents and volunteers. The registration deadline is September 19/83. For more information contact Dawn St. Amand at 345-3631. NORTHERN V OMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Canadian women authors to explore: NICOLE BROSSARD (Outremont, Quebec) described as an experimental poet and novelist (post-modernist and feminist) Brossard's works that have English translations are These Our Mothers, A Book, Turn of a Pang, and a book of poetry Daydream Mechanics. AUDREY THOMAS (Vancouver B.C.) novelist and short-story writer. Publications include Real Mothers, Latakia, Ten Green Bottles, Mrs. Blood, Ladies and Escorts, Songs My Mother Taught Me, Munchmeyer & Prospero on the Is- The Womyn's Braille Press, Inc. offers over seventy-five feminist and lesbian books on tape, to womyn who are blind or physically disabled. WBP also circulates several feminist periodicals on tape. For more information, or to make a contribution; Subscribers receive a quarterly newsletter in Braille, print, or on tape. Contact: Womyn's Braille Press, Inc. P.O. Box 8475 Minneapolis MN 55408 ' SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT land. MARY MEIGS (Kingsbury, Quebec) is a painter and writer. Her first book is Lily Briscoe, A Self-Portrait. A second book The Medusa Head will be published this fall. JANE RULE (Galiano, B.C.) novelist and short story writer. Her works include Desert of the Heart, This Is Not For You, Against the Season, The Young in One Another's Arms, Contract with the World. CAROL SHIELDS (Winnipeg, Man.) has published Small Ceremonies and The Box Garden. SUNITI NAMJOSHI (West Hill, Ont.) Publications include The Jackass and the Lady, Feminist Fables, and The Authentic Lie, From Bedside Book of Nightmares. A Selected Bibliography on Job Sharing and Permanent Part-Time EmZloyment lists some 170 publications on the subject. 14 pp. From New Ways to Work Publications, 149 Ninth St, San'Francisco CA 94103. $1.75 plus .75 postage. (On Campus with Women) "Sex prejudice has been the chief hinderance in the rapid advance of the woman's rights movement to its present status, and it is still a stupendous obstacle to overcome. TEACHING WOMEN'S HISTORY by Gerda Lerner. This book is published by the American Historical Association (4400 A St, Washington DC 20003 USA). An introduction to the topics, sources, analytic questions in this area. Available for $4 to members and $5 to others. HOORAY for HERizons We were delighted to note that our local daily (Chronicle-Journal Aug.23/83) carried a lengthy article concerning our sister publication, the Winnipeg-based HERizons. We trust this heralds a new era and that local feminist issues can anticipate sensitive CJ coverage in the future. This world taught women nothing skillfull and then said her work was valueless. It permitted her no opinions and said she did not know how to think. It forbade her to speak in public and said that the sex had no orators. It denied her the 'schools, and said the sex had no genius. It robbed her of every vestige of responsibility and then called her weak. It taught her that every pleasure must come as a favour from men, and when to gain it she decked herself with fine feathers, as she had been taught to do, it called her frivolous" Carrie Chapmen Catt, 1902 Breast self examination Sit or stand in front of your mirror, with your arms relaxed at your sides, and examine your breasts carefully for any changes in size and shape. Look for any puckering or dimpling of the skin, and for any discharge or changes in the nipples. Raise both your arms over your head, and look for exactly the same things. See if there's been any change since you last examined your breasts. Lie on your bed, put a pillow or a bath towel under your left shoulder and your left hand under your head. (From this Step through Step 8, you should feel for a lump or thickening. With the fingers of your right hand held together flat, press gently but firmly with small circular motions to feel the inner, upper quarter of your left breast, starting at your breast-bone and going outward toward the nipple line. Also feel the area around the nipple. With the same gentle pressure, feel the lower inner part of your breast. Incidentally, in this area you will feel a ridge of firm tissue of flesh. Don't be alarmed. This is perfectly Now bring your left arm down to your side, and still using the flat part of your fingers, feel under your armpit. Use the same gentle pressure to feel the upper, outer quarter of your breast from the nipple line to where your arm is resting. And finally, feel the lower outer section of your breast, going from the outer part to the nipple. Repeat the entire procedure on the right breast. Your own doctor may want you to use a slightly different method of examination. Ask him/her to teach you that method. Examine your breasts every month, just after your period. Be sure to continue these checkups after your change of life. If you find a lump or thickening leave it alone until you see your doctor. Don't be frightened. Most breast lumps or changes are not cancer, but only your doctor can tell. normal. NORTHERN W OMAN pa ge 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Vancouver Rape Relief & Women's Shelter 77 E 20th Avenue, Vancouver, B.C. V5V 1L7 ...WOMEN''' Nucteat AIMS continued pLom page 11 Pierre Trudeau. Dylan Thomas wrote: URGENT!!! "Do not go gent& into that good night We are supporting avoman who has been charged with civil disobedience against a pornography store. We are looking for women who have had actual experiences of being abused because of pornography. Video pornography is of special interest, but any account of pornography related violence towards women will be useful to us. For example: I feel like a subversive act. - a man who brings home pornographic - Sophie Glotz tapes, and wants a woman to act out what they have seen on the tapes pornography left at the scene of - Open tettet to Mt. 8/Luce Lehtinen a rape Adminizttation, Canadian Lakehead - women who have been abused while Exhibition employed in the pornography industry We strongly object to the presenceThese of a actual games booth (recently) experiences are essential operating the to C.L.E. calledthe therelationin at order establish "T-Shirtship Game". The booth is a dart between pornography and violgame in ence whichagainst balloons are positioned women. as women's breasts on T-Shirts, and participants encouraged to break We areare looking for women who might them forbeprizes. willing to testify in court as This both consciously to booth her experience, but more than and unconsciously encourages violence that we would like letters describagainst ing women, andexperience promotes the their to present as trivializing of women's lives and evidence. bodies - the kind of trivializing that runs through the special basest and Cable or send delivery letters most blatant pornography available Remember as trial date is imminent. today. it could be any one of us!!. Thank Open to public viewing and paryou. ticipation, the presence of this booth acts asVancouver a brutal-example of Rape Relief how women are victimized in this society. Such games and graphic acts of The Northern Woman Journal violence toward women's anatomy de316 Bay Street picted in this manner act both subThunder Bay, Ontario liminally and obviously on the mindsespecially young minds - of the Thank you for your letter of viewers, and must be eliminated. concern re: T-Shirt Game at this Young people make up a great years C.L.E. majority of the people in attenI have conveyed your concern to dance. What kind of impression is a Mr. Bernie Thomas and he has agreed booth like this bound to create in to change the format of the game so young minds just in the process of it does not promote the trivializing formulating opinions on the world of women's lives and bodies. We do around them? not wish to degrade the female body The dehumanizing effect of such in any way at our fair. being Next year I would appreciate it ting to if you take the time to inspect the s to Thomas games at the opening of our full human fair and report these injustices to ects. us at that time. It is unfortunate this that this was reported when our fair C.L.E. is almost over. I would also apprecsider the iate it if you would come to us first gross inso we may solve these problems withespeciout going to the press first. It is ecent and discouraging to be advised by the eenage press first and then by the concerned eral growth group. today. Secondly, I would appreciate it if you would sign your press release so I may know to whom I am addressing this reply. Collective I concur with your attitude conomen's cerning violence against women as I too have a daughter and wife that I House consider human be ins and not objects. g Please take time to reinspect this booth and if it is still degrading we will not allow such displays UR LABEL? back in our fair. IPTION Sincerely, 1 Bruce Lehtinen Program Director Rait, againist the dying o4 the tight." "Thbs Lo one good way o,4 not going gentZe into the night," ;said Pattick. "Even i4 a hotocacae i4 inevitabte, I'm going to hake my 4,e2t at Nobody was ever more wrong than those who did nothing because they could only do a little. The Peace Movement is one of the biggest world movements of people in history. Scientists, educators, unions, politicians, journalists, churches and millions of people are getting stronger and stronger. Write a letter, send a dollar, search for the truth outside the political statements that are designed to deceive the people. March in a protest with us. PROTEST AND SURVIVE. International Disarmament Week will be marked in Thunder Bay by a' March and Rally on October 22. Please join us. If you feel this issue is too confusing, gigantic or frightening to confront, remember that we felt like that, too, at first. But once you do confront it, it's better. If you have to feel negative emotions, anger is better than fear, and the love and kinship one feels from other people all fighting this monstrous evil transcends everything else. Josie Wallenius Project Ploughshares (Thunder Bay) R. R. #7 Thunder Bay, Ont. (phone 1-964-2025) OUR NOTE: DAYS FOR PEACE International Women's Day, March 8 Mother's Day, first Sunday in May International Children's Day, June 1 Hiroshima Day, August 6 Women's Day for Disarmament, Oct. 25 (Days may vary locally.) Mark these days, and participate locally with marches, rallies, letter writing, film nights etc. EDITORIAL COMMENT Feminists the world over are beginning to make the connection between environmental issues and patriarchal mentality that surrounds us. Particularly our concern at this moment is riveted on the monumental insanity of nuclear proliferation (we can already destroy ourselves 30 times over). Nuclear power is the ultimate manifestation of the patriarchal mentality and drive to destruction. This mentality that permits rape, thrives on greed, and encourages sexism, racism, classism and nationalism will not stop short of using nuclear weaponry. Feminists do not have to choose between sexism and nuclear escalation; the enemy is the same - the perverted patriarch. NORTHERN 747 OMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �FILM SERIES FOR WOMEN TIME: In Coping and Stress 8:00 - 10:00 n,m, Sept, 28 Wednesdays Oct, PREEDOM OP CHOICE CANADIAN ABORTION RIGHTS ACTION LEAGUE ( CARAL) 12 ASSOCIATION CANADIRNNIE TOURt LX DROIT A L'AVORTXMIINT tAt.LIA) act1a The Purpose of CARAL is to ensure that no woman in Canada is denied access AT THE: Waverle" Resource Librar" Auditorium to safe, legal abortion. Our aim is the repeal of all sections of the Criminal Codce dealing with abortion and the establishment of comprehensive contraceptive and abortion services, including appropriate counselling across the country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abortion as a fundamental humanfight." SPONSORED BY: I support the statement of purpose of CARAL and wish to become a member. Northwestern Ontario Warner's Centre KLIO Mamen's Health Ebucatinn Prvject Canabian mental Health Assnciatinn 1111=01= Name. Address: Phoni Postal Code: Occupation. Name of Federal Riding. Individual Member Limited Income Family Sustaining Donation RESOURCES FOR WOMEN IN THUMPER BAY $10.00 13.00 315.00 $25.00 S RETURN TO: CARAL, Box 935, Stn. 0. Toronto, M4T 2P1 Beendigan (Crisis House for Native Women) - 622 -5101 Women's Health Education Project, #4 214 Red River Road, P7B 1A6 345 -1410 Physical and Sexual Assault Centre, #18, 214 Red River Rd. Off.345-0894,Crisis Line 344-4502 JPAC Welfare Advocacy Group WANTED for our upcoming literary issue:, 4u.brrizionz O4 poetAy, zhont d otieS, {)ictAlon, btack and white photos and graph -ices BRING DONATIONS OFJUNK FOR Maureen - 345 -6777 Single Parent Support Group WOrIANSPCF 1-87!F Eve Ojala - 767 -4190 Free Clothing Depot, CNR Station, 9 Water Street - 345-9222 C.i ,E. FLEA "PKET Women's Programmes, Secretary of State, Court Street South, Thunder Bay Lisa Bengtsson - 345-2316 Women's Programmes, Confederation College, Box 398, P7C 4W1 Ruth Cunningham - 475 -6278 Women's Bureau, Ont. Min. of Labour, ,,AT. SEPT. 911th between 8a.m. and 10a,m. OR Phone 622 7175 for pick up 435 St. James St. ,P7E Joy Fedorick - 4 75-169 1 Human Rights Commission, Ont. Min. of Labour, 435 St. James St., P7E 6E3 475 -1693 Northern Women's Centre, #4,204 Red River Road, P7B 1A4 Fiona Karlstedt - 345-7802 Faye Peterson Transition House 345-7456 K==434=434=4 ''ENDO PRACTICE MONDAYS BUTTONS $2.00 each. Send cheque or money order to NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL, 316 Bay St., Thunder Bay, Ont. P7B 151 HAVE YOU Who cote thae women, and what ate they doing, anyway? i you can anmet thee que)stionz, ass wet as whete they wene doing it, a tee 'subctiption of gib Sub, tis yowl/ s. ORDERED YOURS? Womanspace, 316 Bay St. 7:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. (Open to all women who have taken the basic class) TAKE BACK THE NIR,HT MARCH Friday, September 23rd AT 516 BAY at 8:30 P.M. Por MARCH through downtown PA PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 ****** IS THERE AN ASTERISK ON YOUR LABEL? PLEASE RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ****** Collectively produced Noreen byJoan Baril, Kathryn ?rule, RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 B BAY STREET THUNDER BAY,, ONTARIO P7B 1S1 Lavoie, Teresa Legowski, Anna McColl, Joyce Michalchuk, Donna Phoenix, Margaret Phillips, Sara Williamson ,Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 316 Bay Street Thunder Bay; Ontario P7B 1S1 (Six Issues) $5.00 $10.00 Business or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 8 No 2 Description An account of the resource Vol. 8, No. 2 (Sept 1983) Title: Northern Woman Journal: Women Unite Topics include: Family resource centres government initiative Women’s bookstore Toronto burned down Anti-abortion protesting Premenstrual syndrome Pornography legislation (Sweden) Women and words conference University of British Columbia Women and orgasms Nuclear war Pharmaceutical marketing towards women Pro-choice movement Pornography Womenspace events Northwestern Ontario Women’s Health Education Project Health workshops for women Poetry Childcare conference Feminist book review Breast self-examination International women’s day Canadian Abortion Rights Action League Take Back the Night March Authors/Contributors: Joan Baril Margaret Phillips Betsy Getaz Carol Ehrlich Josie Wallenius Joyce Michalchuk Heather Woodbeck Norma Scarborough Marjorie Owen Susan Collins Hawkins Violet Winegarden Kathryn Brule Noreen Lavoie Teresa Legowski Anna McColl Donna Phoenix Sara Williamson Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1983-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2777/1983_Vol_8_No_1.pdf d9894883f2c02eb89b57c47be1f43548 PDF Text Text 1 111 11111' IIII lib livii 111111 MlIlIl I 11111111 101111 1111 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Editoria In April of last year, the Ontario Advisory Council on Equal Opportunity for Women published its "Three -year Report on Affirmative Action", which stated that its "greatest disappointment...has been the absolute (ed. emphasis) lack of response to the repeated recommendation for legislated affirmative action". The Council again urged the support of the Minister of Labour in its recommendation "that legislation relating to mandatory affirmative action be tmnlemented". Affirmative Action, which has been around as a concept and a federal law in the United States since before 1975, has not been law and has subsequently had a very minimal impact in Canada to date. It must be made mandatory in order that progress beyond the theoretical, lipservice level is made, to a level in which tangible change can be effected through a monitoring and follow-up process of each individual affirmative action plan put into place. In the beginning, affirmative action programs were to be planned by employers, in consultation with government, to promote a given number of women within a given period of time. It was designed by government as a means by which women would be able to achieve equal opportunity in their workplaces tangibly, bY putting the onus on employers to create a framework and carry out programs which would promote women (in the traditional sense of "job promotions"). However, in leaving it up to the employer and leaving it out of legislation, the government has, in effect, minimalized the hoped-for, tangible results of what could be a very DOSitive step in seeing that women achieve their potential in terms of both recognition and wages. In other words, in leaving affirmative action to the upper levels of the pyramidal structure, the ivory tower of the organization, it has remained, and may very well continue to remain, a theoretical concept. It is a concent which employers may endorse to enhance their public images by simply stating their public support of affirmative action, while being under no legal obligation to carry out any of its programs which would tangibl-7 benefit any women in their employ. A grass-roots affirmative action program must be implemented within each organization in order that each individual woman, on a grass-roots level, be aware of the principles of affirmative action, and how they are applied within each program designed in her place of employment. The main objective is to identify any possible "artificial" barriers to the hiring, promotion and retention of women (along with natives and the physically disabled, also affirmative action targe groups) created by the employer. A woman employee must become a monitor of any affirmative action program implemented within her place of employment by undertaking, firstly, personal consciousness-raising regarding the issue and meaning of affirmative action As well, her union or non-unionized labour group must see to it that the programs are carried out as planned. They must be able to apply both internal and external (political) pressure if stated practices are not adhered to. All this, of course, cannot become reality until affirmative action in Canada becomes mandatory and not voluntary, as it is presently. This will force the employer to commit itself to advancing the status of women in the workplace by promoting women according to a designated plan of action. This is something which obviously will'not be done if we leave it up to our employers to initiate, since for most of them, affirmative action will remain a buzzphrase which they will continue to support in principle, but not in practice. In practice, if voluntary affirmative action continues at its present rate, women will have equal status and equal pay with men by the year 3035. mtetesestostectevestemeratemetestrog Voices Dear N.W.J.: It was spoken by someone at the "first part" of the Annual Meeting of the Northwestern Ontario Women's Centre on May 3 that the Centre had come "full circle". As we went around our circle, each giving opinions about the "board" vs. "collective" approach to handling the operation of the Centre, it became very apparent that this long and contentious issue with many of the women present is heavily emotionladen. It eems to spring from wellestablished roots which see a "board". approach as traditionally "male", having no place in a women's centre such as ours. The voting power and supposed exclusionary aspects (lack on non-board input) associated with the boards of other institutions seems especially distasteful to, the collective crowd. Being aAvember of both a board and a collective (Women's Centre and the Journal, respectively), I can honestly say that I've seen no great difference in the method of dealing with issues and business that have confronted both over my time in association with the Centre and the Journal (except that they are of a somewhat different nature). I would have to also take exception to the issue of "exclusion" of non-board women at the board meetings; as was also mentioned at the meeting, they were and continue to be open to all women associated with the Centre. If there has been a feeling of being an "outsider" on the part of some women who are not board members, I respectfully say that it is of their own manufacture. At no time would we have not welcomed input, and, as it was also mentioned, that issue never arose as there were never any nonboard members of the Centre at the meetings. (It was pointed out that this was due to the fact that they were called "board" meet;.ngsi I have also sensed a feeling that there is a "split" in ideologies- in my opinion, one that revolves around the separation of "business" (ie. the day-to-day operation of all the aspects of the Centre) and "philosophy" (ie. feminist ideology and its approach to matters of concern to all women--health, employment, sexuality, self-discovery and awareness, attitudes to all the aforementioned et al). In my mind, there is no "split". Those who have volunteered their time and energies and given their commitment to being on the Centre's board are all members of the women's feminist community who are sincerely interested in working with and for women on feminist principles. They've also been interested in expanding their own feminist awareness (which is an ongoing, neverending process) through one of our vehicles--the Centre. feel the circle encompasses both the Women's Centre and Womanspace. They are in danger of becoming symbols of the dual modes of thought/action oF the board/collective approaches. If they do, the symbolism may be self-fulfilling, and some of the energy which the board has lost over the winter, combined with the energy lost through the angry debates and accusations on both sides will be destructive. This is an issue which may very well never be resolved, much less dealt with effectively in a letter such as this. Perhaps we do need to get more of our feelings out in the open at a future meeting (currently being discussed), but we cannot allow this issue to weaken the circle and our energies out of sheer frustration. We need to further explore our directions and our resources at this point without fear and with understanding and a renewed commitment. Joyce Michalchuk Dear N.W.J.: Enclosed is a cheque for my subscri tion to the Northern Woman Journal. In interests of accuracy, your list of women on municipal council has Diane Cunningham as mayor of Fort Prances. It should read "Deane" (or Although I well realize the nature Deane) Cunningham and he is a MAN. Amy Werner of the principles involved in the Atikokan, Ont. "board vs. collective" controversy, I hope we do not sacrifice the circle Cont,i_nued on pg 15 and the spaces we have created. I page 2 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAN PDF compression, OCR, �Update the doctor believe( go tountreated, City Hall realizing and make million her menstrual problems were a "story" dollar decisions in the afternoon to Another con the him out of woman nartotic drugs local has put however alderman didwho not up with disabling cramps for win his pacifier. The winner of fifteen the years finally found a solution. award, announced in March, is Charles It that at eacha yearly check-up, ft,how we danced - at Bevin who has written book "Women's the seemed annual when she described the problem International Women's Day party Liberation and Chaos" which blames to on March 12 at the Strathcona femi-ists her gynecologist, he had responded including club housefor everything with a shrug. Last year she The music was excellent, the pot-luck teen-age suicides, homosexuality thought and sherash. would Asked try once more but this time dinner delicious, the company diaper stimabout fathers ulating. stress how much her children husband suffered And how we marched - athome staying with their he during her periods. She the related the Mother's Day March for opined, Peace on"God never intended worldhow she hadway. to take tohave bed and her husband May 7, w;tich ended up at Trinity to be that Women an emotion typewas of burdened males with making meals Church to see the award winning N. body are more ad- and the care of children. In a trice she justed to reasrn". F.B. movie "If You Love This Planet" 'he National Film Board, includwas on the table and perscriptions It's easy to make fun of Bevin, ing Studio D are threatened by the around snowbut,were the falling attitudes shownher by like Edmonton's recommendations of the Applebaum/ flakes So if your doctor appears Chief Justice William McGillivrary Herbert Report. Studio D is the only menstral McGillivrary pain, bore publicly-funded, woman-runbored centre foryour arewith more dangerous. rehim duced no inlonger. Change of doctors. women filmmakers In Canada--and the sentence convictedIfrapcramps not Brown disabling deed the world. ist are Dalepainful Morgan but Brown. had been there Studio D is the voiceand ofconvicted women is no of underlying raping and physical brutally attin film, it has made such disease, might trywoman. some Said of the acking a disabled films as you McGill-. alternative in "Not A Love Story," and employed ivrary " methods A woman mentioned who accompanies freea Guide to to drink lance women filmmakers to "Womancare. produce man home AinGynecological the early morning Body" Lyndamarijuana Madaras and Dr. films such as "If You LoveYour This beer andbysmoke shouldn't be Janeand Patterson. They suggest heat, Planet" and "Loved, Honoured surprised if she is raped." Women's fromgroups a hot in bath or sauna, yoga,with shock Bruised." Edmonton reacted masturbating to orgasm to good relaxnews the andeven outrage. though it is massage, alchoholbeing and even toarea, read of local rapists conincreased exercise. Instead of to strong victed, it is still distressing diuretics some localattitudes women have read about the sexist of used a mild diuretic herbal tea such as local lawyers and judges. Last year theUrinaforec rape of a. young mother was desSome news.lawyer Ruth Cunningham, cribed by thegood defence as a Director Women's Programs at Con"soft rape"of because the victim was not federation College announces that she a virgin. received a grant fromunusually the Ministry On April 19th the long of Education to help women enter hisentence of seven years, was handed fields. The new program, to be outtech to Clyde Sharrow because of his called Women in Advanced Technolo callousness in raping the woman in and of Trades (W.A.T.f.) is you another front her husband "What subsolidher step in Ruth's continuing drive jected husband to was terrible", to make hi-tech jobs more accessible said Mr. Justice John White to women. Ruth has also In gotseveral started a A new movement. two year diploma program in General Canadian cities, women's groups are Arts and Sciences emphasizing women's forming to work for more humane treatstudies and is planning a two year ment of women in childbirth. SpecEqual Opportunity Program. ifically these groupsManagement want birthing . *The Canadian woman is the world's centres modelled after similar centres. greatest reader. Canadians spend more in Europe and North America money per capita on books than any so me quotes. A woman visiting omen's Centre said to Fiona: other "I've country and 80% of book buyers are women whose book-buying habits nour of National Secretarhe table for ten years and I funnel $700 million into the economy, an American organization, s give myself the chipped plate" says a special report on Women and hich in several From has the chapters Alberta Status of Women Writing in Canada in the magazine resents awards to good and etter: "The difference between "Fireweed". 'Women read, and women Topping theold list is is yers. derly lady and an woman write but men make the decisions about ge the Year*Judith award given ly of income" Finlayson whats on the market. Men run the book iwa bank Los Angeles. t and on of psychology in "Homemakers" nese -owned women firm required its production business. Close to half l recently artist struggled the published authors are women yet ist to get their knees ve voice toon their own experience women are reviewed with much less customers tea. Since win-The theore forms created by men. frequency than men. They are recomaward, officials of the the psychol moulds that establish mended much less and have much less explained that it had never al traits for both sexes have chance of getting into textbooks and kneeling to be so obligatory based on males" that "by birth anthologies. Women writers are much This was it was voluntary. , boys follow the rules and girls to the women employees who e problems"... on a poster "Iless likely to get writer-in-residence had way beenyet given 'tthat comethey a long --and jobs I am (only 12.5% of such teachers are women) or go on reading tours. tandbaby!" that they would lose our Because most juries for awards or sspite unless they knelt of several types of drugs grants are stacked male, women nited States does not have e market to combat dysmenorrhea on male supremists authors are short changed there too. re menstral cramps) and a growing For example only 20% of Canada Council we have Edmonton alderman tance by doctors of the fact that money went to women authors; not lier who was nominated for roblem is widespread and physiosurprisingly 20% of the jury were nal Action Committee (NAC) l--not psychological - many Thunder women. Researcher Jane Martin has Award for this public stateomen complain that they are geteven devised a new law, we could call he "Edmonton Journal". "A no help from local doctors Martin's Law to corelate the ratio of who's never made any importone woman told her doctor how she awards to women to the number of ions in her life doesn't issed several days from work in time or the resources to women on juries. There's a "direct, ast year due to menstral pain, lligent, decisions dramatic and irrefutable" corelation s read a serious little lecture on the illion dollar operation like between the percentage of women jurors s of pain killers and told "we of Edmonton. You can't exgive out demerol you know. and In the percefitage of female applicants usewife to clean house and demerol is no longer manufactured Continued on page 4 ec= the morning andthe then bletinform." She left office by JOAN BARIL NORTHERN W OMAN page 3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �TAKING CHARGE , Dr. Margaret Fulton continued ytom Page 8 organized, then, people should be freed to do more work that is lifeenhancing. self-fullfilling, societyrelating, creative activity which'is absolutely necessary to the wellbeing of the individual and of our total society. Economists seem to function with the limited notion that the only type of work that can be linked to the total income of society is work at a job where someone else pay you wages. If there are not enough of those limited kinds of jobs to go around, then governments try to create more. The results are often the kinds of feather-bedding, make work projects, insane arms races, and mindless consumption activities with which we are all toJ familiar. Surely a better way would be to put a value on all of the subsistence work that women and men do. The long term solution is to provide more stimuli and opportunities for people to take the initiative in creating life-enhancing work for their own subsistence. Our evolution from roles that have been passive and secondary to roles of active participation in our total society is a great sign of hope in an otherwise gloomy scene. The biggest impact in the labour force of tomorrow will come not so much from new technology or from the feminist movement alone as from the two revolutions coming together to change all our ways of thinking about ourselves and about our roles. Shock after Shock /A * fun fpm photo by Joyce Micha1chuk This combined interactive force is only a part of a total world revolution which must be bloodless or it will not be a revolution of any value. We have seen enough of the bloody kinds of revolution and we know that they never really change anything. Only the players change and then we're back into the same kind of rigidly structured societies. The transformational revolution going on in our society today can bring about the liberation of the creative personality and awaken individual personal initiative. And I was delighted to hear in my workshop from a young woman who is working in the arts and crafts section of life. The creativity that's there gives us new images, new patterns and it's the releasing of that kind of creativity which will give us a new society. We can and must challenge the present systems and structures which are so inhibiting and so limiting. We must become part of participatory democracy and participatory management style. To be equal partners, to be fully involved in bringing about a new age, we must go on learning; we must be fully informed; well-trained; well-educated and organized. Above all, we must understand our technology and use it for the creating of a new and positive society. The challenge I leave with you wonderful and patient women to-day is to take over the use of the machines and use them to build a better future for all Canadians, and all 1,lanetary people. Women indeed have a new role to play in the shaping not only of the work place, but in the re-shaping of our total society, DA. Matgatet Futton pne4ident o.6 Mount St. Vincent Univeuity, Ha-Wax, Canada's oftty women's univeuity. She ms chaitpekson 06 the 6edekat goveknment'4 taisk 6o/tze on Mickoeteettonics.and Emptoyment. Matgatet Fulton was 601tmetty head 06 the Engtizh Dept. at Font Wittiam Categiate. 13x13 by JENNY VAN CRAM ,A response to Micro-Technology - A Subtitle to Women and Economics Artists and crafts people keep us humane. The primary technology of the studio labs tie us to the past. Subtle, demanding, always the illusion of simplicity and romance. Paints, glazes, dyes, lacquers and enamels calculated individually with an understanding machines cannot know. Literature on every topic to tell the secrets of eye ball calculated imperfections. A Philosophy to render the unknown harmless and clean. A vehicle for personalized discipline. No unions - guilds - guides not contracts. An intense language of colour, form, texture, mass and image. More than compensation for contemporary "unstructured" leisure, the fate of the unskilled and unemployed. Reversed, the elite of our day emersed in an investigation of our roots. An opportunity to develop a creative individualism which meshes the traditional roles with the electric age. Meaningful activity at a conscious and contributing level. No one wants to be a bored illiterate of the past. Pottery is the bottom line of technology. On that basis examine the concept that each tea pot is a sculpture. Accept that the fear of "advanced technology" is a fear of the unknown. Know of Ghandi and his spinning and weaving. Accept with pleasure the potential of the new world. The skill to produce quality is a painful and long process. Entering the age of "automated memory" our hands, eyes and hearts must compute the inarticulated flow of our awareness. Emerge from the roles of kept to keeping - peace keeping of our own fears. This is a new age: creativity as NEON, CHIPS, MUTATION and a new monetary system. All of this reliant upon someone who knows when to push which button. Mirror doubt. NORTHERN WOMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Women and the Continued itom page 3 on the Governor General awards "fewer than 20% of jurors have been women and 20% of awards have gone to women"... Worse, women authors are judged by different standards. Books in Canada, the "free" book review-nagazine is heavily government subsidized. It reviews and recommends mainly male authored books (70%) and 77% of the reviewers are male.* it prefers women's bobks to espouse traditional values like romance and routinely Male denegrates a "feminist bias", authors work is described as "making a statement;" of entering into the realm of ideas of significance. A female authors work is considered as emerging from her personal life. If she describes her reality she's bitching; if he describes his, its Literature. Economy Conference Women and the Economy. An Action Conference. On May 13,14,15th over 100 women gathered at Confederation College to hear expert speakers; participate in workshops on various economic concerns; and to develop action plans addressing many economic issues. Action strategies evolving from the Conference include: striving for equal representation of women on the Thunder Bay Economic Development Corporation; developing support systems for non -unionized women workers; planning training needs of women workers in response to the "Chip" revolution; ensuring the establishment of an Advisory Committee to monitor the FBA/GWA integration program; and a series of recommendations concerning educational attitudes and options affecting girls and young women. These action strategies will be carried forward by committees formed at the Conference. (If you are interested in joining any of these committees contact Leni Untinen at 683-5236). The committees are Technology (dealing with 11 resolutions from the Microtechnology and Advanced Technology/Trades workshops); Edu- cation; Economic Development; PRA/ GWA Integration; Changing Roles and Responsibilities; Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value; and a Committee to study Bill 89. Co-ordination of the follow-up action on Women and the Economy will be undertaken by Decade Council. Copies of the Conference report are available from Decade Council or Northern Women's Centre. As well, "audio-tapes of Conference guest spec ers Shirley Carr, Margaret Fulton and Audrey Swail are available for loan by any local or district women': organization. photo by joyce michatchuk Who speaks for worm exetpted ikom atticee by the Pico- Choice Coalition On May 9, Regina's Court of Queen's Bench was the scene for anti-abortionist Joe Borowski's long awaited legal challenge to Canada's abortion law. While Borowski has won the legal right to represent Canadian fetuses in court, a judge has disallowed any other interventions in the trial. No one represented the thousands of Canadian women who face unwanted pregnancies; in fact, no one represented women at all. The critical decision for Canada's future abortion policy lies in the hands of the judge, Joe Borowski, his lawyer Morris Schumiatcher, and legal representatives of the federal Department of Justice whose Minister is the avowedly 'pro-life' Mark McGuigan. Outside the courtroom, however, representatives of many women's community and labour organizations, and the Regina Pro-Choice Coalition, challenged Borowski's case. The law in question, Section 251 of the Canadian Criminal Code, in place since 1969, allows for legal abortion when the 'life or health' of the woman is endangered. Since its adoption, deaths from illegal abortion in Canada have dropped dramatically. The federal government's own taskforce, the Badgley Report, has already documented the regional inadequacies and restrictive nature of the existing law but Borowski's challenge would restrict abortion al- under the law? Could that IUD you've got, which prevents implantation of an already fertilized embryo, make you guilty of manslaughter? Could we return to the old days of illegal abortions which killed (IL b nitand maimed so many? It could happen. lirJoe Borowski's one-man crusade to overrule what 72% of the Canadian population feel should be a matter c individual choice--the right to choc whether and when to bear children- could be successful. The Pro-Choice Coalition, forme this year to defend the right to chc welcomes any individuals or groups Borowski's current legal battle interested in participating. Contact over the 1969 abortion law was iniPro-Choice Coalition, c/o #219-1810 tiated in 1979 and argues that Smith Street, Regina, Sask. ConCanada's Bill of Rights and the newly tributions of a financial nature arE drawn up Charter of Rights guarantee also welcome. of right of life to 'persons' should extend to human fetuses. Delay in the hearing of the case since its initiation awaited a Supreme Court of Canada decision in March of 1982 to allow Borowski legal standing. Thus he was granted ASTERISK ON IS THERE the right to represent fetuses and challenge a law which does not directly YOUR LABEL affect him in any way. Thus the trial went ahead with no input from those most directly (Please .renew your Sub) affected. Canadian women, currently facing limited access to a basic reproductive right--the right to choose--may now face the total removal of that right. Could safe, legal pregnancy termination become murder NEVER AGAIN together. NORTHERN WOMAN page 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �ing Opportunities for Women or the new networks that are bringing together business and professional clubs in an umbrella group. All of them are trying to find new structures. Taking Charge The labour force to which we all belong is part of that system. And, with all due respect to RememberItthe thtitt youttask 6itst will be noo easy to reShirley Carr, and all that she has Women's structure Conietence. it.The excitement worked for, I feel compelled to say ci4 heating your actuatBut gut as I4eeting4 suggested in the that the labour union groups have nety anticutated. inspination deworkshopsThe to-day tha challenge for ver served women's interests well. tived Prom 4eminist speakeAs.the Ponlabour us is to restructure For such union groups like the busimany o4 force. w it happened ten yeah Not to learn to cope with nesses or employers, take their sysago at the NottheAn Women's the4itst system as it is, but to totally tem, their organization, directly Con4etence. change the system. from male-dominated patriarchal patThe challenge of this Confer- terns. Women in the traditional polAnd son some o4 UA, it happened ence to you women is to assess your itical parties or labour union organagain. At 4 p.m, on a Satutday past roles and to image for yourizations invariably find themselves ageAnoon a 4ew weeks ago. Wet selves a new one. We all know that playing secondary roles and exhausa tong and exhausting day o4 .imporfor generations most successful ting their energy in the old competitant economic workshops, we gathermen at the top have risen to their tive struggles. And if you want a ed to ti ten to .. i4 you can ,i maeminent positions because they have footnote on this one let me remind gine.. a univeAsity president. But had a wife who has cooked their you that women are challenging other not a typicat university president.. way into social prominence, and a women who are fitting into the sysAnd certainty not a typicat acadesecretary who has typed them up tems, getting into the power games, mic speech. the political management ladders. and the next thing you know they have We teit theNow auditmium - out this fatigue to challenge establi, eschewed their genuine feminist pexevaporated, out hope renewed, our speakshed order of things is like spective. They are functioning as determination re-eiqotced. The ing against if not motherhood, then pseudo-males in the system, and they stnength, warmth, the energy, mostthe surely against the very men we are no longer really working for wothe wisdom o6 Margaret inlove, We have allDutton been timid about_ men. They are, whether they acknowspiting critiquing us att. As the onesystems woman comin which we ledge it or not, keeping the systems, mented work joyousty "At who tast, I'veto be stoned as they stand, going. As I say, we're because wants 4o and in a rate the modet". streets as a man-hater? Per- not here to cope with those systems, haps it is because we that love our men or to perpetuate those systems, we The NWJ cottective believes that we must now seize the opporare here to change them. Margaret Futton's message shoutd tunities to help them make the deCooperate then among yourselves be shated with alt out teadeAs, cisions that will get society onto and you will find a new synergy stemthus we ate teptoducing her additais a more positive course. And let me ming from your own team spirit, from ,in its entitety. be very clear about this matter, your new integrative efforts. Thoughtful men instead of being threAnd the time is very ripe for atened by women of a feminist persuch new style organizations for thepective as they were in the 60s,and re are two revolutions taking place 70s, now, some of them at least, in our society today which will help welcome women's ideas as the cataus all evolve. One, of course, is the lysts for a new ideology that will feminist revolution, or the women's change society perceptibly. movement about which we'vebeen speaThe ability to critique the king. Recognize its positive value a male systems must never be confused and become part of it if you are not with women's ability to love 0their already deeply committed and involved. individual men. We must challenge 0 "THE CHALLENGE IS-NOT TO LEARN those groups that would trivialize 0, TO COPE WITH THE SYSTEM...BUT the women's movement as a mere "batTO TOTALLY CHANGE THE SYSTEM" tle of the sexes". Unfortunately, women have in the past through pure The other is the "Chip Revolusentimentalism been discouraged tion" which again is really an evoluMy task this afternoon is to from analysing and trying to change tion because technology has been here pull together some suggestions which the system. But being taken to lunch for centuries. Read the Task Force may help women to take charge of on Secretaries Day, chocolates at report carefully. Study the recommentheir lives rather than being left Christmas and flowers on birthdays, dations and determine which you think the victims of an ailing economy. are no substitute for equal pay for are effective ways to change society, In our workshops we concentrated on equal work, for day care facilities, And then, barrage the politicians to very specific problems faced by or for good pension rights. make sure they implement those recomwomen both inThe ourloss working and old kind of of that mendations. Write the Minister of domestic lives. Now, more generally sentimentality which has been the Labour, and copy the Prime Minister, I want to sketch in some ideas about most subtle way of keeping clerical and the Minister of Employment and the general evolution of our society workers and secretaries and wives Immigration, and the Minister of FinWomen, particularly, have been ' invisible is the beginnings of a Indeed, the Minister of Finsocialized since the industrializedwho ance. new evolution for all women ance has said in his last budget speage to accept our roles as a seconenter the labour force. All too ofech that we need a centre to examine dary labour force. We have been ten the oppressed have tended, throexactly what technology is doing to socialized to believe that our opiughout history, to participate in society. What we have to determine nions are of no consequence in the their own oppression in exchange for is what women will be represented at great scheme of things. The hiersmall comfort and gains, even for that Centre and at the planning stages archial ordering of events and vaprotection and privilege; but proWe must learn to be a more effective lues which comes directly out of tection and privilege are poor allobby. We must speak out about our the Pa'.:riarchial System under which ternatives for equality and genuine rights to work in a high quality enwe all liberation. function must now be called Effective organization now will vironment. The impact of microtechnointo question. And I would venture assist you in your professional delogy is already being felt in all our to velopment. say there as yet does not exit But let me warn you to do homes an workplaces across the counanyyour major industry ownbusiness, organizing. If youorneed institution in our society that is try. assistance seek it from what are The "Chip" revolution as it is notnow organized on the vertical vision the established women's groups called can help us evolve that new of across societythe which meanswho power the country haveatchallensocial paradigm needed to replace top, and a status descending set of boxes ged the quo..and you know the outmoded patriarchal one. And if strung out on linear lines, unless who these groups are, they have sponI heard Dusty Miller's question corperhaps a few small renegade sored in this Conference today, Seek it rectly I think that's exactly what companies of little or no consefrom the Status of Women's groups, you were focusing for us:p.the need alized or the National Action Committee, co have those different kinds of work. because act, they of the Canadian Congress of Learnr our new continued on Page 8 NORTHERN V OMAN page 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Because You Are a Woman Mau fn By Luan Watt., Noma Win-tout, Thompson Such is the name of one of the programmes run by the Rural Development Centre, CEPRO, in El Salvador. Its aim is to make more women aware of their own, individual attitudes and psychology, to question their subordinate position in their society. Topics covered at the centre include discussions on socially determined personality differences, attitudes and why they differ between the sexes, breaking the traditional role stereo-typing. CEPRO is a church organization with a number of centres throughout the country. Although not exclusively concerned with women's issues, it is concerned with the training of community leaders, skills promotion and networking. Trainees attend programmes on literacy, sewing, health, nutrition, community work and family planning. Developing organizational skills is tantamount - women in rural area then with women (Sr. Uuacialupe is not unique) may be a surprise - for many of us Catholicism is usually summed up in terms of the Vatican's oppressive position on contraceptives, abortion and women's role within the family. In places like El Salvador, for many women it is through their involvement with christian organizations that they become politically and self-consciously aware. Many are now involved in the struggle for social justice in El Salvador. Sr. Guadalupe emphasizes that the radical church must acknowledge a changing reality. The nuclear family is seriously undermined, communal living situations must be accepted, safe family planning methods are necessary to alleviate the problems of unwanted and abandoned children and the plight of the single mother. She sees the church's task as one to ensure that the political visions of the armed struggle to create a new society be vested with a certain religious spirituality. have the confidence and knowledge to "As christians we want socialism to form neighbourhood groups and demand have a special meaning and our task basic services such as drainage, wais to ensure that the new society, ter or electricity supplies. based on a true democracy of open The family planning programmes' and constructive criticism, will be mentioned above came in response to more humanitarian and caring. Mara government initiative which sought riage has traditionally tied women to reduce population growth at all to their husbands and children and costs. Predictablylit was aimed at they have therefore been restricted working clags and rural women with in their activities outside the home. no concern for their welfare, sexual In the new society women will not education or freedom to choose. The be limited in this way .. we will 'church rejected the idea that demoghave government nurseries by peoraphic explosion was at the root of ple who are politically aware.." El Salvador's economic and social Incited by such views, many woproblems. It felt that the solution men in El Salvador are becoming inwould only come through far reaching creasingly aware of their power, structural changes such as agrarian strength, needs and plight. Although reform, education and welfare proviunder the impression that feminists sion. are "bra burning, men haters" or a Sister Guadalupe, a Carmelite nun, a socialist, a christian and most of product of the "corrupt bourgeois system" they, at the same time, all a woman, very much represents the enlightened attitudes of the share our concerns for the need for Catholic Church in many Latin Amerchange in the traditional concepts ican countries, and also the growing of woman's place in society - in strength of women in El Salvador. terms of equal education and work Although she never heard the word opportunities, personal relation'feminist' before going to Mexico ships and childcare. Many of these (where she now lives in exile, havwomen are, as I said, very political ing fled threats on her life) Sr. ..to such an extent that there is a Guadalupe has spent many years workstrong belief that the revolution ing in programmes with women of the must come first and women's demands shanty towns and rural areas of El will then be addressed and met. On Salvador. Basic to her involvement a more cautionary note, despite the is a conviction of the need to infact that women make up over 40% crease women's awareness of the opof the revolutionary council of the pression imposed, and to encourage FIR (Democratic Revolutionary Front) them to become involved at a communthere is no specific reference to ity level to improve their situation. women in its edicts. A unitary woA member of the 'radical church' men's organization does not yet exSr. Guadalupe is committed to the ist. However there are encouraging 'theology of liberation'. The latter signs. Radio Vinceremos, the insurhas spread through Latin America gents radio, now broadcasts a weekly since the mid-sixties and combines programme directed to women, and rea marxist analysis of class structure cently women members from within with christian humanitarianism. the FDR visited the USA and Europe. Included in the philosophy is a They are now working to promote rejection of the traditional tenets women's demands within their polion the subordinate position of womtical organization. Support is needed, and more inforen. Small communities make up the radical church's basic structure. mation on women's struggles in other They serve as consciousness raising parts of the world. Send any matergroups - often using methods and ial to: RADIO VINCEREMOS expressing views about women similar Women's Programme to those found in women's groups in PROGRAMA PARA LA MUJER many developed countries. APARTADO 7-907 That the church involves itself MEXICO D.F. MEXICO in consciousness raising activities NORTHERN W OMAN page 6 Female Infanticide in China by Joyce Michaichuk A campaign by the government of the People's Republic of China to limit family size to one child is causing a resurgence of female infanticide, and the beating of women giving birth to girls. What's provoking these actions, reported by Shirley Armstrong Small in the April edition of Science 83 magazine, are old feudal attitudes (and economics) which regard the birth of males as more desirable to families in China. About 135 million peasant families believe that, traditionally, a son can help with the farmwork and support the parents after retirement, whereas there are no tangible benefits to be derived from daughters who, again, traditionally, move into her husband's home and take care of his parents. That this practice is re-surfacing at the present day is horrifying (with equally horrifying implications inherent), and the Chinese government, which imposed the campaign to limit family size in order to control China's ever-increasing population, is attempting to address the situation with billboards showing two parents holding a baby girl. The caption? "You'd better have one child only." Unfortunately, although Premier Zhao Ziyang has publicly stated that female infanticide and the maltreatment of mothers must be condemned under pain of public punishment (the state cannot sustain a looming population imbalance), old attitudes are hard to break. New government measures which include permitting daughters to take over their retired fathers' factory jobs and to take their mothers' surnames are, admittedly, catching on slowly. In the meantime, stories are continuing to circulate regarding the once-common practice of drowning femal-a infants; the beating of wives who have given birth to females; inlaws forcing divorce, hoping the son's next wife will produce a grandson; women aborting fetuses found to be female (determined by amniocentesis) and women in the provinces having abortions because they have conceived during a time when tradition holds that a son will not likely be producIt has also been reported that ed. these pressures have caused suicides and mental breakdowns. off our backs PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Regional Routes North Bay Transition House by Valerie Adams The North Bay Women's Resource Centre has received contributions from the federal government to do a feasibility study on the needs of battered women in North Bay and surrounding area. The Transition House Project got underway January 24, 1983, and has had an overwhelming response thus far. The Project has a questionnaire circulating among 20 agencies and has had 60 incidents of wife battering to date. The initial data and community interest point to, the need for a transition house. Therefore, the Project is pursuing different levels of funding and is in the process of negotiating for a house. The target date for the establishment of North Bay Interval House is September 1, 1983. Violence against women has always been within society and, finally, steps are being taken to condemn wife battering and bring it out in the open. Transition houses are needed to provide an alternative to women who live with violence. Future Feminists Sudbury A new approach to career counselling has been established at the Sudbury Secondary School. The MENTOR PROGRAMME hopes to bring women already employed in non-traditional occupations face to face with female students who express an interest in these fields. Ms. Sharon Gorham, career counsellor, says the two may hopefully want to meet regularily, or just when the student needs further information or clarification. She is presently looking for interested female participants. These women are asked to fill out a school form for filing purposes in order to match students with mentors. Statistics sight the following facts: women entering non-traditional careers will more likely emerge from an environment where the mother works and is in a high-level, nontraditional job; the father is an "achievement role model" and a source of job related identification for the daughter's career orientation; family socio-economic status is high; family size is small; the daughter is first or early born among other sisters; the peer group serves an important influence. Note that vocational counsellors' influence is negligible. Thus, it is important to provide a strong role model and the opportunity for the female student to discuss a career with a won-an employed in that field. North Bay The annual North Bay Teen Conference was "the biggest and best ever", says Valerie Adams of the Women's Centre. The two day conference was attended by 150 young women. On Friday March 3, 1983, Sue Johansen, the guest speaker, spoke about "Talking to Children about Sex". The next day, among some of the workshops that were held included a panel on non-traditional jobs, modelling, make-up _demonstrations, as well as a special session for Francophones. Adams explains, "The conference is becoming quite a popular event. Teachers' and womens' organizations help support it through funding, endorsements, supplies and volunteers". Self-Healing Workshops Topics: 1. Healing through Visualization. 2. Fundamentals of Herbal Medicine. 3. Field Trip Identification of Some Important Wild Herbs (June August). 4. Healing Properties of Some Important Wild Herbs. 5. Practical Directions - for growing herbs, and for picking, drying and preserving cultivated and wild herbs. Price is negotiable in relation to income and financial backing of the participants. For more information, or to make arrangements contact Doreen Worden or Isabel Andrews RR#2, Kenora, Ont., P9N 3W8. If you are from out of town, assistance with arrangements for camping and accomodation for the physically challenged is available. Worden and Andrews will travel if their expenses are paid. They are a lesbian couple, ages 49 and 51, who are committing much of their energy to reclaim the womin's healing heritage and encouraging other womyn to do the same. They publish "Voices: A survival Manual for Wimmin". They make their living by housecleaning, peddling herbs and other products, through reflexology and through selfhealing workshops. Workshops are open to wimmin, wimmin and kids, or kids. . Note from the Editors Due to a request by some of the northern Ontario regional women at the National Action Committee Annual General Meeting, NWJ is including this new feature in our future issues So far, we have been taking information from regional women's newsletters. However, any or all articles are welcome from women's organizations and centres, and individuals across northern Ontario. There are no monetary rewards for this. It is an attempt at "networking". Contributions of a regional/ issue oriented nature will receive undivided attention. BUT REMEMBER!!! THE SUCCESS OF THIS FEATURE DEPENDS ON YOU. Your participation is appreciated .Thanks to Valerie Adams from North Bay for her contribution for this. issue. (NWJ reserves the right to edit and publish. A copy of the editorial policy will be forwarded upon request.) Lay-Offs and Their Effects Arja Lane I was recently a participant at a conference on Women and the Economy here in Thunder Bay, at which I had a chance to get involved in a workshop on Effects of Layoffs--Backlash... The workshop turned out to be a real consciousness raiser about being un. employed. We thoughtfully felt that women's liberation is connected to the economic independence of women. That nfkans demanding that we have, a basic right to a job. We have to reinforce that it isn't less important for a woman to be laid-off her job than it is for a man; that a family man is more deserving of a job than a single woman is a myth in these times of increasing divorce rates where women become the heads of single-parent families. That job is just as important to a woman. And, when that job is taken away from us because of sexist, capitalist raising children, is less valuable than some jerk working at promoting Mr. Clean, for instance. Let's destroy this myth by suggesting that being out of the labour force actually puts you in a very pasmismanagement of the market, then at least let's not feel like we are indi- sive state as far as making it all vidually failing. work. You aren't helping the system- you are unemployed by the system. We have to remember that we are Doing the bureaucratic steps with not usually unemployed by choice, and that we cannot let a system that does the Unemployment Insurance Commission and Welfare can be quite frustrating not respond to our needs make us feel useless. and time consuming, and confusing, We found lay-offs, leading to and demeaning. We noted that the endless form filling made us feel quite unemployment, leading to de-employment to be an issue with very complex roots, stupid at times (and you don't need that kind of reinforcement when you but we noted some interesting points are already unemployed). Then, having about lay-offs and the vicious circle it can start you on. to look for jobs that weren't there, all to keep their bureaucracy working. layed-off meant being jobPerhaps we should do away with less, and being jobless eventually could lead to feeling respectless, and that one bureaucracy and let our employpretty soon you could feel like a ers administer unemployment insurance failure. The system says we are usebenefits, with them contributing more to unemployment insurance benefits ful members of society if we are also members of the paid labour force. This than they do now--maybe they would be implies that women's unpaid work in the home, i.e., cooking, cleaning, continued on Page 14 NORTHERN WOMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �TAKING CHARGE DON'T Dr. Margaret Fulton AGONIZE continued Ftom Page 5 structures. If part-time is a word that puts you off, if contract is a word that puts you off..find different ways of describing how we work, the different ways in which we work, and the different times in our lives that we need to work. But all of that will add up to a new social paradigm, one quite different to what we exper ience today. Despite all the gloomy forecasts about how office automation will displace workers, it does not have to happen that way. We do not have to be the victims of technology. We can take charge of it and re-direct the energy of our society. Nevertheless I am not naive. Since women form 98.8% of office employees as typists, clerks and secretaries, women stand to be seriously disadvantaged unless they take charge now. Already the lay-offs because of the introduction of wordprocessors can be chalked up. To what extent the layoffs can be directly attributed to the acquisition of new machines, or to what extent they are attributable to the present economic slump is a moot point. There can be no doubt that we are in a difficult transition period moving from an industrial age to a technological one. It must "be clearly stated as it is in the Task Force report that technology itself is neither good or bad. Automation to benefit the human race is a great' ideal, but ruthless automation is a process without conscience promoted by those to whom human lives are but numbers on a profit and loss sheet. The laissez-faire attitude playes into the hands of immoral power groups motivated by profit, by greed. Those are the groups that will abuse the use of our new technologies. Computers don't have a life of their own. If they can make possible a delivery system of nuclear weapons which will destroy life on this planet, it is because some person has programmed the computer to do just that. "W E DO NOT HAVE TO B E VICTIMS OF TECHNOLOGY" Women's involvement in the development of high technology has a longer history than we probably realize. Micro-electronics is a generic term for the development of transitor technology which integrates numbers of electronic components into a single chip of semi conductor material, normally pure silicon. In the 1960's the earliest versions of integrated circuits contained only a few components mostly for military applications. Prior to that wou had thousands of women working as clerks with less sophisticated adding machines making the connections now made by the computers. In fact the first computers were not machines at all. The word "computer" was the job description given to 200 women who calculated firing tables for the U.S. army during World War 11. Three months work was necessary to produce a single table of 3000 artillery shell trajectories. The development have control of that fascinating word-processor which can help you gain greater control over all aspects of the company's operation. The "Information Revolution".is part of the "Feminist Revolution" and the "Chip Revolution". Keep up with new ideas. Women have a key role to play. As the information organizers, you are in a position to make connections in the manner of the chip. then from old style calculators, to digital computers, to silicon transistors, and from there to the more sophisicated micro-electronics equipment being loaded into your offices today has taken place in the space of a few decades. No wonder we have difficulty in knowing how to use the equipment effectively. No wonder the impact on the future remains unknown. Simple chips today contain a million or more components and mass production makes them cheap. The "Chip" will affect all our lives! Whether technology turns our workplaces into the old sweat shops of former times, or whether it can be used to free us all from boring repetitive activities depends on how we learn to use it. It is clear that technology can be seen as appropriate, that is a technology which comes from fusion, from connections, from silicon and sand and which is used to benefit the human race, or technology can be seen as entirely inappropriatethat is a technology which comes from fission and is used in nuclear missiles for totally destructive purposes. Which do we choose? From the peace marches around the world it seems to me that women, at least, are making a very strong statement that we choose a positive capability not a negative destruction. Albert Einstein, that great scientist and lover of humanity wrote somewhat sadly after he'd discovered the formulae wt,ich gave us our nuclear technology: "When we released energy from the atom, everything changed except our way of thinking. Because of that we drift towards unparalled disaster." The only way we stop that drift toward disaster is to change our way of think- The new inter-connectedness of ideas can become the concept which will spring us out of the old conceptual trap of patriarchy. Microelectronics can be the wedge to open up a new world cooperative society based on partnerships. The information society is here now. We are looking into each other's back yards all around the globe, all around our little planet. What we have to do is teach ourselves to relate in a globe way and in an information way... wisely. That brings me hack to my concluding point about organizing to improve our personal lives to fit in more effectively with our working lives. Certainly one way is to try t to awaken our economists and our pol iticians to the fact women are equal partners in the labour force. Women cannot be relegated to a secondary role. Nor can the domestic work done by women in our homes any longer be considered an irrelevant part of the gross national product. "productivity" is the "in" word right now, but productivity is really not the issue. The world is glutted with commercial products which it seems no one can afford to buy. Economists must come to recognize what all wo men know. That there are two kinds of work that are done daily. The "waged work" we do in offices, at our jobs, where someone else pays us, very often a small stipend, for it. Then there is the "unwaged work" that we do in our homes to sustain the quality of our personal lives. These two types of work must be brought into proper focus if our economic forecasts are to have any meaning. ing. The new role fow women who are part of the labour force is to also become part of the management force. And the new management systems should surely no longer be based on a linear projection and those vertical boxes, but rather we need to form quality circles: circles where" inter-connections and crucial decisions are made. And we need to start imaging ourselves and thinking about ourselves in a totally different way. So instead of working in the vertical vision of society we start moving round and drawing all people into the circles. If you work in an office don't ever again when asked what you do respond "Oh, I'm just a secretary, or I'm just an office worker, or I'm just a clerical person". Instead, reply, "I'm part of the participatory management circle which makes the decisions for the whole company". (I) After all, you photo by Joyce michrtYchuk Work on the job in the mainstream economy is often satisfying but sometimes unpleasant, routine, or stultifying. The value of technology should be to reduce the amount of work rc.uired for "Productivity". If such work is carefully continued on Page 13 NORTHERN W OMAN page 8 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �NAC AGM lobby group, it should be bilingual, the move would be benificial. However strong disa-greement was voiced by a Talking, line-ups, listening, looking, little over half of the membership being looked at, sitting getting mainly due to fears of co-option by the sore, eye strain, politicking,allying, federal government and satisfication voting, assessing, judging, liking, with the level of bilingualism already hating, manipulating, representing, attained by the Toronto staff. lobbying, eating, maybe sleeping. The French-Canadian members voted That's the national Action Commsolidly for the move, the motion was ittee's annual general meeting. It lost and NAC remains Toronto based.. was certainly fascinating to see, Another highlight surrounded Bill hear and speak with women from across 675, an act to amend the Broadcasting the country who, in their own ways Act. Pornography, as we all know, is work for the betterment of the status big business and nothing in the of'Canadian women, Broadcasting Act protects the woman's The three and a half day event held image. What NAC supported was the in Ottawa (March 25-28) was highlightfollowing addition "... no station, ed by a discussion of a move of head network, operation, on pay television office from Toronto to Ottawa. Since license shall broadcast any abusive most of the lobbying work done by NAC comment or abusive pictorial representis at a federal level (the constitution ation on any race, religion, creed or pornorgraphv, native women's rights, sex...". This legislation will give disarmament,etc) and, as a national judicial teeth to any violation of the In Ottawa, International Women's Week/Semaine Internationale des Femmes was celebrated from March 7-13. A comprehensive program of celebration an and political education was carried on throughout the week. On Saturday, March 12th the International Women's Day March and Rally was held. Approximately 300 women gathered at Parliament Hill and marched through downtown Ottawa, stopping at the War Memorial to observe a minute's silence following the reading of the following declaration by Helen Durie "We are here at the War Memorial In Rage In Resistance In Strength, In Hope, and In Affirmation Of Life We are here in remembrance of all the women, who have suffered and died in wars fought by men - at home, on the streets, with politics and on battlefields We are here for every woman raped in every war For every elderly woman whose life has been reduced to poverty and starvation For every lesbian who has been imprisoned and burnt and denied living and loving For every woman who has died from an illegal abortion For every woman battered, often to her death, by her husband, boyfriend, father, or son We remember Indian women who were killed by white settlers, and settler women carried off by Indian war parties We remember the women who died or were wounded at Hiroshima, Nagasaki and everywhere where bombs have fallen from the sky We remember all our sisters who have died or been poisoned, or were never born, as a result of nuclear radiation - in Utah, in China, in the Soviet Union, in the South Pacific, and elsewhere We are here for Karen Silkwood who was murdered for her opposition to the nuclear industry, and for our sisters everywhere who have died in resistance For all our dead and wounded sisters, named and unnamed, we dedicate our lives, in unity and in diversity, to transforming this world so that our grandchildren and future generations can live in harmony and peace and joy with each other." "sex" part of the act, making it enforceable. As it now stands, women have to bring each violation to the courts with each individual violator and prove the fact. legislaMore resolutions included tion of mandatory affirmative action in the private sector; affirmative action programmes in the public sector, the implementation of a National Day Care Act for universal, quality day care; the withdrawal of Canada from NATO and NORAD; the declaration of this country as a nuclear free zone. The most fascinating aspect of the three day meeting was the unity and oneness of purpose displayed by women from so many different social and economic backgrounds - Communists and Conservatives, the rich and the poor, the radical feminist and the liberated lady. The rivalry was apparant but the cohesiveness outshone the discord. : For Every Woman over our sexuality, lower wages, a conspiracy of silence against women's experience, and more. This is true whether we are immigrant women, native women, longtime Canadians, farmers, lesbians, office workers, students, mothers, daughters, or women in other countries. Through music, skits and speecles 'women as survivors' were celebrated at the Rally following the march.The following address by Karen Luks was a Rally highlight. "For her crime of being unmarried and pregnant, a young woman is arrested and tried. Her sentence is one hundred lashes in the public square and two years in prison. This is life in Pakistan under military fundamentalist rule. A young woman is raped by her supervisor. For the next two years she struggles for justice and to be transferred to another department. Her demands are ignored as her employers try to bury the incident in red tape and hope it will be forgotten. Their response is to try to prove that she is mentally incompetent. This is life in Canada under a democratic government. These two women live across the globe from each other in radically different cultures, but their oppression stems from similar attitudes towards women as seductresses and as the property It is an astonishing fact that women survive the constant undermining of our social, economic, and political rights. Not only do we survive, but we dare to dream of a future for ourselves and our children in a world free of oppression. There are no quick or simple solutions to our problems. They will not end with a change in government or even a change in laws or with more women as heads of corporations or heads of state or with the opening of one more daycare centre. And they will never end if we work alone. Together we must search more deeply for the causes and the answers. It has never been women's choice to be linked through our historic and global oppression. But it can be women's choice to be linked with one another in our struggle for a safe, s sane, and green world. Today is a day of celebration of women as survivors. But as sisters we must fight together to go beyond survival: to create a world free of all forms of oppression against women." of men. We are linked within and across national and cultural boundaries to women all over the world. We are part of one vast web struggling to survive in a patriarchal world which values men more highly than women, winning more highly than human life, the rich more highly than the poor, and technology more highly than the earth and the life which grows from it. This system of values works against us in all parts of our lives. It leads to a slow and endless stream of barriers that wear us down: financial dependence, violence in the home and on the street, disrespect, poverty, control NWJ member MaAgaiLet Phiteio way in Ottawa and paAticipated in the TWD Match. Appteciation '1.4 extended to Ottawa women Helen Dmie, Helen Fon6ey, Shetyt GeAvai4, Karen Lutz6, Lynn TyZet, ion peAm&mion -to nepkint theift oeechez. CongAatutation4 to att the Ottawa women who made I Women'. Week a guat 6uccaz NORTHERN WOMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �I swear it to you I swear it on my common woman's head The common woman is as common as a common loaf of bread and will rise! Women & Words Information has been received about an exciting Conference to be held at the University of British Columbia campus, Vancouver from June 30 to July 3, 1983. Women and Words/les femmes et les mots will bring to-gether women working with the written word: writers, editors, printers, publishers, booksellers, critics, translators, teachers and librarians. The three day Conference will be structured around issues, problems and innovations for women in associated fields. In addition to scheduled workshops and panel discussions there will be networking sessions for women from across the country to gather together according to their regions and their areas of Trades & Technology KATHRYN BRULE The Confederation College presentations and displays in celebration of International Women's Day featured Women in Trades and Technology. While women are registered in Trades programs, Dave DeKnock, Director of the Trades Division, pointed out that the number of women in programs such as Welding and the Mechanics interest. Participants include Canadian novelists and poets (including Joy Kogawa, Marian Engel, Margaret Atwood and Jane Rule) as well as women involved in publiShing, editing, along with journalists, crit ics, and playwrights. For further information about this bilingual, country-wide Conference write to West Coast Women and Words Society, Box 65563, Station F, Vancouver, V5N 4B0. Affirm It! Improved equal pay legislation and narrowing the gap between men and women appear to have a high priority for Robert Welch, newly appointed Ministerfor Women in Ontario.They certainly have a high priority for women affected by such wage discrepano. ies. According to the Ontario Federation of Labour's statement on affirmative action "the government's failure to adopt and enforce strong equal pay laws has been the most effective wage restraint mechanism ever devised." In an interview on May 18, Mr Welch's stand on affirmative action appeared less positive than hoped. He equates mandatory affirmative action with an arbitrary quota system and feels the expansion of voluntary affirmative action to be a better solution. The perception of mandatory affirmative action as being simply an arbitrary quota system reflects the very attitude that advocates of affirmative action are attempting to overcome. Ontario Federation of Labour sees affiirmative action as being action desig -ned to remove barriers to equality, to overcome past and present discrimination and to improve the economic - SURVEYING THE FUTURE status of women. Affirmative Action Plans are programmes to acheive these goals through 1. Analysis of the status of women and men in the workplace. 2. Review of personnel practises to identify systematic discrimination. 3. Establi6hment of targets or quotas and timetables for employing women : at all levels. 4. Monitoring and evaluation of systems to assess progress. To acheive any of the above a change in attitude must come about - both at an educational level and in the ranks of management. Locally, Confederation College is about to meet part of this need. A new two year programme is expected to be approved for this fall. Entitled Equal Opportunity Management, within the Business Division of the College, it will incorporate affirmative action concepts in its training. Lisa Minville, co-ordinator for the proposed programme, feels that it will serve as a means to assist industry to integrate equal opportunities within their existing framework. Thus their image and standing as major employers within the community would be enhanced. courses would probably remain low but steady. To a great extent this reflects the obstacles faced by women seeking employment in areas traditionally and tenaciously held to be male preserves. The fields of Technology, however give an entirely different prospect. Tech areas are new - new enough to be more readily accessible on the basis of training and skill, with less gender bias. P. Ramanathan, Director of the Technical Division, said that women in these programs have been highly successful.. These women are dedicated students, highly motivated to prove themselves, and eager to secure more lucrative employment. The technological revolution has actually been underway for quite a while now, and the phase out of minimum-skill labour will continue, as a result of automation and high technology. By the time the country emerges from the present depression we will see a whole new employment horizon. (The recent cut-backs in Federal funding for conventional training programs underline the reality of this trend toward an economy thoroughly based on high technology.) Ramanathan has travelled extensively in Northern Europe and Russia, and as a result of the studies he has made of the training and work practices in those areas, feels that Canada is far behind, in regard to education and employment of women, both in trades and in technology. He is concerned about how much less effective Canadian education is in preparing students, especially women, for post-secondary training in technological areas, which will inevitably provide the basis for well-paid employment. Both Dave DeKnock and P. Ramanathan feel there must be an emphasis on continuing revision in education for preparation for living in the technological era. These comments reflect the concerns of Audrey Swail, Ministry of Labour, Women's Bureau, who conducted a workshop on Education and Female Poverty, at the Women and the Economy Conference workshop held recently at Confederation College. Swail emphasized that the present most urgent concern was the education of young women to become self-relient and financially independant. The schooling they receive should equip students with marketable skills. More and more, this means skills in the areas of technology. Continued on pg 14 NORTHERN W OMAN page 10 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �GPoet C3r 52 Children gone - a search for youth Wandering husband's eyes-- 52 - a pass in a class - a democratic majority I Love My Car 52% - what we get paid for equal work 52% - Wonen, strong in numbers a majority - yet singularily alone WE ARE ONE The fact of our sex transgresses all boundaries When we realize the aggregate All is possible, at least 52% of the time Joy Fedorick Dear Daughter that I never had, there's a myth I would dispell, that your spine is silly putty and your heart is soft as well. Sone would teach you language,, and sone Would teach you skill, but I would teach you to delight in your woman's iron will. For you leaped to life, my darling, through a woman's blood and pain, you were screaming in defiance and equipped to swim upstream. You were born to strive and struggle, born to risk and born to dare. You're the lifeblood of the planet and your place is everywhere. love my car. cot a few miles on her, yes, And a few years; And a bit of rust, yeah, And she guzzles gas; Eut I love her. Costs me for an hour .:hat they pay me; And that's cheap. She's worth more. Costs me for other things... ¶ell, like the painting; Costs me more than I make, Except the wife does it for free. 3ut don't go thinking she works hard; She's lazy. She even gets me To do the dishes...occaisionally; And if I'm hone,. I have to babysit when she works,. And she won't even help pay my debts. She just buys things for the house-Gifts for the kids--you know. She should do more housewOrk. She costs me almost as much ?s the car. Her and the kid. ;Wish she'd leave me Wish she'd take the kid 'faybe I could buy some new seatcovers Have the rusty parts replaced... Susan Collin Hawkins Gert Beadle Elephant Stew Take one elephant Add a creative thought Mix in an ounce of common sense And a pound of intuition Lace sparingly with freshly-shed tears Then add a large dash of hope Simmer gently over new energy_ And stir once every full moon. When all ingredients are subtly intermingled Cut into bite-size morsels And share with Womankind So can your problem be remedied- Shared and consumed One bite at a time!! Joy Fedorick NORTHERN W OMAN page 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �THE NORTH AMERICAN BOY: the stranger beside me Gerald Eugene Stano? Does this name mean anything? This is the jovial, soft-spoken motel clerk who is the most prolific mass murderer in U.S. criminal history. Stano killed 39 women. Arrested in Tampa, Florida, he was described by detectives as "basically having a dislike of women". The Toronto Star gave Stano's arrest a few paragraphs on an inside page. The story was ignored by most Canadian newspapers. Then there is Crystal Sheane. Do you recognize her name? The 23-yearold Chilliwack woman was found dead, the 35th victim of the Trans-Canada Highway Murderer (or murderers). Crystal's death, along with a few facts about the unsolved highway crimes, was mentioned briefly by the media in connection with the discovery of the bodies of the Bentley and Johnson families who were brutally murdered in B.C. last September. Aside from this, very little information has appeared about the highway murders. The fact of the matter is that mass killings of all kinds have become so commonplace in the North American continent that they are hardly newsworthy anymore. The media are drawn to only the most dramatic stories, such as the Atlanta killings where the killer seemed to be playing a game with the police by striking every day, or cases where the killer can be dubbed with a distinctive nickname: the Boston Strangler, the Monster of Jersey, the Yorkshire Ripper and so on. Mere mass rapists such as the man who terrorized Thunder Bay two years ago make only local news and are forgotten. Which brings us to Ted Bundy, a personable, handsome young man that mass murderers are so often declared to be, or so his friend Ann Rule claims in her best-selling book, The Stranger Beside Me (Signet Paperback, $3.95). Ann Rule met Bundy when they were working together as counsellors at a phone-in crisis centre in Seattle in 1971. Bundy, at that time a psychology student at the University of Washington, just oozed boyish charm. Ann brought him sandwiches--"he looked so frail". During the long nights waiting for distress calls, they talked private lives. Bundy told about his long-term relationship to girlfriend Meg, but he also confided that he had other women on the side Meg knew nothing about. Ann admired this sort of Don Juanism; much later, she would joke to him in letters she wrote to him in prison, "Be sure not to get your letters to your women mixed up". It never occurred to her to see Bundy's dishonesty to his girlfriend as a serious character defect. If Ann was completely taken in by Bundy, others were not. The fact that he was an habitual thief who "picked up" things he said he needed such as a stereo and a TV was known to several people including his girlfriend Meg. Other people were just instinctively suspicious. One of these was Meg's best friend who considered Bundy to be a con man. She was right. Bundy was the type of guy who was extraordinarily nice to people when NORTHERN WOMAN page 12 REVIEW by Joan Baril died because they had been hitch-hikhe wanted something from them--the ing--even though there was no evident use of a car or a short-term loan. that they had been. Still the public One elder11- woman, a fellow employee, reasoned that women who hitchhike lent him money and waited in vain to "just ask for it", these women had be repaid. Finally she called up been killed and therefore they must Bundyts mother to ask her to remind have been hitchhiking. It was a neat him. She was laughed at. "You were if illogical means of explaining a fool to lend him money." away a horrendous situation and The Victorians would have labelled blaming the victims at the same time. him a "cad" or a "bounder" and shunned him. In 20th Century North America, The number of women hitch-hikers decreased; the murders continued. where character is labelled style and The arm-in-the-sling ploy was pubstyle is all, people judged him as a licized and so Bundy switched to a charming, upwardly mobile young man. leg-in-a-cast, carrying and dropping Bundy made that charm pay. He used an old-fashioned briefcase and lookit to land a thousand-dollar-a-week ing helpless. One witness recalled job with the state Republican party and then sleaze his way into law school meeting him in the street. "He was on crutches and he was carrying a He would still be with us today, kind of old-fashioned briefcase... being boyishly charming as a TV polihe kept dropping, picking it up and tician, or cutting a well-groomed then dropping it again...He smiled figure in court. The fact that he had at me. He looked like he wanted me no principles, that he was dishonest to help him and I was almost going and that he hated women would not have to...until I noticed his eyes...they stood in his way. However, Bundy were very weird and they gave me the started to kill. In a short 18 months, creeps. I began walking very rapidly, he killed or mutilated 20 women, and Bundy's downfall was, strangely he used his cute boyishness to do it. enough, a most naive and trusting Bundy killed for enjoyment--the young woman, 18-year-old Carol Da ultimate sport. He preferred a certain Ronch, who was easily conned into physical type: small women with long, Bundy's car with a fake policeman straight hair. Like most rapists and story. Carol may have been trusting mass killers, he picked his victim but she was also incredibly gutsy. carefully in advance. He liked to As soon as she realized they were cruise the university area looking not heading for the police station, for a woman who seemed preoccupied as she tried to jump out of the car. she walked along. Once his victim was "In an instant, he clamped a handmarked out, he would go into his act. cuff on her right wrist. She fought He slipped one arm in a sling and him, kicking...scratching him, walked by, carrying a large stack of screaming at the top of her lungs," books which would topple over as the Bundy pulled a gun and threatened to victim approached. If she stopped to shoot. Carol got the car door open help, he would ask her to carry the and hurled herself out. He came afbooks to his car. No one knows exactter her with a crowbar. "She put up ly what happened next. Somehow he one hand...managed to keep it away from her head, She kicked at his genitals and broke free." Eventually feisty Carol Da Ronch would be the key witness responsible for Bundy's conviction. Imprisoned for the kidnapping of Da Ranch, Bundy was transferred to Aspen to be tried for the death of another woman he had murdered while vacationing in Colorado. Shortly after, he escaped from prison and became a sort of folk hero to the trendy Aspenites--the man who laughs would get the woman in the car; perat locks, the subject of humorous haps he used a gun. Later the horribpieces in the local paper: ly mutilated body would be discovered at a lonely place. "So let's salute the mightyyBundy Here on Friday, gone on Monday Sometimes a victim escaped. One woman was saved by a finely-tuned All his roads led out of town sixth sense. She had carried the books It's hard to keep a good man down." to the car and she happened to look into the vehicle. She noticed that Bundy, who killed for ego gratification, for sport, had at lastZfaund the passenger seat was missing. She an appreciative audience. recalled, "Something about the missing Captured, he escaped again to passenger seat caused the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end". Tallahasee, Florida where, in one She dropped the books and ran. incredible night of mass murder, he On July 14, 1979, Bundy, arm in killed four students in the women's dormitory of Florida State University sling, strolled a beach asking women and then crippled for life another to help him put his sailboat on his woman in a nearby apartment house. A car. Most women refused but one obligingly followed him away from the week later he killed his last victim, beach area. He murdered her, disposa 12-year-old girl. Carol Da Ronch was the key witness again at his tria ed of her body and within a short time He was sentenced to death, returned to the same beach, put back the sling and found another helpful Ann Rule, who first met Bundy at the Seattle Crisis Centre, was always woman to help with the sailboat. He murdered her as well. in touch with him. When the murders Seattle began to panic as the bodies turned up. In the city, it was Continued on pg 15 widely rumoured that the victims had " - PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �TAKING CHARGE Dr. Margaret Fulton continued 4nom Page 8 organized, then, people should be freed to do more work that is lifeenhancing. self filling, society ON,-full IA 4Ny 4/."*. relating, creative activity which'is absolutely necessary to the wellbeing of the individual and of our total society. Economists seem to function with the limited notion that the onBP ly type of work that can be linked ,o) to the total income of society is work at a job where someone else Vvy pay you wages. If there are not enough of those limited kinds of jobs photo by Joyce Michalchuk to go around, then governments try to create more. The results are often the kinds of feather-bedding, make work projects, insane arms races, combinedactivities interactive force and mindless This consumption is only a part of a total world rewith which we are all toJ familiar. which must or Surely a volution better way would be be to bloodless put it all willofnot a revolution of any a value on thebesubsistence enough work thatvalue. women We andhave men seen do. The longof the bloodyiskinds of revolution and we term solution to provide more knowopportunities that they never stimuli and for really people change anything. Only in thecreating players change to take the initiative and then we're life-enhancing work for back theirinto own the same kind of rigidly structured societies. subsistence. transformational goOur The evolution from roles revolution that on in and our secondary society today have beening passive to can brabout the liberation of the creroles of ing active participation in our ative personality and awaken total society is a great sign of hopeindividual personal initiative. And I in an otherwise gloomy scene. The was delighted to hearforce in my workshop biggest impact in the labour fromwill a young is working in of tomorrow come woman not sowho much arts andorcrafts section from new the technology from the fem- of life. The creativity there inist movement alone as that's from the two gives us new coming images,together new patterns and it's the revolutions to chanreleasing that kind of creativity ge all our ways of of thinking about which will give us a new society. ourselves and about our roles. We can and must challenge the present systems and structures which are so inhibiting and so limiting. We must become part of participatory democracy and participatory management style. To be equal partners, to be fully involved in bringing about a new age, we must go on learning; we must be fully informed; well-trained; well-educated and organized. Above all, we must understand our technology and use it for the creating of a new and positive society. The challenge I leave with you wonderful and patient women to-day is to take over the use of the machines and use them to build a better future for all Canadians, and all planetary people. Women indeed have a new role to play in the shaping not only of the work place, but in the re-shaping of our total society, DA.,Matgatet Futton ptesident of Mount St. Vincent Univeuity, Hati4ax, Canade4 oney women'4 univeuity. She wars chaitpeuon 0,4 the 4edenat goveknment'6 ta4k 4cince on Mictoetecttonia.and Employment. Mangatet Fulton Rutz 4onmentg head o4 the Engtizh Dept. at Font Witt iam Collegiate, 13x13 Shock after Shock by JENNY VAN CRAM A response to Micro-Technology - A Subtitle to Women and Economics Artists and crafts people keep us humane. The primary technology of the studio labs tie us to the past. Subtle, demanding, always the illusion of simplicity and romance. Paints, glazes, dyes, lacquers and enamels calculated individually with an understanding machines cannot know. Literature on every topic to tell the secrets of eye ball calculated imperfections. A Philosophy to render the unknown harmless and clean. A vehicle for personalized discipline. No unions - guilds - guides not contracts. An intense language of colour, form, texture, mass and image. More than compensation for contemporary "unstructured" leisure, the fate of the unskilled and unemployed. Reversed, the elite of our day emersed in an investigation of our roots. An opportunity to develop a h meshes the tivity at g level. No one wants to be a bored illiterate of the past. Pottery is the bottom line of technology. On that basis examine the concept that each tea pot is a sculpture. Accept that the fear of "advanced technology" is a fear of the unknown. Know of Ghandi and his spinning and weaving. Accept with pleasure the notential of the new world. The skill to produce quality is a Painful and long process. Entering the age of "automated memory" our hands, eyes and hearts must compute the inarticulated flow of our awareness. Emerge from the roles of kept to keeping - peace keeping of our own fears. This is a new age: creativity as NEON, CHIPS, MUTATION and a new monetary system. All of this reliant upon someone who knows when to push which button. _ Mirror doubt. NORTHERN WOMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �LAYOFFS continued PLOM Page Compromise (Now and Then) Sometimes, I think that the only given is that we will gb on... Often, making light of ourselves And wondering where it is we're going Then, grandoisely thinking that somehow, we know... (I used to think, as a young girl /woman, that I was right about 98% of the time. Even then, I allowed, however slight- given my ego at that time --a margin of admitted error... Later, teachers told me that it was closer to between 85 and 90. I thought then that that still wasn't too bad an average. Besides, I was being formally evaluated, accredited and historically recorded, and for a kid who then held recorded history in fairly high esteem, it was heady stuff.) Then, the continuous arguments with parents Who, with their simple wisdom, Never completely understood their shades-of-grey daughter... I'd debate and emerge the victor, Having scored the required points properly... Now that they're both dead, Those sometimes hard-wom victories fought on raised fist Are now bittersweet, as then. In retrosptct, it seems now I should have "compromised" more, then. (At one time, "compromise" was a dirty word.) And I did so like peace and harmony... Now, it's an essential word to PEACE. All our unlikenesses require it, Though in our struggles to be CORRECT, we may not desire it. Becoming older now... And in recognition of our likenesses, I admire it. After all... Even though I may be right from time-to-time, And seeking to work on that bothersome 10-15%... If I became a Bodhisattva, a diva, a prophet, Lealer or heroine-- PERFECT -- How much more bothersome could I be? And, anyway... SO WHAT? (a Michigan journal entry) Joyce Michalchuk VOICES continued from pg. 2 Dear N.v.J.: We are the editors-publishers of "Voices: A Survival Manual for Wimmin", a 24-page mimeo'd journal which was birthed in Kenora, Ont,, in December 1980. We are writing to appeal for subs and donations to help her continue. Since she originated, her two main features have been lesbian writing and natural healing from a lesbian/wimmin's perspective. Our current issue, #9, features alternative cancer therapies. We publish three or four times a year. Subs are $6 for four issues; sample issues are $1.50 (U.S. funds in the U.S.). We are the only lesbian '1111)1.71:a- tion between B.C. and Toronto; the only rural lesbian publication in Canada; one of the very few on the continent regularily featuring natural healing from a lesbian/wimmin's perspective (that we know of). We are no longer able to finance "Voices" from our own funds, since costs are too high. Fifty new subs or donations would go a long way. Please consider subscribing/donating Be well. Isabel Andrews Doreen Worden R.R. #2, Kenora, Ont. 7 less slap-happy with their lay-off policy. Oh, but that would create lay-offs in the civil service sector if we did away with the Unemployment Insurance Commission... well, aren't their jobs being taken over by computers soon anyway? We concluded that UIC and Welfare actually isolated us in our homes a lot too: waiting for cheques, and phone calls. Discussion delving into job creation programmes brought us to realize that what the government actually promoted with their job creation programmes was short term work, favourable employment statistics for use in election rhetoric, unstable work records for individuals, erosion of organized labour. So, while the newspapers report economic recovery plans launched by a government that's boosting its job creation programme budgets, the workforce remains de-employed or newly unemployed again as projects are usually short term work projects. So, let's not be fooled. But, we do have to survive unemployment, its emotions and its economics. Best way to stay emotionally stable (if that's really possible at all) is to keep in touch with other unemployed people and plan things together, like picnics, parties, potluck suppers, marches, demonstrations. Do things with your time, all those things you never get to do when you are working for the system. Paint positive angry posters and go for a walk with them and your friends. Write some militant songs and sing Offer to babysit for a single mom. Write letters to the editor about things that piss you off. Have a spontaneous sex-trf-C--Water your plants regularly. Read For Her Own Good, Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English, or Northern Girl, by Elizabeth A. Lynn, or Understanding Marxism, by Frank Cunningham. Go to a women's centre and see what's brewing. Don't waste time feeling useless because you are not that just because you were layed-off your job. It's not your fault, but now that you're laid-off and have all that time, what are you going to do about it? Continued 4tom pg 10 T AND T The traditional patterns and attitudes of instruction of$1young women, particulary in the maths and sciences, has resulted in their being educated for poverty. The report of the Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women, on Microtechnology and Employment, also addresses this concern: "Career counselling has an important role to play here, both with regard to re-entry of women, and to young women first entering the labour market. Women and girls need to be steered away from work (such as clerical work) where there will be few job opportunities and into other types of careers. They need to be encouraged to take math, science and computer programming in order to enhance their job mobility. In addition, they need to be helped to deal with any "technophobia" problems through discussion, education and experience with technology." NORTHERN WOMAN page 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �American Boy - Continued Thom pg 12 began, Rule, a crime writer by trade, accepted a publishing contract to write about the killings, not suspecting that the killer was her friend Ted. Or did she suspect? Actually, there was one time she began to doubt. This was when a good physical description fit Bundy exactly. She mentioned the fact to her police friends and Bundy's name joined hundreds of others in the computer. But Ann forgot about her suspicions. After all, how could a man who loved Mozart, wine, gourmet food, a man so -straight--be a murderer? He seemed the perfect late-20th-century male. When he was arrested, she was shocked and unbelieving. Mr. Perfect Male was, of course, a Bundy creation. The swollen ego, which, unlike God, fashioned a personna out of a random collection of trendy images, was able to sell that personna to the world. Bundy programmed himself as Mr. Perfect and rejoiced at his ability to make people like Ann believe. Ann Rule spends the last section of her book analysing Bundy's childhood and his teenage love life, looking for rejections and traumas to explain why he was "sick". Bundy was not sick. The explanation of his, character is found beyond his individual psyche. It is found in a society which considers women as game ("fair game") and a bloated ego as meritorious. It is a society which applauds the male style and ignores substance,. rewards male charisma and ignores character. Beyond consideration of individual history, there is something in North American society which has bred-monsterS, is even now breeding monsters, will continue to breed monsters. REAL FEMINIST__ STAND UP PLEASE QUIZ. What's your FQ (feminist quotient)? CIRCLE ONE CHOICE 1. A feminist is a: a) socialist b) liberal c) progressive conservative d) anarchist e) all of the above f) none of the above 2. The priority of the women's movement should be to: a) elect a woman as Prime Minister b) smash the capitalist patriarchy c) lobby for government change d) create a separatist state e) all of the above f) none of the above 3. A feminist, is: a) b) c) d) e) heterosexual lesbian bisexual married none of the above 4. The term 'sister' refees to: a) a blood relative b) in-law c) all women d) a and b e) a female Christian f) a nun g) a female communist h) all of the above 5. A feminist cannot be: a) the president of Exxon b) a Tupperware salesperson c) engaged d) born again e) a man f) all of the above 6. In the last provincial election feminists voted: a) Progressive Conservative b) Liberal c) NDP d) WCC e) spoiled their ballots f) the opposite of who their husbands and bosses voted for What are the correct answers - there are none of course, but that hasn't stopped us as feminists and as women from believing that there are. After all, we've had a lifetime of practice being tested on everything from floor polishes to our orgasms. We've begun asking ourselves whether we haven't traded one straight-jacket for another in trying to re-define ourselves as women. Protest NFB Closing Bureaucratic insensitivity to the needs of NWO is again evidenced by the decision to close the Thunder Bay office of the National Film Board. Community groups that have long depended on the valuable NFB service will suffer from this decision. The greatest losers, of course, will be the small district communities who already experience a serious scarcity of resources. The women's community in Thunder Bay has frequently made use of NFB resources, and has consistently received helpful, co-operative service from the local office. A pioneer service provider in NWO, the NFB aot only has offered needed ed- D E S the wonder drug you should wonder about for more information write DES ACTION/CANADA P.O. Box 233 Snowdon, Montreal, Quebec H3X 3T4 ucational resources, but also has served as a catalyst for social change. Reportedly, closing the NWO and several other regional offices will promote greater efficiency. Efficiency may or may not be achieved. Certainly effectiveness will suffer. The Northern Woman Journal protests the decision to close the Thunder Bay NFB office. We suggest all concerned groups and individuals write to the Hon. Francis Fox, Minister of Communications, and to your MP, urging that the decision be reversed. Um,,,... 4 74 i Ccrer 4 b r. 6 ] 1 PRISONER OF LOVE ) .,,o10 --,> PART (tcHiLr,_7111iiiI___TL,,,... TWO WILL APPEAR IN A A 1-0 10, A FUTURE ISSUE A i.,))1),VAAnWVAIMWPWj NORTHERN WOMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �THE CONFEDERATION COLLEGE OF APPLIED ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY THUNDER BAY DISTRICT ADVANCED INFORMATION ON WOMEN'S PROGRAMS In conjunction with Divisions o6 the College, Women's, Pugums initiates, devetops and Lacititates subjects, zerninats and con6etences in response .to changing needs in education and in emptoyment. Women's Programs puvides tesouues ion educators, students, individuats and community gnoups who Aqui/Le consultation about 6eminist issues. GENERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE DIPLOMA PROGRAM emphasizing Women's Programs Curriculae is designed to be of particular interest to women seeking training for a future career through general study prior to career selection. It offers subjects that develop an awareness of issues relevant to women in the work force combined with the opportunity to explore career field(s) through additional subject selection. POST-SECONDARY CREDIT SUBJECTS TOWARD THE DIPLOMA MAY BE TAKEN IN FULL-TIME STUDIES OR PART-TIME DURING THE EVENING. Offered in the evenings this Fall under this new program will be: GS GS GS GS GS 010 026 052 136 143 /59 PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING WOMEN, SOCIETY AND CHANGE WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMMT yo,A Aer,'"ra.4 Ac...t /04 C-.)ilYtt "u For further information, contact Women's Programs (807) 475-6232. GS 010 99 PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING EQUAL OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT DIPLOMA PROGRAM (Pending Approval from Council of Regents) NEW BUSINESS DIVISION TWO-YEAR PROGRAM Will prepare the student to work in program analysis, development and co-ordination of Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity for women, ethnic and racial minority group members and for people with disabilities, in government and non-governmental organizations. For further information, contact the Program Co-ordinator (807) 475-6140. SKILL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS INTRODUCTION TO NON-TRADITIONAL OCCUPATIONS (I,N,T.0.) An eight-week program designed to give women an academic and experimental introduction to traditionally male occupations. .The students will choose, with the help of the instructor, where the training will take place. This subject witt give the student paacticat instAuction in perusonat economise, the ant o6 handting money and managing one's iinanciat a66aiitz. Topicz cove/Led inctude budgeting, banking and investing, credit, housing, insutance, and cat ownetship, .together with othet .topics in which the student may exptess an intetest. DATE & TIME: Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 12, 1983 COMPLETED: December 19, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Lauretta Johnson FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 278, Shuniah Bldg GS 026 For further information, contact'the Women's Employment Centre, 130 S. Syndicate Avenue, Thunder Bay, Ontario P7C 1C7 (Ph. 807/623-2731). NEXT PROGRAM BEGINS SEPTEMBER 12, 1983. 99 ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING Provides the student with the ah,4:22z necezzaty to negotiate honutty bon the things s/he wants --on the job, at home, .in the commuiLity. As,settion i4 not to be con6used with aggtession WOMEN INTO TRADES AND TECHNOLOGY (W. I ,T,T. ) Women trainees learn from hands-on experience with core generic tool skills and machinery from a variety of trades families (i.e., construction, electrical, mechanical, machining, woodworking, metal working, etc.); and they actively apply these skills to learning projects in trades shops and industrial projects in the work force. Assertion takes into account the tights and 6eetings o6 othets. DATE & TIME: Thursdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 15, 1983 COMPLETED: November 17, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Elizabeth Wieben FEE: $30.00 .ROOM: 270, Shuniah Bldg It's a time for "catching up" for a woman: of developing her mechanical reasoning; her math and science skills; her confidence with hand and power tools; and, her familiarity with trades machinery and vocabulary. WOMEN, SOCIETY AND CHANGE This training program is designed to re-introduce, re-educate, and re-direct women to future employment and training in the skilled trades and technology. It's also a time for moving ahead: of exploring trades choices and then charting her own career course towards a specific trade -- or further skills training, and entry-level jobs, or an apprenticeship. This program will be sponsored by Canada Employment & Immigration. There will be some seats for fee-paying students. PROGRAM BEGINS SEPTEMBER 26th, 1983 AND CONTINUES FOR 18 WEEKS. For further information, contact Women's Programs (807) 475-6232, or Chair, Industrial & Motive Power Department (307) 475 -6211. ZA 119 99 FIRST STEP-COMPUTER PROGRAMMING FOR WOMEN An intnoductoty subject in computer 6undamentat4 designed .to give women an undeAstanding o6 the capabilities and teutinotogy associated with computens. Upon comptetion, students Witt be able .to dedign dome 06 .theist own "BASIC" ptogtams such as budget on mortgage payment catcutations. Students wilt have hands-on experience with computers. DATE & TIME: Saturdays 9:30 am-12:30 pm START DATE: September 24, 1983 COMPLETED: November 26, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Marlene Walther FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 345, Shuniah Bldg ZW 004 99 EFFECTIVE LIVING FOR WOMEN A placticaZ subject based on _sound p.sychoZogi_ca ptinciptes and 6indings. Women, wi.E.r_ be helped to achieve gteatet ii6e zati,saction &tough .techniques oS solving petsona publems, enhancement o6 zexuat 4atiz6action, contAaCZing bad habits and .lea ring dezixabZe onez, ztAers Pxduc tion, incteasing Zeatning e6Sectivene4z and helping othet women thtough active tiztening AULez. DATE & TIME: START DATE: COMPLETED: INSTRUCTOR: FEE: $30.00 Thursdays 7:30-9:30 p.m. September 22, 1983 November 24, 1983 Bert Hopkins ROOM: 265, Shuniah Bldg ZW 036 99 TOMORROW'S WOMAN New confidence through 6e26-axatene,s6 and zet6- GS 052 99 This subject wilt pnovide an oppontanity Got patticipants to discuss and assess -the rapid changes in 6ociety and -to discovet how these changes a66ect women in ateas such az 6amity ti6e, sexuatity, economic development, technotogy and community involvement. DATE & TIME: Wednesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 14, 1983 COMPLETED: December 14, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Liz Poulin FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 265, Shuniah Bldg GS 136 uteem war be achieved through the exercises, WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT group di..6cto)sion.s, and tkitt. deveZopment o6 This subject wit-Z. deal_ ptimatity with the 99 .this subject in personal gtowth. Each inda,iduai notes o6 women in management, and the patticuta skills needed by women to e66ectivety wat acquLte a pto6iLe o6 intcteists and goaLs, managetiat 6unctionz undet constAaints a sense ci6 new options and a c..ea.,,i..6cat,i.on o6 which are 6/tom within themselves, as welt az values those imposed by the oAganizations. DATE & TIME: Tuesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. DATE & TIME: Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 20, 1983 START DATE: September 12, 1983 COMPLETED: November 22, 1953 COMPLETED: December 19, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Liz Poulin INSTRUCTOR: Barbara McEwen FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 278, Shuniah Bldg FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 265, Shuniah Bldg . 2W 017 99 WOMEN KNOW YOUR CAR GS 143 Studentz wat. .62.v:it the basic iwceduAn o6 cat maintenance and gennat opeaati_on. DATE & TIME: Mondays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 19, 1983 COMPLETED: October 24, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Don Young FEE: $25.00 ROOM: Auto Shop, Dorion Bldg WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT For information about these subjects outside of Thunder Bay, contact your local Confederation College or call Toll Free: 800-465-6961 800-465-6962 li6e thythms, and thei/r styte oS pubtem savir A ti6estyte and attitude approach .to changing theit stAess response witt be developed by ead individuat. DATE & TIME: Wednesdays 7:00-10:00 p.m. START DATE: September 14, 1983 COMPLETED: November 16, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Walter Martin FEE: $30.00 ROOM: 278, Shuniah Bldg FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON HOW TO REGISTER, CONTACT WOMEN'S PROGRAMS (807) 475-6232. 99 This subject is intended to examine 6ituationae 4tte,s,sez in out tives--6amity, job, social telationzhio, conduct, change, devetopmentat ctizez, etc., az welt az potential. zouAcez 06 ,striers they being .to evety situation because () theit pelsonaeity, .theft own beZie6 system, the PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 Collectively produced RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 B BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO P7B 1S1 byJoan Baril, Kathryn Brule, Noreen Lavoie, Teresa Legowski, Anna McColl, Joyce Michalchuk, Luan Wall, Margaret Phillips, Donna Phoenix, Sara Williamson , Arja Lane Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 316 Bay Street Thunder Bay, Ontario P7B 1S1 (Six Issues) $5.00 $10.00 Business or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 8 No 1 Description An account of the resource Vol. 8, No. 1 (June 1983) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Affirmative Action Board Vs. Collective at the Northern Women’s Centre Critique of Capitalism and Economic Valuation of Labour Women & Economics Art & Culture Women and the Economy Conference Confederation College Backstreet Abortions Female Infanticide in China North Bay Transition House Self Healing Workshops North Bay Teen Conference Lay-offs and Their Effects International Women’s Day Women & Words Conference, Vancouver Trades, Technology & Women Gender Wage Gap Poetry Closure of National Film Board Thunder Bay Confederation College Women’s Programs Authors/Contributors: Joyce Michalchuk Joan Baril Dr. Margaret Fulton Jenny Van Cram Luan Wall Nora Wintour Marilyn Thompson Valerie Adams Arja Lane Kathryn Brule Joy Fedorick Gert Beadle Susan Collins Hawkins Noreen Lavoie Teresa Legowski Anna McColl Donna Phoenix Sara Williamson Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1983-06 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2773/1983_Vol_7_No_6.pdf 54c4dc699a714f1e08ef2a50bc7ab4d4 PDF Text Text .90 Northern Woman Journal March 1983, Vol. 7 No. 6, Thunder Bay, Ontario PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Editorial --722 -wt.-T-7777 Many months age, as the Northern Wbman Journal collective was meeting to plan future issues of The Northern Woman, we suddenly found ourselves engrossed in a discussion of our (i.e. women's) situation. Many hours later Donna (who always discusses with pen and paper in hand) brought to our attention key words she had heard us say. Restricting. Inhibiting. Tied up. Locked. Cramped. Confined. Limit. Cage. Stopped. Caught. Duty. Subordinate. Trapped. Silence. Inferior. Blocked. Excluded. And so, this "Prisonssissue was born. Prisons is not a cheerful topic. Yet, an understanding that the -±2 factors that imprison women are systemic is crucial. The "prisons" a imposed by rape, battering, pornography, sexual harassment, denial of reproductive rights will only be counteracted when we fully understand them as issues of male power and control. The dilemmas women face regarding double work days, inadequate day care, isolation, and 'super-woman' exhaustion will be rationalized only when we understand the tyranny of the "institutions" of marriage and motherhood, and can separate the "institution" from our very normal desire for warm, caring relationships. We will only regain control of our own well-fare when we acknowledge the misogyny of many "experts" (medical practioners, counsellors, etc.) who have usurped women's traditional healing roles. And it is important to recognize and analyze the renewed economic oppressions women are experiencing - blanketed by that over-used term recession. Let's face it, the governments' (6&5 and 9&5) restraint programs are a direct attack on women. It is not accidental that in Canada poverty is largely a female phenomena. Urging an examination of the prisons that restrict us is meant not to depress us, but to empower us. It is only when we understand and acknowledge the roots of the oppression of women, that we will develop the strength, the courage and the creativity to demolish the Ms.t "prison wall". -11111 Its Getting Crowded "I've been on wee6ate Ao many yeau, I mu cased to being poor. T just have a at mote company att cf4 a Audden." We hate to be cynical, but the media's new sympathy for the poor strikes us as hypocritical. Suddenly, those standing at the unemployment lines and welfare lines are cause for headlines. Not so coincidentally poverty becomes a news-worthy issue item because those new poor are organized male workers. Not that we think men on welfare lines isn't a news-worthy issue. We just think it's a bit nauseating that if the depression ends, and the men are back to work, the women who were poor will remain poor and the issue of being poor will no longer be an issue. The Vancouver Province sends columnist Allen Garr around B.C. sympathetically portraying the degrading process men must face at the welfare office when their unemployment insurance claims run out. Of being home all day, with no identity but the home, with kids who are little and screaming. Will it be an issue when they go back to work, and the single mothers are still on welfare? This depression isn't an accident. It's.a deliberate monetarist design to deflate the dollar and increase the power of the dollars of the rich. The policy causes high unemployment and allows the rich to benefit from it. With workplace after workplace closing, the powerful will be able to buy them cheap, and further consolidate their power and holdings. Remember the great oil shortage, when large companies swallowed the foundering small businesses, and lo and behold, not much later there was no more oil shortage? The fear and threats of closure are a frightening weapon wielded forcefully against workers--male and female, organized and unorganized. The threat of closure is used to reopen contracts, extract concessions from unions, and keep us battling simply to retain what we have instead of moving forward. Businesses wrap themselves in Pierre Trudeau's "6 and 5" patriotic flag, unfurl it at bargaining time and use it to thrash working people. As women, we have started to make strides through our unions, but our demands will be pushed to the background as unions fight to keep from losing ground. The battle for equal pay for work of equal value is losing what priority it has, as the employer proposes pay cuts for everyone as the rosy alternative to continued layoffs or possible closure. As the fear increases, women will be more intimidated about pressing charges of sexual harassment and becoming more militant about health and safety issues, such as the use of video display terminals. The employer, after all, will remind us that there is a large army of unemployed to draw from if we start grumbling. After all, "You ought to be grateful you have a job at all." Women breaking into non-traditional jobs won't have the job market to break into, and those women who have recently found the training grounds will be among those exerpted from "Images", the Kootenay Women's Paper with the least seniority who are the first laid off. For those of us who still have jobs, the institutions or companies we work for expect us to perform work we are not trained for, and to work harder to cover the missing workers they have laid off. In health care and education, two traditional employment areas for women, the demands for service are not decreas_ ing. More people are returning to schools to upgrade their training and education while they are jobless, but the schools are cutting back teachers. Those who remain are overworked and the quality of education declines. The B.C. Teachers Federation presents statistics showing women make up 54% of the educational system, but received 71% of the termination notices. This should be a time for women and men and kids to face an outside force together and unite against a common enemy. If we don't join ranks, this depression will be a time when the outside forces laugh as they feed on our chaos, unemployment, alcoholism, depression, anger and violence. And if and when this depression ends, the unity should not end with it. The men who are on welfare now, and learning how it feels to be degraded like that, shouldn't forget later that it's where women have been a long, long time. When they get back to relatively secure jobs, they should remember the solidarity we know will hold us together And they should join their now. sisters in the fight to get us all out of this mess. NORTHERN WOMAN page 2 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Update by JOAN BARIL NETWORKING . Networking - it's the issue and the challenge of the eighties. The small consciousness raising groups which powered the women's movement in the early 70s usually consisted of friends, or friends of friends. Then new people were drawn in, more politically active groups were formed, but the movement was small enough for everyone to know almost everyone else No longer. The Women's Movement is now too big, too varied - even in Thunder Bay. It is difficult to keep up to date on the whereabouts of groups Invitation lists are being drawn t.E now with fervent prayers to the Great Goddess that we do not forget anyone. If you have names for us, or want an invitation, please phone the Northwestern Ontario Women's Centre 345-7802. A NEW HOME information sharing was done orally, personally, later by telephone or at meetings. The women's movement still relies on these methods. There is no way - except in a limited sense - that we can use mainstream media (newspaper, radio, etc.) to discuss what is important to us, or even to keep informed. Besides journals such as this one, the only useful print activity has been the newsletter but with every postage increase the good ol' newsletter be- For six years a group of local women calling themselves "Crisis Homes Inc." have been working towards a transition house in Thunder Bay. The existing city-run home is almost always full, and only accepts women who have children. A place is needed which will serve all women, including those without children, and women from outside the city. The goal is in sight. On January 1, the group rented a roomy old-fashioned-home close to downtown Port Arthur. They will be in operation May 1. On January 23, they refurbished a traditional women's activity, the kitchen shower, and held a shower for the new home. The response was overwhelming. About 120 people arrived with gifts of food, money and kitchen utensils. The house still welcomes donations. They are particularly in need of towels, bed linen - especially pillows - new and used household appliances, groceries, a baby crib, mattress and high chair, and, of course cash. Call the house at 345-7456 during comes more expensive the day much less individuals A common scenario. You have lost touch with a group for a year or two - in fact you are not even sure if they are still alive. Then you run into a member, ask what is happening and get a very prickly reply. It seems they are working as hard as ever. People tend to get upset when they realize their organization is forgotten Traditionally women's I often run into women, once active, now completely out of touch with women's issues and they don't know how to get back in. It takes energy to stay current. We have to work to reach into groups but groups have to reach out. Insular attitudes can be our downfall. Assuming the public is informed or worse, expecting the public to inform themselves, can be disastrous... The chief lesson in failure of ERA in the U.S. was a lesson communications. All the polls showed the public solidly supported ERA, but the pro-ERA groups were never to use that support. They couldn't even inform their supporters because they relied on mainstream media who distorted shortened or ignored the ERA story. In most communities the pto-ERAites didn't even have up-to-date lists of supporters. By the time they got organized it was too late The right-wing organizations, by contrast, had computer-banked thousands of names and addresses which were mobilized at the drop of a letter. LET' S CO/1E TOGEn-MR In the interests of web creating, meeting old colleagues, and celebration the Women's Centre is planning the first annual feminist reunion dinner in Thunder Bay. Ten years ago, in April 1973, the conference was held, which led to the first Women's Centre in the Fort William YM/YWCA. Thirteen years ago, the Thunder Bay Women's Liberation Group had its first meeting. Later other groups sprung up at the University and the College. Since then hundreds of women in the city and region have been involved in women's issues. AND THE BEAT GOES ON Still alive and kicking is the Atikokan Women's Resource Centre. Housed in the former tourist information centre, an attractive building with one unattractive feature - -the building has no insulation! Still the women have managed to keep going with portable heaters. There are now three staff people. Among other concerns, the women are looking at private-home day-care, a skills and service exchange, and activities for the women's community and perhaps, in the future, a conference - In Dryden, there will be a workshop in February about violence against women. The new cransition home will be called the Faye Peterson Transition Home after feminist radio announcer Faye Peterson, who with her two young daughters, Heather and Rosalie, was killed in a car accident on the North Shore on December 18, 1982. Once a battered woman herself, Faye escaped to make a new life for her family of four children. She was a devoted worker for women's causes, and she is very deeply mourned by the women who worked with her Issues that haven't been previously examined by women in Thunder Bay will be aired at the Women in the Economy conference, May 13-15 at Confederation College. Areas of concern include hi-tech, microtech, organized and unorganized labour, education for the labour market, etc. Shirley Carr will be speaking. Interested women can phone Leni Untinen at 683-5236 Project Mayday is the name of the activity started by women from several small communities along the North Shore of Lake Superior. They want to do something about violence and battering of women in their communities. At present they are doing research, meeting with police and hospital personnel, and looking for a way to get a transition house on the North Shore. On March 8, Inter- national Women's Day, there will be a Bread and Roses drop-in at the Home from 4-6 p.m. Everyone is invited to drop in. Please bring a donation of something made of paper (anything from envelopes to waxed paper). Ten years old and a new location. The Northwestern Ontario Women's Centre has moved from the Bay St. area to downtown Thunder Bay, #4, 204 Red River Rd. above St. James Stereo. (same phone number 345-7802) The rooms are bright with large_windows. "Everyone iv very excited about our new place," says administrator Fiona Karlstedt, "but the centre is in a lean financial period just now." Fiona has been cut back to three days a week and social worker, Karen Lockwood has been laid off. The three women of the Outreach project handle phone calls when Fiona is not working The good news is the-success of the "Outreach 82" program which has been speaking to groups of women, to educate people about women battering. The Outreach people are Kathryn Brule. Colleen Jimoh and Barb Fotherbye "Our centre needs a typewriter" says Fiona, calling for a potential donor What will happen to the old quarters, 316 Bay St.? A cooperative of interested women has formed to take over as Womanspace. Each member, whether individual or group, will have access to use the space as they wish. The area is ideal for film nights, parties, meetings, classes, studio work, music practice and Wen-do practice. If you would like to be part of the group phone Margaret Phillips at 623-9067e Susan Wortman, a Wen-do instructor who has conducted Wen-do workshops locally over the past two years will be staying in Thunder Bay this May and June. She wants to do a lot of teaching and also alot of practice work while she is here. NORTHERN WOMAN page 3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �"You have put me in here (jaiZ) a cub, Howl Noe Noe Nie but I wiZZ come out AoaAing Lae a Lion, and I witt make all hell home!" (Cavtie Nation, 7901) Nor Why an I counting if not casualties of battle? Why then don't we admit we are at war? Every man: has probably raped or beaten a woman; or enjoyed rape fantasies; or threatened a woman with physical force, explicitly or with gestures--stepping closer, raising his voice; at least a man he works with or socializes with, who he thinks is an O.K. type, has raped or beaten a woman. Every woman: fears rape, or lives inside limits imposed by that fear: no late night walks, no living alone, no hours of solitude by the river. If she relates intimately to men, the threat of violence has probably sufficed to keep her in line. If she is a lesbian, her comfort is that the threat probab- continued from pg. 18 Books and harrassment accompanied by threats of violence, is intended to strip away a person's sense of self-worth. The slow, emotional torture which produces invisible scars is as lethal as the quick, sharp physical blows. The result of psychological abuse, in varying degrees, is depersonalization, and it is typical of brainwashing techniques used when any individual or group attempts to dominate others. "He really made me feel like a receptacle. My husband had told me that all a girl was,was a servant who could not think, a receptacle, a piece of meat." p. 5 Walker gives characteristics of batterers and victims that may not necessarily be true of all persons, but that are common in a great many Noe 14.9 Nor Noe ly comes from men she is not intimate with. In sum: if you are a woman, you have probably been raped or beaten or will be; at least a woman you love has been raped or beaten or will be. It's easy after saying this to think of men and women as separate species, one preying on the other. The state of war waged on all women by men who are overtly violent gives all men power. Rapists and batterers are the military arm of patriarchy. "The 6iAst peAzon to be oi4iciatty executed in Canada wa/s a 16 yit.. otd giitt sentenced to death in 1649 4on that, accoiLding to Ch'LstAina MaiLia Hitt in het paper 'Women in the Canadian Economy'. A mate citiminat who had atzo received a death sentence at the 'same time escaped Ivbs 4ate by agiLeeing to act az heft executionet" (PLom PeAception, Spiting Summet 1981) Paper Path continued Ptom pg. 10 We must not let the media hype us. The proposal is in no way a radical iea that will shake the roots of capitalism or substantially alter economic sexual discrimination and exploitation. It is merely a modest liberal reform that could redirect some government monies more appropriately. The dilemma that feminists face in entering the debate is the eternal problem of expending our energy on minor reforms, thus diluting our energy for radical action. But because the proposal interferes with sacrosanct male privilege, a violent attack has been unleashed. We must recognize this hostility for what it is...an attack against women. And, if only to make clear the roots of the opposition, we must accept the reformist position and support this proposal to study appropriate changes to the tax system. Women must get beyond the media's efforts to divide us, so we can focus on the real issues involved. The real, though largely unreported, opposition to Erola's proposal comes from affluent men. The real issue is control. --exerpted from "Fight Back", a feminist resource manual on violence against women Amnesty Please show your concern for Egyptian prisoners of conscience by writing a courteous letter (an example is given below) to the following address: His Excellency Muhammad Hosni MUBARAK President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Abedine Palace Al Gumhuriya Square CAIRO Arab Republic of Egypt Your Excellency: cases. She introduces the concept of a three-phase "cycle of violence" which helps explain how battered women become victimized; how they fall into learned-helplessness behaviour, and whythey do not attempt to escape: 1. tension-building period, ending in 2. an acute battering incident, followed by 3. a period of calm--the "honeymoon" period. Understanding the dynamics of the battered-woman syndrome is essential for anyone who attempts to help the victim. Lenore Walker's book gives the basis for this understaniing. It is the author's plea to the reader that you "Let your anger spur you on to some kind of positive action to remedy the injustices committed against such womeno" It is with concern I have learned that Farida NAQQASH, a writer and a mother of two children, is facing two trials before the Supreme State Security Court on charges of illegal political activities. The arrest and detention of Farida NAQQASH and others like her is contrary to the guarantees of the rights to freedom of opinion and association contained in the Permanent Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt. I therefore urge you to declare a presidential amnesty to Farida NAQQASH and others facing trial because of the nonviolent exercise of their human rights (N.B. Women interested in forming a discussion group to further explore the Erola proposal please contact Fiona at Northern Women's Centre, 345-7802.) RIMM. THUNDER CLAP To the women determined to keep a space for ourselves and that have financially contributed to WOMANSPACE. Name Address 4, 441... Air ././. INV ANY ANW. AIM/ WOMANSPACE A meeting to plan the continuing use of WOMANSPACE will be held at WOMANSPACE, 316 Bay St., Thursday, Mar. 24, at 7:30 p.m. All women welcome. Your ideas about how we can retain our SPACE and how best to use it are important. Please attend. WELCOME The NWJ collective welcomes Devon, Thunder Bay's newest feminist. Congratulations to Devon's parents Danalyn MacKinnon and Evert Ottertail. THUNDER BOLT To Pierre Trudeau, for kissing the hand that bites us, in arranging the pact that approved testing of the U.S. Cruise Missile in Canada. NORTHERN VOMAN page 17 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Books by MARGARET PHILLIPS, KATHRYN BRULE, and JOAN BARIL Ofeloped Woman theoretical Born will shatter perceptions any are inDuring the months of planning tertwined withour quotes the women unconsidered myths, wearyfrom complaand preparing for this issue the is the cency. she But interviewed. Rich does notItleave us integration Journal collective did much reading of theory with the reality of daily without our hope. challenges us ".. to encourage ownShe understanding to thinkofthrough the body, to connect lives (as revealed by the women's and analysis the "prisons" women what so the cruelly disorganized quotes) that makes this such a readendure. We has havebeen found following our great mental able book. Analysis and gut reaction. books -interesting and/or capacities, instructive hardly highly developed tactile The strength of More Than A Laband weused; offerour these mini-reviews. sense, ourthe genius for close observaour of Love comes from the examinaCertainly foremost book of tion; our complicated, tion of the changes in women's lives feminist theory to appear in pain-enduring, the multi-pleasured physicality. ....The and the changing oppressions past five years is Adrienne Rich's repossession by women of our bodies through the three generation (50 yr.) OF WOMAN BORN (W.W. Norton, New York) will bring far more essential change The relationship of mothers period. As the sub-title 'Motherhood as Exto human society than the seizing of and adult daughters, and the desire perience and Institution' suggests, the means of production by workers... for a women's community, while subRich very skillfully distinguishes ..We need to imagine a world in which tly reported is another highlight. between the experience of the relaevery woman is the presiding genius The women's stories, although tionship between woman and child and of her own body. In such a world wouniversal, are profoundly moving. the institution of motherhood which men will truly create new life, bringNorthwestern Ontario women will inis defined and controlled by men. ing forth not only children (if and deed relate to their Flin Flon sisRich states "Institutionalized mothas we choose) but the visions, and ters. erhood demands of women maternal inthinking necessary to sustain, constinct the rather than intelligence, sole, and alter human existence - a selflessness rather than self-realHIDDEN IN THE HOUSEHOLD: Women's new relationship to the universe". ization, relation to others rather Domestic Labour Under Capitalism than creation of self". Rich believes (Bonnie Fox, Editor, Women's Press, that "the patriarchal institution of Toronto) will be of interest to readmotherhood is not the 'human condiers who are serious students of thetion' any more than rape, prostituory. (Before embarking on this book tion, and slavery are". a re-read of Margaret Bentson's 'The With much courage Rich shares Political Economy of Women's Liberaher personal motherhood experience. tion' and Mariarosa Dalla Costa's Her love and anger. "My children "Women and the Subversion of the Comcause me the most exquisite suffermunity' is useful) Presenting articles ing of which I have any experience. by Canadian based academics Wally SecIt is the suffering of ambivalence: combe, Bruce Curtis, Linda Briskin, the murderous alternation between Bonnie Fox, Emily Blumenfeld, and bitter resentment and raw-edged nerSusan Mann, Fox indicates that Hidden ves, and blissful gratification and In The Household is designed to "help tenderness". Her unachieved need for develop the Marxist theory of women's space. "I would feel the futility of oppression that is an essential tool any attempt to salvage myself, and in the struggle for women's liberaalso the inequality between us: my tion". Although providing new and schneeds balanced against those of a olarly arguments, the theory presenchild, and always losing". Her accted will be viewed, by many feminists, eptance "This is what women have alas insufficient for the appreciation ways done". Her gradual integration of the oppression of women. This book of her intellectual reasoning with will encourage and augment the conher emotional re-action to understand tinuing debate, and is useful for that the patriarchial concept of mothose who wish to elucidate their therhood is not natural. ideology. Rich exposes to analysis (and A further dimension of the ideofor our continuing discussion and logical discussion is found in CAPIanalysis) concepts of patriarchal TALI$T PATRIARCHY AND THE CASE FOR assumption and dominance that must S9CIALIST FEMINISM (Zillah R. Eisenbe understood if women are to break stein, Monthly Review Press, New York from the prisons that now engage us. and London). Seen as a developing proBasic to the institution of mothercess, socialist feminist theory is hood we must understand that "The put forward as a synthesis between regulation of women's reproductive Marxist analysis and radical feminist Several have approached power by men in every writers totalitarian theory. Eisenstein states that "the theevery oppression of women through a system and socialist revolution synthesi3 must formulate the problem domestic labour. Neithe legalnew andanalysis technicalofcontrol b-yof woman as both mother and worker, ther understood or recognized as work men of contraception, fertility, reproducer and producer. Male supredomestic labourgynecology, seems to beand invisible, abortion, obstetrics, its workers (women)experiments not respected pri- macy and capitalism are defined as extrauterine reproductive the core relations determining the opvately or publicly. While the numbers - all are essential to the patriarpression of women today. This volume of women in or re-entering chial system, as remaining is the negative or is devoted to understanding the dypaidoflabour continues to insuspect the status women force who are not mothers".crease, their domestic responsibilities namic of power involved, which derives from both the class relations of prohave not diminished. Rather Reading Of Woman Born will be athese woduction and the sexual hierarchial men engage in a for double of work disquieting experience manyday women as wage workers as women domestic workers relations of society." perhaps particularly forand those Well organized and easy to read Feminists must understand the forces involved in 'enlightened' relationthe articles provide an interesting resisting change in the function of ships, and for women who believe they variety of theoretical discussion, domestic labour. are accepted in mainstream work sochistorical analysis and specific staMORE THAN A LABOUR OF LOVE: Three iety. It will not be comfortable to Generations of Women's Work in the Home tements. Discussion of women's deveexamine the fear men hold toward women lopment in Cuba and China make appar(Meg Luxton, Women's Press, Toronto) the contempt of sons for mothers; the is a good starting point in this under- ent the distance yet uncovered. Jean suspicion of the unmarried, childless Gardiner's article on Women's Domesstanding. Through extensive interviews woman; the contempt for women's sextic Labour and the entire section on and observation, Luxton traces the uality - especially aging women; the lives of three generations of Flin Flon Motherhood, Reproduction and Male threat (men feel) of close relationSupremacy are particularly recommended. Manitoba women, and analyzes the woships between mothers and daughters, men's relationships to husbands, chilbetween sisters, between women; women's drens housework, economic management, need to connect our minds to our bodcontinued on page 18 and 'the Company'. Luxton's well-devies. NORTHERN OMAN pa ge 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Prisoner of Love "Moons and Junes and ferris wheels The dizzy dancing way you feel As every fairy tale cols real I've looked at love that way..." Joni Mitchell "Love is all you need..." by JOAN BARIL (PART 1 ) The B eatles You are madly, passionately, irrationally, besottedly in love. So deeply engrossed are you with thoughts of your beloved you would be ashamed to tell anyone, even a trusted friend, how you spend hours conjuring up the image of his face, his small gestures, his walk, his bodily stance and his eyes--yes, above all his eyes--and that one moment when your glances met, touched, a shivery instant to be relived again in private, a moment encrystallized perhaps in the words of a popular song. And how can you tell anyone that his image, now always present at the edge of your consciousness, intrudes--constantly intrudes--so that during your day, as you take the bus or start the first tasks at work, his face appears in your imagination and, in spite of yourself, you relive the last encounter with him, the movements of his hands as he lit the cigarette, the smile as he opened the door, the warmth of tone--did you imagine it ? -as he said hello and you search through these images for a signal that he loves you. You are obsessed and you pick, pick through these shreds, rearranging them until the most casual remark and gesture becomes a proof of his love. And of course there are the fantasies, the vision of a chance meeting with the quiet conversation that causes him to realize that he adores you; or the heroic fantasy with the building on fire or the ship sinking- and perhaps at that point you can smile and wonder if you are taking leave of your intelligence. But what can you say about the intensity of this emotion, the wrenching anxiety of not knowing for sure, the pain in the chest, the lovely walking-on-airness if he responds, the plunge into depression if he ignores. You seem to be imprisoned in a sort of love torture machine which is able to fling your emotions back and forth between heaven and hell. NORTHERN OMAN page Aside from the fictional worlds of love created by novelists Tolstoy Bronte, Sand, Tendal and others, the only person who has seriously investigated this intense romantic state is Dorothy Tennov, a psychologist at the University of Bridgeport. In her book, "Love and Limerence: The Experience of Being in Love", (Stein and Day. New York. 1979), Tennov describes her method of study which included the collection of over five hundred case histories, several hundred diaries and questionnaires designed to investigate what happens when a person goes head over heels. Almost all recount feelings similar to those described above. She decided to call this intense romantic attachment "limerence" simply because the word 'love' is loaded with so many varying meanings. Limerence, says Tennov, has a "fitting sound" and it encompasses "what is usually termed being in love". When it happens to teen-agers it is called a crush or puppy-love. But Tennov finds no difference between the loves of young people and the supposedly more mature. Nor is there any difference in the feel of limerence for men or women, or for homosexual or heterosexual. Usually it starts pleasantly. There is a flicker of interest in someone, and if the interest is returned--or, more likely, if the budding limerent convinces herself that it is returned or, there is a possibility that someday the interest will be returned--then the condition can swell to monstrous intensity. It might be well here to summarize the basic components of limerence, according 4-c Tennov. 1) Intrusive thinking about the object of desire, (This person is called the limerent object or LO by Tennov; 2) Accute longing for one's love to be returned; 3) Dependency of mood on the limerent object's action--the love torture machine mentioned previously; 4) Fear of rejection and sometimes incapacitating shyness in the presence of the beloved one; 5) An aching in the heart or chest area; 6) A feeling of intense happiness and walking on air if reciprocation seems evident; 7) A remarkable ability to emphasize what is admirable about the LO and to avoid dwelling on the negative, even to respond with compassion for the negative and render it into another positive attribute; and, above all, 8) Acute sensitivity to any act thought or condition that can be interpreted favourably, and an extraordinary ability to invent reasonable explanations why the seeming neutrality of the LO is really a guise for hidden love;1 and finally, 9) although sexual desire is almost always part of limerence, it is more than sexual desire. Tennov's findings are quite remarkable. First she has investigated a state which everyone knows exists from the evidence of soap operas, novels and popular songs but which few people admit to personally or easily. People find discussing their personal limerent feelings somewhat shameful and listeners react with embarassment. In fact it is considered better form in the 1980's to admit to being sexually obsessed with someone than being romantically infatuated. "Love is not a sentiment worthy of respect", said Collette in 1928, presaging the mixture of callousness and cynicism people use nowadays to discuss their friends love affairs, a sure sign that the "Grand Passion" is definately out of fashion. At best, to discuss love seriously is to feel the cloying grip of nostalgia as if one is taking from an old trunk a dazzling formal gown which once had supreme importance but which no longer glitters and, in fact, doesn't even fit. But the research shows that love is widespread. A sort of hidden condition, an unacknowledted and recurring base line beneath the hum of everyday activities. In spite of the sneers of the "experts" on love who have tended to find romantic limerance as evidence of neurosis, emotional immaturity or masochism,2 Tennov's limerents were, in the main, healthy, normal, ordinary people of all ages and both sexes. Some people only experienced one passionate affair in a lifetime, others have many. Other people, long past middle age, who believed that the fire had gone out forever described how suddenly they found themselves dancing in the same flames again. Then there are the poor souls who, from the age of 11 or so, seemed to be in a constant state of limerence, spending a lifetime swinging from sizzle to fizzle and along the way experiencing appalling amounts of emotional stress. A romantic attachment often ends in unhappiness, occasionally in marriage --cynics might say it's the same thing. Limerence needs a feeling of insecurity to retain its power. As soon as a couple feel sure of each other's love, the flames subside, sometimes banking down into that long-term glow which is also a species--a rare species --of love. But often the thing just ends, sometimes from one minute to the next. ("It was when he was explaining for the hundredth time how important his job was and how hard he worked and how no one really appreciated him and I thought to myself how could I t) have ever continued on page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Eradicate the Illness Industry by ARJA LANE I've been attending a series of conferences organized by a coalition of women from North Eastern Ontario during the last few years, where issues related to our well-being have been discussed, dissected, argued; exposed; and, it's been fascinating in a bizarre sort of way. It's been fascinating to learn about the many outside or political connections to our health, or rather, our illnesses. Realizing these connections have turned my personal frustrations with feeling unhealthy to angry understanding of how the promoters of the illness industry function. This understanding has made me see how bizarre and full of contradictions our present system of survival is. For example, the food industry that basic-need provider for humankind - has managed to dupe us all into thinking that we should be able to live and grow on food products, products that have been refined, chemicalized, preserved and packaged to the point of producing serious allergic reactions in many people. The food industry is threatening us with chemical poisoning and malnutrition. We are not feeding our bodies adequately, and it's not because we don't want to --- it's just so difficult to find food that isn't processed to death. But, money is the main manipulator again, because I'm sure General Foods is happy with the profits they make from The longer shelf-life of their food products --- those preservatives just make it so much more efficient to sell food. But, the food industry isn't the villain --- it's only a part of the illness industry. Expand your view to include the general environment, and you will see that industrial pollution is taking a serious toll on our natural resources. Resource industries like mining and refining ore have always been the biggest environmental hazzard existing. Industries like INCO not only pollute and exploit the workers who work the plants, but they cause acid rain to fall on all of us. Pulp and paper mills have poisoned the wa-, ter we drink; and now that we're into the nuclear craze, our limits for pollution are being challenged in the name of energy, And, it's all making Food co-ops are a real alternative to plastic food products, but we could take it further. We could support, promote, create more local farming. I would buy locally grown vegies and meat rather than imported food products, wouldn't you? Resource industries don't have to be such polluters, they have the technology to clean up their act, and we have to convince them and our government that they have to. Environmentalists around the country are screaming about industrial pollution and they just need a little support from the people to be heard more clearly. Let's give it to them. And, we can begin to learn more about our own bodies as well, so that we can say "no way" to the doctors who try to push tranquillizers and unnecesary surgery on us. There's nothing wrong with self-help and self-knowledge as long as that's not where the effort to change stops --- share this knowledge with people in your community who don't know yet. Changing this system that views money making more important than our health is the struggle for those of us who understand and feel the contradiction getting too destructive. Let's keep meeting and developing our strategy into a more positive reality. "It Ls batten, to die on yawn beet than to Live on you/E. knees" (Data/1.a lbaAnuAi, 1936) pect a profit motive to be the basic reason for such surgery. Caesarean sections are "performed" on us more and more. Our babies are being performed out of us by surgery and drugs. It makes the whole experience of birthing babies more profitable and exciting for doctors, but it robs us women of birthing our children, while at the same time exposing us to all 'kinds of drugs during their performance. And, who do you think ends up supporting the tranquillizer industry the most? Women are prescribed about 75% of the going tranquillizers while being told by the experts that side effects and chances of addiction are minimal and quite harmless. Drugs and hospital equipment are replacing human care and understanding as technology hypes us out of control. So, what to do? How to get more control over these things that affect us so much? Boycott foods that are substandard in nutritional value and pop vitamins instead? Vitamins are quite expensive, and most of us could not afford them. And, for general stress, instead of drinking and smoking, exercise yourself into exhaustion --- for specific stress, learn how to "communicate" better, and hopefully, someone will listen? Or better yet, practice purism and create a world of your own out in the country somewhere, away from the obvious contradictions of the illness industry. It can all be done, but how effective is all that when it comes to dismantling the illness industry? For more specifics, read: "Society May Be Dangerous to Your Health", Fran Conrad, from Science for the People, March/April issue, 1979 and, "The Story of Hospital Work" by Joan Newman Kuyek, from Healthsharing, Summer, 1982 issue. us sick. It's quite a chain reaction, this illness industry. Chances are that if you don't eat. well, you won't feel well, you won't function very well eithr; and when you don't function very well in this system, the system assumes that you have a problem, whereas really, the problem is the system. This is where the medical profession comes in, usually. They use drugs and their medical expertise and mix it with technology to produce surgery and analysis of symptoms. I think the medical profession has become an important accomplice of the illness industry. I'm suggesting this connection because when you take a close look at how the medical profession operates, you will notice that it chooses to treat symptoms of the illness industry rather than address the reasons for illnesses. Drugs and surgery are prescribed to hide symptoms until the symptoms get more drastic, and then it's stronger drugs or more cutting. "Every movement that aim at the du-auction oi exating inztitution4 and the teptacement theneoi, with zomething maize advanced, mane petiect, has iottoweAs who in theoty stand OA the most Aadicat ideas, but who, neveltthetesis, in thews every -day practice, ieignate Like the avenage ing nespectabitity and ctamoAing iot off our backs/october 1982 the good opinion of that opponents" (Emma Gotdman) Women are major victims of the medical profession's bumbling promotion of drugs and surgery. For example, our uteruses are being operated out of existance. Some doctors claim hysterectomies are a form of preventative medicine because they remove a potential cause for problems later on in life. Well, I sus- NORTHERN W OMAN page PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �behitsd the Vjan TRANSLATED AND WRITTEN by LINE JOLICOEUR and ARJA LANE Although little information about the past employment records of women prisoners is available through official prison reports, other statistics indicate that only one-third of female inmates have been previously employed. This explains the difficulty of exprisoners, especially female, integrating themselves "successfully" into the work force. It also partially explains why women have turned to trafficking drugs as a means of economic survival. It also helps us understand why women commit fraud and theft--it is a means of survival, often the only choice left. The length of imposed sentences for women prisoners varies alot, but sentences rarely run for more than three years. In 1977, there were two women condemned to prison for a life sentence; but, most sentences run for three to six months. Unfortunately, court statistics and police reports do not reflect the "real" dimension of the criminal phenomena--they provide statistics about the number of crimes, lengths of sentences and titles of crimes. These stats do not reflect or analyze why crimes are committed, and how crime prevention can be humanely and practically administered. Often, there is no correctional or rehabilitative programmes operating out of prisons or offered to prisoners who are scheduled to be there for such short periods of time. In Canada, in 1977, one woman, compared to 10 men was being accused of a criminal act. Out of 19,000. prisoners in various penitentaries only 450 were women (2%). In 1980-81, 6,515 out of 108,575 prisoners were women (6%). Although the woman percentage has tripled in three years, the total number of prisoners has gone up five times; so, the incidence of women committing crimes and being imprisoned for them is drastically lower than that of men. Women are put into prison because they have been found guilty of a criminal act by the judicial system, and prisons serve as punishment--basically the same routine that is applied to men. But, half of the crimes committed by women who are in prison are to do with simple possession, possession of drugs for trafficking purposes, or importation and trafficking of drugs (and not the kind perscribed by doctors...). The two other common crimes that women are convicted of are fraud and involuntary homicide. Theft ranks as the least committed crime..by women. that such acts of violence are always aimed against a person with whom the Woman has verynarrow affection links and their murder motivations are inexplicitly connected to unique situations, which in turn require humanistic rehabilitation--not prison, for prisons don't offer such humanistic services. Prisons remove a convict from the general society, but does nothing effective to prevent such an act from occuring again once the prisoner is released. Add to that the financial fact that it costs $46,000 a year to imprison woman... So, the practice of prisons, for women, for men, for children is a question that has not been discussed openly enough. And, there is the whole question of what effects imprisonment of mothers has on the children of these women. Many women lose their children when imprisoned, although there isn't a lot of information readily available from official prison reports regarding such statistics. While she's in prison, she survives more creatively than her male counterpart because women are more easily confined--they endure imprisonment bette than men probably because other "imprisonments" in their lives (marriage, children, men, religion, work, sexuality) have prepared women to "make do with less". And, the incidence of women attempting to escape while serving a sentence is nearly non-existent--it's probably easier for women to survive in prison, where they don't have to be constantly searching for a means of economic survival... When you compare the scope of the crimes committed by women and other desperate people, with the scope of crimes committed against the individual by . . ,way of racism, pollution of the environmant, sexism, exploitation of children, consumers, workers; political corruption, war... you begin to wonder how balanced the scales of justice are. And, once you begin to realize who controls the scales of justice, you begin to suspect the effectiveness of prisons, for sure. In reality, societal crimes like racism, pollution and exploitation of the environment harm more people than those crimes committed in desperation by individuals, yet societal crimes are not being dealt with through the judicial system with the same gusto and moralizing and severity that occurs when an individual is found guilty of basically, choicelessness. Who keeps statistics of societal crimes? It seems to me that societal crimes are not being committed by the same people who are imprisoned, and so, it occurs to me that prisons serve to house the brunts of the much more severe crimes committed by those who control our quality of life through manipulation of the economy. Statistics imply that one-third of women prisoners are addicted to either alcohol or drugs. These statistics aren't necessarily medically diagnosed, but could simply be evaluated by the administrators of prisons. Further to the issue of addiction of prisoners, the percentage of female addicts reported is much smaller than of male addicts. Generally, women in prison have a higher level of formal education than the men there. Among women in prison, illiFor more specifics, refer to: teracy is non-existent, whereas among article by Marie-Andree Bertrand "Les men prisoners, it isn't. More women in Femmes en Prison", in les editions du prison than men have post-secondary magazine ovo, les prisons, 1977; and, school education experience. Status of Women News, November 1982 Then, if we Lalk about women who issue. ,have been convicted of homicide, we find - Prisoners of conscience by ANNA MCCOLL Amnesty International is a worldwide movement which works impartially for the release of prisoners of conscience: women and men detained anywhere for the non-violent exercise of their conscientiously-held beliefs. Many of those imprisoned are women. The treatment that women receive is as harsh as that meted out to male prisoners: prisons are overcrowded, lacking in both hygienic and medical facilities. However, because interrogation centers are male-orientated, the difference in sex between the interrogater and the victim invariably leads to special forms of sexual harassment and torment. Women are forced to lift their skirts up before prison guards. Women are forced to parade naked in front of interrogaters. The chief form of sexual torture is rape. Sometimes threats of rape are made, other times rape itself occurs. have miscarried astheTMITTTriW:-----peated shocks with electric prods.* Women who do give birth in-prison often die as the result of barbarous treatment during childbirth. Amnesty International's "special Action" pamphlet for February 1983 deals with human rights violations in Egypt. Many reports have been received of the ill-treatment and torture of political detainees in certain Egyptian prisons, intelligence and police headquarters between October 1981 and March 1982. Torture by suspension from the hands and feet, burning with gigarettes, threats of murder and sexual assault for both detainees and female members of the family,and beatings on various parts of the body have been reported. Athough torture does not appear to be systematic, detailed information available on a number of specific cases raises AmnestyInternationalls concern. A number of the detainees have been adopted as prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International. One such person is Farida Naqqash. Farida is a writer. Her book As-Sign...Al Watan -(Prison...Homeland) describes her experience in prison and includes letters she wrote to her husband and two children while she was in prison, she now faces two trials on charges of illegal political activity and risks life imprisonment with hard labour. Farida's husband journalist Hussein Abdul Raziq is also an adopted prisoner. Although provisionally at liberty, he now is also facing trials one of which is a retrial of the case in which he was acquitted of all charges in April 1980. NORTHERN WOMAN page 8 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Free Standing Abortion Clinics by THE ONTARIO COALITION FOR ABORTION CLINICS (OCAC) Hundreds of women in Ontario are forced to leave their hometown, pay large sums of money in advance, or submit to dangerous and agonizing delays in order to get an abortion. A woman's decision to end an unwanted Pregnancy is no crime, so why is an abortion so difficult to obtain? In a recent Gallup poll 72% of people in Canada agreed that "a decision on whether or not to perform an abortion should rest with the consenting patient and should be performed by a licensed physician in conformance with good medical practice", yet abortion remains within the Criminal Code and Ontario Attorney General Roy McMurtry threatens to prosecute any doctor who opens a clinic in Toronto to provide women with safe abortions. The Ontario Coalition for Abortion Clinics (OCAC) believes that the right of women to control our own bodies is a basic human right. To freely decide if and when to have children so that we can plan our future is fundamental right for women, yet the decision to have an abortion is beyond our control. The issue is not pro or antiabortion. Whether or not to have an abortion is a personal choice. Women who are against abortion have the right to continue an unplanned pregnancy to term. They and others should not have the right to impose their religious or moral views on others through legislation or intimidation. Once a woman makes the decision, she should have ready access to a safe medically insured abortion. THE PROBLEM In 1969 the Federal Criminal Code was amended so that abortions remain illegal unless approved by a committee of three doctors in an approved hospital. But hospitals are not required to set up committees and even those that have committees are not required to perform abortions. Due to pressure from well-organized antichoice groups many hospitals have decided not to perform abortions at selling, more thorough birth control information, and a generally sympathetic and supportive environment. WE CAN WIN The Ontario government can choose to allow such clinics to operate. With the support of Dr. Henry Morgentaler, a group of women active in the women's health communall. ity will be opening an abortion clinic Only 37% of Ontario hospitals, in Toronto early in the new year. concentrated in large urban areas, OCAC is organizing mass support for have abortion committees, and those the legalization of free-standing that do have strict quota. Toronto General Hospital, for so example, re- clinic abortion clinics that this ceives requests day, those free and75others likea it canofoperate they from book prosecution. six. Most gynocologists are opted In outOctober of OHIPOCAC and began chargea public campaign. support has been $100-$200 over Public OHIP rates. They overwhelming. More than 500 people often demand cash in advance, which signed an ad in the Globe and rarely demanded for otfier medical Mail; almost 1,000 attended aturns spirited procedures. If a committee a rally in Toronto with speakers woman down, there is no appeal pro- Dr. Henry June Callwood, cedure. TheMorgentaler, hospital committee system Louis the Lenkinski frommaking the Ontario Fedpostpones procedure it of Labour, Evans more eration dangerous. Too manyRuth women are of the United Churchtoand others; more than forced to travel Quebec or the 60 States groups at including the Ontario FedUnited great financial, physical, eration andofpsychological Labour have endorsed cost. the legalization of free-standing clinics THE SOLUTION providing medically insured abortions; and thousands of individuals are In Quebec, signing the government-funded OCAC petition and wearcommunity ing pro-choice clinics provide buttons. medically We are the insured abortions despite majority and we are inthe thefederal process law. of They exist it there thehelp. proving but because we need of your broad public support for the right to choose. First trimester abortions provided in free-standing areC.A.R.A.L. In Thunder Bayclinics the next safermeeting and less expensive than those will be held at 8:00 p.m. performed according to March in 17,hospitals, 1983 at WOMANSPACE, 316 Bay studies done at John Hopkins UniverSi-See you then. sity. Clinics can also provide coun- Miss Mandragola or stay and of myself? went as I lusty Reld by local ry, passion7 ter says, opriate d. "Stupid" d" possibly re ways than f a highly ting critit I saw was main purand not protive auditably on cue s to the the play. me worthant of the dded those nts and el he was o watch. tos.) Siro t alot to be otally preexcruciata local, ur time was gths he went unter with The lady was just for the taking, her mind apparently as blank as that of her suitor, and the common feeling was that women in general were squealers, squawkers and whiners. By the way, men almost totally dominated the stage women appearing periodically to serve for some light sexual relief and deviation (all covertly performed in the sanctuary of the church, with yours truly - Fr. Timeto, who, in his own words, admitted that he was too good for himself). Parodies abounded - the outrageously corrupt priest whose chief concerns in life were money-making and women-laying (and just how far does that all sound from us?). And the men - never were we allowed to forget that they held fire itself between their legs (or a dangling turkish dagger for the less well endowed in a costume masquerade) and burning passion in their breasts. What a crowd of sops and indeed ,a pathetic bunch. Their costumes served to emphasize their rotundity, spindly legs and knobbly knees - seems that they have not yet discovered the wonders of sheer, clinging panty-hose, but then they have been out of touch for a while. Anyway, our leading Romeo (Callemaco in the play) was indeed an insipid character who seemed to be best at hiding in full view of us all, attempting mighty leaps across the stage, or flat on his back with his legs and arms flaying. Adding salt to the already opened wounds was the final clincher having waggled his way into the reluctant woman's bed, she promptly falls "in love" with him, suggests his becoming a friend of the family to allow for more intimate meetings, and implies that "she never thought it could be like this" - deary me the old line still to be heard (Take note of our enlightening article, sisters, on the wonders of your friend the finger), So it was all to be expected after all and not a bit of gumption anywhere to be seen. The play was altered, modern language introduced, and music added! (all to its detriment I thought) but the plot and drift remain those of Machiavelli. It was claimed to be the most highly regarded comedy of Italian Renaissance literature - and by the reactiojls of one twentieth century audience it still remains so. Sad to say, some of what it presented rang home true (regardless of the jokes and exagerations), and it made me think that a lot had not changed after all. Everybody laughed and as I sat there I wondered from time to time "just how far have we come?" NORTHERN WOMAN page 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Leading You Down the Paper Path uy MARGARET PHILLIPS the 'married or equivalent' exemption in isolation from other reforms would create hardship for some women, most significantly for single mothers who, under the present system, can claim one child as 'equivalent to spouse' for tax exemption purposes. Concern expressed by single parent women, most of whom are low income, is valid. As one single parent of modest income commented "I may be expressing selfinterest, but it is the only tax break I get and I don't want to lose it." Modification of this exemption should and could be accompanied by other reforms that provide equivalent or increased benefits to low income people. The purpose of any change must be to re-distribute income more equitably. It will not be easy for women to sift through the blanket of misinformation and the climate of hostility that surrounds this debate to date. The well-orchestrated media distortion of this issue feeds us myth, encourages controversy, but has largely failed to provide unbiased information from which a rational discussion can evolve. Erola, who has been subjected to one of the most vicious media attacks we've witnessed in a long time, has been accused of "subverting the family". A picture has been painted of committed homemakers being dragged unwillingly into the labour market. A perception of raging battles between full-time homemakers and women in the paid labour force is encouraged. One editorial tries to revive the mothballed myth that married women only work for luxuries, while the CBC locates a Canadian version of Phyliss Schflay who advises us that only a dependant loving wife will be a good mother. Ridiculous...yes. Amusing... no. Because submerged by this distortion is the urgent problem..the economic situation of women in Canada in Council points out "This (Income Tax) Act conceals, very literally, billions of dollars in government spending.. the spending which constitutes Canada's hidden welfare system for the non -poor. It hides this spending so well that governments do not publish, in fact do not even calculate, its total amount. Ordinary citizens..middle and lower income taxpayers..are almost totally unaware of its existence. They are also unaware that it is they who bear the greatest burden of this cost, while it is the wealthy who reap the greatest benefits." The report continues "...since most tax subsidies operate through exemptions and deductions, tax expenditures almost inevitably give their greatest rewards to those with the highest incomes, and none at all to those with the lowest. This is the unavoidable consequence of deductions in a progressive tax system. If $100 is exempt from tax, the saving to an individual (and the expenditure for the government) is $60 for a high-income person in a 60% tax bracket, $25 for a moderate-income worker in a 25% bracket, and zero for a person poor enough to be below the tax-paying threshold. Tax expenditures are equity in reverse." The National Council of Welfare's study illustrates that in 1976 the tax loss due to 20 tax expenditure provisions totalled $7.1 billion. The loss from the tax deduction for dependant spouses was in excess of $1.5 billion. The study estimates that if all the 60+ tax expenditures (i.e. exemptions, deductions and credits) could be examined the tax loss of $7.1 billion men). would be more than doubled. And rememReform of the tax system to allow ber, these are 1976 figures. for a more equitable distribution of (For a detailed discussion of income has long been advocated by peo1983. this problem see The Hidden Welfare ple concerned with social development Perhaps the most insidious of all System..Nov. 1976, and The Hidden Welin Canada. Because of government's the media's misrepresentation is the fare System Revisited..March, 1979, efforts to control spending, we have notion that the proposal will take available from the National Council of already witnessed, in recent years, money away from full-time homemakers. the steady erosion of social and health Welfare, Brooke Claxton Building, Let us not forget the reactionary media programs. And we have seen an escalat- Ottawa, K1A OK9.) support for those politicians who wish Obviously, tax reform is long ing attack against government spending to end the universality of family aloverdue. Erola's suggestion to examine on social and income maintenance prolowances...the only income (token as the spousal deduction is reasonable, grams (and an escalating attack on the it may be) of most full-time homebut should be merely part of a more recipients of these programs). makers. The savings accrued from the comprehensive tax reform: Eliminating Little attention nowever has peen spousal deduction is controlled by the paid to the other side of the coin wage earner not the homemaking spouse. the tax system...and the revenue lost There is no provision within the tax to government through the myriad of system or within family law that protax exemptions and deductions containvides the dependant spouse any direct ed in the Income Tax Act. benefit from spousal deduction tax This revenue loss must be seen as savings. Does anyone really believe government spending. In terms of the the myth that 'family' income is equitgovernment's budget the result is the ably shared within the family? It may same whether a person receives an be reasonalbe to assume that in low extra dollar through a direct governincome families this saving will often ment spending program or gets an extra be used for 'family' purposes (which dollar in tax breaks through a tax exmay or may not benefit the wife/mother) penditure. Even such indirect benefit for the The difference is that the direct homemaker is more doubtful in high inspending programs, which benefit the come families, where, it is reasonable poor, are visible and subject to pubto assume, the savings will frequently lic scrutiny and criticism, while the be invested by the husband in, for tax expenditures programs, which beneexample, business ventures, in RRSPs. fit the rich, are invisible. There is Do we need to be reminded that, in the no officially published estimate of event of marriage breakdown, such intheir cost and no public evaluation of vestments are not considered family their effect. Thus, the National Council of assets. Thus the wife will not share Welfare, which has studied the subject in her husband's investments which he in depth, has called the tax system acquired by reason of her economic deAs the "The Hidden Welfare System". pendence. The patriarchy is threatened! An "outrageous" proposal that questions tax subsidies which primarily benefit affluent men has produced much irrational re-action. Fed by public media intent on controversy, or myth, or (in some instances) personal male bias, the issue has been so distorted that it serves to divide women. An informed, rational debate of the subject is urgently required. The issue at hand developed when the Hon. Judy Erola, Minister responsible for the Status of Women, suggested that the tax system be examined with the view to modifying the tax deduction for dependant spouses. Monies saved from changes to this deduction could then be directed in a more socially responsive way - that is, to increased deductions for child care, to increased family allowances or increased child tax credits. It should be pointed out that Erola's "radical" proposal was initially recommended by the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in 1970. The first question that bears answering is why the government has ignored this recommendation for 13 years. The reality of the present system is that the vast majority (app. 90%) of beneficiaries of the tax deduction for dependant spouses are men, and that the greatest savings from this deduction go to those with the highest income. (An upper income earner will realize some $1500 savings, while the savings to the lower income earner may be in the neighbourhood of $500.) The bottom line is that the present system is one more example of the poor (mostly women) subsidizing the affluent (mostly NORTHERN OMAN page 10 continued on page 17 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �HEART HELD HOSTAGE I can catty my heatt -Ln a padlocked box Removed ytom the gesh and gnom 4ec2ing Whexe stilt- opened wounds, beneath, tie bteeding Under scats, both Mesh and deceptive-4 {ailing Whete it can't be plucked and ground into powder On tegt in me, too tong to pondet Wands btutat in their gotm, when .intransigent On iotmeess and ingettite, the times when absent Heart held hostage, incommunicado Desiting and 6m /sting the deep oi Loving But mote geating og an empty bravado A guatd, this tock outside; sttong in its ptesetvation Og the oisonet, inside, searching unattainabte salvation. Joyce Michalchuk she was not destitute, at .least not to the point oi smoking cigatette butts itom city curb sides; she was not destitute, at teast she ate better than baAgain dog good with no name white tabets; ANOTHER TIME One morming when I woke I noticed that I'd .teat the cuttains pattty opened So I chose to tie abed and watch the day ()teak thAough the window 3ut what emerged was not the day at all con tathet thtough the window came a great wide coit oi gtey... to wrap itscei in thickening strands she was not destitute, i mean not all het clothing came atom gooduat arc the salvation atmy; she was not destitute, wwand aget all And as I scotched its muthy depths I tonged to zee within, perhaps, some save/Led thread of beauty But such was not the case Just a said mass of gtey it way ...and waiting. she had a toog oven het head (what's wtong with tow tentat?); she was not destitute, tote unemptoyment was high but you can get by on general wetiate; Violet Winegarden February 1980 she was not destitute, at Zeast she was ative... COMMITMENT ..she was until yestetday........ I am not sick I toZd them But I saw them Zook and heard them viola nikkila The bond og Darkness .eet me in I could not see his lace Beneath the hous ChiZdZike --- out hearts -Ln hiding, await They gave me drugs It did not deaden the pain I had gotgotten to 6ee2 to untock And saw instead the magic key out innet cupboatd to of 6eceings... I knew I was sane Oi OWL dreams , As I stated at the watts Just a tittte mote time channetting And Pa be O.K....I said But no one ase woad .tow gonth the wishes Otmet thoughtz into the teaZity of being. Donna Dowly This isn't the best thing, I I I I said. am not sick. am not sick. am not sick. Susan Collins Hawkins September 1980 Poet Cr' PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Finger vs. Man Having read and enjoyed Betty Dodson's book Liberating Masturbation and having reflected upon David Reuben's comment on masturbation ("it is like going to the movies by yourself - the show is the same except that you are in the movie theatre alone"), it occured to us that Dodson takes the mattermuch too seriously while Reuben is entirely too flippant. Reuben implies that aloneness is necessarily a less desirable state than togetherness. We feel that this snide attitude is unwaranted and that Betty Dodson's approach makes a continual mountain out of what can be, at times, a nice little molehill. A digital quickie can be fun We take the view that the nicest thing about masturbation is the fact that it is something that you can do when you are alone. The stress of a sexual relationship with another human being is totally eliminated in constructive auto-eroticism. Indeed, this is truly "doing your own thing." Your finger is your friend and just think of what a faithful and loyal friend it can be. It's handy,too.(Pun intended). Being attached to you, you are unlikely to ever be without it because it is difficult to lose it, forget it or misplace it. Other good points about your finger that you should be aware of are the following 1.You never have to nag your finger to take a bath,or shower before it makes love to you. 2.You never have to pester your finger to turn off the T.V.-and come to bed. It is always ready when you are. 3.Your finger doesn't have a nose so you don't have to be squeaky clean to insist., on some sexual attention from it. 4.Your finger doesn't talk. (What Bliss) Just think of what that means. Your finger doesn't criticise you for not having orgasms, taking too long to have orgasms, or having so many orgasms that it can't get loose. It also doesn't ask stupid questions, such as "Did you . : by VICTORIA POWELL and JENIFER SVENDSE without either damage to it or risk of imminent electrocution. 7. Your finger is a perfect bed partner, It does not snore,fart,sweat,belch,hog the bed space in spread-eagle fashion, hog the covers, steal the pillows, or dig you in the ribs with its sharp elbows. Your finger doesn't complain when your pet wants to sleep on the bed. Also, your finger does not misfire and leave wet spots on the sheets. In the morning your finger will not pounce on you intent on seduction because it woke with an a.m. tumescence before you have had a cup of coffee. Nor will it refuse to deduce you before it has had a cup of coffee, made by you and brought to it. 8. Your finger will not get you pregnant You do not have to concern yourself wit'. an IUD, hormone pills, rubber apparatuse come?" or "Was it all right for and greasy kid's stuff. All you have to you?" or "Did the earth move?" have is a bottle of hand lotion, in a your finger will never criticize scent of your preference. you for being too quiet and undemonstrative, nor will it fuss that 9. Your finger will not give you syphill gonorrhea, yeast infections or crabs. you make so much noise that the The most harm you can do to yourself is neighbours might call the landto scratch yourself with a ragged finger lord. Your finger won't moan at -nail. (File it down gently; your finger you because it dan't have an oris your friend, remember. Reflect also gasm, if it just had one, and it can't have another one again soon. that if a penis hurt you its owner wouldn't permit you to file it down). You don't have to make charming Life with your finger can be serene and intelligent conversation with silent and blissfully content. But, cry your finger, before, during or the critics, "What will happen when you after sexual activity. Nor do you are lonely?" Your finger can help you in have to listen to it give the dethis department as well. Your finger can finitive view of the Third World. 5.Your finger does not wake you up dial the telephone number of any of your at 4am to read you the poem it has friends. You will discover that friends just written, to brag about how it become better friends when you are not clinched the Figby contract (after sexually dependent on them. Finally, when you are old and grey seven double martinis yet), or to and full of sleep, you will find -hat discuss (in excruciating detail) your finger has gracefully grown old how it solved that fascinating with you. Indeed, the more use you have problem in staff relations. made of it the more gracefully it (and 6.Your finger is somewhat better you) will grow old. Remember the more than a vibrator. It never needs battries, replacements or mechani- excercise the joint gets, the less cal repairs. You can use your fin- susceptible it is to arthritis. ger in the bath or the shower, reprinted from Branching Ou CELIBACY as an alternate lifestyle The first issue of a new journal is out: 'The Celibate Woman, a Journal for Women Who Are Celibate or Considering this Liberating Way of Relating to Others". While most of us spend a portion of our lives in a celibate state, we are not always able to appreciate its benefits when all around us there is an attitude that the only healthy and happy way to live one's life is to be sexually active. If one does not have a partner with whom a sexual relationship can be shared, one is expected to seek a partner. Otherwise one's life is not considered to be 'full' or 'complete'. Yet,at,the sametime, more of us are discovering that choosing celibacy can be a very positive choice and that this lifestyle can provide healthier and happier relationships with those we care about, including those with whom we share an intimate relatioship. Living in a society where sex enters practically every aspect of our lives, it is refreshing to share new ideas, to explore new ways of rela ing to others. As one woman expressed in the journal, "What made celibacy possible for me was the realisation that it does not mean giving up affection and touching. What it means for me is not taking affection in a sexual direction. In fact, I fihd that when I do not narrow my affection by directing it sexually, I experience more equal and warm relationships with everyone I care about." Another wrote in "One Year of Celibacy" that during that year she had more relationships, both personal and professional, and more affection than in any other time of her life. Still another woman expressed that when sex enters_a friendship, the friendship part suffers. In an interview two women agreed that a negative aspect of sexual involvement, other than disrupting a friendship is that the sexual relationship or sexual experience does not always proceed as you imagine it would. You may think you want the sexual dimension one woman noted, "But what you really want is your fantasy, the way you wish it would be."These and other reflections on celibacy and sexuality are increasingly shared and articulated promoting the creation of new forms on interpersonal relationships. In addition to articles, the first issue includes book reviews, poetry and artwork. In the introduction to the journal the editor comments: "Mass communications in all it's various forms push sexuality in every concievable way, including way! that are degrading and life endangering to females. This has a direct influence on attitudes and behaviour in our society. The role mass communication plays in promoting pornography and overemphasis on sex is being documented and challenged by many women and women's organisations. The Celibate Woman Journal was conceived as a forum for presenting another view of sexuality - an opening up for alternatives in a sex-oriented society." The Celibate Woman Journal is published irregularly and is available for $4 (for a single issue) or $8 for a subscription (2 issues) from 3306 Ross Place, N.W., Washington,D.C. 20008. The editor, Martha Allen, welcomes articles, artwork, letters, experiences, ideas and theory. NORTHERN WOMAN page 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �by Katherine Brule "Family violence causes more deaths, serious injuries, and emotional suffering than the use of illicit narcotic drugs." (Shirley E. Small, Wife Assault) At present, wife battering is a silent crime--silent for a society that won't listen to the screams. It is so prevalent that 50% of all women are likely to experience some form of abuse at some time in their lives. It is felt that only one out of 10 cases of abuse are reported, but that three out of 10 women in Canada are actually victims of battering. In a 1980 report published by the Ontario Status of Wouen Council, it is estimated that 72% of victims of family violence are women; 2% of victims are men. There are a number of factors contributing to the high incidence of spouse abuse, including alcoholism and poor economic conditions. However, the use of violence as a means of expressing frustration and anger is learned behaviour. Because of the role expectations in our society, people are conditioned to behave towards each other as dominant or passive. Needless to say, in a society that reinforces patriarchal attitudes, it is the male who is expected to be dominant, and woman who is conditioned to be submissive. Anyone Anytime Anywhere Violence in the home is considered to be a private matter, rather than a social problem: "A man's home is his castle"--and it is accepted that he rule as he sees fit. It has been found that fully half of the persons involved in family violence, whether-as victim or as offender, have experienced or witnessed abuse as children. Thus, violence as an element of personal relationships is preserved from one generation to the next. Even when children live in a stable and loving home environment, they are saturated by an atmosphere of violence at every hand--in the media, on the street and among their peers. There is no area in our society --no social class, no economic or educational level, no age group, ethnic group or religious affiliation- that is free of spouse abuse. In this respect, at least, we can be said to be a truly democratic society; we are all affected. "Outreach '82" is a community education project funded by the federal government. It's purpose is to make the public aware that spouse abuse is a serious social problem. "Outreach '82" project workers give presentations to community groups and school classes throughout the Thunder Bay area. Arrangements for a presentation can be made by contacting Women's Centre at 345-7802. Fresh Start by JOAN LE FEUVRE Project workers from "Outreach '82" highly recommend the handbook, Fresh Start...is this book for you? for women who are in an abuse situation, or for those who are concerned about the most supportive way to relate to an abuse victim. This handbook is available at Women's Centre, 4-204 Red River Road, Thunder Bay. Copies may also be ordered from the YWCA, Peterborough, and want to get out, of want to stay and-Want the abu6e to 4-top, you may Peet atone, con4used and guiZty be- Ont. who want mote than iniotmation about what to do you ate in an abmive you ate in an abuisive tetationship cau6e you& emotions 4 .top you ittom acting. LiO. izn't a master o6 togicatty going 4tom one step -to the next. Feat, guilt and con4uzion ate notmat Hocks along the way. This biook is wtitten sot att. oi you tetationzhip. It is writ ten 4ot tho-s e of you who have - 'red getting out of it, and iett guitty that you didn't. wtitten Got those of make it. It you who haven't ttied, and don't know It Ls written to what to expect. tett. you of some of the dii4icuts that othets have sound. Thi.4 wilt not take away the ieeting4, but Lt witt hetp you to be ptepated 4ot them and know that... YOU ARE NOT ALONE! /1111111111111111.....0.1111. reprinted from Sudbury Women's Centre Newsletter Feminism and Heterosexuality Reviewing Still Ain't Satisfied: Heterosexuality and Feminist Consciousness, by Joanne Kates, Women's Press, 1982 Joanne Kates' article on being a feminist and heterosexual speaks for many women who feel that the price for their feminism is pain and anger with the men they love. Upon reading this article, I often felt as though Ms. Kates was myself; I laughed, I cried and I got mad, because I too am caught between loving this individual for who he is and hating him for what he represents. Heterosexual feminists are not, contrary to popular belief, "selling out their sexuality". As Ms. Kates states: "the implication is that if you go home to sleep with a man you don't really love women, and therefore you don't really love yourself; and, therefore, you're not really a feminist." Personally, I feel that such statements are sexually repressive and detrimental to the sisterhood of feminism. Yet, that doesn't help to lessen the anger you feel when the man you love leafs through Penthouse when you have just seen Not A Love Story. Being heterosexual and feminist means expressing that anger then, because it's a fundamental aspect of our feminism. But, it also means that it's such an integral part of our consciousness that we're able to love our men just the same. by Viv Dembinski NORTHERN AT OMAN page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Wome: It's a Beginningasbut., "It was the One actions women facing those majorofproblem d section 28 who use the Charter to combat disnstated in the crimination is the nature of the ated Doris AndSupreme Court of Canada, the highest he National Accourt in the country and the place Status of Wowhere the effect of the Charter will be decided. Until 1982 all members aturday, October of the Court have been white, male, middle-aged and successful lawyers. ke to a group gathered to hear This year, with the appointment of Bertha Wilson, this uniformity has hts and equality r new charter. been marred. "We need a greater degree of nal decision to representation by women and by people f president of Council on the of other races and other socio-eco81 when Lloyd nomic backgrounds on our Supreme Court' majority of the stated Lynn Beak, "in order to ensure stpone a women's that the judges are personally knowrter. Following ledgable about the nature and effects oup of women of discrimination, and deal with the e Ad-Hoc Commissue sympathetically". tion,.planned an Susan Ellis, a Sudbury lawyer e, drew together involved with the Sudbury Women's in November 1981 Centre, had the unenviable task of n constitutional describing the limitations upon our s an exhilerating rights. The Charter is subject to ulminated in the several limitations including such ement on women's unreasonable ones as "are demonstrably er. Section 28 justifiable in a free and democratic tanding anything' society". Ellis questioned the meanights and freeing of "are demonstrably justifiable are to be guarin a free and demoncratic society" e and female and suggested that since this type of wording was unusual in Canadian laws followed Anderit would take some time before the thern Ontario courts decided what had to be demoneffects of the strated and how. She also questioned the limitations the use of the words 'free" and "democratic" society and wondered why Beak, a lawyer the drafters of the Charter had not the Northern NAC executive used "Canadian" society instead. The panel discussion and the the equality workshops that followed left us with the feeling that obtaining the Chartution embodies ter and equality rights was not the er can be used end but the beginning of a long pros of both the cess. It will require many years of l governments work before we know how effective islation which the equality rights sections of the women, handicapCharter will be and in the meanwhile based on their we can look at the Charter as a new ionality can be tool that women have acquired to arter. In order assist us in our struggle for equalof the proity. equality rights The panel was organized by the into effect two NAC affiliates in Sudbury, the ee years after Sudbury Women's Centre and the Suder. Therefore bury Women's Action Group. ime to know hts are Municipal Counci "Never netteat, never explain, neveA apotogize, get the thing done and te them hota." (Nettie McUung) EAR FALLS Margret Bergman SIOUX LOOKOUT Elizabeth Harding NAKINA : Raymonde Mercier PICKLE LAKE Rose Koval GERALDTON Sally Lane Doreen Boulanger FORT FRANCES Diane Cunningham (Mayor incumbent, acclamation). HEARST: Sheila Zamontangne (by acclamation) Blanche Doucet (by acclamation) MARATHON Mary Gerritson LONGLAC Colette Dufault MACHIN Marion Marcellus Sandra Walkey Exilda Kondra MANITOUWADGE Rita Kalincak CONMEE Peggy Smart Frances Pa,amaki JAFFRAY - MELICK Marg Confield KEEWATIN : : : : : : : : : : : : 'Helen Korba DORION Mary Tolmonen (incumbent) IGNACE Joan Barnes (Reeve incumbent) KENORA : Annette Koonanek Helen Dubenski Joyce Chevier NEEBING Sheila House (Reeve) O'CONNOR Nancy Myers (Reeve incumbent, acclamation) Lorna Blackie OLIVER : Tina Mayala (by acclamation) PAIPOONGE Marg Germans Margret Sideen DRYDEN Susan Wells SHUNIAH : : : : : : : Un Nouveau Monde contre toutes e. Mais elles raphie mame le chose pour endoctriner jouet sexuel. ont persuade ierge avec la ite aussi, pour l'homme omme. Apres es nous sommes ogande et nous parmi les rtout les images qui peintent moi et mes soeurs comme les jouets de la sexualite, n'est pas comfortable. J'aimerai a faire deux choses - commencer 1. developer les images erotique qui sont valides pour les femmes nous -mimes. - arreter toute la propogande des images faux des tous de nos freres et nos soeurs. A renverser les ondes de la pornographie ne sert que nous Bonner un petit coin qui ne pas decriver par les hommes. Il nous faut de creer un nouveau monde. THUNDER BAY Betty Kennedy : We would like to congratulate these women on their successful election. We would also hope that they would use their positions to forward opportunities for and the equality of all women in Northwestern Ontario.* by SARA WILLIAMSON Sara Williamson, NWJ collective member is presently involved in a French immersion program in Winnipeg. 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �"And in he eyez the .have -.e ight Zia And Zia - and tia and £.i. ?4" (Anita Owen, Oneamy Eyes 1&94) The saddest people Tennov interviewed were those who had remained quiveringly limerent for years of unrequited love, caught in the cliche of the secretary and the boss, the student and the teacher, the patient and the doctor. To the limerent person there was enough uncertainty combined with little bits of evidence which could be manufactured from the briefest encounter into hope for reciprocity. Sometimes these long-term limerents were deliberately victimized by their LOs who enjoyed the adoration and kept it alive by dropping encouraging hints, or even initiating an occasional romantic encounter--any game necessary to preserve their power. But Tennov also found many people who had never had a limerent experience These non-limerents very often believed that the acute longings described in popular songs were an exaggeration that no one actually felt. When a nonlimerent relates how she feels when she is in love she doesn't describe the emotional takeover that limerents experience and she is less likely to glorify the loved one. If she never scales the peaks of happiness when her love is returned, she also does not have to endure the agonies of pain which accompany uncertainty. Even more fortunate for her, she is unlikely to get pulled into the terrible and sometimes dangerous depressions or into the feelings of shame and self-hate which is often the lot of the woman in love when she realizes that the cause is hopeless. On the other hand a non-limerent may feel deprived because a door to a significant human experience remains locked. "Perhaps there is something wrong", she thinks. She believes she is "unable to love". "Love hurts", as the song says and the hurt often sweeps around the compass of the limerent's friends especially when a woman falls in love with a man who is wildly unsuitable. It is heartrending to see a friend deify a man who everyone knows will batter her, or take her money or involve her in a scheme of lies. Feminists hate the loss of the authentic self and the dependence that limerence induces; they hate themselves deeply if it happens to them. "Cleaving," snaps Jane Rule, "is an activity which should be left to snails for cleaning ponds and aquariums." Germaine Greer has no sympathy. "Love, love, love--all the wretched cant of it, masking egotism, lust, masochism, fantasy under a mythology of sentimental postures." Even though Tennov believes there is no difference in the way men and women feel when they are in love, the difference is surely in the possible results. Men are the violent sex. A woman who is rejected usually gets depressed, a man may become dangerous. Jealous scenes from a woman are just that--jealous scenes. Jealous scenes from a man, whether the scene is based on reality or fantasy, can be deadly. Moreover, women are taught that love is supreme, that "Love is giving, not getting. It is a sacrifice, and sacrifice is glorious. If a man is worth loving at all, he is worth loving generously")/A woman who is indoctrinated to some degree--is set up to be a victim, a psychological mutant or the victim of physical violence. This situation provoked TiGrace Atkinson to one of the most bitter comments on the nature of love. "Love", she said, "is the victim's response to the rapist." Tennov believes that limerent states are involuntary and are biologically imposed--a hell, or in the event of reciprocity from the loved one, a heaven from which none of us can escape. In a rather weakly-argued concluding chapter, Tennov states that limerence is an inherited behaviour because it induces us to mate, to commit ourselves to another person for the purpose of rearing children. So the race survives. This kind of backward argument ignores cultures where limerence is rare and it overlooks Tennov's own findings that there exist a large percentage of people who never experience the thing. I believe limerence to be a culturally learned response. Some cultures have nourished it, others discourage it. In Part 11, I hope to show that limerent experiences were much less common in the past than they are today and why this is so. Today, our postindustrialized society almost demands that we all fall in love and if we don't, labels us deficient in=some way. Even children are expected to participate. Ann Landers wrote: "During any given week, no less than 300 letters from 'desperate' girls between 10 and 13 cross my desk with this sad refrain: 'Other girls my age have boyfriends, why can't I get one? There must be something wrong with me.' Ann blamed it on "peer pressure"; I blame it on cultural pressure. I recall that at 11 or 12 years old, I actually taught myself how to be "in love". I remember exactly how I did it. I monitored every fleeting emotion that seemed to be connected with feelings of love. I checked to see if these feelings were connected with certain boys who struck my fancy. I lingered on these feelings, I felt and re-felt them. Bit by bit, I dug the neurological paths to the emotional cluster called by Tennov, limerence. I remember looking out for a suitable LO and discarding various ones--one was "stuck-up", another was too short, another stupid in school. When one is choosing a god, it is important to choose carefully. Finally I settled on a slim, pimply youth with an open smile and beautiful hands (it might have been to avoid looking at his pimples). I remember clearly making myself love his hands. He asked me to a dance. Oh, bliss: How I replayed in my mind the events that led up to his asking me, how I carefully assigned each event a different shade of emotion, how I massaged those feelings, trying to make the warmth which flowed from them last forever. I extended them, deepened them and so I taught myself how to turn myself into a bundle of emotions. The dance was a disaster. I was catatonic with shyness. It had been more personally fulfilling to be in my room at home, with the record player on, fantasizing about the dance than actually being there. The word my mother used was "moping". I believe. After the dance, he never spoke to me again. Whenever I saw him in the school halls, he would sort of scuffle off without looking at me. Now I understand the despair of love. I could feel it all through my body. I stored it up somewhere in my body and I could take it out and re-experience it again. It is easy to smile at a school "crush". But the same emotional hurdles I so painstakingly taught myself at 12 are the very same that I have involuntarily gone through several times since. (Part 11--next issue: "Destroying the Prison of Love.") Research Group /cpf Notes 1 2 This list is a paraphrase of a more expanded list found in Love and Limerance, p. 24 Karen Horney viewed romantic love as a sign of masochism. Theodore Reik believed it filled a pathological need. Albert Ellis termed it a "sex tease" and so on. 3 This is typical of women's advice books from the 20's to the 60's. This quote comes from the autobiography of a Canadian movie star, Marie Dressler, The Story of an Ugly Duckling, 1924. NORTHERN aOMAN page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Shack Whacky And she cout.d gy in the smatt maiming howls be4ote the ctatte4 o4 teaeity by ELAINE LYNCH and the echo o4 het piti./son watts "Cabin Fever" is a term that is not defined in any medical encyclopedia as a bona fide disease, but it conjures up an image of someone with a very definite ailment. Numerous articles on the subject talk about a person who is fed up with confinement to a particular space and the activities associated with it; a person in need of a break or change. Because the long Canadian winters tend to immobilize people, the phenomenon is most common during that season. However, the effects of isolation, lack of stimulation and the repetition of a mundane routine, in fact can be felt at any time of the year, particularly by women confined to the home with small children. The causes are both blatant and insidious. Some of the more obvious causes are: cramped quarters with little opportunity to escape because of inclement weather, or because of a gaggle of small children that must be tended; isolation from other adults or facilities, such as a movie theatre, both of which represent a refreshing break from daily routines; physical and mental fatigue caused by endless day to day tasks with no break in sight. The more insidious causes are related to social values which give little credit or credibility to the woman who stays at home to care for children. Low self-esteem demanding role of care-giver can create depression, apathy and stress in women. Depression seems to be the broad term applied to the resulting condition. However, cabin fever can manifest itself as a tendency to overeat, a disinterest in physical activity, edginess, hopelessness and, generally, a vicious circle of related problems that combine to overwhelm the person attempting to cope with situation. There is no single solution to cabin fever other than the recognition of the condition and the development of a better plan to cope with it on both a personal and social level. Setting definite goals to work towards can alter a vision of an endless winter. Putting the never-ending task of running a household aside to take time out for oneself, or to engage in something pleasurable with family and friends, are effective. Women have co-operatively organized planned outings with provided child care, playgrounds, drop-in sessions, sports activities in the evening. The important thing is to recognize cabin fever, understand the dynamics, and prepare to cope with a problem that is related to social structure and the unalterable facts of winter, or life in a small community. "The totment o4 human 4tusttation, whatever its immediate caul e, Ls the knowledge that the sett is in pnizon, tins vital 40tce and 'mangted mind' teaking away in .lonely, wa6teiut set4-congict." (E1- Lzabeth Drew, 1959) -01 became too toud. When she wrote she wrote of paz4ion and .love, the ittusion the winged-tipped sky 0,4 independence be4ote the exchange, the landing. She stitt hevus the pAomizu the golden rating, tike iite butning out too soon. She dreams now in co44ee-ctouds and stoten moments hading to the hat4-4itted cup the zitence Rosalyn Taylor Perrett Right to Decide reprinted from Sudbury Women's Centre Newsletter Yes, we are pro-choice. This Fall, Sudbury Right to Lifers have been holding regular Sunday vigils at Memorial Hospital. I haven't been to watch. I haven't read the literature I hear is being distributed. I understand they are mourning the death of the fetuses aborted at the Memorial. At present, in Ontario, abortion outside a hospital is illegal. Memorial Hospital has Sudbury's only committee for the review of abortion requests. The committee exists at the discretion of the hospital's board of directors. That is to say, the board decides whether or not abortions will be performed in their hospital at all. (The committee decides on individual cases.) The province does not require the hospital to provide this service. You can see why it is important that the hospital board feels it has community support for the continuance of their position. The Steering Committee of the Women's Centre has sent such a letter of support. Let's make one thing perfectly clear. The Sudbury Women's Centre is not pro-abortion. It is our wish that no woman ever had to face an unwanted pregnancy, for abortion surely presents one of the most agonizing dilemmas that a woman can face. Presently, there is no 100% reliable contraceptive method. We do not see abortion as a method of birth control. We are not flippant about the value and dignity of human life. Many of us have borne our own children, and we love them as much as someone from Right to Life loves theirs. Our love of human life extends to the many women who have died or been maimed by the back street abortionist. We want this to end. Abortion was with us prior to its 1969 legalization in cases where the physical or mental health of t5e mother is at risk. Illegal abortion is still with us as presently safe legal abortion is not widely enough available. The middle class woman faced with an unwanted pregnancy has financial resources to go wherever she must to get an abortion. ode need the same availability for women of every class. Every woman should have the right to bring to bear her own moral and/or religious insights into human life in reaching her decision through a free and responsive exercise of her conscience. But, we are realistic. We know the decision will be made in our community many times this year. For this reason, we want safe abortion to continue. We want it available to women regardless of economic class. And of ultimate importance, we want to each have the right to come to our own decision. What would my own decision be? Would I ever have an abortion? I have a medical history which would make another pregnancy hazardous to myself and potentially to my baby. I almost didn't make it the last time. Thankfully, my baby was fine. I have responsibly taken permanent measures to prevent future pregnancies for this reason. But, the best laid plans of mice and women...! What would I do if pregnant again? I honestly don't know. I could never decide something this important hypothetically. I do know that I want that right to decide to rest with me. That's what we mean by pro-choice. by Carolyn Campbell NORTHERN V OMAN page 16 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Howl NO NW, '4409 "You have put me in hete (jaie) a cub, but I wite come out /waiting Zike a Zion, and 1 witt maize att heft howl;" (Cattie Nation, 1901) v 409 v 1,40, 91409 Why am I counting if not casualties of battle? Why then don't we admit we are at war? Every man: has probably raped or beaten a woman; or enjoyed rape fantasies; or threatened a woman with physical force, explicitly or with gestures--stepping closer, raising his voice; at least a man he works with or socializes with, who he thinks is an O.K. type, has raped or beaten a woman. Every woman: fears rape, or lives inside limits imposed by that fear: no late night walks, no living alone, no hours of solitude by the river. If she relates intimately to men, the threat of violence has probably sufficed to keep her in line. If she is a lesbian, her comfort is that the threat probab- continued from pg. 18 Books and harrassment accompanied by threats of violence, is intended to strip away a person's sense of self-worth. The slow, emotional torture which produces invisible scars is as lethal as the quick, sharp physical blows. The result of psychological abuse, in varying degrees, is depersonalization, and it is typical of brainwashing techniques used when any individual or group attempts to dominate others.. "He really made me feel like a receptacle. My husband had told me that all a girl was,was a servant who could not think, a receptacle, a piece of meat." p. 5 Walker gives characteristics of batterers and victims that may not necessarily be true of all persons, but that are common in a great many ly comes from men she is not intimate with. In sum: if you are a woman, you have probably been raped or beaten or will be; at least a woman you love has been raped or beaten or will be. It's easy after saying this to think of men and women as separate species, one preying on the other. The state of war waged on all women by men who are overtly violent gives all men power. Rapists and batterers are the military arm of patriarchy. "The Lit peAzon to be o66iciatty executed in Canada wa4 a 16 yt. otd giAZ 4entenced to death in 1649 6ot the6t, accotding to Chtistina Mania Hitt in he papet 'Women in the Canadian Economy'. A mate ctiminat who had a.t.so neceived a death .sentence at the same time acaped ha bate by agteeing to act az hen executionee (6/tom Petception, Spiting Summet 1981) Paper Path continued prom pg. 10 We must not let the media hype us. The proposal is in no way a radical itea that will shake the roots of capitalism or substantially alter economic sexual discrimination and exploitation. It is merely a modest liberal reform that could redirect some government monies more appropriately. The dilemma that feminists face in enter-ing the debate is the eternal problem of expending our energy on minor reforms, thus diluting our energy for radical action. But because the proposal interferes with sacrosanct male privilege, a violent attack has been unleashed. We must recognize this hostility for what it is...an attack against women. And, if only to make clear the roots of the opposition, we must accept the reformist position and support this proposal to study appropriate changes to the tax system. Women must get beyond the media's efforts to divide us, so we can focus on the real issues involved. The real, though largely unreported, opposition to Erola's proposal comes from affluent men. The real issue is control. --exerpted froth "Fight Back", a feminist resource manual on violence against women Amnesty Please show your concern for Egyptian prisoners of conscience by writing a courteous letter (an example is given below) to the followingaddress: His Excellency Muhammad Hosni MUBARAK President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Abedine Palace Al Gumhuriya Square CAIRO Arab Republic of Egypt Your Excellency: cases. She introduces the concept of a three-phase "cycle of violence" which helps explain how battered women become victimized; how they fall into learned-helplessness behaviour, and why.,they, do not attempt to escape: 1. tension-building period, ending in 2. an acute battering incident, followed by 3. a period of calm--the "honeymoon" period. Understanding the dynamics of the battered-woman syndrome is essential for anyone who attempts to help the victim. Lenore Walker's book gives the basis for this understanding. It is the author's plea to'the reader that you "Let your anger spur you on to some kind of positive action to remedy the injustices committed against such women." It is with concern I have learned (N.B. Women interested in forming a that Farida NAQQASH, a writer and a discussion group to further explore mother of two children, is facing the Erola proposal please contact two trials before the Supreme State Fiona at Northern Women's Centre, Security Court on charges of illegal 345-7802.) political activities. The arrest and detention of Farida NAQQASH and others like her is contrary to the .111. mom. mama . as ammo ammo aoMM guarantees of the rights to freedom of opinion and association contained in the Permanent Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt. I therefore urge you to declare a presidential amnesty to Farida NAQQASH and others To the women determined facing trial because of the nonto keep a space for ourselves violent exercise of their human rights and that have financially contributed to WOMANSPACE. ammo THUNDER CLAP Name Address AMMO" 411.11M., ../. 0 WOMANSPACE A meeting to plan the continuing use of WOMANSPACE will be held at WOMANSPACE, 316 Bay St., Thursday, Mar. 24, at 7:30 p.m. All women welcome. Your ideas about how we can retain our SPACE and how best to use it are important. Please attend. WELCOME THUNDER BOLT The NWJ collective welcomes Devon, Thunder Bay's newest To Pierre Trudeau, for kissing the feminist. Congratulations to hand that bites us, in arranging the pact that approved testing of Devon's parents Danalyn MacKinnon and Evert Ottertail. the U.S. Cruise Missile in Canada. NORTHERN WOMAN page 17 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Book! FOR HER OWN GOOD As our feminist consciousness has developed our determination has grown to act on our internal knowledge, to regain control of our health and wellbeing, and to counteract the "advice" that bombards us from society's experts (gynecologists, psychologists, pediatricians, sociologists, counsellors, therapists, ad nauseum). Any time we feel that determination slipping we should pick up FOR HER OWN GOOD: 150 Years of the Experts Advice to Women (Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English, Anchor Press/Doubleday, New York) Tracing the development of male expertise on the 'Woman Question' this book illustrates that "the experts' authority rested on the denial or destruction of women's autonomous sources of knowledge, the old networks of skill-sharing, the accumulated lore of generations of mothers" ,:or -Lie/. Own Good not only examiners the usurption of women's healing skills and processes by the male medical profession, but also descibes the emergence of male experts who "used their authority to define women's domestic activities down to the smallest details of housework and child raising". For Her Own Good provides an insightful evaluation of the evolement of male experts "scientific" authority to prescribe and restrict women's mind, body and nature, and examines the dilemmas women face in regaining control of our well-fare in an unhealthy, masculinist society. was happening to them, since they had not left the violent situation that they were in." p. xii (intro) The lack of understanding of the plight of an abuse victim lies in the fact that the conditions that allow it to prevail have been taken for granted in our society. There is an established tradition of tolerance for wife abuse, and it centres on the concept of sex-role stereotyping--the meintenance of the women in the role of an inferior, even that of a possession. "Men believed it was their duty to defend their women, but they also believed they had a right to discipline their 'property' as they saw fit. Man's physical and economic strength reinforced woman's acceptance of this 'right of discipline'." p. 11 Although the legal code of the present day asserts that assault is a criminal act, the attitudes that allowed "right of discipline" in relationships still prevail. A man who batters his spouse because he is allowed to do it is a result of the expectation of society that the male shall be the dominant figure. Battering is considered to be a minor infraction in the exercise of that role. THE BATTERED WOMAN (Lenore E. Walker, Harper and Row, 1979) In The Battered Woman, Lenore Walker gives evidence of the pervasiveness of battering in our society, but the most significant contribution she makes to our understanding of the problem is an analysis of the process of victimization. Her emphasis on the psychological process of victimization emerged as more and more women revealed their experiences of abuse. There was reluctance, initially, for women to discuss the details of their cases. This is a symptom of one of the first obstacles a victim faces when trying to seek help. "These women told me how rare it was to be able to tell their entire stories to someone. Most listeners would cut them off as soon as they got to some of the more ghastly details. Either they were not believed or they were told that it could only be assumed that they liked what Battering and abuse can exist in any type of relationship, whether it be married, common-law, gay or courting. Hbwever, "it is important to note that battering relationships are more frequent among married couples. The marriage license in our society seems to serve as a license to violence." Contrary to accepted notions, spouse abuse is not confined to any area of our society--it cuts across all econo.dc, educational, cultural, ethnic or religious affiliations. ...although many men do indeed feel powerless in relation to their control over their lives, it is my contention that the very fact of being a woman, more specifically a "married" woman, automatically creates a situaof powerlessness. This is one of the detrimental effects of sex-role stereotyping." p. 51 Battering is comprised of two components, the physical and the psychological. Physical abuse is, of most obvious and includes course, the gamut of assault, from slapping, punching and kicking to the use of weapons, including knives and guns. There is often coercive sexual acti- GOING TO IRAN (Kate Millett, photographs by Sophie Kerr). It seems sad now to think that there was a time, in early 1979, when the women of Iran believed their lot would change for the better. The Shah had been dethroned, the hated secret police disbanded and the prison doors flung open to release thousands of political prisoners, both men and women. Women had fully participated in the riots which brought down the government and they expected to have a voice in the new order. To celebrate their freedom, Iranian feminists invited well-known feminists from around the world to join them in celebrating International Women's Day. One of these was Kate Millett who had worked for an antiShah organization in the U.S. By the time Millett arrived in Iran, the revolution had started to implode inward with frightening speed pulling all the progressive elements into a black hole. Homosexuals were executed on the spot;with the tacit approval of the revolutionary government, gangs of young men roamed the streets beating up unveiled women. They chanted "Cover your head or we'l] break it". The Iranian feminists found they had the greatest difficulty arranging meetings or rallies. Their greatest and last achievement was a march of ten thousand women to protest the return to the chador. The marchers had to be physically protested all the way and whhn they were turned back by the authorities, the stragglers were were killed, set upon and beaten. Millett and Canadian photographer Sophie Kerr barely escaped. A few day later they were deported. Millett's book points out that the international press was, for the most part, uninformed about the lot o: women in Iran. At press conferences, called by women to try to inform the international community about what was happening, the reporteres focused on Millett to get a "Famous-Person-InThe News" slant to their stories by trying to get her to say something controversial. They ignored the Iranian feminists present and were comple tely uninterested in the issues at stake. The tragic destruction of women' human rights was never adequately reported in the press. Millett's book along with Kerr's photos, left me wit admiration for the bravery of the Ira ian women, who, incensed to find them selves completely betrayed by their own revolution, spoke out as best the could at great risk. vity. The extent of psychological abuse, which often goes unrecognized, may be even greater and more damaging in long-term effects, for it severely limits the capacity of the human psyche to function effectively. Psychological abuse, which includes continual verbal criticism continued on pg /7 "When co conduct a ctime, and when i4 a c.'iLme not a mime? When somebody up thene-- a monatch, a dictatot, a pope, a tegiztaton - ao decneee (JezAica Mitiotd) NuRTHERN IT OMAN page 18 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �International Women's Day March 8th, International Women's Day, has been a proud day of celebration for women around the world since 1910. You can help to continue the tradition by joining in the celebration A DAY TO REMEMBER this year. "BREAD AND ROSES" Echoing the familiar revolutionary cry for "bread and freedom", women in the massive and bitter 1912 strike of woolen mill workers in Lawrence, Massachusetts, carried signs declaring "We want bread and roses too." Their slogan captured the spirit of women's struggles so well that it has become a popular and fitting symbol for International Women's Day to this day. Join Thunder Bay women celebrating the strength, the spirit the solidarity of women ow, The International Women's Day party is usually the best party of the year. This year's -- the Third Annual -- will be held in the usual place, the Strathcona Golf Club House on Saturday March 12, As ever, the party starts with crosscountry skiing for the athletic in the late afternoon, attracts the more sedentary for the pot-luck supper and spins into an evening of dancing. There will also be a cash bar. All WOMEN WELCOME woo WOMEN'S UNIVERSITY Canada's only women's university is asking one dollar from every woman through out the country to support scholarships and bursaries for deserving women of all ages and to fund neglected areas of research into women's issues. Mount Saint Vincent University President Dr. E. Margaret Fulton announced the million dollar campaign while addressing more than 300 women attending the second annual conference of women executives. She said her university had launched its first ever national fund-raising campaign four years ago. The goal was $3.5 million and without the old boys network, it hadn't been easy. To date, $2.5 million was raised in pledges, many of which were contingent on whether or not the university could raise the rest during the next few months. Dr. Fulton said the first $2.5 million had to go into much-needed facilities because the Mount was bursting at the seams with hundreds of mature women returning to full-time study. A major disadvantage has been that the university, built by women for women at a time when women were not welcomed in such circles, had no endowment funds. "We cannot provide these deserving women with the scholarships and bursaries they so desperately need, nor can we provide the funding reqUired to carry out the many neglected areas of research on women's issues." Dr. Fulton said she was determined to even out the odds and give her students an equal opportunity to develop their potential in an environment designed specifically for their needs. And, she said, she is confident the women of Canada will help her by stuffing a dollar (anything over $5 will get an income tax receipt) in an envelope and sending it to Mount Saint Vincent University, 166 Bedford Highway, Halifax Women have a strong and a proud heritage - one that is too often forgotten or not acknowledged. Women have always worked. Women have always made history, individually and together. Among the many strengths of women is the ability to work together to achieve common goals. Women of all ages, social classes and political beliefs have worked together to reclaim the right to vote, to secure equality of treatment under the law, to improve labour laws and conditions for all people, and to promote equality of opportunity and remuneration. Yes, we have come a long way. Yes, we still have far to go. The wage gap between men and women is still increasing. In Canada and the Western World, men still overwhelmingly dominate the seats of government and the nations boardrooms. In many countries, the oppression of women still cries out for redress. Together women can rise up strong and proud, reclaiming the right to control our own bodies and an equal voice in making decisions that affect our destinies. Let's work together this year to make our voice heard, especially on this day of celebration and protest, International Women's Day. MARCH 8,1857 Women textile workers in New York's Lower East Side had had enough - of long hours, low pay and intolerable work conditions for themselves and their children. Dropping their work thousands filled New York streets that day with one voice of protest. In a massive demonstration, they bravely withstood brutal police retaliation to voice their demand for reasonable pay and labour laws, and the long-denied right of women to vote. COPENHAGEN, 1910 March 8th is declared a holiday International Women's Day - to commemorate the protest of 1857. The courage and tenacity of the women of 1857 have inspired thousands of women and men around the world to rise up and demand their rights. The declaration comes from the congress of the Second International, at the urging of socialist leader Clara Zetkin. It acknowledges women's struggles and the inequalities against which women still must fight. March 8th has been celebrated around the world since then, as a day of protest and of triumph for women. 11111 OUR APOLOGIES In the last issue we neglected to credit Joan Baril for her article, "Yip Yip Sur la Riviere" and Joyce Michalchuk for all the photographs' that appeared therein. Our collective apologies are extended to these two women to whom we are indebted for their regular contributions to the Northern Woman Journal. NORTHERN W OMAN page 19 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �"HEALTH SHARING" At,100c4ivoirvil OUTDOOR TRIPS FOR WOrlfffl with vital information 2540 _Pillsbury %Ave. So. -Aiiimeap014, .M .A1 55404 Laurie Conger on women's health issues you won't find anywhere else T5- Heather Bishop A Canadian Women's Health Quarterly Sat,, April 9, 9 P.M. at the Nor Shor's Hallmark Rom (612) 823-1900 Info Centre Opens Ticket/3 cote timited...get yowl NOW Phone 34 5- 74 82 Deals only with issues as they affect women: reproduction, occupational health hazards, sexuality, violence, drug abuse, therapy and more $6 advance ..,$7 at the door $8.00 $15.00 Individual Inst or Library Phone or write for a sample copy: Healthsharing, P.O. Box 230, Station M Toronto M6S 4T3 416-598-2658 open ii -tom The opening of a COMMUNITY INFORMATION AND REFERRAL CENTRE is announced by the Lakehead Social Planning Council. Effective immediately, anyone needing information on the various services and programs provided by all levels of government, as well as voluntary organizations and groups in Thunder Bay, can phone the centre at 345-4009, Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. The basic goals of the Centre are to provide the information to link people in need to the appropriate agency or service; to assist the community services in improving the accessibility of their services and to identify unmet needs and problems in the community service network. daily Wen Do natural food restaurant WOMEN'S SELF-DEFENSE INSTRUCTION BeginneA4 and InteAmediate 104 South Algoma Thunder Bay MAY and JUNE 344-0277 crepes Contact: qtraledge Donna Phoenix Sunday Brunch 345-7802 omlettes Please send me'( ) copies of RISING 0 $5.00 ea logiosOls-a,cheque:or money order. for ( ) whIchincludes postage, payable to: mar. ART show- -DAMON UMBACK - Women Fight Back! MEDIA WATCH NORTHERN WOMAN 4oypiAL, 316 Bay St., Thunder Bay Ontario, P76 141 PREEDOM OR CHOICE CANADIAN ABORTION RIGHTS ACTION LEAGUE (CABAL) ASS OCIATION CANADIZNNE POUR L8 DROIT A L'AVORTICSIZNT (Aa.WA) :Lied; MEDIA WATCH, a sub-committee of NAt (National Action Committee on the Status of Women) is dedicated to keeping up the pressure on Broadcasters and Advertisers so that women need not feel insulted, angry or invisible every time they turn on their TV's or Radian The Purpose of CARAL is to ensure that no woman in Canada is denied accel to safe, legal abortion. Our aim is the repeal of all sections of the Crimin Codce dealing with abortion and the establishment of comprehensive co traceptive and abortion services, including appropriate counselling across tt country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abortion as a fundamental human right I support the statement of purpose of CARAL and wish to become a member. Here's how you can do your bit and get some of that anger off your chest. Pick up some MEDIA WATCH complaint forms at Women's Centre, 2Q4 Red River Rd. Every time you see something you don't like, fill out the form, and send it to MEDIA WATCH. They will get it to the right people. LET THEM HEAR IT FROM US! Name. Address: Postal Code: Phone. Occupation Name of Federal Riding. Individual Member Limited Income Family Sustaining Donation $10.00 '$3.00 $15.00 $25.00 RETURN TO: CARAL, Box 935, Stn. 0. Toronto, M4T 2P PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 Prisons Issue i<76V/F> Collectively produced RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 BAY STREET THUNDER BAY "P", ONT. by Joan Baril, Kathryn Brule, Arja Lane, Noreen Lavoie, Theresa Legowski, Anna McColl, Joyce Michalchuk, Viola Nikkila, Margaret Phillips, Donna Phoenix, Luan Wall, Sara Williamson Return Postage Guaranteed Northern Woman Journal 316 BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, Ont. (Six Issues) $5.00 $10.00 Business or Institution PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 7 No 6 Description An account of the resource Vol. 7, No. 6 (March 1983) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Incarcerated women Poverty & Welfare for Women Northern Women Networking New Transition Home Thunder Bay Faye Peterson Transition House Solidarity Action from Egyptian Prisoners of Conscience Womanspace Thunder Bay Adrienne Rich Of Woman Born Institution of Motherhood Bonnie Fox Women’s Domestic Labour Under Capitalism Socialist Feminism The Emotion of Love Health as Political Commodification of Food Illness Industry Processed Food & Health Reintegration into Society After Prison Inaccuracy of Court & Police Reports of Incarcerated Women Motherhood & Incarceration Inefficacy of Prisons Amnesty International Sexual Harassment in Prisons Sexual Torture Ontario Coalition for Abortion Clinics Free Standing Abortion Clinics Access to Safe Abortion Lack of Abortion Access Play Review Miss Mandragola Tax Deductions for Dependent Spouses Poetry Betty Dodson’s Liberating Masturbation Masturbation Celibacy as an Alternate Lifestyle Family Violence Wife Battering & Alcoholism Spousal Abuse & Economic Hardship Intergenerational Patterns of Family Violence Feminism & Heterosexuality Women’s Rights & the Charter Pornography & Violence Cabin Fever & Depression Amnesty with Egyptian Prisoners of Conscience Womanspace Thunder Bay Feminist Booklist International Women’s Day Women’s University Mt. St. Vincent, Halifax Authors/Contributors: Joan Baril Margaret Phillips Kathryn Brule Arja Lane Anna McColl Line Jolicoeur Ontario Coalition for Abortion Clinics Luan Wall Joyce Michalchuk Viola Nikkila Violet Winegarden Donna Dowly Susan Collins Hawkins Victoria Powell Jenifer Svendse Joan Le Feuvre Sara Williamson Elaine Lynch Rosalynn Taylor Perrett Noreen Lavoie Teresa Legowski Donna Phoenix Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1983-03 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English French https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2772/1982_Vol_7_No_5.pdf 9add14f29b7cb86f33a111e079f2c000 PDF Text Text korlAtrn Vom;t; Th undeA. Bay, Ont. NOVEMBER 1982 jOlirn we must work collectively if we don't , our energies die PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �RA1111E111 LNG "The Silent Crime" Wife battering is one of Canada's biggest covers-ups. It is obscured on police occurrence sheets and social worker case reports as a "domestic dispute" or "family violence". Dear Sisters Wife battering knows no geographical, economic or cultural boundaries. Any woman can find herself a battered spouse. : The last Journal surfaced while I was doing some cleaning, and this time I noticed the asterisk! (Time to renew - Ed.). I would not want to miss a single issue; I usually devour eac one cover to cover the day it arrives.In the last one I particularly enjoyed Joan Baril's report on Judy Chicago's Dinner Party. I would love to see it but would have to come closer than Wife beating is rarely a one-time occurrence. Toronto. HAVE YOU TOO BEEN ABUSED? Wife battering often results in serious injuries. Fully 20% of Canadian homicidal deaths are the result of one spouse killing another. Battered wives often feel they have no place to go, no protection from their husbands, little 'Toney to live on, and little access to professional help. As for Joe Borowski, his attempts to stop legal abortion fall into my definition of "obscen The Women's Centre is here to support you. If he would use his energy to stop We care ... think about dropping in or the killing of women, men and telephone our counsellors. childern in wars - people already born, about whose personhood there is no doubt - he'd be doing some thing more to the point. The fact that he is contesting a law affecting only women, with the money (taxes) of both men and women, only adds to the obscenity. Yes let's stop Borowski. Please keep the Journal alive we need it, lest we become complacent over small gains and forget that there are many who would o turn back the clock. 345-5541 341-1101/ CENTRE 111V01111 E Yours in sisterhood, Kay Tingley, Red Lake. Dear Collective Members I have just completed reading the_ last issue of the Journal and wasimpressed, as always, with the variety of feminist issues covered and the quality of presentation. : The Journal is a fine undertaking and never disappointing. Keep up the good work Fiona Karlstedt Karen Lockwood ! Yours truly. Joy Fedorick, Community Outreach Officer, Women's Bureau - Northern Office, Ministry of Labour. Thanks for publishing a paper that expresses what so many of us feel but cannot articulate and so often feel frustrated and angry because we can't. Our worst "enemy' women who don't believe that other c women live in less than perfect conditions. It really shakes me that so many of these ivory tower women are not of my over 40 generation but are less than 30. Best of luck in your future endeavours. Shirley Browning, Dorchester, Ont. Women's Centre, in conjunction with the National Action Committee on the Status of Women, participated in a public education event on the streets of Thunder Bay on October 16. Formally proclaimed as "Unity Day with Battered Women" by the City of Thunder Bay, its objective was to increase public awareness of the problem of wife battering and, hopefully, lead to greater recognition of the issue and support of services for these women. That time of the fiscal year has arrived and Women's Centre is again actively seeking financial support from various sources. An application has been submitted to the Thunder Bay Foundation for funds to revise and update our kits and publications on battering and sexual harassment, as well as a centre fact sheet. Our submission to Secretary of State is to be discussed and finalized at a meeting scheduled for Saturday, December 4th, 10-4 p.m. at W.C. You are invited to participate,-so if you can attend, please make a note of the date. Warren's Centre is sponsoring "Outreach 82" a public education project in which the kit on battering will be taken out into the community. Vija Russell, Barbara Fotherby and Colleen Jirroh have been hi-red and will be addressing interested groups in the city and surrounding area on the topic within the next four months. If you know of any group who would be interested, please give them a call at the Centre. Women's Centre has been active in the schools speaking to students on the issues of women and the law, pensions, employment, and pro choice perspective. Sabine Berg, a fourth year LU nursing student, recently completed her placement with Women's Centre. Consistent with our interest in and promotion of community health, it was a valuable learning experience for both Sabine and the Centre. Joyce Michalchuk was recently appointed to fill the vacancy on the Board of Directors. If you are interested in more information regarding Women's Centre activities, drop in or call - we'll be happy to tell you more. As part of our campaign for funding, we are asking YOU to write a letter setting out why you believe Women's Centre deserves support! Let's hear from you ... PDF compression,page OCR,2 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern.Woman �edaiM Wivgki Taken From Fight Back -- Feminist Resistance to Male Violence 1901 by Janet Howard As I read this first sentence, a woman somewhere is being beaten until she is bloody and half conscious, not sure if she is alive or dead. By the time I have completed reading this page, several more women will have been beafen, - and at least one other woman will be aching with DEAL WITH HARASSMENT the pain and terror of rape. We are here because we are aware A quick glance through any newspaper of violence against women - injury, should be enough to convince anyone abuse and destruction directed agthat all women regardlessof age, income ainst and experienced by women. In or race, are vulnerable to attacks. this country and in many other Therefore all should have a knowcountries around the world women are ledge of self defense as one of their the object of a violence so wide basic life skills. As unpleasant as ranging and so much the result of the subject of assaults is, it is one interlocking oppression that to no woman can afford to ignore. untangle the violent web and understand the different strands will Wen-Do is a system of self defense take a long, long time and the designed for women. A very efficient collective work of manylpeople. form that teaches awareness, avoidWomen in this world are owned ance and reaction to attacks. Wen-Do bought and sold, paid unlivable was developed in Cne early wages, rorced towork hard and seventies by the Paige amily.theprovide services for no money at all, physical components of the course are locked away, sterilized, used to sell from a combination of martial arts every product that makes a profit, and street fighting techniques. The burned alive, drowned at birth, lob- basic course is from 12 to 14 hours otomized, denied basic human rights long. It can be structured to fit into Somewhere along the list of grievany schedule. Examples of class times ances we come to the physical abuse are: -an intensive two full day weekof individual women by individual end - once a week, three hours per men - the isolated, raw violence session for four or five weeks. of a specific man against a specific woman, or a group of specific men against a specific women. An individual violence that repeats itself again and again to become a kind of MASS violence. The violence known as rape is increasing, and already the number of known cases is staggering; the records suggest that a woman is raped every 13 min. in Canada. But reported rapes are only a very small percent it is estimated 1 in 10 women report It is impossible to estimate the real number because women who are raped often choose to keep quiet rather than face further attacks from family, the law, and the rapist himself. The definition of rape is very different depending on who you talk Wen-Do offers ways to deal with __ to. harassment on the streets, in public The province defines rape very places, at parties and with physical narrowly in terms of penetration and and sexual assaults. An advantage presence of semen---as if rape is this course has over others is the something that happens to the vagina emphasis on women, their socializa---not a wholewoman. A woman expertion and conditioning and their needs. iences rape every time a man forces It is taught by women and only women her into performing a sexual act attend the classes. against her will. Force takes many forms: actual The mental aspect of the course is physical force, the use of weapons, equally important as the physical. the threat of losing a job or being Often the most valuable thing that deported, and the threat of death. originates from this course is the feeling of self-confidence, the As read by Carol McColl on the steps belief in oneself. To realize that of Thunder Bay's City Hall on September 17, 1982. you can be effective in your environment, in your life, is a definite asset. Women have stated that taking Wen-Do has enabled them to be more active in their lives. Until now women have had no concept of attack situations; they have had no concept of their self power. Through Wen-Do women have been discovering this power. IT'S YOUR DECISION In every situation you must make tl decision to fight or not to fight, considering all the variables of yc yourself, your assailant and the envi place in. If you decide to resist you must put one hundred percent of your effort into your defense. For women who wish to train more intensively and keep up their skill there is intermediate and advanced Wen-Do. Again the classes are made up of mental and physical sections. Women learn different types of kicks, punches and blocks, sparring( training of defense and counter attacks ) and katas ( stylized movements using different forms and combinations of movements). There is no set course length. There is a sliding ranking scale of six steps.At the second rank women are able to take an instruc tor's course to enable them to pass on their information and experience. From a basic course it is expected a women will become proficient in one or two favorite techniques. CONTACT PARKS &REC 6232711 FOR MORE INFORMATION RE DATES OF FEBRUARY COURSE PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern Woman pane 3 �YIP YIP SUR LA Two hours out on the South Kawishiwi River in a party of four canoes and ten women I realize that my fears about this five-day canoe I lean back trip are groundless. into the stroke happy to see the July sun glint off water and paddle The shore of the wide and drops. incredibly beautiful river slides The by in cliffs, spruce and swamp. women are laughing and talking, meeting each other for the first time. Another tour by Woodswomen, the -women ouned wilderness outfitters of Minneapolis was gliding off into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area of Northern Minnesota. At the first portage, I make my little speech. "I cannot carry the canoes or heavy packs, only the paddles and lighter stuff. I'm apologizing now for the whole trip." All are I scan the womens' faces. smiling acceptance without a hint of the disgruntled expression so familiar to back sufferers when they have to beg off heavy work. Judith Niemi, our guide and a founder of Woodswomen had been infirmed of my disability a month previous when I first signed up. Now she smiled. "Don't apologize. We've had lots of bad backs on our trips and people with other disabilities too." An hour later, over the portage and on our way, my second worry melted away. There was not a "bush jock" in the group, and certainly our two guides Judith Niemi and Kris Frish didn't qualify (Bush one who insists on paddling Jock: thirty miles a day, who trots over the portages and refuses to lie down at night until all muscles are exercised into knots of pain; has a raucous guilt-producing call ending on a rising note,"All right: All right! Let's go! Let's go!") Woodswomen, I realize, deliberately designs their trips as a relaxed focussing into the wilderness with time to learn camping skills and to zen in on the details--a flower, a bird call, a sunset. This is an over-40 trip, eight women from various parts of the U.S. plus two I am the only Canadian. guides. Decisions are made collectively and amiably, sometimes slowly. "Everybody should do their fair share of cooking and dishes," says Judith, "We don't keep a list, but I don't want anyone to do more than her share." Someone in the group giggles: "That's surely a speech designed for women. I bet when you take a group of men camping you don't have to remind them not to over-do on dishes." Evening campfire in a world dimming into lavender dark. Women's conversations. A topic moves out, is encircled by our experience, enlarges into a thought-field. We learn and listen and add, we brood and study, we joke and toss the conversation back and forth across the fire like hoop dancers. We can feel our own human force field emerging in the black bush and gold light. We do not try to score points, nor himmer home a point of view. There is no thrust and parry talk, no desire to impress or to "solve" all problems. We are women after all. We discuss American politics, the "fundies"(rabid anti-women religious fundamentalists), the fifties, children, marriage - surprisingly only one of us is married and she wishes she weren't - divorce, the single life, being 40 or older, living alone and living with someone, the lives of women, and of course the lives of men. RIVIERE in the mapping of the course as some I grit my teeth and Mmm. women do. ask Mary to teach me how to cast. Somewhere in my heart, I realize, is a little black hard pebble marked "Impossible. You can't do it." I fling the rod out according to her directions and the line sings through the blue air in a perfect "To hell with fishing--I'm arc. casting." I am elated and just cast again and again. Two days later I'm standing on the shore studying a long flashy set of rapids using my new white-water I'm checking for deep water skills. vs. standing waves, the dangerous Next, I'm rock-concealing pillows. in the bow, twisting through the After course, in a tremendous high. one particularly exciting run, Judith carried the canoe back over the portage and, _Ate ran iLagain, just for the pleasure of it. aris-Z---a- champion kyaker, says: "White water is _ Meg Cruikshank of San Francisco has a definition:"Whatever can be measured, weighed, compared, rated, counted, quantified in any way that has importance to the masculine world. The next evening as Nary is fishing, two men in canoes glide past. "How many fish have you caught? How much do they weigh? How far did you paddle today?" Those of us within earshot fall to the ground in laughter. I learn something new and deep about myself that sends me spiraling I down a well of self-knowledge. realize I resist learning new things which require manual skill. On a sunset canoe tour of the lake with Peg, I'm happy to learn from her about the San Francisco life-style, her teaching experiences and a book I'm fascinated. she is editing. But the next day, I don't join the group around Marianne who are learnNor do I ing to filet fish. Mmm. take out my compass and get involved addictive." So I learn to cast, to whitewater, to map read, to make a fire with a flint; but, the little pebble is I ponder on its origin still there. as we sweep along. There were many times in my life when I tried to learn something but was balked. Lost and enlightening memories ripple For instance, my first driving in. It was in Ottawa and my husband, who was my'driving teacher, lesson. directed me without any prior instruction into Confederation Circle Round and round the at rish hour. War Memorial I went in a complete panic--my first time at the wheel. When I finally got out I was so shaken I decided driving was too difficult for me. My husband agreed, no doubt secretly pleased that his plan to retain control of the car (and me) had worked so well and that he hadn't killed himself carrying it out. He convinced me that he himself had learned to drive instinctively without lessons but that I was the sort of person who could never learn. Cont'd on pg.18 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor tiarthp.rn Woman page. 4 �Health Wanted finally, health project a reality by Teresa Legowski In Northwestern Ontario, the predominant policy of physicians is to perform cesaerians on women with the risk of a breech birth. As well, it is also their policy to perform C-sections on each successive birth. This is one of the many health issues that the Northwestern Ontario Women's Health Education Project ( W.H.E.P.) will be addressing. The project received funding from Health and Welfare Canada for the first of its three year operation, and started rolling September 1st. The four co-ordinators, who are working together within a jobsharing and collective structure, are Heather Woodbeck, Margot Morgan, Dianne Loucks and Teresa Legowski. The basic philosophy of the project is to promote personal responsibility for women's health through education. Working as far east as Hornepayne, and as far west as Kenora, the coordinators hope to have 13 target communities gear their health In another study, 66 women with FBD were placed on a caffeine restricted diet. Improvement in breast symptoms occurred with 88% of the patients and 91% had a reduction in palpable nodularity. From left to right, Dianne Loucks, Heather Woodbeck, Margot Morgan, Teresa Legowski. education to their own specific needs. Through questionnaires and workshops, the project will attempt to bring a balanced viewpoint of health information to all women in Northwestern Ontario. Anyone who is interested in W.H.E.P. may contact the office at 214 Red River Road, Suite 4, in Thunder Bay, phone 345-1410, 345-7583. Coffee, Tea and Lumpy by Teresa Legowski. A recent article in the pharmaceutical magazine On Continuing Practice (Volume 9, No. 9, 1982) has Understanding how caffeine contributes to FBD involves some biochemistry. Putting it simply, the action takes 'lace DNA 1 (FBD) with caffeine consumption. Fibrocystic breast disease is defined as a benign condition in which there are many painful lumps in the breasts. in body cells and controls the type of growth that occurs. The DNA is made up of four different kinds of nucleotides, each of them responsible for a particular function. Besides the famous coffee bean, caffeine exists in other commonly consumed substances. Following, is a brief diagram demonstrating caffiene content per unit for different items. Item Caffeine content /unit Brewed coffee 64-124mg/140m1 cup Instant coffee 40-108mg/140m1 cup Decaffeinated Coffee 2-5mg/140m1 cup Tea 30-48mg/tea bag Instant tea 24-31mg/140m1 cup Oval tine natural chocolate 8.2mg/19 g powder Cola 32-65mg/336m1 Drugs Frosst 222 or 282 30mg caffeine citrate Tylenol #1 or #2 30 mg caffeine citrate Choledyl 100.200 or 300mg (Caffeine citrate contains 50% caffeine) . The diagram of the DNA molecule shows its typical spiral form, made up of nucleotides in a linear succession. Every fourth nucleotide is called c-AMP and its function in the DNA is twofold: assisting in energy transportation and transmission of genetic information. However c -ANP doesn't work unless its broken down into another nucleotide called 5-AMP. An enzyme performs this job. 5.5mg/19 g powder Oval tine When all coffee, tea, colas and chocolate were eliminated from the diet of women in the study who had FBD, 13 of 20 women (65%) experienced complete disappearance of all palpable breast nodules, pain, tenderness and nipple discharge in one to six months. Also, Minton found that once women began to consume caffeine again FBD reappeared. Now when caffeine enters the picture it acts as a "lock" that fits the "key" enzyme and stops it from performing its function. Eventually, the body cells develop a very high concentration of c-AMP. For some reason (and no one knows why) high c-AMP concentrations are directly associated with FBD development. Two studies were cited in the article. J.P.Minton conducted a study in which normal breast tissue was compared to benign and malignant breast tissue. In benign lumps, c-AMP existed 1.5 times the normal level. In malignant tissue c-AMP existed five times the normal value. Very few studies have been done on this subject but the authors advise that any radical surgical procedures should be postponed for at least two months. During this period the woman should attempt a restricted caffeine diet with constant monitoring of FBD symptoms by her doctor. C.A,R.A.L. What is Childbirth by Choice ? Briefly, childbirth by choice means freedom of choice in planning ones family. It means a woman should not be pressured to bear a child against her will. It means a woman should not be pressured to have an abortion against her will. CABAL believes that women should have the freedom to choose whether or not to continue an unplanned, undesired pregancy. Our position is the one taken in the United Nations Human Rights Declaration of 1968 (signed by Canada) and further enunciated at the UN-sponsored International 1976:"Every couple and every individual has the right to decide freely and responsibly whether or not to have childern as well as to determine their number and spacing, and to have information,education and means to do so." If you believe that you, not the government should decide when you will or won't have a child, then you are what the "Right to Lifers" call "Pro-Abortion." Frankly, we at CARAL don't know anyone who is "pro-abortion." But all birth control methods can fail and unwanted pregancies do occur. Some people feel abortion is immoral. Others feel it is immoral for a government to force a woman to bear a child or to force her to risk an illness or death with a back-alley butcher. An unwanted pregnancy is a situation faced by thousands of Canadians every day. It's a situation where there are no good answers, only rational decisions. The "Right to Life" people are unrelenting in their campaign to make your decision for you. And they won't stop without a fight. It should be our choice. The purpose of CARAL is to ensure that no woman in Canada is denied access to safe, legal abortion. Our aim is the repeal of all sections of the Criminal Code dealing with abortion, and the establishment of comprehensive contraceptive and abortion services, including appropriate counselling, across the country. "We regard the right to safe, legal abortion as a fundamental human right". rttwn PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �...Cabin Fever - we used to call it 'getting bushed: It strikes isolated trappers in the winter and young mothers at any time. Now a group of local women have decided to designate one day in January as Cabin Fever Day and not a Minute too soon either. The idea is to make people aware of the behaviour changes caused by isolation. An education workshop will be held in February. The women call themselves The Cabin Fever Connection', The women also won a prize for the best Public Service Booth at the Hymer's Fair. They set up a 'Baby Change and Feed' area - marvelous idea.For more information contact the Rural Resource Office at Kakebeka Falls 577-1211 mornings. ... "I've gone through a whole personality change since starting work here", says Fiona Karlstedt, administrator of the Women's Centre. "When you work in a traditional office you lose the ability to think. Here at the centre I'm being creative again - I'm starting to think again. It sounds corny but it's true" Fiona brings a lot of business and administrative experience to the Centre. She had her own successful secretarial business for three years and then worked in a local law firm . "The first few days I was just drowning here" says Fiona. "The work is so varied, so unstructured compared to office routine. I felt under pressure to produce something but I often didn't know how to equate what I did with money. So much goes on here. You have to find a balance. One day I sat and talked for an hour with a women who was totally depressed how can you equate that to money ?". ...If you like to receive information concerning activities at the Women's Centre as well as the Centre's newsletter, please phone in your name and address ... Are there lots of magazines, newspapers or pamphlets piling up at your workplace which will eventually be thrown out ? Or perhaps you are a Magazine or newspaper reader. At ahy-rate the Women's Centre would appreciate it if women with access to magazines would clip articles to add to their educational files. Any material dealing with women and womens' issues from any type of publication, be it popular magazines or specialised journals is welcome. Please write the date and name of the publication on the article ... The Rape Kit. Every hospital in Thunder Bay has one. It is used to gather forensic evidence such as hair, blood and sperm traces from the victim. The kits are supplied by the Ministry of Health but many doctors don't like them. They say the tests in the kit take too long = over a total of two hours in some cases see Local police admit the procedure is lengthy but this is partly caused by the doctor's lack of experience in using the kit.More doctors should have attended the anectidotes, opinions and pedantics BY JOAN BARIL training workshops. A trained doctor can use the kit in faster time... what about the rape victim? In September a young woman was turned away from Humber Memorial Hospital in Toronto after a three hour wait. The doctor on duty said he was too busy to treat her. After phone calls to two other hospitals. she finally found "in five years, this guy has never asked me one question about myself, never shown any interest in me as a person, in fact he doesn't know one thing about me--perhaps not even my name. I'm just a big ear for him" Several women present at this conversation agreed this was a common male type in Thunder Bay. They facetiously suggested a huge paper mache ear which could be fixed in front of the face whenever Mr. Monologue ap- peared Women supply "The Big Ear" for men in marriage as well as at work as several studies (i.e. Dale Spender: Man Made Language) have pointed out. Men just talk a lot more than women, socially, at work and at home rape one who would take her in tests are "not a priority" said hospital spokesman Robert McMillin Rape Crisis Centres in Ontario have often charged hospitals with keeping victims waiting for hours, leaving them in public waiting rooms. Victims cannot wash their clothes until tests are done localRape Centre spokeswoman, Doreen Boucher gives good marks to St. Joseph's hospital."The women are put in a private area where we can talk to them" she said. Doreen admitted that a victim might wait as long as an hour for care 'depending on how frantic the emergency room is at the time'. She has never heard of a case of a women being turned away as at Humber . A happily married man, regardless of how much he talks, also listens, concludes a nine-year study of 487 couples by John M. Gottman of the University of Illinois reported in October's Psychology Today magazine. He is like a good C.B. radio which not only sends signals but can quickly pick up and interpret messages coming in, even non-verbal signals. He knows when his wife is happy, playful or pleading 4..4) The unhappily married man cannot do this. He doesn't "hear" his wife. Like a radio with a broken receiver, he can't pick up messages. When something finally gets through to him, he labels his wife's concerns as problems to be solved usually by arguing them away. (These unhappy husbands often enjoy arguing). If his wife expresses an emotion, he sees that as a problem too Gottman's major findings state that in distressed marriages, there is an imbalance usually caused by the husband 'Imo strangely enough, however the deficient husbands, when shown video-tapes of other women, could interpret their intended non-visual messages. They were only dense with their own wives, which no doubt made them appear responsive and caring to anyone outside the marriage situation. oA recent issue of Worldlit, the Canadian newsletter on global literacy, states that "nearly two people out of every three illiterate in the world today are women". In the Arab world, 89% of women are illiterate (compared to 66% of the men)and the figures for Africa are almost the same. In Latin America 30% of the women are In spite of illiterate, in Asia 57%. the U.N. declarations and programs to combat illiteracy among women which were initiated in International Women's Year, evidence indicates the situation has deteriorated, according to Worldlit. ooThe company of women makes life more enjoyable for everyone, both men and other women, says a recent study, which found both men and women had more enjoyable, meaningful social experiences when they were with women than when they were with men *so nevertheless one local woman claims she is fed up with providing "meaningful social experiences" without the usual At her place of human interchange. business, she claims, there are a few "Monologue Men," the kind of male who when he sets beside her at lunch for example, fills her ears with non-stop Poll after poll, Canadians vote pro-choice. The latest survey commissioned by CARAL (Canadian Abortion Rights Action League) showed 72% agreed that the decision on abortion should rest with the patient 04 pro-choice means a committment to education about contraceptives in order to prevent unwanted pregnancies "We need funds for public health education" says Wayne Taylor, vice chairman of the York Borough Board of Health. Taylor claims the abortion rate in Toronto is highest amongst 12 to 14 year olds and girls of Roman Catholic and/or immigrant Cont'd on pg. 15 PDF compression, optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern WomanOCR, page web 6 �RAPE NOT INHERENT IN SOCIETY NEW ANTHROPOLOGICAL FINDINGS NOT ENTIRELY NEW by Joyce Michalchuk New anthropological evidence indicates findings which contradict a feminist hypothesis that rape is inherent in male-female relations, as published in Susan Brownmiller's_ 1975 text on rape. University of Pennsylvania anthropologist Peggy Reeves Sanday has consulted extensive research encompassing the cultural traits in 156 societies and some of the findings indicated are not entirely surprising to those familiar with the "nature - nurture" controversy. The research shows that cultural factors, in particular, govern the incidence of rape in various societies, and that in many cultures in the world, rape is virtually unknown. Scientists (who acknowledge that the findings are tentative at this point) can divide the societies into two basic categories rapefree and rape-prone. In the article published in the October edition of Science 82 magazine, entitled "Rape-Free or Rape-Prone", author and anthropologist Beryl Lieff Benderly adds a third category - rape-present - which lends about an even split to the sample societies studied which encounter rape, and those that don't. Benderly reported that 47% of the societies were rape free; other forms of sexual assault were either "absent or rare". On the other hand 17% were "unambiguously rape-prone", and displayed "the social use of rape to threaten or punish women or the presence of a high incidence of rape of their own or other women".It is known that rape exists in the remaining 36% but the extent is undetermined. This new research shows, Benderly states, that the incidence o of rape in a given society is dependent on cultural factors such as the attitudes which are taught to boys, women's status and the values governing male-female relations within the given society. Further, Ms. Sanday writes that Ms. Benderly's findings show that "rape is anything but universal. It does not stem from a biological drive, she (Benderly) believes, but is rather a conditioned response to the way certain kinds of societies are organised." With regard to the U.S., Benderly writes that "American women are several hundred times as likely to be raped as are women in certain o other cultures ".She cited the example of the football players who are culturally encouraged in the game of football to inflict bone-crunching tackles on their opponents as a form of violence. This violence is not innate in the natures of men, but is culturally reinforced. To further illustrate cultural influence, Benderly cites research undertaken on various African societies, such as the model rape-free free Ashanti society of west Africa, where women play a full and : participation, are highly regarded and valued by the Ashanti people. Likewise, the Mbuti pygmies of central Africa live co-operatively in small bands, where both men and women fully share the work and decision-making, in the belief that they must live harmoniously with nature which provides for all their needs, lest nature become displeased with displays of anger, discord and human attempts at dominance. By contrast, the rape prone Gusii society of Kenya showed an incidence of rape almost 3.5 times greater than the U.S. rate, when the U.S. rate stood as one of the highest in the industrialised world. The Gusii regard the sex act as an act of dominance and aggression "in which a man overcomes the resistance of a woman and causes her pain," Sanday writes. Horrifyingly, sexual relations as a forceful act of aggression to be i flicted "upon a woman is actually encouraged by the wife on the wedding night. According to cultural mores, she holds no respect for the husband unless she is taken by force in an assertion of the husbands so called "manhood". Other rape-prone societies included the men of the Plains Indian tribes_ who extended invitations to friends to gang-rape their unfaithful wives, and the Mundurucu men of the Amazon who threaten women with rape if they approach their sacred trumpet,. The regard these trumpets as embodying supernatural powers and are kept closely guarded from women in a special men's house. Sanday believes that much can be done to prevent the incidence of rape in societies by revering nurturance rather than violence in the raising of boys within the societies, and by encouraging women to resist 2 3 4 assault. Essentially, this is not new. In her "Sexual Politics: A Manifesto for Revolution", Kate Millet in part called for "a re-examination of traits categorised as "masculine" and "femine", with a total reassessment as to their human usefullness and advisability in both sexes. Thus, if masculine violence is undesirable, it is for both sexes; "feminine" dumb-cow passivity likewise. If "masculine" intelligence of efficiency is valuable, it is so for both sexes equally, and the same must be true for "femine" tenderness and consideration."(This was written in connection with the Columbia University meeting of the first women's liberation group in 1968). As Ms. Benderly concludes "rape is not inevitable". influential role, and whose contributions to all aspects of life, Ancluding full religious PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern fforirzen page 7 �In May 1982, a NWO Women and Pensions Conlienence was Extensive inheed in Thunder Say. Editou Note: Otmation,about the "pensions issue" Ln Canada was pnovided to Con6enence detegates by seveltat expert guest speakeu. Last NWJ issue (7-4) we katuted excerpts pcom Monica Townson's speech. The 6ot-towing ate excetpts prom the add/Less given by MS. Dutude's speech Louise Dutude. has been edited to inctude °pity a/teas o6 new in0Amation, phitosophicat di66etence6 on additionae necommendationirthan those exptessed by W. Townson and tepoAted .east issue. The compete text o6 both speakeu nemaiths appear .Ln the Women and Pensions Con6eltence Repola which is avaitabte bite oi charge Ptom NoAthetn Women's Centte, 316 Bay St. . the PROBLEM is POVERTY The most urgent problem, Problem one. one that is acknowledged by everyone The Old is the problem of poverty. Age Security Pensions, and the Guaranteed Income Supplement together are sufficient to give a couple a level of income that is at, or slightly above the poverty level. So couples Unfortunately it is not are okay. high enough for singles. It is such a flagrant injustice and it is clearly women who are the victims of it. Not just women generally, but specifically it is mainly women who did stay in the home most of their lives working for practically no pay So, they are fringe benefits. the women who did what society told them they were supposed to do, and they are the ones who are punished the most today. It has become then this problem of poverty, strictly a political issue. Now the second problem is in fact related to the first, and it is that even if people were not poor, they end up with a pension that is very much lower than the income they received before they reached the age And that means they have to of 65. suffer a considerable drop in their standard of living. And this applies The to practically all of us. reason they are getting such a low one now is first that the CPP and QPP only replace 25% of the earnings that you were getting before, and that the employers pensions that are supposed to be on top of that are completely unreliable. ITS TOUGH 0 BE OLD And on that subject I really encourage you if your husbands and yourselves are participating in an employer sponsored pension plan to look very carefully to see what the conditions are because it may be that you think you are protected while in fact you are not. Especially in the case of women who are in the home, you should look at a provision concerning widows' benefits because in the majority of cases, there is an option to have a higher pension for a retirement pension and no widows' benefits or a lower retirement pension and a widows' benefits, and, it is found in surveys across Canada that the majority of men, because it is almost always the man who is the employee, choose to not have the widows pension, and their wives don't even know about It is only in Saskatchewan that it. they have changed the law to waive that option you need the signature of both spouses. So we've come to the last big block of problems under the present pension system which is the unfairness of the system toward And there are two aspects women. to that injustice towards women: the first is the design itself of of it is unfair, the CPP, the and the reason for that is that we weren't around in 1965 when the plan was being set up. There were no women who were making representations then, so we ended up with a system that leaves out the work women do in the home, that penalizes women who drop out, if only for a few years, to take care of younger children, and we have a benefit structure that perfectly mirrors the discrimination that women are subjected to in the labSo you see, everything our force. in the design of the CPP was ensuring that the gap between the incomes of elderly men and women would grow as the CPP matured and this is in fact what happened. For every additional $1 that elderly women have gotten, men have gotIf it just ten an additional $2. continues like this we will never catch up under the present system. Con6exence guest speaker Louise Vutude,o6 Ottawa, is a tawyet and teseatchet .speciaZizing in the economic tights o6 women. Louise Dutude is author o.6 the NWC tepott 'Women and Povetty' and the CACSW tepoAt 'Pension The other problem is the unequal treatment of the spouses. And I'll say that the unequal treatment of the spouses results from three bad habits of Canadian women, (and I'll tell you in advance that these are jokes because in one place somebody didn't understand them and took it The first bad habit of badly). Canadian women is their passionate love of housework. Women go out and even if they have a full-time paid job they insist on coming home at night and doing all the housework. So what happens is they don't have as much energy as men to put into their careers. Of course, they're tired, and women will often say "Don't talk to me about a challenging job, I just can't take it, I've got Of course that too much to do". means that they don't have the higher Also they don't have a paid jobs. wife doing things for them which helps men have better jobs, and they end up with lower pensions because the pensions are related to income. So that's the first bad habit of The second is that Canadian women. women have the disagreeable characteristic of continuing to live after they are no longer wanted. This was less obvious in the past when marriage lasted forever, but ever since one marriage in three ends in divorce (and we know that's going to increase) it's become increasingly embarrassing. After all, no husband wants to leave one third .of a widows pension to each of his former wives. He wants the present system where only the last one gets the widows pension, because, of course, the last one is the only I don't know one he's in love with. if you realize that this is the system we have today. The widows pension goes to the last wife, and if you were married from the age of 20 to the age of 55 to someone who at 55 decides he's tired of it and walks out and he goes to live with someone else for a few years, even if he's not married, the second one is entitled to the full widows penThis I'm sure was not an sion. accident and I've been discussing it and they did say that this was the reason, that really the man only So even cares about the last one. if you were getting alimony, lets say you were divorced, your alimony stops at 50 or 550 And you get dnothing, nothing at all to show for your 30-40 years of marriage. Now the third fatal flaw of Canadian women is they don't have the elementary decency to die at the same time as their husbands. Not only do they not die at the same time but they also have the nerve to complain that widows usually get much reduced benefits while widowers usually continue with exactly the same benefits that they had before. Now RepAm with Women in Mind' continued on page 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor a,lor,thern= Worm rate �Stifled Dreamer SUNSET ON ALGOMA STREET Christmas holidays at home Boyfriends, relatives, skiing in favourite haunts Only one person was missing from the family scene An escapee From the old folks home Living in sin with her boyfriend On Cumberland Street She wasn't home when we came to call The boyfriend said she was in hospital So I went Waited for him to leave Waited in a waiting room Watching the sun go down Behind the stone church on Algoma Until I couldn't wait any longer I went into the room Shared by three other beds And one crying boyfriend Sitting, head in hands, beside One old woman Bruised and incoherent Hands clutching like steel claws The nurse said "Try to get her to eat..." What for ? I thought. Clutching back. They were divided, people say, like blind fish in a bottomless cave. He had hopes, dreams, aspirations; Which he expounded, volubly, with the force of a cresting wave. She had hopes, dreams, aspirations too: With no opportunity for expression. They were concerned silly, childish, no account! How could she be so lacking in discretion? She lifted her hand, tentatively, as though to banish her expression. She sighed, resumed her task; once more she would strive to ward off recurring depression. Roxanne Merits -Irma Johnson All day the heavy mist swallowed the trees with its open mouth, making sky meet earth rocks and spruce like old worn teeth protruding, darkly stained; but, soft around the edges. And WHATSITITIS in the flowing midst, water jewels clung to the wolves' gnarled coats, those victimized creatures terrorized by European land scavengers, their teeth chewing a moose meal protruding, darkly stained; but, hard around the edges. So far I have had neuritis, bursitis, Teresa Legowski arthritis, mastitis, myositis: Now I have ligamentitis. I'm sick of it all by a damsitis: Will the day ever come when I'm allrightis? -Irma Johnson- POETRY SUBMISSIONS REQUESTED Let Us Fly How we. can lift each other Like dreams, we can drift so high How we can be chained to one another Like fences, we can close and encumber Let us fly Joyce Michalchuk Northern Woman ixAie § PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �by TERESA LEGOWSKI HEDDA AND POWER 'Some folks go to THAH "the most solemn of responsibTHEEAHTAH to view the primal ilities" for a woman. Should quality of the acting; some to we guess the obvious? Well, model their designer clothes Hedda responds with definite during intermission (over disgust and refusal, denying scotch, of course); some because her pregnancy exists. As yet their mate would like to enter- another alternative Judge Brack taro them expensively. Some then illudes to a clandestine folks go to figure out what the relationship with another man. playwright is attempting to say. Needless to say, we know who Henrik Ibsen first intrigued he has in mind. Again Hedda me with his play The Doll's refuses, having no intentions House about eight years ago. of unfaithfulness. Not too Since then I have been wondering many choices for a career how a man could so perceptively woman in those days. be a spokesperson for the Soon, we discover that women's movement, and during another one of Hedda's more the Victorian era to boot. Most flamboyant lovers, Mr. Lovborg times, men describe women's - (played by Nicholas Kilbertus) lives in the way they see their is in town. Apparently a new own lives. Ibsen's play, Hedda woman has reformed his violent Gabler, recently performed at and drunken tendencies. He has Magnus Theatre in Thunder Bay, written a new historical, left me less perplexed. I have potentially publishable book yet to meet a woman like Hedda that rivals Hedda's husband's, (played superbly by Deborah George Tesman, scholarly Kipp) outside of fiction. endeavours. We meet this new Generally, the acting was woman, Mrs. Thea Elvsted adequate, the set beautiful, and (Diane Lasko), with first the costume design simple and impressions of honesty, straighttastefully enhancing the charforwardness and idealism. acters and moods of each act. A jealous Hedda attempts to Interesting too, was the colour befriend Mrs. Elvsted, to the sequence of Hedda's costume, point of an obvious sexual changing from white through seduction. grey and red to morbid black Lovborg's visit to Hedda's with the closing act. However, home ended in a quarrel. Lovborg the play itself reinforced the questioned the purpose of their stereotypical heroine (villian* previous intimacy. He felt that ess?): scheming, bitter, bored, Hedda used their closeness to attuned to society's gallows gain control over his life and of gossip and tenacious ladders to acquire knowledge of the to the upper crusts. From "secret world" of men. Shakespeare's Kate in Taming of Hedda saw nothing immoral the Shrew, to Erica of the with this. Using devious means afternoon television soap to gain knowledge, to gain life, All My Children, we see this was typical for a woman. How coniving, hand wringing, pacing, else was she going to achieve evil-minded, BUT intelligent power? and beautiful, portrait of a Herein lies the clue to woman. Hedda Gabler is no Ibsen's rationale for the play. different. Limited to the Victorian The first act reflects the structure, he saw an alternative two social norms of society to the woman's stereotyped lot. prevalent at that time (and That alternative presents now, too): men are naive; the itself in Thea Elvsted. most Wonderful part of the house is the wife. Now let's get our basics straight: In the second act, we find out Hedda's motives for her marriage to a young, rising scholar. During a private conversation between herself and a former beau, Judge Brack (played by William Webster) she rationalizes that 1)She is not getting any younger; 2)she wants respectability and what a better way to get it than marrying a distinguished scholar; 3)it was more than some other admirers could do. Certainly no romantic illusionn about marriage are at stake here. (I find this attitude common among today's teenaged boys and young men - women marry for money, only, period. So the stereotype lives on.) Hedda also confides that she is bored and lonely. The Judge suggests she find herself "an occupation" to solve her restlessness. IMmediately, Hedda indicates that her husband might go into politics. But Brack elaborates. He means Millard) and Judge Brack. His manuscript "child" went with him, and through the course of the liquid evening, was lost. Is this not typically naive? Back at the ranch, Hedda and Thea await until dawn the return of their mischievious mates. After Thea goes to bed, Hedda's husband arrives bearing the lost manuscript. He leaves shortly to attend a dying relative. Haggard and desparate, Lovborg arrives, bemoaning his loss. Hedda underhandedly does not reveal that the manuscript is in the house. However, she again plays the scheming temptress role, convincing Lovborg that "an act of deliberate courage is still possible in this world." He still has a chance to perform an act of beauty, despite the loss of his "child". She hands Ltivborg her pistol and he leaves. Having des.troyed LoVborg's relationship with Thea, and his will to live, Hedda finally destroys his and Thea's "child". She burns the manuscript, page by page, revelling at her action. When George returns home, he discovers that Hedda has burned the manuscript. Hedda plays the martyr, claiming she did it for his sakeand George naively ponders, "I wonder whether all young wives feel this way towards their husbands?" Word begins spreading. Lovborg commits suicide in a prostitute's boudoir and the weapon used was, none the less, the property of Miss Hedda Gabler. Oh, oh: Scandal: In the midst of this, Thea produces the original notes from the manuscript and George jumps at the opportunity to assist her in reconstructing the destroyed book, during the' evenings. To Hedda this means an absentee husband. Let alone spending afternoons with Judge Brack, evenings, would be unbearable. Her husband is more interested in Thea's offerings now. Lovborg did not die beautifully. She is pregnant. Her plan did not work out. Hedda is defeated. No more power. No more freedom. What is the next step? Hedda shoots herself in front of George, Thea and the Judge. A fire of destruction is sparked in Hedda on from this moment. She ends the act with the statement "For once in my life, I have the, power to shape a human destiny." In the third act, Lovborg's book is revealed as being, jointly, his and Thea's "child" Through Hedda's temptations offerings-of liquor and goading words, Lovborg, against Thea's wishes, attends a wild, males only party with George (Peter The play should have been about Thea. Thea Elvsted utilized her own intellect wisely. She wrote books. But at that time, a woman had to live through a male partner, so she wrote through Lovborg, and through Tesman. Pity.-A talent gone uncreditted. In a way both Thea's and Hedda's power was directed to personal desires of achievement. Thea wanted to write. Hedda wanted to manipulate. One was a creative power, the other self-destructive. However, unless a woman was guided by same inner motivation that prese-et` ci itself in terms of a ,ocatior or a talent, she lia.(.1 lo idea of where to direct hr energies. NORTHERN WOMANOCR, Page 10 web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor PDF compression, �by CAROL BARRY MONEY Money is essentially a necessary form of security but it can also be a nuisance and a worry, a responsibility and a joy. We store money in sugar bowls, pockets, under mattresses and in the banks. In all of these places, money loses value due to the economy and the inflated cost of goods. Because most of us never seem to have enough of it, we can try to offset the cost of inflation on our money. To retain some value it is necessary to look at the different ways of earning interest, then money can work account is to o-take care of current bills within the pay period. A daily interest account is for excess money or deposits within the month or that may have to be spent soon. In the latter case, it can be transferred to the chequing account just prior to writing the - cheque. for us. Financial institutions such as banks, credit unions and trust companies offer interest earning options. There is a wide range, from true chequing, statement and passbook chequing accounts, chequable savings, daily and true savings accounts. Some chequing accounts have no service charges and the cheques are provided at no cost to the user, while others can cost up to $4.00 per month to.operate. Some people feel that trust companies are not for savings or chequing like the banks. Go in and talk with the personnel. They offer similar services. The trust companies are regulated, like banks under the same Canadian Crown Corporation, the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation and it protects a depositor's money up to $20,000A list of member institutions can be obtained by writing the corporation. I believe that 3 accounts or mo _2 are needed to maximize the. options; a chequing, a daily interest and a true savings. Remember to list the account numbers and the branch location and to keep a record in a safe place at home and/or in a safety deposit box. Stuff It Russ. RUSS RAMSAY RECEIVES PACIFIER by Merle Donald, Women for Women In response to the now infamous remarks about equal pay for work of equal value from Russ Ramsay, Minister of Labour, the Sault Ste. Marie women decided to present him with an award befitting his statements: an over-sized pacifier. So Russ became the invited guest of several women's groups at the Sault Ste. Marie Women's Resource Centre "Friday Soup's On" lunch. Lavera Crack representing the women gathered for the occasion presented the soother to Russ with an appropriate poem. Telegrams in support of the event were read from an impressive list of women's groups. Ms. Crack told the Minister that his remarks were an embarrassment to constituents in Sault Ste, Marie and an insult to women in Ontario. She went on to say 'bur silence would seem to condone your behavior, therefore we must speak out." A savings account is for longer term gOals. A chequing On payday calculate how much you will need for bills that must be paid and place this amount in a chequing account. Write cheques at the beginning of the month so they will be cleared before month end and then any remaining can be transferred to a daily interest account. The daily interest account is calculated on the closing balance for the day and there can be a lower minimum during the day, the final entry is what coun,-s. At the end of the month and before the first of the next month, transfer what is in the daily interest account to a true savings account. The money' must remain in this account for the full month to receive interest as it is calculated on the minimum balance in the month. The interest is credited to the account monthly or once every 6 months. The funds can be transferred by signing a form ahead of time and there can be a charge of about $1.50 for Some plans require a minimum balance of $100 or $200 be' retained and then there are no service charges for cheques drawn. However, it seems to be difficult to maintain this balance unless a person deletes that amount from the cheque record and pretends that it doesn't exist,-otherwise there is a great temptation to spend it. On a $200 amount the interest that could be earned in one year at 10% would be $20.00 so that must be included when figuring the cost of the account. It is a good-ao-count if a person writes numerous cheques. Remember, the more frequently the interest i"-§ compounded the greater the financial advantage.' (daily interest) The higher the rate of interest over a month period, the-better is the return. (true savings) By watching these interest rates and being flexible in transferring money, it is possible to make up some of the inflationary costs and to have extra funds available for special goals. Let the money work for you and you will receive the benefit. In this way it is possible to enjoy some control and it is well worth the effort...after all, it is YOUR MONEY: Charts on page 12 this. Mr. Ramsay opened with the cliche "I don't deserve this" and went on to wade through a wad of statistical side-stepping data. First he informed us that a team of eleven were investigating "Equal pay for work of equal value" but could not tell how many of the eleven were women. He then told of a recent settlement to women under equal pay for equal work legislation in the amount of $856.000 but who got what for which, why or when he was unable to say. Nor did he know how long the women in question had been struggling and waiting. He went 'on to the Sunderson Report, a more or less scare paper to keep women on hold. Mr. Ramsay said that moving forward with Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value was economically-untimely and the climate among his colleagues unreceptive. He stressed the difficulty of legislating E.P. for W.E.V. and the necessity for thorough study. Finally he exhausted his rehearsed material. Merle Donald pointed out that after all it is the year 1982 and women are understandably impatient and intolerant of continued delay. Donna Siltanen-Pickering asked the Minister if he thought a racial minority seeking justice could be placated with "The state of the economy". He had no comment. Mr. Ramsay seemed somewhat dismayed at the large scale reaction his statements received. He left the occassion, pacifier in hand, less likely to stir the ire of women again. But will he or any others in Queen's Park really work on behalf of women? SISTERS, THANK-YOU FOR PUBLICIZING THE DISATISFACTION OF ALL OF US WITH RUSS RAMSAY'S NEGATIVE RESPONSE ON AFFIRMATIVE ACTION. WE HOPE THIS STOPPERS ANY MORE STATEMENTS AGAINST THE URGENCY OF LEGISLATION TO ENSURE AFFIRMATIVE ACTION SO THAT ALL OUR SISTERS CAN CEASE TO BE ECONOMICALLY SECOND CLASS CITIZENS. NORTHERN ONTARIO REPRESENTIVE TO THE NATIONAL ACTION COMMITTEE FOR WOMEN - LYNN BEAK,NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO REPRESENTATIVE OF LES ONTAROISES LISE PROVOST,NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO WOMEN'S CENTR,ATIKOKAN WOMEN'S COORDINATING COUNCIL,NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL WE HEARTILY ENDORSE YOUR CHOICE FOR THE PACIFIER AWARD. THE TIME FOR EQUAL VALUE IS NOW. 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PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern Wallah page 12 o rf14 I 0.510 pet fh0N-040 6 A LANcE -C.RetnTeDJuge3a /NTEREST P �It's Tough... continued from page 8 in the case of women even if they were married all their lives until he died, the CPP benefits will drop to 60%, the old age pension that the husband was getting will disappear, and usually she won't get anything at all from the employer-sponsored pension that her husband was contributing to. It has been estimated that a widow usually ends up with about 1/3 of what the family income was before the husband retired. Try to imagine what that does to one's standard of living. Now the solution proposed to correct these problems of the unequal treatment of the spouses is all in these equalization proposals - the splitting of credits between husbands and wives and it is already partially introBut duced in the case of divorce. the fact is that it is not working. Less than 3% of spouses in the last 3-4 years that it has been available have been applying for it. And we don't know why. We know that it is partly a problem of information. So if you know anybody who is divorcing tell them. Don't tell the husband tell the wife about this splitting provision. So what is being proposed now is that we extend this right to equalization to couples who are remaining married. The proposal that seems administratively the easiest is that when the younger spouse reaches the age of 65, so that both are 65, you do this splitting between them and you give them each a cheque as a result. Let me interject first the question of employer pensions which I wasn't going to mention. But since it is little known, I will talk about it. In the case of employer pensions, what happens upon divorce? It depends upon provincial law. And the Family Law Reform Act of Ontario, which was adopted in 1978, says that pension credits are not part of the family assets, which are split as a matter of course between the spouses upon divorce. Neither are monies put in a retirement savings plan, neither are savings of any kind. These are not part of the family assets (and) I don't know how many of you realize that. The only case in which a woman might be entitled to a share of these- which are the pension credits, the RRSP and other savings--is if she can prove that her work in the home helped her husband earn the money that he thereby put away, and this is extremely difficult to do. There hasn't been a case to my knowledge of pension credits as such that has gone to higher court. But in the case of an RRSP, it was found that a woman who had stayed at home all her life was not entitled, so it looks like the proof is going to be very difficult to make. So this is Ontario law, and it need not be that way. Monica was saying that the splitting of CPP credits and of employersponsored pensions on divorce (would be sufficient) if we can get it in Ontario...that it would be enough to give pensions of their own to homemakers and they wouldn't need any more than that. And I completely disagree with that. Because in the case where only the husband was the earner...if you split the pension, you would end up with two inadequate pen_ sions instead of one. It there was a divorce, you would end up with both of them living in poverty instead of just her, as is the case now, so it's clear that it is not sufficient because the total pension would remain the same, and the total pension was not calculated to be for a couple; it was calculated to be for a single person. Now this is why it is essential that we have not only that splitting of pensions...to recognize the equality of the woman's contribution within the marriage, but (that) we must also have a recognition of the value, the economic value, of the work of homemakers... Credit Due Indeed, we are all each personally responsible for (our own) material maintenance... and this is not the type of work we would like to have recognized because it leads into massive complications. What we are talking about is the work that a homemaker performs for others, whether it be children or a spouse or parents or adult children. And also I want to emphasize that all the proposals being made were not just for women, but were equally for men. If the man is the homemaker, he will be covered the same way. Now, to start, which is the main proposal that's being made to integrate homemakers? It is the ChildCare Drop-Out Period, and Monica has isolated that as if it were not a proposal to integrate homemakers, but that is what it is. If you leave out of the calculation of the pension the years spent at home with a young child, what you have done is you have just subsidized the participation of the homemaker in the CPP--and call it by any other name, this is what it is. This is the proposal that everyone pretty much agrees upon except the Government of Ontario. Ontario has been blocking its introduction--not just here, but everywhere in Canada outside of Quebec- and I can tell you that women in many other provinces are not at all happy about that. JUSTICE for as an argument in its bargaining (on the funding cif the CPP) with the federal government...You know that the money is being loaned to the provinces, the fund that's accumulat7 ed, and mainly that means that it's been loaned to Ontario because it has been on a per-capita basis. So Ontario has borrowed these huge amounts of money, and the nego itiationsl are coming about what's going to be done and how much Ontario, -_ will have to repay. And this, the Child-Care Drop-Out Period, is the bargaining tool. Women are being used as a hostage by Ontario in this they're saying, "We know fight; you, the federal government, want this badly, but we want something in exchange for it. That's why even though there are all these rumours about Ontario changing its mind, it wouldn't be surprising if they waited until the very last minute and didn't give it up without something in return. So this is the CCDOP, which is enforced in Quebec and has been enforced since 1977, and, as I said, it gives fully-subsidized pension coverage to women who are, only It is discriminatory--it is women. given to the person who received the- family allowance. So that means the woman, because family allowance is discriminatory, so it is fully subsidized coverage of women who have children under the age of 7. And it has been calculated to increase a typical woman's pension CPP benefits by about 23%, so as far as women are concerned, it is a very important subsidy. And it's paid for by all other plan contributors. Though it doesn't add up to a lot of money in the whole of the fund, the estimate is that it costs 0.02% of the total expenditure of the fund. Also, what was mentioned following a question is that there have been several proposals to expand the dropout period so that it would also cover the time taking care of very disabled family members, and there has been no reaction (to this) from governments at all. The proposal was made in my report, Pension Reform with Women in Mind, which came out last April at the National Pension Conference. There's been no reaction from the government at all about this. Women all across the country are in favour of it, (as are) the majority of men I've talked to. Now, apart from these drop-out periods, there are some people who oppose the participation of homemakers in the CPP. It is the minority of people, so what you were hearing Monica express was very much a minority view in the Women's Movement, and I'll come back to this. The reasons they invoke - and I'm not including only Monica in there continued on page 14 HOMEMAKERS In fact, this is one of the petitions I have that Monica was referIt is a petition to the ring to. Government of Ontario, specifically about the Child-Care Drop-Out Period. This one says, "We the women of the Thunder Bay area want this changed as soon as possible". And I hope that Monica is right when she says that Ontario is about to change its mind, but I've been hearing rumours The prolike that for a long time. blem is that Ontario seems to be using this (by) keeping it in reserve "Mother, what is a Feminist?" "A Feminist, my daughter, Is any woman now who cares To think about her own affairs As men don't think she oughter." -Mee Dust Miller, 191$ PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern Worr. pn9e 13 �It's Tough...continued from page 14. but I'm including some bureaucrats' opinions as well - the reasons they invoke for not including other homemakers_are, first, they say that homemakers who -don't have young children aren't working:--Not working, they just stay home and sit and do nothing. This is the common view among bureaucrats. If women choose to stay home and do nothing, it's their business. Secondly, and this you heard Monica express, that women who take care of young children or very disabled family members are working for all of society so they should be included through the dropout period, but homemakers who are doing homemaking only for older' children and spouses should not be included, because the work they do is a private matter between them and theirspouses and families. So that the state shouldn't intervene in that case. Thirdly, they say that pension coverage will discourage homemakers from joining the labour force. Then some others say that there is a contradiction between women's claims for equality in the labour market and their demands for recognition of the value of the work they do in the benefit, so it has no relationship whatever to the work that the homeSo you see the maker is doing. question really is not whether we should integrate homemakers in the The CPP because they are there. question is how we can have a system of homemakers participation in the CPP that makes more sense, and that is fairer than the one we have now. And if we had that, if we had a system where homemakers could get fair pen-Sion& on their own, then the result would be that widows benefits' could practically disappear beause they would be no longer needed. Women would have benefits in their own name. then. who pays home. something wrong .... Also, in my view, generally about all these arguments, there is something wrong there, and it is that we are starting from the wrong end. It's looking at the picture starting from a different point of view from the one.of the system itself. Because if you look at the system itself, you see that there are homemaker pensions ans they are widows Everybody agrees that benefits. this is the homemakers pension we The reason it is essenhave today. tially a homemakers pension is because if you are in the labour force, you're automatically entitled to no widows pension at all or reduced amounts because your benefits are reduced accordingly. The more labour force credits a woman gets under CPP the less her widows benefits will be, so only full time homemakers are The getting full widows benefits. problem is that if you look at that widows benefits system, that homemaker system we have today, you see that it is outrageously expensive, First, these very very unfair. widows pensions give benefits to people who don't need them at all, while denying them to people who need them very badly. It's very haphazard in its coverage and it is It was calculated very expensive. recently that one third of all benefits paid out by the CPP were widows So compare this, the drop benefits. out period was 0.02% of the cost, widows pensions amount to 30% of And who pays for this? the costs. ...it is not the husbands because the husbands in the labour force aren't paying anymore in the CPP than anybody else. So you have a system of homemakers benefits right now, that are heavily subsidized by women in the labour force, py married women specifically in the labour force because they are the largest group that won't leave survivors. And what kind of benefits_ does it give? It give pensions that are based on husbands earnings. So that means the higher the income of the husband, the higher the widows We don't want to disincentive. encourage or discourage either choice of being at home or outsi we just want the choice. Okay, so the average wage was too high the level of the husbands earnin was anither proposal. As in the case of widows pensions it's unacceptable because it is unfair, it has no relationship to the wo So the last proposal that done. is being retained right now is half the average wage, which is about $9,500. The advantages ar that it resembles the marker val If y of the work homemakers do. had to hire somebody to keep the house for you and do all the thi that a homemaker does, it would cost you somewhere around $10,00 Also it means it would not usual be a drop in the credits of the woman who joined the labour forc because that is about what women If she was working partearn. time you could let her contribut on her earnings but give her cre dit up to that level, so women who are working part-time would There would be be covered too. an assumption that if a person works part-time it is because they are taking care of their families the rest of the time. So they could be assigned credit The second question was who should pay? We saw that in the case of women who had young children and who dropped out, th the dropout period would subsidize them and the people whp would pay would be all the other participants. So that subsidy is already accepted. It seems logical to extend the same prin ciple to other women who are outside the labour force and can't benefit from the drop-out pi iod but who are also taking care young children or disabled relatiIt's reasonable that they should 1 subsidized too. Now the other ho. makers, if you look to see who th, are, they are women who are mainl homemakers for their spouses, the largest group is women between th There are also ages of 45 to 65. men and women who are homemakers for their parents or for their ad children, sometimes the woman wil keep house for her son or daughte Now all these people are giving o how much What are the questions that arise when you talk of integrating them. The first is at what level of income are you going to integrate them? And that doesn't mean you are going to give them a salary. It means that you have to choose a level on continued on page 19 which to base the pension, because the pension is a percent of earnings ..so what hypothetical level of earnings do you pick in the case of a woman who doesn't have earnings (or a man who is a homemaker)? The That's the first question. second question is who should pay for the homemaker participation in the CPP? Third question.. Come out and celebrate winter solshould the system be optional or stice and the new year with us at first mandatory? Women'sOkay, Centre, 316one.. Bay St., on Frithe level of income.. there have day, Dec. 10: There will be a coffe( Some music have to be been a few proposals. house atmosphere, with said made it should be the average wage by local women, skits (hopefully food and drinkbecause to suit the everyone. which and is about $20,000 work ofIf homemakers is come very early, important you wish to there Now Brir and they get thehour maximum. will sould be a dinner from 7-8. it was soon seen thata this creates something--it's potluck. There will difficulty, means be tapedbecause music, it with thethat live enterin many cases,beginning if a woman tainment at joined 8. the labour force pension creSince thisher will be both a celebraAnd that dits tion wouldand go a down. fundraiser for is the Centre, generally not acceptable womenfor we will be to asking a $2 donation because it would at the door. give a very small disincentive to join thefriends. labour Tell your women It shoul force, it would be but a good time, be andthere we'll neversee. you theless and we don't want such a there: CHRUTMAf COFFEEHOWI PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor 14 �UPDATE cont'd families whose parents consider birth control unacceptable woe Taylor's observations may explain a phenomen noted by U.S. abortion clinics who say a large number of their clients come from anti-abortion families Alopdp In the U.S. Senate anti-abortion ammendments have been talked off the floor and onto the shelf. The media has been hailing this as a significant defeat for the conservative right. However it is doubtful if an organisation as well financed and as powerful as the anti-choice group will shrivel up and fade away quite yet * Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina, who is easily the most powerful conservative in the country after Reagan, still retains his position of leadership with the anti-people, as does Senator Orin Hatch abortions, a more traumatic and dangerous procedure than first trimester abortions. He attributes this to our backward abortion laws which cause delay. He also stated that two thirds of Canadian women who get abortions go to the U.S for them. Morgentaler praised the Quebec government policy of allowing free standing abortion clinic, separate from a hospital, which can provide compassionate and trained service for women to have an abortion on request. Quebec Medical Insurance pays for Quebecoise but out-of-province women must pay for themselves. The fee is $250 at the Morgentaler clinic in Montreal but there is a policy that anyone unable to pay will not be turned away ... attempts to set up womens clinics in Ontario which according to Ms. (Jufle_1980) the majority of American Roman Catholics support pro-choice. So does the National Coalition of American Nuns. Says president Sister Donna Quinn "the organisation considers it (abortion) a matter of conscientious,moral choice for a women to make." Although opposed to abortion, the nuns also oppose any legislation to limit choice too. according to Dr. Henry Morgentaler on the Oct. 14 tv. programme "speaking Out", Canada is the second 'country in the world after India with the highest rate of second trimester would provide abortion have always run into provincial government opposition Female genital mutilation is now outlawed in Kenya following the deaths of fourteen young girls. It is unclear if they bled to death or developed infections due to a common scapel. The directive, issued by President Daniel Arap Moi, was praised by the Kenya media and represents a victory for African women's organisations so however the practise is deeply ingrained in the culture. It is doubtful it will cease with the publication of a government edict. In 1979, an African conference on health emphasised intensive awareness programmes to abolish the practise. The difficulties can be seen if one considers that in Egypt, where genital mutilation was banned in 1959, the disfiguring operation is still performed and 90% of Egyptian women, both Muslii and Christian, have experienced it, according to Cairo Family Planning. It is estimated that 60 to 70 million women in the band of countries south of the Sahara, in southern Arabia and in a few areas in Malaysia undergo the operation which includes removing the clitoris and all or part of the external genital area, in most cases without anaesthetic occasionally reports surface mentioning the procedure being performed in Europe. In Sweden it was learned that some doctors were operating on the daughters of African residents American Agency for International Development(AID) has been criticised for not co-operating with local health officials and international agencies (UNICEF, WHO) to end the practise. A.I.D has been accused of allowing modern hospitals and AID trained personnel to be used for the mutilation - a perversion of medical ethics the A FEAR LIKE STONE by Joan Baril It's a "Pilot Project" and many people fear we'll be taken for a ride. In October 1982, lured by the carrot of provincial money and the stick of provincial pressure (and ultimate power), the City of Thunder Bay has agreed to take on financial responsibility for sole-support mothers who are at present receiving provincial Family Benefits or "mothers' allowances". The pilot project is expected to fly well for the first eighteen months but it is feared that once the City takes it over it won't be able to hand it back. It is also feared that the province will eventually pull back funds and the whole contradictionridden structure will come crashing down, right in the middle of the City's budget. A spokeswoman from the Single Parents' Coalition of Toronto outlined to me what is happening now in Toronto when a woman just can't hold on. She calls it the Toronto Scenario and it may be the scenario of the future. There are five steps, all leading down. One: A sole-support mother finds she just cannot manage on the bone-scraping money she gets. Perhaps an emergency, a rent increase, a cessation of a husband's support money, a combination of reasons. Two: She loses her apartment. Three: She gives her children to Children's Aid. She moves to a hostel or a friend's place. Without an address she can't get benefits. Four: She shows up at the legal clinic, the Manpower office, the women's centre, social service office trying to find a solution. She says, "When I get a place... if I could only find something so I could get a place...". Five: Her kids are in foster care. As time goes on she wonders if she should just let them get adopted. She thinks, "If I could just get a place..." There is a bizarre footnote to this story. In Toronto, there is a shortage of foster care. Our province, which cannot afford to keep mothers and their children together, is spending a_ lot of money on a promotional campaign to attract foster parents. This opinion has been expressed by many citizens, including the sole-support mothers, who call themselves "the Concerned Moms", who tried - unsuccessfullyto convince the city to turn down the proposal. Other citizens, including some aldermen, believe changes in the whole welfare system are coming. By accepting the pilot project now, they believe, it can be monitored and there 21m0R4Marelliother Fully half of all low-income earners are single mothers or senior citizens can be some input into the future. It is especially necessary to make sure that any changes in welfare policy have Northern conditions in mind. However, it should be noted. that the present "pilot project" scheme was devised without any input at all from the people most affected... the sole-support mothers. Probably no issue has been more surrounded by sincerity and posturing, rhetoric and fear, all encompassed in a cloud of politico-babble. At a meeting at the Vale Community Centre, organized by the Concerned Moms in June 1982, the local Family Benefits officials sincerely CONT'D ON PG 18 Northern Woman page 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �sow or hen or any such thing ... DECADE COUNC1 by Sara Williamson Northwestern Ontario Women's Decade Council is set up to connect women and to give them a stronger lobbying voice. But people were saying that Decade Council was getting fuzzy. The-y---ut even sure what kind of critter-it was anymore. So the new executive and core committee got together on a Saturday morning and clipped and trimmed away the fluff and fuzz. Some said it looks_ like a brood sow with lots of piglets. Some said it is more a mother hen. Everyone did at least agree that it is a fine woman-made creature. You can look at it this way dc' ati Outreach There is a maintenance core group that ensures that Decade continues to operate. And there is a ring of committees and affiliates that give Decade its purpose and excitement. In the maintenance core there are four executive positions with specific responsibilities and limited power. The chair (Marg Lanchok) and vice-chair (Ruby Chumway) are there to co-ordinate the input of the membership and ensure that work and responsibilities are delegated to the membership. The treasurer (Julie Fels) keeps the financial records up to date so that the membership can make decisions on where the money is to be spent. The secretary (Leni Untinensihas to keep track of the minutes and correspondence. cilors to confronting federal Women from Geraldton, Marath ministers face to face. LobbyingFort Frances, etc. also join technique training is available. Decade as individuals, or as representatives of sub-commi The media committee are the tees or of affiliate groups. women who can_ contact and res- To assist with transportatio pond to the media on behalf of Decade pays the gas for one Decade on the women's issues vehicle per community and ca where their expertise lies. arrange billeting. The special events committee Decade wants to continue of course is struck whenever outreach into communities ti special events are being provide technical assistanc' planned by Decade such as a and resources to emerging Conference on women's issues women's groups and to indiv in March, and a morning of dual women working on women' sharing information by women's issues. To this end, the groups in October. budget allows for a staff pi son (Leni Untinen) who also Decade has three types of functions as a co-ordinator membership: committees, affilDecade also liaises with oth iates, and individual members. organizations, institutions Committees may have originated and government bodies, that to deal with a concern such as are directed to responding t Women and Health or Women and women's issues in Northweste Economic Development. Or, they Ontario such as Confederatio may have been formed to respond College Women's Programs and to a maintenance need of Decade Secretary of State Women's such as media contacts or Programs. special events. Committees use Decade's name and can get help Decade meets at least once a month on Saturdays to deal from the whole Decade Council. They must promote participation first thing in the morning wi with Decade and an awareness maintenance matters and the of Decade by women and relevant remainder of the morning one organizations. early afternoon to discuss issues, concerns and informs Affiliates are women's action tion brought up by the membs groups who wish to exchange For more information ship. information on their work and contact Leni Untinen, R.R.lf get added support for lobbying. Pine Shore Drive, Thunder Bs Both affiliates and committees 683-5236. are expected to participate in some way with Decade supported lobbies. COA.R.A.L. MEETING Individual members are the women of the maintenance core group. They help by actively enlisting new members for Decade, serving on committees of their choice, promoting Decade and women's issues in their communities, participating in Decade activities and, as much as possible learn how to do the maintenance jobs of Decade, DEC. 2nd 8 p.m. WOMEN'S CENTRE 316 Bay St. Did You Know ? ?? If you've had a hysterectomy, you still should go for a regular pap test. The networking committee takes on the task of ensuring that members are in touch with Decade about the issues they are working on and that Decade news and requests get back to the members. The lobbying committee can become active as needed to direct strategies to influence the decisions of different levels of government on matters that are of special concern to women. There are several women who are experienced in ways of going about this ... from writing letters to writing briefs and from telephoning municipal coun- PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOMAN Page.16 �Women On The Other Side By LUAN WALL Women comprise one half of the do two world's population thirds of the world's work; recieve one-tenth of the world's income and own less than one-hundreth of the world's property. Statistics regarding women in developing countries are even more appalling and worsen when one considers the rural dwellers of these countries. Women in rural areas are amongst the most overworked underpaid and iiieducated people in the world. Development theories have changed considerably in recent years. Foreign aid and investment once concentrated on large scale projects such as dam construction where the trickle down process was meant to take place. Now the concept of 'small is beautiful' and 'self help' dominate approaches and ; bare-foot doctors, -teachers and agricultural extension workers are logging up an impressive number of miles world wide. One factor in the development field remains virtually unchanged however, and that is both national and foreign programme developers' attitudes to women. Women's often is a subsistance economy with food production being the greatest activity. According to the FAOwomen are responsible for at least 50% of all food production. More importantly much of their efforts go to providing for their own families and community. Increasingly men have been devoting their energies towards the production of cash crops for export. These undoubtedly earn more immediate income but in the long run can prove to be costly. Depending on foreign markets their demand is not ensured they often require large amounts - amounts of pesticidesles and fertiliser andcan engage cash crop farmers in lending arrangements and often permanent indebtedness.Furthermore it is usually the women that work at weaving,embroidery and other crafts to be sold to increase family earnings.These have a further activitiespositive contribution in that they help to diversify the local economy. Rarely are either of these contributions directly recognised by programme developers 4..Women are not unable to learn. Many are superstituous, many hold onto old be virtually totally ignored. traditions, many cling to the Rarely are women included in familiar when the new is the public participation strange,not understood and exercises to discuss project imposed from outside.- but development, local issues etc. they are not unable to learn. Seldom are projects directed What often evades programme to address specific women's designers are the local social, needs - except possibly in the religous and customary beliefs. case of health care. Even here though motives are suspect with These often prevent women from learning anything but the projects often being prompted local dialect (and thus for governmental economic and any effective communication political reasons rather than with many programme operators), from -direct concern for the from being assertive or from problems of the women they taking a visibly active part address. in the community. These beliefs Many reasons can be cited for this - most of which are are not always acceptable to the women they oppress nor are similar to those which women they impossible to change. of more developed countries Worldwide there is a malehave had to deal with. False child preference. This has assumptions abound and are the many implications. In some bases for many of the current countries male children between failings in development the ages of 0-5 years have a programmes. 40% greater chance of survival 1. Men cannot be presumed to be heads of households. In than female ones. Frequent pregnancies, lack of access to developing countries as many adequate health care and malnutas 1/3rd of all households are rition have meant that longevity headed by women with no male head to support them. The figure rates can differ by as much as augments considerably for 10 years in favOur of the male periods of months or years as and the little seen need for male folk migrate to other education for women means that parts of the country in search two out of every three illiters illiterate people in the world of work. are female (in rural areas for 2. Improved circumstances every four literate males there for the male will not by necis one literate female).And essitybenefit all the other members of the household. Often the tale of woe goes on increased wages from male development programmes are earnings are directed to usually staffed by the purchasing material possessions elite ie.well educated males such as bicycles and radioswho have little understanding or to more tobacco and alcoholor empathy for the people they They do not always go to puport to serve - the lowest improving the household str;-ts of their society. wellbeing. Alt2.rnatively the programmes 3. Women do make an cal. be staffed by well important contribution to the educated foreigners who come local economy.The latter very to a society they barely underroles in and contribution to the local economy continues to *FAO- - Food and Agriculture Organization stand and into parts of which they can often barred from entering (the most obvious example being in Muslim societies) - with such characteristics what hope is there for the rural, female peasant ? So the features of many of todays programmes are not surprising - instead of ignoring the needs of a vast number of the worlds rural poor they now only ignore 50% of them -those of women.It is the landless male that is benefiting, from land reform; it is the peasant male farmer that is receiving credit, fertiliser, agricultural training etc. - many of the fruits of recent development programmes totally bypass the female component of the communities they serve. In some cases programmes have left women worse off than before they were introduced - increased mechanisation has infiltrated their agricultural functions. Instead of being trained to use new machinery their former tasks are being taken over by men and the division of labour is now even greater than it once was. Also with the increasing trend towards cash crop production less land is available to produce adequate supplies of food for home consumption. The increased cash earned and controlled by men does not make up for the shortfall _leaving families suffering serious malnutrition, But the situation is not without it's bright spots. Work is slowly being done. In countries as diverse as the Phillipines, Thailand and Bangladesh programmes dealing with the problems and needs of rural women have been set up The brief experience of these have been that - social,religous and cultural restraints can be overcome if women work together in groups. - rural women can be motivated to design and implement development activities, both inside and outside their villages. - rural women will travel outside their own localities to receive training they perceive I : CONT'D ON PG 18 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN WOW. Page 17 �OTHER SIDE cont'd to be beneficial. - rural women will form and join co-operatives. Basic to all these programmes is the concept of strength in numbers and the importance of group structures. These make possible events which women could not realistically achieve on their own. a tirade of abuse. This type of behaviour on the part of the Minister makes many women fear that the "Pilot Project" is just a step to dismantling Mother's Allowances in Ontario. Mother's Allowance is based on a philosophy fought for by the first woman's movement: mothers who have to bring up children on their own need financial support. But to have just a few programmes is not enough. In the present economic Development, if it is ever to depression more and more people be equitable development are applying for city welfare. cannot happen as long as the This winter is going to be a needs, talents and potential of nightmare as U.I.C. claims 1/2 of the world's population run out. At the same time are ignored or, at best, are government revenue is declining. seen as marginal,secondary and There are various schemes of little relevance. around the continent that would make sole-support mothers take the brunt of the economic crunch A FEAR cont'd In the United States, one idea is to cut the living allowance assured the mothers that the as soon as the child reaches change-over would not reduce two years old. In various benefits and might even proprovinces, and American states, vide better services. Yet officials are considering many on June 9, 1982 COMSOC ways to cut back, cut off, or Minister, Frank Drea, stood make ineligible funding to on the steps of Queen's Park mothers. in Toronto and screamed at In Ontario, the new program a crowd of mothers that they will allow mothers to be were no-goods who didn't want classified as "employable". to work. Questions from the The province claims that this women about the availablity is for "statistical purposes of day care and jobs were only and will not affect the ignored. Mr. Drea continued YIP, YIP from Pg. 4 On another occasion a boyfriend who I had asked to teach me chess so confused me with fast talk and jargon that I could not understand him. He refused to clarify, but simply repeated the incomprehensible sentenced louder. When I still didn't understand, he shrugged and suggested perhaps I never would I believed him too. catch on. It was a rewarding sweep down the Catching on South Kawishiwi River. at last, for-six years old and realizing I'd been conned into incompetence--negative conditioning doesn't end with childhood after all. I sang bits of vogageur songs I once knew: "Yip: Yip: Sur la riviere... oh, fils du roi, to es mechant"... We saw no moose--though we had seen signs on the shore--or any other large animal, but there were birds, mama ducks and loon families. One day Karen yodelled a beautiful loon imitation and a loon answered back. A conversation developed with the loon sounding each time a little more puzzled. Occasionally, we saw another canoe. Like Quetico, the Boundary Waters area is reserved for canoeists, and no motor boats are allowed. But the solitude seemed so fixed we were soon skinny dipping or paddling along topless. The evening circle again. No roughing it in the bush for us as far as food is concerned; we eat curry, falafel, fresh fish and fresh fruits, and vegetables,--nothing canned or freeze dried. The food is mostly vegetarian and it's delicious. The tents go up and the mosquitos come out filling the clearing with their horrible hum. I burn a bit of "pic" in my tent to clear them out. The American women have never seen mosquito coils. I offer pieces . around but they are suspicious- probably rightly--that sleeping in the fumes is unhealthy. But my tent mate Gayla is thankful I've brought it. "Light it up," she says, "There ara millions of things I hate about this trip and all of them are mosquitos." On a Woodswomen trip all food, supplies, tents and canoes are supplied by the organization. Although they specialize in tours for women only, or women with children, they have guided mixed and all male trips. "An entirely different experience". says Judith. "The men spend the first day setting up heirarchies. They develop competitive.groups that absolutely refuse to work with each other. And in the mixed group, some of the men expect to carry the canoes and packs and of course paddle stern. It's easy for the women to slip into passive roles." Operating out of Minneapolis, Woodswomen was founded six years ago by three women. It's aim is to encourage women to enjoy the wilderness. Besides canoe trips of various lengths, its calendar lists cycling, rock climbing, riding, cross-country skiing, and classes in white water canoeing, outdoor skills, plus a history course on wilderness women of the past such as the Canadian, Minna Hubbard, who journeyed across Labrador to Ungava Bay in 1905. Her name was frequently mentioned because benefits." Single parent organizations, such as the Mothers Action Group of Toronto, don't believe it for a minute. People classified as "employable" receive much less in benefits than those labeled "unemployable" Privately, the women were told that "by the Fall of 1982, there would be no further referrals of mothers to Family Benefits", and that during the reclassification period, only those "obviously unemployable" or who insisted on family benefits would be referred (for more, see P.26 "Protecting Our Own," report of Mothers Action Group, Toronto. Available at Women's Centre) . In fact, the difference between what the government is saying publicly, and what officials are saying privately are the chief cause of the confusion and fear surrounding this issue. But underlying all is a deadly fear--a fear like stone in the hearts of the mothers I talked to at Vale Community Centre and the women at Queen's Park--the fear of losing their kids. Just scraping by on Mothers Allowance now, what will happen if their benefits are reduced through such ploys as a reclassification as "employable" or a change-over to the lower city welfare rates... how to hold on then? some woodswomen, including Judith Niemi, hope to duplicate her 576-mile trip in 1982. On our fifth day, we leave the Boundary Waters area. At the last carrying place, I am dumbfounded to see a large man strolling down the trail toward me, a lit cigar in his The hum of motor boats is mouth. heard and the final mile is lined with summer cottages. At the landing, some unload, others go for the cars or set up lunch. We all look a bit glum. I'm suddenly struck by "post camping syndrome"- the sudden and overwhelming desire And I realize I for a hot bath. have a long drive ahead of me and I have to return to work tomorrow. "Joan, what are you thinking," says "I'm thinking I have to Marianne. stop on the way home and buy pantihose for work tomorrow," I reply Everybody laughs. truthfully. At the campground, we eat a farewell meal which included fresh "You can watermelon and champagne. gold plate these or make them into earrings--these are original souvenirs Judith says as she hands out momentossaran-wrapped moose berries. I recei the first one "as a symbol of inter"Turds across national good-will". the border," we laugh. All the things we ten women talked about still float like pollen through my mind--it's all there. "Oui, lointain que je t'aime. J'amais que je t'oubliais." For a Woodswomen calendar, write 3716 4th Avenue, S., Minneapolis, Minnesota 55409 or phone (612) 8321900. HELP PREVENT RAPE SISTERS GIVE RIDES TO SISTERS: PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor NORTHERN. WOMAN Paap 1R �It's Tough... continued from page 13 services which really can't be said to be given to society as a whole. So it seems reasonable that the adult who is receiving the service should be the one paying for the pension contribution. Now the only exception that seems to be widely accepted to that rule is that if the person who was being taken care of made a low income, then you might have a subsidization by other' participants of the CPP. Now the last question...should this be optional or mandatory? It's clear from what has come out of European countries where this has been tried. Many European countries where they have opened up voluntarily the public pension plans to homemakers and said anyone who wants to contribute can come in, have had disasterous results. It seemed that less than 5% in any country that has tried it, has contributed. And that the ones who had were all the upper income women who had money of their own. So they in fact had the least need for pension coverage to start off with. So this is really not fair and not adequate. It is clear that the only system that could possibly work is a mandatory system that would cover all homemakers. Here I want to come back to something very important that Ruth Cunningham said yesterday. She was talking about the relationships between women in the home and women in the labour force. She was saying that unless we were united, that we would not be very strong, we would not be listened to. This subject came up at the National Action Committee on the Status of Women and this was specifically voted on in the context of pensions, because the choice was between women whose goal is to push everyone into the labour force, for good intentions, because they say that women will be more financially secure if they are in the labour force so we shouldn't reduce the disadvantages of being in the home. And this is Monica's position, and the other position which was to have the choice and to reduce the disadvantages of being at home. And the vote overwhelmingly went in favour of the choice. I think that given that you can say NAC does represent a good cross section of the women's movement in Canada, I can say safely that this is the position of the women's movement in Canada...that women should have the choice. ... I would go further myself.. and I think that we must bring - the work homemakers do, which is private now, bring it out of the private domain and bring it in the market place. And again, Ruth was saying last night, women's work is not in the market place. As long as it is not in the market place it will not be recognized and it will not have proper credit. The situation with homemaking is similar in a way to that with part-time work, politically. The reason why one reminds me of the other is that when labour first studied the problems of women who work part-time, the reaction was to say 'we should abolish it'. Part-time work shouldn't be allowed. In fact several unions still hold that position. This is the position they have to homemaking. That we should abolish it. In the case of part-time work though, most of the unions have turned around, because they've realized you can't take a magic wand and make part-time work disappear... no more than you can make homemaking work disappear. That as long as there is a demand for it, it is going to exist. So in the case of part-time work, they've changed their tactics, and now they are saying the way to make it better, the way to take away its disadvantages is to make it safer to have women who work part-time have good working conditions. Then it won't be objectionable any more, women will not be financially insecure as they now are when they work part-time. I say the same thing applies for working in the home. The way to deal with it is not to wish it away and hope it will disappear. Because as long as there is need for it and several women have shown, how in diverse conditions it is a choice they have made, or it is something they have had to do because they have had no choice for whatever reason, it is clear that full time or part time homemaking is going to be with us for along time yet. The majority of women are still not working full time in the labour force at the present time. So as long as homemaking fills a need, the best way to reduce its disadvantages is to make it safer, to give financial security to women 'in the home. The main way of doing this would be to change family law, so that women at home are entitled to a part of their husband's income while they are in the home, not only if they divorce, but while they are homemakers. And the other less important, but also important way to make the homemaker more financially secure is to give her financial protection under the CPP and that is why I think we should do it. I will end the subject of homemaker participation by saying I strongly disagree with the argument that seems to be developing that there is a contradiction between the interests of women at home and women in the labour force. This has been set up for you I think, as you have to choose between women at home and women in the labour force. ry you look at the picture closely, you see that it doesn't work that way but that the interests of women at home and in the workforce are inextricably intertwined. The reason women in the labour force full time are not getting the value for their work that they should be getting is because the women that are at home are under cutting them in a way, because they are a pool of cheap labour who is not protected So you have this in any way. The weakness of Achilles heel. women in the labour force is the financial insecurity of the woman at home. As a woman who is full time in the labour force I know full well that to better my own position, the best thing I can do is to support measures that will improve the financial security of women in the home. That is why I support this, this is my reason, as well as the realization that if women are not united behind the political positions they put forward, they will be very weak. Now to end, I really encourage you to work in this area because it's really going to come back to roost for us before long and I think that once you start work, you realize the old saying that 'charity begins at home' really applies in this area. That if you look at the projections for the year 2010 you see that 60% of senior citizens are going to be women and most of us are going to be in those figures at that time. HEDDA from pj,.10 Henrik Ibsen was writing in the Victorian era. How much-of-this is still so true today? Adrienne Rich describes feminine power very succinctly in her book Of Woman Born. "Like other dominated people, 'women have learned to manipulate and seduce, or to internalize men's will and make it their own and men have sometimes characterized this as a "power" in women But it is nothing more than the child's or courtesan's "power" to wheedle, and the dependent's "power" to disguise her feelings - even from herself - in order to obtain favours, or literally to survive." Nonetheless, Thea Elvsted was still powerless. Yet she dealt with her situation creatively. She made her will (the book) her own (the child) and convinced men that it too should be theirs. Thus she controlled the creative aspect of her life (unlike in pregnancy), although she remained dependent upon men for its final , . expression. Hedda showed us a destructive means of overcoming powerless-' ness. Her actions did not stem from boredom. Her actions cannot be coined as intrigUe, seduction, toying. Her actions depict the powerless woman. Her actions present the stereotypical -ersion. Discounting the television screen, how many women do you know who fit into Hedda's lot? Are not all of us, in our own ways, Thea, conceiving and growing our unbodily children? It's time we saw some new, refreshing, unstereotyped feminist plays. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Northern-Voman'POOe' �THE CONFEDERATION COLLEGE OF APPLIED ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY THUNDER BAY DISTRICT It is now possible to receive a General Arts and Science Diploma emphasizing Women's Programs Curriculae. Post-secondary credit subjects toward the Diploma may be taken in full-time studies or as part-time; contact the Registrar 475-6164. For information about Women in Non-Traditional Occupations (Management, Trades and Technology), contact Women's Programs 475-6278. A new bibliography of feminist books and films is available now. GS 143 99 WOMEN & STRESS MANAGEMENT This program is intended to examine sit tional stresses in our lives--family job, social relationships, conflict, cl ge, developmental crises, etc., 1 as potential sources of stres y bring to every situation because fa leir personalii their own belief system heir life rhythm! and their style of em-solving. A lifestyle and atti e approach to changin4 their stress ;fir nse will be developed by each indivi DATE AND Wednesday 7:00-10:00 p.m. STARTI TE: January 12, 1983 COMP DATE: March'16, 1983 I TOR: Walter Martin $30.00 ROOM: 342 Women's Programs FOR INFORMATION ON HOW TO REGISTER, CONTACT WOMEN'S PROGRAMS AT 475-6232. For information about theSe subjects outside of Thunder Bay, contact your local Confederation College office or call Toll Free: ZW 001 800-465-6961 800-465-6962 - 99 NAGEMENT will briefly look at the tradiiples, strategies and skills of but will focus primarily upon xperiences of being a woman . include "Women in Management" Stead. : Monday 7:00-10:00 p,m. : January 10, 1983 TE: April 18, 1983 Barbara McEwen ROOM: 99 LIFE AFTER 65 265 99 TERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT introduces an international in an endeavour to address the affecting Canadian and Third and the effectiveness of developts aimed at improving living and itions for women in developing This subject will explore the changing roles of the older person in today's society with emphasis on the concept that Old is Beautiful and that the lifestyles of the over 65 age group can and must include meaningful status and useful functions in the community. DATE AND TIME: Thursday 7:00-10:00 p.m. STARTING DATE: January 20, 1983 COMPLETION DATE: March 24, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Betty Chalmers FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 282 ZW 017 : ZW 032 IMAGES OF WOMEN IN THE MEDIA Through the use of films and recordings, this subject will examine the portrayal of women in advertising, television, newspapers and contemporary music. 99 SECTION 99 (Evening) WOMEN KNOW YOUR CAR DATE AND TIME: Wednesday 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. STARTING DATE: January 19, 1983 COMPLETION DATE: April 27, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Liz Poulin FEE: $45.00 ROOM: 282 Students will learn the basic procedures of car maintenance and general operation. DATE AND TIME:_ Thursday 7:00-10:00 p.m. STARTING DATE-: January 20, 1983 February 17, 1983 COMPLETION DATE: INSTRUCTOR: Don Young FEE: $25.00 Auto Shop, Dorion Bldg. ROOM: SECTION 98 (Day) DATE AND TIME: Wednesday 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. STARTING DATE: January 19, 1983 COMPLETION DATE: April 27, 1983 INSTRUCTOR: Liz Poulin FEE: $45.00- ROOM: tba COAING UP - 1983 : Monday 7:00-10:00 p.m. : January 10, 1983 TE March 14, 1983 Barbara Marcell ROOM: SKILL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS: INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY CEIFIIRATION Women coming INTO Trades 4 Technology (WITT) Women coming INTO Management : DATE: TIME: PLACE: 342 99 JOB SEARCH SKILLS FOR WOMEN A three-week program sponsored by Canada Employment and Immigration to assist women who want immediate employment. Friday MARCH 4,1983 1:30-4:30 and 7:00-10:00 p.m. Concourse, Shuniah Building Resource People .. Displays .. Films Contact the Women's Employment Centre at 623-2731. ESS TRAINING student with the skills necessary honestly for the things s/he wants' , at home, in the community. not to be confused with aggression. kes into account the rights and thers. Tuesday 7:00-10:00 p.m. : : January 11, 1983 TE: March 15, 1983 Ruth Corbett ROOM: 260 99 OR WOMEN l process -- how it works and how rk for you. Tuesday 7:00-10:00 p.m. : -January 18, 1983 TE: March 22, 1983 Rita Uhriaco : ROOM: MEN'S ATTITUDE TO WOMEN'S CHANGING SEXUALITY Thursday APRIL 28 (eve), 1983 Dr. Claude Guldner, Dept. of'Family Studies, University of Guelph For further information, contact the Seminar Centre 475-6380. ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING INSTRUCTORS' WORKSHOP To provide a laboratory experience for those wishing to- teach Assertiveness Training or to integrate it into their educational materials. Registrants will be expected to have a background in Social Sdiences or permission of the instructor. DATE: MAY 4, 5, 6, 1983 For more information, contact Women's Programs at 475-6232. take place. Start Date: JANUARY 17 and MARCH 21, 1983. Contact your Canada Employment and Immigration Counsellor at 344-6601 or 623-2731. ' TAKE A LEAP FORWARD WOMEN'S EDUCATION-NORTHERN ONTARIO 282 (WE-NO) 99 JULY 1984 -- SEMINAR CENTRE where required accommodation will be available in the Student Residence at a moderate cost. E LAW will focus on the Law as it peren, including special reference r of-Rights, other Human Rights , Family Law, Employment Law and s Rights. : Tuesday 7:00-10:00 p.m. : January 18, 1983 March 22, 1983 TE: Lynn Beak ROOM: INTRODUCTION TO NON-TRADITIONAL OCCUPATIONS An eight-week program designed to give women an academic and experimental introduction to traditionally male occupations. The students' will choose, with the help of the instructor, where the training will 342 WOMEN'S EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE 1. To facilitate an opportunity for students to undertake post-sedondary credit subjects and non post-secondary subjects, which study roles and relationships which women experience on all levels of Canadian society. 2. To provide leadership in contemporary issues of particular concern to women. 3 To respond to the needs of women-for information and practical skills to assist them to meet pressing, immediate problems. 4. To reach segments of the population who for one reason and another, have not benefited from the resources of the College. 5. To become a'"44" for disseminating information to any interested person about education and-employment issues touching The lives of women. ; BASIC SKILLS FOR THE WOMAN SUPERVISOR WORKSOP 983 (7:00 - 10:00 p.m.) 983 (9:00 am - 3:30 p.m.) on: IMLA ROBERTS, nationally knowmconsultant and educator. information, contact the Seminar -6380. UNITED NATIONS 1985 WORLD CONFERENCE FOR WOMEN NAIROBI, KENYA Initial meeting to organize the trip: DATE: Monday JANUARY 24, 1983 7:00-10:00 p.m. TIME: Room 213, Shuniah Building ROOM: Barbara Marcell and Ruth Cunningham. - PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Second Class Mail Registration No. 5697 RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 BAY ST. THUNDER BAY P, ONT. Return Postage Guaranteed INSIDE THIS ISSUE: (Six issues) 5.00 9.00 Business or Institutions Women who worked on this issue: Anna McColl, Teresa Legowski, Noreen Lavoie, Danalyn MacKinnon, Joyce Michalchuk, Donna Phoenix, Sara Williamson, Margaret Phillips, Luan Wall, Arja Lane, Viola Nikkila. THUNDER CLAP WOMEN'S CENTRE NEWS 2 TAKE BACK THE NIGHT 3 YIP YIP SUR LA RIVIERE 4 COFFEE, TEA AND LUMPY 5 UPDATE 6 RAPE NOT INHERENT 7 IT'S TOUGH TO BE OLD 8 POETRY 9 HEDDA AND POWER 10 MONEY 11 A FEAR LIKE STONE 15 DECADE COUNCIL 16 1 WOMEN ON THE OTHER SIDE-17 Edith McLeod for Person of the Year in Canada. Founder of Ontario Native Women's Association, PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal Description An account of the resource Northern Woman Journal Published in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Northern Woman Journal (originally called Northern Woman) started in 1973 following the first annual Northern Women’s Conference in order to keep the conference attendees connected. Initially serving as a newsletter of events, local issues, and women’s resources, the Northern Woman Journal quickly became a diverse publication reaching national and international readers. Not only did it serve as a newsletter to keep local women up to date on feminist issues in Northwestern Ontario, but also as a safe space to discuss women’s resources, law, politics, economics, health, racism, sexism, homophobia, feminist organizing and activism, transnational feminist issues, poetry, feminist reading, feminist art, and women’s diverse lived experiences.One of the longest-running feminist perodicals in North America, the Northern Woman Journal reached its end in 1995. Throughout its 22 years, the Northern Woman Journal was produced by its many collective members, with membership evolving year to year. For many years, the journal worked closely alongside and shared space with the Northern Women’s Centre and the Northern Women’s Bookstore. With the exception of a year-long government grant in the 1970s, the journal relied entirely on subscription fees and donations in order to maintain publishing, which presented challenges throughout its entire existence. As stated in an early version of the editorial policy, “only by a free and open exchange of views and opinions will we develop a basis for unity which can be used as a basis for action.” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Northern Woman Journal, Vol 7 No 5 Description An account of the resource Vol. 7, No. 5 (November 1982) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Violence Against Women Battered Wives Reclaim the Night Woodswomen Northern Minnesota Cesaerean Sections Northwestern Ontario Women’s Health Education Project Canadian Abortion Rights Action League Fibrocystic Breast Disease & Caffeine Cabin Fever Day Northern Women Solidarity Building Comic Anthropological Study Finds Rape Not Inherent in Society Northwestern Ontario Women & Pensions Conference Pensions & Old Age Pensions for Single Women Poetry Theatre Review Thunder Bay Understanding Money & Interest Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value Justice for Homemakers Compensation for Housewives Christmas Coffee House Event Welfare Policy & Mothers on Welfare Northwestern Ontario Women’s Decade Council Women & Labour in Developing Countries Confederation College Women’s Programs Authors/Contributors: Janet Howard Teresa Legowski Joan Baril Joyce Michalchuk Roxanne Merits Irma Johnson Carol Barry Merle Donald Sara Williamson Luan Wall Anna McColl Noreen Lavoie Danalyn MacKinnon Donna Phoenix Margaret Phillips Arja Lane Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Northern Woman Journal Collective Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-11 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Published on this site with permission. Language A language of the resource English