1168 10 13636 https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/16/2742/1976_Vol_2_No._5_CV01.pdf 22853e8946c20bfdc126469b20628aa1 PDF Text Text PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �EDITORIAL 41010:411:1/01/0.7.sar...16.S.17_4401r My heartfelt thanks to my sisters from the Northern Woman's centre who were so supportive and helpful during my recent surgery.Also to friends and neighbours and sisters who sent gifts and flowers and cards. Your kindness will always be remembered. In sisterhood ari love I ,W,Y, WHAT IF THE DRUM THAT BEAT THE OLD YEAR IN AND OUT WAS HOLLOW WE DANCED, Noreen Lavoie. WHAT IF. WE KNEW THE PEOPLE V11-10 MADE THE DRUM AND CALLED THE SHOTS WERE LAUGHING, TO HELL WITH THEM WERE DANCING, FOR WE WILL MAKE OUR OWN DRUM AND BEAT IT TOO, WELL WRITE THE MUSIC AND THE WORDS AND KEEP ON MOVING, STEP -STEP SHUFFLE -WHIRL AND HUSTLE, PRAYER Deliver me from sure things they are so obviously rote, footprints hardened in cement, open privy doors for one intent and little goals established by the ant. Deliver me from what know is there,the plodding plotted life,the cushion in the snare. Direct me to the danger of the leap, one flight on faith alone before sleep out where the dice is tossed the caged bird sings, want to see the colour of her wings. I EDITORIAL POLICY he newsletter group,a Separate yet supportve group of toe Northern Woman's Centre, eflects the complexity of the makeup of the orthern Women's centre as a whole. Being a smaller,unified group,the editrial board of the Northern Woman will attempt hrough collective,creative and thought prooking comments,to respond to,and express through concensus of opinion) their reactions o, various articles, letters and timely topics f interest. Through such a policy it is hoped that IE NORTHERN WOMAN will become a tool for Amen to develop an increased understanding of ieir situation and forces affecting their I I Ives. THE LEGAL SANCTION OF RAPE The Criminal Code of Canada lists a crime called rape. Perhaps the fact that it is disguised as a "sexual offence"(which only happen to "immoral" people) is what enables the court system to ignore it. Ignore actually isn't the right word. The court sy tem seems determined to prevent successful prosecution of rapists. Eventually then, it may be hope4. a woman will no longer have the audacity to demand that a criminal who has assaulted her sex organs, attempted to demean and exploit her, and who presents a constant threat to theviecurity of the community,Be brought to justice. It would be too blatant for the system to simply request that the crime be eliminated from the criminal code. Some people might then take So the notice and object. process must be one of removing the crime by preventing juries from convicting rapists. have just How is this done? come to the end of a year of watching the process unfold. The particulars could vary I Send this coupon to your local MP. THE NORTHERN WOMENS CENTRE. The Northern Womens Centre, whose function has always been to encourage womens' groups to participate, now extends an invi tation to any womens groups in Northwestern Ontario to use the premises for their own meetings. All bookings can be made through: June Cryderman, Nothern Womens Centre, 120 Amelia St., West, Thunder Bay, Ontario. Phone;622-3989 (Tues.& Fri.) (10 a.m.-3 p.m.) BELIEVE THAT RAPE CRISIS CENTRES PERFORM I A VALUABLE SERVICE WHICH IS DESERVING OF THE ISSUE OF PERMANENT GOVERNSUPPORT. MENT FUNDING OF SUCH CENTRES SHOULD BE THE SUBJECT OF IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATION AND ACTION. NAME ADDRESS MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT depending on the specific biases of judges and the skill and fluency of defense lawyers but the following examples give a good picture. 1) Since rape is not such a serious crime anyway(?) rapists are generally not held in After all, no man custody. should have his liberty restricted just because he took away the liberty ofsomeone When court assizes are else. held prisoners in custody are This can result tried first. in there being no time left to hold the rapist's trial. So time goes on, memories become less clear, the victim is left in a state of trauma, and finally if schedules work out the rapist is tried some six, eight, or twelve months after the crime was co!-mitted. By then, the system may think, who cares anyway. OVER PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CONTINUED FROM EDITORIAL PAGE (the rapist) lost control and A broken leg slapped her. could be explained similarly, no doubt, by the rapist saying I "she stormed out of the room didn't want to said after see her again and fell down The rapist needs the steps". only to get someone to claim that his own injuries predated the time of the rape. The credibility of such a witness in terms of his or her vested interest in the rapist isn't questI 'WomeN3 WANt to 6e, Rfire_t)." I ioned. 2)There are rules governing admission of evidence in rape trials which apply to no other case of criminal assault. One of these is the ease by which testimony regarding the complaint itself may be excluded. If a rape victim reacts in a normally terrified manner after gaining freedom from a rapist and reflects on the possibility of retaliation for reporting him, on the horror stories she's heard about the treatment of rape victims,and attempts to seek advice from trusted people she will find that in court a jydgement will be rendered that she did not make a complaint at the first "reasonable" opportunity., No consideration apparently is given tothe unreasondble state of mind hnmediately after the crime. The result-a jury suddenly realizes that they are spending days determining a case in which theyy crime 've never heard that was reported. 3) Because, as a judge recently stated it,"the previous experience of the law" indicates that rape is a charge too readily made by a "girl" on the basis of fantasy, jealousy, or spite,jurors are cautioned that it is "dangerous" to convict a man unless there is corroborative(supporting) evidence to the victim's testimony. Barring the existence of an eyewitness to the crime this usually means evidence of physical injury. This is not reasonable considering that rape is a form of assault which does not necessarily leave physical signs, particularly if the rapist admits to intercourse (with consent,of course). If a woman has been verbally threatened into submitting to the rapist there will be no physical injury. Why is rape victims who must it only permit further injury and possible death in order to prove a crime? Because, society says any woman should prefer death to forcible intercourse. It is especially critical to note that even when both the victim and the rapist have incurred injuries these are not considered corroborative if the rapist makes up any semi-plausible reason for them. For example, the victims face and head are bruised because "she (the victim) insperformance and ulted my sexual 4) As in any trial the judge is responsible for giving instructions to the jury. This involves an explanation of the law and of the factors which must be present in order to convict the accused. The judge also reviews the testimony presented, points out what evidence could be considered corroborative, and comments on what s/he considers to be important testimony and what questions or issues the jury want to pay particular attention to. It is here that the judge shows either the informed objectivity or the judgmental bias which s/he brings to such a highly If a judge esteemed position. personally holds false and biased assumptions about rape and about women who are raped and allows it to show in the review of testimony and in the other comments the judge can easily negate the jury system. Jurors in criminal trials are called upon to make a kind of decision which is unfamiliar to them, which is most difficult and often complex. When a person has to make this type of decision the perceived opinion of a "legitimate authority" (the judge) becomes all the more The most abvious, of course, is that a woman's "character" has some important bearing in whether it is permissable to rape her. For trial purposes this is disguised a bit by making a woman's "character" ortant in determining her "cre ibility (whether she is to be believed). Poor character can be defined as a woman who part cipates in social functions wi men, likes to have a good time socially and enjoys mutually agreeable sexual experiences. The logic of how this relates to a person's ability to tell the truth totally escapes me. The obvous indicator of credibility is whether a person ha a history of making false statements about people or events This, of course, is not relevant in rape trials. What is really being said is that a woman enjoys screwing then no man should get in trouble just for giving one when "she' didn't want it. The time and place is his perogative. The judges and defense lawyers i i just say this in fancier language. Most of the time in a rape trial is spent in examining whether this myth of "poor character" applies to the case at hand-out in examining the circumstances and events of the assaut. Because, if the first is true, the second is irrelevant. Another important myth is that "girls" think the best way to get back at a man who has offended them is to say-RAPE. Leal not be absurd: With the pubicity rape has had it is too incredible to believe that mos women don't know at least something about the way such influential. a charge is handled. Any othe When a judge says that a jury means would be more effective should consider as"important" in "getting back" at a man tha testimony the fact that a woman charging him with rape. accepted a dinner invitation Why does it happen? First becwith a man knowing that it would ause a deviant male has a larg be at his home, that she had population of people who (becsexual intercourse with a man ause of physique or cultural (the one who was later to rape conditioning) he can either ve her) knowing what she was doing, bally or physically threaten and tells them that "it would be into submitting to some demand very important to consider whether from him. Second because there is some action with a history this conduct is consistent with of social significance which a someone who would later not conmale can perform upon a female sent 'the judge's opinion is e even when she is fearful, nonquite clear. The jury can then responsive, or unconscious. acquit the rapist and having This action is one which socie delivered the verdict, be congsays is fine for him but immor ratulated by the judge for reachfor her. It's the perfect set would have ing "the verdict up. The deviant male can do hi: reached". The jury then can go criminal power trip(get the home satisfied that they read person to submit to him) and tl the judge's opinion correctly. perform an action upon the vic If a personpresumably chosen which "taints" her so that his assault becomes just a sex crir for a high level of integrity 171177Tonly happens to immoral is allowed to display such ignpeople). And the law hasn't orant and irresponsible behastrongvior without censure either the time or patience ly confirms the legal system's to protect "immoral" people. view of rape. So with such effective obstacles to conviction firmly imbThis is-an article based on my edded in law rapists are free personal experience about how th to continue testing their abilegal system sanctions the crimi lity to control other people. assault of rape. There is a long, long list of absurd myths and assumptions 134 BARq C 0 asl surrounding the crime of rape. want to deal with just a few. I i I PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �F A MI LY PROPERTY LAW 1. HUSBAND holds title and has made all payments,the house is his.At divorce,the house is his.At death, the house becomes part of his estate to be divided among his heirs as stated in his will or as stated by theDevolution of estates act if he has no will. 2.WIFE holds title,either through her purchase of the property or as a gift, the house is hers.At divorce,it is hers. At death it becomes part of her estate. WHAT PART IS YOURS? ONTARIO FAMILY PROPERTY LAW. What property do you share in your marriage? How do you share property? When do you share property? Do you want to share property? Who will decide--a judge or you? THINK NOW! Before and after marriage,husbands and wives purchase and acquire propertynot just real estate( buildings and parcels of land) but savings in a bank account ,furnishings for a home or apartment,electrical equipment,car, skidoo,boat and trailer,Canada savings bonds. Many people believe that property is shared as a result of marriage.Sharing to them implies 50-50 ownership unfortunately it is not so! In Ontario we have family property laws that create for and impose upon married persons a system of rights,liabilities,obligations and legal disqualifications in relation to property. Family property laws are under provincial jurisdiction and they differ from province to province. Ontario's system is entitled separation of property.Under separation of property rules,each spouse may act dependently of the other in acquiring, holding and disposing of property. Sectionl.(1) of bill 75 passed on July 10/75 states " For all purposes of the law of Ontario,a married man has a legal personality that is independant,separate and distinct from that of his wife and a married woman has a legal personality that is independant,separate and distinct from that of her husband". In the majority of marriages the entitlement to(ownership of) and the management of most of the money and property acquired during marriage is the husbands responsibility.Frequently title is pla ced in the husbands name only.lf the marriage breaks down,the assets that the couple gained during marriage are not shared.For example,the husband gets the the assets(property) and the wife appeals to the court for support and maintenance. Ownership of real and personal property is,basically determined by(who paid for it) and (who holds title) Eonsider the owner ship of the family home. 3. HUSBAND AND WIFE hold title in joint tenancy,the house is owned in equal shares by the husband and wife.At divorce,the monetary value of the house is shared equally. At death,the house becomes the property of the surviving spouse.The deceased's share is not included in his or her estate. 4.HUSBAND AND WIFE hold title in tenancy in common, the husband owns the percent age that he paid and the wife,the percentage that she contributed.For example60% paid for and owned by the husband and 40 % paid for and owned by the wife. At divorce the spouses receive their percentage value share according to their percentage contribution. At death,the surviving spouse receives his or hers percentage value share and the deceased's share becomes part of his(hers) estate. 5. ONE SPOUSE purchases the house and puts title in the other spouse's name it is presumed the spouse intended to make a gift of full ownership to the other, therefore,the recipient-spouse will be considered owner of the house( see Bill 75 -1.(3) (d)-July 10/75). 6. In common law relatioships(de facto marriage) if the title of the home is in one of the partners names,the house is entirely his(hers). Title can also be taken in joint tenancy and in tenancy in common. If A woman wishes to share the owner ship of her home,with her husband,then title of the home must be taken in joint tenancy or,in some situations,tenancy in common. Bill 75 1. (3) (D) (I) "The fact that property is placed or taken in the name of a husband or wife as joint tenants shall be prima facie proof that a joint tenancy of the beneficial interest in the property is intended". ;OWNERSHIP OF OTHER PROPERTY NEXT ISSUE AND HOW WIVES CAN SHARE MORE FULLY IN THE ASSETS OF THEIR MARRIAGE. JOAN PACKOTA, UNIVERSITY WOMEN'S THUNDER BAY. CLUB OF . THE BOOKSHOP Thunder Bay Bookshop Co -op Inc. 182 South Algoma Street Thunder Bay, Ontario REMINDER TO SISTERS: We will be setting up a booth again at the Flea Market,(May 15th) at the Fort William Gardens. Donations of baking, white elephant,plants,etc. Whatever you have,please bring to 120 IA) Amelia Street,(leave in porch) or phone 622-3989 forpick-up before the New titles at the Bookshop, of special interest to women; 1)The New Women's Resource Book-$5.75 -a '_.'whole earth catalogue" for feminists 2)Shoulder to Shoulder - $9.95 -a history of the suffragettes based on the B.B.C. television series. 3)The Thee Marias - $2.25 -originally banned in Portugal 4)A Book of Men - $5.95 -personal views of "the male experience" 15th. 5)What Have Women Done? - $2.00 -photo essay on working women in the United States We have the best selection of women writers: Lessing, Atwood, Nin, Laurence, Colette, Plath, Munroe etc. The Rape Crisis Centre will begin meeting again. Watch for further information. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �I AM A LESBIAN CDEIr*11.1El'UFAS0 Sometime ago wrote a letter to The Northern Woman,some readers may remember it.lt was signed (anonymously) with "a lesbian sister".That letter was one of anger and frustration,at my situation,at some individuals.That anger emerged, in a misdirected way,by my obvious lashing out at Womans centre and the newsletter. Now over a year later.1 would like to add the second part of that letter. My purpose is three fold. want to apologize for the accusations made in that first letter and for any pain caused by the things said. want to come out andidentify myself,as couldn't do then want to talk about being a lesbian,because sharing our experiences and talking about our lives is one of our greatest sources of strengh,as Women I I I I I I lesbian or straight. wasn't born a lesbian,no woman is.I was involved in many relationshipswith men,some good some not so good.I have two child ren.I chose to be a lesbian over a year ago,around the time that first painful] letter was written up to that time my life was almost schizophrenic,I worked with women and loved them; all my positive energy went to and came from my relationships with women.I had other needs,love needs (sexual) sensual that weren't being met in those relatioships so slept wit-h,'Men.SOme of my exp eriences with men were good and positive but still felt a little uneasy,try as hard as could and as sensitive as the man may have been therewas a power imbalance that made it a struggle, for both the man and myself. then found myself wanting to express my love for a woman friend in sexual ways.This confused and frightened me but followed through on my feelings and began to discover a part of myself that had been very repressed,my own sexuality. For a time contiued relationships with men but found them to be too draining,again that imbalance of power. was quite happy then to have come to terms with my sexuality.I didn't realize,though,that feeling good about it was not enough.I was so high about my decision,I would blunder up to people with"guess what am,isn't it great",naturally it didn't evoke the kind of response was looking for. I I I I I 11 gh to break you.Apart from the occasional house-party, it was the only place to go to meet lesbians.Many of whom if they dont feel they are sick spend a lot of time lying and playing roles they dont want any part of. For a while was very self righteous,feeling superior because somehow felt was above that-I had figured it all out and wasn't afraid.I didn't want to associate with the bar dykes. Then came face to face with their oppression,which was now my oppression,also. fell in love with a woman. was high living with my lover and feeling good.I reached out to hug her in a public place and she pulled away frightened,I spoke to a college class about lesbianism; after,' touched a woman on the arm to get her attention and she jumped as though burned. These are the little incidents,all pointing out the very real situations that face the lesbian.The strengthswe find to-gether provides the balance. won't ever go back into the closet and as look at mylesbian friends more are coming out and feeling strong,we are starting to come to-gether as friends to unite with all oppressed people to fight this system that keeps us all down. I I I I I I I MALLORY NUEMAN The article titled,The image of women as object of agression by Lois Hayweiser Ph.D. must be credited to ,Newfoundland Status of women Council.We regret the oversight.It appeared in our last journal. I I I was surprised to see this issue since sometime ago wrote a long letter questioning the logic of your stand on abortion while at the same time claiming to be all for children. The reason was surprised to see this issue is that in this letter enclosed $2 in cash for a subscription, a foolish gesture for realize somebody got their sticky fingers on it, I-hope whoever it was didn't use it for a down payment on murdering a child. can't prove sent the $2 and have changed my mind about wanting the subscription, but since in the issue (Vol. 2, Issue 4) there is a reference to a Thunder Bolt that think must have referred to my letter, would like to see it. Anyway, I I I I I I I Feb.25/76 Dear friends, Enclosed find $9 for three subscriptions.Your journal is encouraging and supportive,it gives me a feeling of to-gethenness,I'm isolated here in the way of communication with other women so it's very good to hear your voice. thanks again, Betty Dondertman Emo Ontario. really did send that $2, and think you owe me the benefit of the doubt enough to send me that one issue. Consider it a If you don't challenge perhaps. have any extras you could write or type out that one item, my motive in requesting it is simpl curiousity, in any case send me no more copies. You have made it very clear the kind of reader you want, and I'm not she. You see really do believe in freedom of the press, to be born, to live my life in the way that is right for me and really do want every man, woman and child to have that freedom, you do not. You would kill and have things your way, would not. So be at peace, if you ever get get in my way will not use violence against you, you have the right to exist no matter how feel about you, you always did, from the moment of conception. My not wanting you around can't take away that right and never could. Your mother not wanting I I I I Mar,11/76 I I I I I I just pui-chased a copy of The Northern Woman, not having seen one around for awhile. looked through it, and my stomach is in quite a shock. How dare you speak (or claim to speak since you actually do not) for all women? Oh! well freedom of the press, suppose you'd say. I I wanted to explore my chosen lifestyle and it had to be with people like myself. What found was nothing to be "gay" about.I discovered the oppression of lesbians,which was stronger than the oppression of women as a whole. discovered women who were really afraid of losing their jobs,their kids, their families and their friends. The reality of lesbianism is something wasn't prepared for. Social life consists of a bar where the manager does his best to remind you that you are a queer and then charges you enou- I I I I Dear Friends, Enclosed find money for subs, for both myself and my sister in Dryden.Your journal is a real treasure to us young wives in the country,I hope you get the support you need and deserve for look forward to seeing you grow and continue to give us news on what women are doing all over the world. Beverly Sisco, Fort Frances Ont. I I I Mar,12/76 Dear Friends, just received a copy of The Northern Woman Journal and would like to add my name to your subscription list. Enclosed is a cheque for my subscription and a gift sub,1 wish to send to Linda Brown. Your, paper is something more women should read, Thanks for working so hard. Bonnie Hill. I I I I Continued on page t5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �news frl ash Letters you could not deprive you of that right, she could have destroyed you but she would have been violating your rights as a person and as a woman, there never was a time you didn't have the right to live and you still have, even if you use your life to advocate destruction, to spew hate instead of love, to libel me as a woman, to press for the ultimate in rape, the ultimate in child battering, for abortion as a means of attaining your rights, and you will never have that right, no matter what you can get the government to say. No man (human or body of humans) can ever justify the killing of one human being. Now doubt you are still with me, but if yes, how about that Thunder Bolt. don't really think you will but no harm in asking. I I Glad not to be your sister, Ann Garret We believe the fact that there was a mail strike at the time of mailing for our last issue may be connected with its disappearance. The Thunder Bolt had nothing to do with abortion, and we are happy to forward it to you together with the cash you feel you have misspent. We believe there are many issues on which we agree. We should join forces on these, and not let this one issue divide us irrevocably. There should be no name calling among women who have so much to gain in sisterhood. You are still our sister. You have no choice, nor have we. The Editors REFLECTIONS At the heart of the Women's Movement--at least in the beginning--was a dissatisfaction with lack of opportunity. This lack derived from the inequality between the sexes. From that philosophical foundation--i.e. a quest for greater equality, the Women's Movement has proceeded to its present stage of development, at which time two important comments can be made about it: firstly, many women-and many men--feel that the Women's Movement has "arrived". Witness the cigarette commercial: "You've come a long way babyl" The fact of the matter is that the Women's Movement is still in its infancy. A recent study of high, school girls in Winnipeg indicates a total lack of consciousness and awareness of the changing roles of women. Secondly, the philosophical foundations of the Women's Movement have been completely forgotten- if in fact they were ever really comprehended by most women. The idea of equality, whith nurtured the original "Women's Liberationists" is now almost forgotten by the sole beneficiaries of the Movement to date--that is, white middle class women who now have a somewhat greater opportunity to do what the men have long done. These women, by and large, have forgotten that the soul of the Movement was the quest for equality--and that quest cannot be restricted to white middle class women. Large numbers of the officially recognized poor of this country are women- what is the Movement doing for them? At least half of the native people of Canada are women--what has the Movement done for them? Why has the Movement never realized that the quest for greater equality and dignity and justice for women in our North American society is only a part of a larger quest --for equality, dignity and justice--which must be waged for the very large minority of Canadians who do not share in the 'goodies' of our society, who do not have the opportunities which are rightfully theirs. The goal therefore is not to get more women in the board room--rather the goal is to get more women in the positions of power and have them The do different things. point of the Women's Movement is to remove the oppressor--oppressed relationship. It is NOT to substitute one The oppressor for another. woman who gains entry to the 'board room' and then perpetuates the policies of her male predecessors is not doing anything to solve the problems about which the originators of the Movement If in fact complained. we are satisfied with having women play the same games that men have always played, perpetuating the same kinds of injustices which so recently saw us as victims, then the whole Movement has missed the point and honest women must abandon it. The Women's Movement must align itself with other movements of the oppressed: where was the voice of the Women's Movement last summer when Kenora area Indians occupied Anicinabe Park? Do they not suffer the same oppression as we? Where is the voice of the Women's Movement on the whole question of poverty? Do we not feel that the fact that from 4 to 1/3 of Canada's population lives below the poverty line is injustice and inequality? And is it not injustice and inequality against which we fight? Do they not suffer from the same oppression as we? Let me just briefly summarize the two main points that am emphasizing here today. First, consider slogans like "You've come a long way baby", a patronizing insult as well as an inaccuracy. We have made some good progress, it's true, but let us not be duped into complaccency by the slick slogans of the advertising industry. We still hav a lot further to go. And second, as we continue along the path that we have started, let us not, those of us who have benefitted from the changes brought about thus far, lose sight of the original driving force behind the Women's Movement, that is, the search for justice and equality; and let us keep in mind that if women are deserving of justice and equality so are all others in our society who presently I I feel The 2468th (Special) Session of the General Assembly of the Sovereign Republic of Amnesia. Wondering what all this fuss is about the Status of Women; Recalling that the status of women was established firmly and irrevocably 6,000 years ago when the Secretary General of the Universe as an afterthought manufactured Eve out left rib of Adam thus of the giving women a sinister (Latin sinistra) secondary role on the precendence table; Snickering at the presumpand tion that a creature fashioned from a dispensable single bone of a man could be any. stretch of the imagination be considered equal to him; Hooting uproariously at the selection of Latin America, the centre of Machismo as the venue for the International Women's Year Conference; Scoffing at the notion that women should participate in decision-making except in trivial matters such as where the fam- ily should live, what food they should eat, what furniture they should have in the home, what school the kids should attend, what clothes they should wear, and what religion they should follow; Insisting on the other hand that important decisions such as whether the Amnesian Libera- tion Organization (ALO) member of the United Nations, are the special should be a prerogative of men; Determined to see that such vexatious irrelevancies are broughtto a halt forthwith; Nations to proclaim every year from 1976 International- Man's= Year in Order to restore the status established ante quo; Reaffirms the ancient law that all men are born equal and all women are born unequal; Resolves to request the Secretary General of the Uni- verse to let men go on messing up the Earth as they have been doing since the beginning of creation.Taken from the New Internationalist ....August 1975 its lack. by Leslie Silver Credited to the Winnipeg Women's Liberation Newsletter; Page 14. Rape Study Although there is much concern and discussion about rape these days, very little is actually know in terms of what the experience means to the woman herself. We are now beginning a study on the social and psychological effects of rape on women. For this study, rape means any act of sexual intercourse you are made to commit against your will whether it be by your husband, neighbour or a stranger. The results of this study will be used to help women who have been raped. Because everyone's experience is unique, we need to talk with and receive information from as many women as possible. Great care will be taken to guarantee that the name of the participants are confidential. If you have ever been raped and would be willing to fill out a questionnaire or be interviewed, please write to me at the address below or call (519) - 742-6745. Betsy Spaulding, c/o Psych. Dept., University'of Guelph, Guelph Ont. Jan. 29,.1976. CP PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �. . and just when think I my energy has run out- - that they've at last succeeded in bringing me to my knees, they've finally pushed their MISDIRECTED FRG ever important male egos I E deep into me, Right now Right now, I am angry. I like some half-hearted rape attempt, am. I run into beauty itself. The insult came, coupled oddly enough (or perhaps not odd at all) with the injury- - she comes to me in the shape of a friend the knowledge that my energies are being so misspent a sister. in anger . . . . and Misdirected energies. I We all fall victim to this ploy, to this, our REAL enemy. I regain my determination realize once again that my quest for freedom, my woman's movement will never With all the love our bodies house, die. our dreams will be realized. and they can't grind me down again. One day (alas). Paulah Edwards Of this, I'm sure . . Now just wish could do something with all my anger! I I To my first love wish could re-route it. it out in clouds of love. and hope, and confidence I Hey sister! look at me know you.I know how you feel, how you love I Send . . I . me know you so well because you are me Let it seep into you and help you make it through all the fights Aall the worries all I the pain. passed a tall stranger On the ancient stone bridge one night No fear evoked my spirits Though lacking secureness of much I But can not. I Angry as am, realize how futile how time-consuming this emotion is. I I And (perish the thought!) wish could retaliate against all those people responsible! light. I I I Dressed in black, his coat The wind did not flutter His features saw not And no sound did he utter. I But with that thought comes a new consciousness a new peace. watched him closely, my shadow and But he gazed down-The turbulant water, smashing against its banks A forbidding sound. I I The reality of my L 0 V E for those who try so hard to destroy that part of me, that threatens them-- andyou'reexciting and'beautiful and strong. Yet you choose not to be, you choose to let your strength be drained, you choose to let the man tell you not to b what you want to be. know he's good and kind and gentle, but you look at me with sad eyes and say ,I have to try to work it out, while you end the way of life you love to live the way of life he lives to become the kind of wife he loves and try to give your space to him and abandon all your dreams to him, while you look so tired and worn and sad. Hey Sister! look at me love you,I love what you feel, know your strengh,the woman you are, know you so well and I'm waiting for you. I I rhe knowing I that they see me through different eyes and feel through different hearts, and no one is right .and no one is wrong. Vld right now I'm peaceful end right now, I am. -Paulah Edwards journeyed on But afterthoughts did return. For what did that soul want? What feeling in his heart did burn. I Mall ory saw him not again But remember well that night. Something of him haunted me still Which had to put to right. I I It was a night like the past When realized with a shudder What troubled my sight and mind Of thoughts it could not utter. What had, he had not How his head, bowed as if standing on a gallow For he was indeed condemned For only the dead have no shadow! I I Doreen PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �where do we go ? WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? The Weekend of March 5th, 6th and 7th was reserved for the "Where do we go from Here" Seminar at Confederation Friday night's guest College. speaker, Ruth Cunningham assessed the previous year's work (of Internation Women's Year) and set the tone of good hard thinking and commitment for the following two Workshops: 1. The morning session consisted of a panel discussion. The panel members, Liz Jobbitt, Marlene Pierre, Ruth Cunningham and Mary Gusella, were willing to put aside their differences and work together to further the position of ALL women today. The afternoon session From consisted of workshops. these workshops, the resolutions that follow, came out and were brought forth on the Sunday morning session. The resolutions follow. The body that met on Sunday morning chaired by Joan Pechota, decided that it was necessary to maintain a standing body of women to act as a committee to carry out any previous outstanding work of the,-council as well as to carry out the resolutions brought out during the weekend. Entertainment was provided on Friday night by the Oras Choir and on Saturday evening by the Kaiku Choir, Kate Parkarri, Gert Beadle, Marg Lanchok and The Mandolin Orchestra of the Association of United Ukrainians. Mary Kardash of the Manitoba Action Committee was the guest speaker for Saturday Craft night's session. displays and art displays were set up by local women's It was a very eventgroups. ful and extremely profitable weekend for all who attended. After all that talk though we need ten years of persistent action to follow-up on all that was discussed. WE RECOMMEND THAT A BODY OF WOMEN BE FORMED TO CARRY OUT THE WORK OF INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S YEAR COUNCIL, AND THAT THIS BODY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR CAMPAIGNING AROUND THE ISSUE OF EQUAL PAY AS OUTLINED IN THIS RESOLUTION. 2. a task force, possibly a sub-committee of a body elected today, to undertake an intensive study of the present economic situation (A.I.B., and Henderson Report), and how it affects women in Northwestern Ontario, with particular emphasis being given to key areas where women can be organized. Native Women WHEREAS, in light of social, economic and political climate of Canadian society, the issues facing native women have not been given the recognition and discussion so desired, and, WHEREAS, there has evolved a number of crucial issues identified and voiced by native women, especially in Northwestern Ontario region, i.e., - the access of Indian women to the work force and training programs, etc. THEREFORE, Be It Resolved that this assembly support and ratify that native women be appointed to the Ontario Status of Women Council to ensure the participation of native women in all aspects of Canadian society. Canada. 2) 3) THIS BRIEF REVIEW OF ACTION both in Canada and on a world scale, shows a notable advance in the struggle for women's equality. 1975 laid a solid foundation as the opening year for a Decade for Women - 1975-85 - proclaimed by the United Nations. This will form an integral part of the forces fighting against imperialism, for national liberation struggles, and the advance of the forces for world peace and socialism. Equal Pay for Substantially the same Work WHEREAS, the present economic crisis is having a brutal effect on the living standards of Canadian women; those who are the hardest hit by unemployment and low paying jobs and, WHEREAS, the possibility for equal pay has been set back by the economic control program, thus freezing women in their inequality, be it resolved that if women's rights and equality are to be guaranteed -the fight for equal pay and the fight to organize the unorganized in those areas where women are concentrated must be stepped up through such means as: an education program 1) to raise the awareness of organized and unorganized labour about the importance of the fight for equal pay and the role organized labour has Furtherin the fight. more, that a suggested list of references be compiled for use in the school system by teachers to make students more aware of the history of the Labour Movement in days. continuing to pressure the government to put into force the U.N. declaration on the elimination of discrimination against women. Be it further resolved that this resolution be sent to all the trade unions in Northwestern Ontario. 4) INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S YEAR WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? MARCH 5,6,g 7 CONFERENCE a concerted effort to contact all unions in Northwestern Ontario, and to make them aware of the Working Woman's Conference and strongly encourage them to send Following delegates. this conference, massive programs should be launched (preferably by union organizations and councils) to provide leadership training for women, especially in the area of organizing and collective bargaining. 4c * 3. Family Property Law It Resolved that through the educational process, all the women of this province become aware of the present property laws, and how these laws can be applied to their individual situations. That through this awareness, women can strengthen their economic position and then establish their own identity. BE It Resolved also that with this knowledge and identity, women can then contemplate and fight for legal reforms that will further their position and goals towards equal rights and greater security for the family and home. Be 4. Government Cutbacks in Social Services WHEREAS the financial restraints imposed by the Provincial Government on social services are unacceptable and will create intolerable hardship Continued on page 9 PDF 8 compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �and misery for the disadvantaged and powerless members of our society, and WHEREAS, the short term financial savings will result in long-term and accumulative human suffer-' ing, and WHEREAS we, the women of the Northwestern Ontario Women's Conference, are incensed at the meagre amount of monies set aside in the provincial budget for social services, we strongly object to the 5.5% ceiling on increases in this already appallingly small allocatThe disadion of funds. vantaged and powerless members of our society, the great majority of whom are women and children, are being asked to lie down in a province where they have been guaranteed "a place to stand". Therefore, Be It Resolved that we urge the Government of the Province of Ontario to re-examine its priorities in relation We to social services. strongly urge that the allotment for social services, at the very least, cover the increased cost of existing services. These measures are necessary-to provide the continuance of progressive and humane human services in the wealthiest province of Canada. WHEREAS, we are concerned that provincial restraints may restrict the continued development of progressive social services in this community, we wish to advise the City of Thunder Bay that we have protested the provincial decision to place a 5.5% ceiling on increases in the social We encourservice budget. age the City to ensure that its existing social service programs are continued and we urge the City to make strong representation for adequate provincial funding support. WHEREAS, it is the right of all Canadians to have sufficient income to live in dignity, and, WHEREAS, the present social assistance system is fragmented, inefficient and discriminatory, and perpetuates the stigma of welfare, THEREFORE Be It Resolved that we urge the Ontario Government to vigorously pursue negotiations with the Government of Canada to ensure the early implementation of a universal, guaranteed, annual, adequate income security system. 5. Women in Distress A - Rape: WHEREAS, rape and assault is a concern of everyone, and, WHEREAS, all women of all ages are vulnerable, and, WHEREAS, the public holds many misconceptions about ing, as vehicles for reaching women working in the rape, and, home. WHEREAS, women who have been assaulted need legal and emotional help, Be It Resolved that, An adequately-funded public awareness program be instituted which would WHEREAS, we feel women working in the home have been an untapped human resource, and, WHEREAS, women working in their own homes can be an influence on legislative bodies, and, WHEREAS, we are concerned that this untapped human resource be informed and activiated, we THEREFORE Resolve that a resource body be formed to provide information and direction to women who are concerned about women's issues and who want to participate in positive action. include: 1) a public seminar to be held on the topic of rape at Confederation 2) an ongoing education program, beginning at an early age, which would include the de-mythizing of rape and the elimination of stereotypes which portray women as passive and dependent ob- College. More jects. 3) programs which examine the concept that power is acquired through conquest and humilia- 4) an awareness of the role of the media violence (both overt and subtle) with women as tion. victims. an emphasis on selfdefence courses for women which should be available both for school children and adults, and Be It Further Resolved: that this conference and its individual delegates support in all ways possible the necessity to reactivate the rape crisis organization, on a permanently funded and staffed basis in order to provide immediate help to assaulted women, and legal and emotional counselling, not only to help the individual, but to aid women to prosecute. Be It Resolved that we seek to enlarge the body of the present Citizen's Committee on Crisis Hous5) ing. Be It Further Resolved that we continue to lobby in a public way for the City to implement the original concept of a haven for beaten women and; if failing in our efforts, that we seek public support, to establish a true, independent Crisis House. 6. What Can We Do From Within Our Own Homes? WHEREAS, we are concerned with raising the consciousness of women working in their own homes concerning women's issues, we resolve that we support the existing women's groups, such as Y Neighbours, Confederation College Women's Programs and Women's Centre, to ensure that these groups continue to expand and provide leadership train- Dear Lesbian Sister. Poem to my first love-somehow the person seemed very familiar. In fact so familiar that she feels,must/needs and wants to respond to it.Why does she struggle daily to find a man who is both deserving and open to receive the incredible amount of love that she has stored up inside?Why does she continue to settle for less?.Maybe she doesn't believe there is any more.She convinces herself dailybe your find your own life own person.... trying to fake a calmness when there is turmoil inside.Maybe she is asking too much from men,maybe her love needs are neurotic and maybe...just maybe.,. she needs to see a shrink..help me doctor! Why do men run from too intense to be my love? am normal?Why so afraid of their silences.. What's he thinking when leave? Does he want me to stay? Why can't she be honest with them, God knows she often tries to convince herself that she is--but she knows her lies--she lives with them daily.But she is still trying-giving and receiving love in small hand-outs..be patient- dont hurry so,it will happen. So she continues to wait....God she hates waiting.Maybe this time-go slowly,hc by hour- day by day,try to trust him..he's a friend,he's different from other men--she tries so hard to believe it....so damn hard. She's a good woman,not bad to look at,a growing person,intellig ent,sensitive and loving,strong in so many ways. She will try one more time,slowly hour by hour,day by day and when it ends,when he tells her"maybe we shot cool it for a while" you'll be there just like always,to listen and suppc and tell her what a damn fool she think isYou'reprobably right but I'll try it onemore time. I I I ESTELLE FREIDLANDER. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Berlin ( Vaired are the possibilities In which we women command. women's and youth organizations, in trades unions, in parliamentary bodies and local government, in religious, social and ., 11:1411 11411 (111 till C111.11411 (111° Ell %Ilc=lesiltdOlfqicicne:: 4mmemommmmammor Ammmadb Disarmament, not We state: armament--more money for the legitimate rights of women. We condemn the arms monopolies who seek higher profits. APPEAL TO THE WOMEN OF THE WORLD We denounce the forces of militarism who oppose peace in order to profit from war. We have come from all continDEVELOPMENT--this word embraces ents to Berlin, the capital of for us women's contribution the German Democratic Republic, to social life, to the political to attend the World Congress for and economic independence of their International Women's Year. country, to democratic transformEquality - development-peace; ation and to social progress. this theme has brought us together. Every second woman lives in In this spirit, we direct this a country which has only recently appeal to the women of the world. broken free from the grim Humanity is how entering the shackles of colonial exploitlast quarter of the 20th century. ation and oppression. It is a time of unparalleled Development means We state: changes in all spheres of life. doing everything necessary to We are witnessing the fact that overcome the harmful legacy of more and more nations are embarkEconomic indepencolonialism. ing on the road to shaping a dence must complement and follow system of peace and social justice. on from national liberation. We perceive the historic oppor- Women should be given definite tunity, and the responsibility rights and opportunities to that our generation has, to decide Only decide their own future. with its life and its struggle a free people can guarantee what the world should be like in women's legitimate rights. the next century--a flowering We demand that no nation garden--or an atomic waste-land; anywhere in the world should --a place where peoples and states We demand suffer from hunger. strive together in peace and in that the whole of humanity be mutual respect--or a hotbed of allowed to take part in social conflict, fulLcof confrontations EQUALITY in society, progress. We shall provide and injustices. in legislation and in reality, the answers ourselves. We shall none of that just falls into shape the path into the next women's laps. millennium. We demand that women everywhere We, the women of the world, in recognition of their dignity who give life to new generations, and their achievements, be allowed have an especial right and duty fully to develop their talent to make it a secure path for us, and capacity. We oppose out-offor our children, and for our date relations of ownership This is children's children. and power which perpetuate what we aim to do as long as there discrimination against women in is life in our body. education, remuneration and social We are making ourselves, before position. the eyes of the world, the advocate We state: Equality means for all those who want to live equal rights in the family and in a world where the great proban equal right to in society , To lems of humanity are solved. work, equal pay for work of achieve this aim we call for equal value, and all-round international solidarity. promotion of women in all PEACE--for centuries it was no Equality canspheres of life. more than a longing of the not be achieved without the Today there are grounds people. active participation of women for hoping to establish lasting This is what we themselves. What prompts such optimism peace. more than anything else is the transition that has taken place from cold war to detente, the growth of the forces committed to peace and national liberation,. And yet, the danger of war has not been removed. The material preparations for war 300,000 million continue. dollars a year are put to use If the money for for armaments. these weapons, which are so dangerous to peace, were spent on social purposes, then many more women and girls could be guaranteed job security, all could benefit,from education, state welfare schemes for mother and child, schooling could be provided free of charge, and funds could be set aside for art and culture. 10 call for. Liberation of women from worry and need can only be the fruit of national and social liberation, as the destiny of women is inextricably bound up with the destiny of their Peace, democracy, nations. national independence and social progress must triumph throughout the world. These are AIMS which impose obligations on all of us and call for our full commitment. And we have the MEANS to achieve them. Women, be aware of the power Your voice is a you wield. mighty weapon, speak out loud and clear! The future of this Earth depends on the actions of each individual, of all of us. Unite for common action! inntional and world -wide organizations, wherever you are at work: Move into action to make Strengthen women's influence felt! the unity of the peace-loving forces! Women on all continents, respond to this call! Take the cause of peace, democracy, national independence, social progress and equality Fight for it into your own hands. Reflections on I.W.Y. I.W.Y. is over --- you remember, that was "International Women's Year", brought to you by the same folks that brought you "The Hippies" and "The Civil Rights Movement", in living colour with lots of But what human interest angles. was really accomplished by the United Nations' declaration of an International Women's Year? Certainly, there were no far-reaching political repercussions or legisHenry Morgentaler lative changes. is still on trial and property and marriage laws are as oppressive as always. There was a subtle difference in the atmosphere surrounding women's issues, though, in areas like the use of neutral rather The than masculine pronouns. word "chairperson" no longer evokes laughter, and a society's attitudes are reflected in its langThe increased media coveruage. age of women's groups resulted in our increased awareness of each other, and a greater feeling of solidarity within the Movement itself. I.W.Y. also promoted increased government funding for women's programs in 1975, although many such projects were forced to fold, leaving large gaps in the community services, when the end of I.W.Y. resulted in the simultaneous cutback on We must also be prespending. pared for a negative backlash, in which these offices that refuse to acknowledge women's issues will justify their negativity "You've had by comments like: your Year -- what is it that you women WANT, anyway?" On the positive side, we have achieved So, recognition, if not acceptance, and controversy will always spread. As for the rest of us, the women who have struggled for and achieved some type of liberation in various areas of our personal lives or our social, economic and political situation: we were here a long time before I.W.Y., and we'll be here a long time after. Sisterhood is POWERFUL! Sally Cozens Credit Woman's Centre review London Ont,. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �HERE SHE IStMISS CANADA The following is a press release from the women who disrupted the Miss Canada Pageant, November 3, 1975 "This statement is an explanation of the action that took place at the Miss Canada Pageant on Monday night, November 3, 1975 The disruption of the Pageant was carried out by 10 women (and supported by many others across the country) to protest the degrading and sexist nature of the Miss Canada Pageant. We were not attacking the contestants but the big business practice of making economic The wingains through the exploitation of women. ning women in the Pageant are given prizes or These gifts rewards for satisfying their judges. are then written off on the income taxes of the donors and Canadian taxpayers end up footing the Miss Canada is the product, the image of bill. womanhood which is peddled to the women of Canada by big business according to its needs and interIn IWY, especially, big business and the ests. Government of Canada have worked hard to co-opt the women's movement and to confuse women in Canada about the real issues. We protest not only the sexism of the Miss Canada Pageant but the manner in which it, too, is being used to co--opt the women's Liberation itself has become a product, movement. a fashion, yet another thing for women to live up To quote Miss Canada to, to buy, to compete for. "For the benefit of our newly-arrived guests 1975: have in the past year had an opportunity, as a woman, to express my views to thousands of people, have been able to convey to hope that and these people that the Canadian woman is intelligent, motivated, aware and very much on the move." This year's product is woman on the move--the liberated This product has been We will not buy. woman. especially d9signed to confuse and pacify us in No We protest. IWY and we will not swallow it. woman today is liberated. Working women, housewives, women on welfare, sole-support mothers, native women, black and third world women are not Intelligent, motivated, creative, liberated'. The power strong women remain oppressed today. We will not be silstructure has not changed. enced." I I I FRA M ED The following is a statement made by the editors of THE OTHER WOMAN on Beauty Contests. We are in no way, however, putting down the We are against Miss Canadas, women who participate in Miss Worlds, Miss Universes, beauty pageants. Beauty Miss Teenage Canadas, Miss queens win scholarships, Grey Cups...All these beauty prizes and an opportunity contests are a constant reto get an entry into someminder that we have a role thing that they do want. to fulfill, that we have to Feminism means all women all the time set ourselves have the right to choose. The great up to be judged. We recognize many choices majority of us do not fit women make are for survival. the physical requirements- However, under capitalism, yet delude ourselves that we are given the illusion if we only buy (and use) of choice so long as it enough of the right prodfits into the fra-mework ucts, we can look beautialready chosen for us. ful. The function of the Miss Canada Pageant is to use the her "ideal" as an example of pick woman to the ultimate good consumer--our role as houseworkers under capitalism. [ NORTHERN WOMAN CENTRE WOMEN IN NEIGHBOURHOODS THE NORTHERN WOMAN COMMUNITY ACTION CENTRE MOTHERS ON BUDGETS Ant; ?of/e1-4- GOOD NUMBERS TO 622-3989 622-8187 345-5841 345-0921 622-2863 2...Z I I 3-3 We agree with the disruption of the Miss Canada Pageant by the 10 But we women involved. question their tactics. Militancy definitely has its place within feminist struggles, but we must carefully examine its context and resort to it only under sympathetic conditions. Inevitably, splashy one-shot actions only result in press distortion which confuse and mislead the mass of women as to the real intent. Although alternatives may be a lot slower and require more work, they are a lot more effective on a long-term basis. CALL. .SOCIAL SERVICES.. .623-2711 CRISIS 1NTERVENTION...344-3571 623-9596 FAMILY COUNCILLING 345-1972 LEGAL AID 344-1192 TELECARE 6,23 .2757 cvyk\ nue. - Sm31481,Bai- 344-2431 .SMITH CLINIC 623-2711 CRISIS HOUSING HUMAN RTS COMMISSION...475-1693 EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS....475-1691 344-3922 MUNICIPAL DAY CARE 622-2450 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �N.W.O. INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DECADE CO-ORDINATING COUNCIL. It is the wish of this council, which was formed out of the IWY Conference, to publish the minutes of our monthly meetings in tne Northern Woman. This will be the council's means of informing womens' groups throughout N.W Ontario of the work we are doing. MEETING OF APRIL 4, 1976 PRESENT: Lynn Thornburg Eleanor Eryou Gert Beadle June Cryderman Marg Lanchok Grace Cryderman Mary Holbik Paulah Edwards Mickey Murray Thyra Digby Lisa Bengtsson Joan Farrow Leona Lang Diane Roulston Joan Packota Bernice Cain CORRECTION & ADOPTION OF MINUTES. Lynn moved minutes be adopted. Seconded by Mickey. All in favour TREASURER'S REPORT. Tabled till the meeting of May 15, because all bills due from conference were still not all received. WRAP UP OF OLD BUSINESS: I.W.DAY PROCLAMATION: Mickey confirmed the proclamation of IWD did appear in the Chronical Journal on Mar. 5. SOCIAL SERVICE CUTBACKS: Paula reported that no new PC2 meetings had been scheduled in the last two weeks. IWY CONFERENCE EVALUATION: The report on IWY Conference and evaluation of conference fund grant was not yet completed,because Lynn had not yet received all bills coming out-of the conference. N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. REPORT 1. Name of new council will be N.W.O. INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DECADE CO-ORDINATING COUNCIL. -all in favour- carried. 2.Notification of intended abscence from meeting to be sent to: Leona Lang,37 Carrie St. Thunder Bay, Ph. 344-1044. or Paulah Edwards, 53 Crown St. Ph. 345-0850. Moved by Joan -seconded by Paulah-all in favour 3.Application to Secretary of State for transportation fund. A motion was put forth for the N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. to apply for a grant to cover transportation and mailing costs.Thyra moved that Marg send a brief to Secretary of State-seconded by Eleanor NEW BUSINESS: REPORT OF AVAILABLE GRANTS: Presented by Lisa; 1. Health& Welfare; a $25,000.00 grant is available to cover costs of publishing studies or activities in the field of womens' health and social welfare, carried out during I.W. Year. 2. Secretary of State; a $10,000 grant is available for N.W. Ont. Womens' Programs This is a substantial increase over the previous years' grants. All womens groups in N.W. Ont. are eligible to apply. COMMUNITY EDUCATION CONSULTANT FOR WOMENS PROGRAMS: Colleen Hughes of Thunder Bay has been hired to fill this position. The N.W.O. I.W.D.C.C. is pleased to hear of this appointment,and look looks forward to meeting her, and forming an active liason with her -all WANTED: LIASON REPS: in Favour. IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY FELT THAT THE CONTRIBUTION OF NATIVE WOMEN TO THE N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. WOULD BE MOST VALUABLE. The N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. would like to establish liason with every community in Northwestern Ont. This duty involves attending one meeting ,a month 41,ThunderBa' for which there will be a subsidy Anyone interested in being liason representative between their community and the N.W.O.I.W.D.C.0 please contact: Leona Lang, 37 Carrie St., Thunder Bay, Ont., Phone; 344-1044. , ELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR NEW COUNCIL. Mickey felt someone from the surrounding district should be on council executive to emphasize the fact this council is regional. It was decided to have an alternating chairperson, one from Thunder Bay, and one from the district. Mickey moved to nominate Bernice Cain(Atikokan) for chairperson & Paulah Edwards (Thunder Bay) as Vice-Chairperson Nominees voted in by acclamation! SECRETARY: Lynn moved nominations for secretary be closed and retain Leona as secretary. Second ed by Mickey-all in favour. TREASURER: Lynn moved to nominate Marg Lanchok. Seconded by Gert. Voted in by acclamation! REPORTS: RAPE CRISIS: Paula reported a core group had been established consisting of nine valuable resource persons. This new body was formed out of the resolution of the Rape Crisis Workshop at the conference. Weekly meetings are held every Wed evening at 8:30 P.M. at the Northern Womens' Centre. Paulah will be the liason between the NWO I.W.D.C.C. & the Rape crisis Committee. Anyone wishing to join contact Paulah at 53 Crown St., Thunder Bay.Phone 345-0f150. CRISIS HOUSING:Gert confirmed tha that Dorothy Akram has replaced Mr. Zapier, in charge of crisis housing in Thunder Bay. Gert's group will present a proposal at the next meeting of crisis housing in Thunder Bay. 12 in favour. 4. Resignation of Council Members Lynn moved that the resigning per person should help through the transitionary period. Seconded by Mickey-All in favour. 5. Publicity;Marg moved we appoint a publicity committee. Lynn and Leona volunteered. Paula will arrange for a photograph of the new council to be taken at the next meeting. This along with a new release containing or aims and objectives will be sent to all district new media in the near future. Discussion folowed re; future publicity ventures and public relations. NATIVE WOMEN: Bernice reported she sent a letter to Marlene Pierre of The Indian Friendship Centre, inviting her to join our council. It was moved by Lynn,we send a letter to Edith McLeod of the Ont. Native Womens' Assoc. & moved by Mickey we send a letter to Nancy Morrisson of the Kenora Native Womens' Assoc. inviting them both to also join our council. Seconded by Joan Farrow All ADOPTION OF PROPOSALS FROM MEETING OF MAR. 20th. ''FAMICt PROPERTY LAW: Joan Packota reported that family property law work was a project of the University Womens Club, of which she is a member. Joan has submitted a series on family property law to the "Northern Woman". 111.0 N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. MEETING: SATURDAY MAY 15th; TIME 10.15-2.15 PLACE :Confederation Conference Dining Room. Please bring a lunch. Send notification of intended abscence. : AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. As ammended from the meeting of March 20th. AGENDA. LONG TERM: 1. Act as a resource centre fo womens issues. 2. Liason for womens groups in Northwestern Ontario. 3. Help improve co-operation an communication with womens 1.Adoption of minutes of previous meeting. 2.Treasurer's report. 3. Correspondence 4. Publicity report: Lynn & Leona 5.Rape Crisis Report: Paula 6.Crisis Housing Report from Kenora:Joan Farrow 7. Crisis Housing Report; Thunder Bay: Gert groups and the work they are doing in North Western Ontario. 8. 9. NI& Marg moved the council use the Northern Woman regularly as a vehicle for communication. Leona and Gert will be council reps to the Northern Woman. Lynn moved to prepare an information package concerning the N.W.O.I.W.D.C.C. to be sent to every womens orgaization listed in the directory. The publicity committee will prepare this package. Seconded by Jaon Farrowall in favour- carried. SHORT TERM: 1.Follow up the conference resolutions. 2.Continue previous council business. 3. Campaign around womens issue! 4. Educate the public to ou tru( purpose. Next meeting; Sat. May 15th 10;15-2;15 Confederatin College Conference Dining Room. Marg moved the meeting be ad journed - seconded by Lynn-all favour. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �THE 13LUE COLLAR company employ people or machines??(slaves??) YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY BABY'. OR HAVE WE? (I)? My bladder definitely does not agree with the cold weather, and had been standing there for five hours already. Because the superintendent had intimidated me to such a point asked my partner if he had any suggestions as to where could go. I'm Wanting to work construction was always a secret fantasy I of mine. Someday, thought, could work alongside workiI I ng class men, understand them and perhaps develop a feeling of comradeship and equality. My chance came one windy, winter day when was sent by the union to the construction site of a water and sewer project. I I sure he had an answer to that one,but was too much of a gentleman. He didn't know where should go. Frustrated to the point of tears,cramped by the cold, and physically uncomfortable, urinated standing there. have never felt so humiliated, degraded and embarrassed. Being totally alienated by the men had no one to confide in,or just even laugh about it. Finally talked to the shop steward who guarded the merqs change room while utilized it. He informed me would have to find somewhere else to go and stressed how had put the superintendent in a bind. (I WOULD HAVE TO FIND SOMEWHERE ELSE TO GO- WAS THAT MY JOB 7?) I I Although being nervous an &frightened, as everyone is beginning a new job, was somewhat excited. It became much easier however, when thought would finally be able to pay my bills on time and even be able to save money as the pay was approximately $150.00 more a week than had ever made. arrived half an hour early and the morning started out as it would for anyone. was directed to the superintendent's trailer whereupon gave him my work papers and informed him the union had sent me. was quite impressed by his composure although my presence obviously irritated him. I, I I I I I I I felt that the secretary was not too pleased when arrived in her privately carpeted trailer and tracked mud in to use the facilities. I I I I I I I was still not given definite approval of a position on the site. Each time questioned the superintendent about this,and washroom facilities, he procrastinated by saying the union still had not called.. knew was definitely not wanted, which unfortunately somewhat discourI I I He expressed how dangerous the job was and how much heavy labour was involved. The tactics he was using had no effect on I He tried to,-discourage me further but was quite persistant, so he told me to come back at ten after he contacted the union on this matter. He stressed the lack of facilities for women so suggested that could use the secretary's washroom. Nothing was said so considered that problem solved. informed him had no transportation and would remain on the site until ten, at which point he muttered something about having no car would create another problem. He directed me to the site to watch a man who presumed would eventuatually become my partner. Although ever Yother worker was provided with equipment (hard hat, oilers, gloves, etc.) was given nothing. me. The old saying, "Things get worse before they get better," certainly was true in my case. A man came out of the tunnel and stood there staring at me. He then gave me a margarine tin which was to fill with wet mud. was about tofijl it when he grabbed the tin from my hand jumped on a truck, scooped up some mud and said sarcastically "Thanks very much" He then gruffly asked my name and ordered me to help a man piling lumber. A few men around began snickering. Someone informed me he was I aged me. I I I As stood watching my partner, I a man came over to me and ordered me to do a certain job. Upon receiving a blank look, because of his use of construction work jargon, he reacted by ranting and raving about,"what the hell was the world coming to" He proc eeded to tell me in a dictatorial fashion on what to do and left me there, not even consider ing if understood him. This did not bother me; it was the fact that still didn't was hired. Amidst know whether all the confusion, managed to do the job under the stares and snickers of fellow workers?? I I I I I the foreman. My eyes were filling with tears the urine was turning to ice, and certainly did not need this obnoxious foreman (maybe they're all like that) trying to intimidate me. What angered me even more, was he was succeeding as the superintendent had. I I I I I I I At noon asked the superintendent if he'd heard from the union and about washroom facilities. Again he avoided the situation by saying the union hadn't called, adding that the secretary's washroom was off limits to me as it was private property. felt for some obscure reason she did not want me using her washroom. The superintendent generously ?? offered me his trailer to eat my lunch because was off limits to the men's change(lunch) room. His reason being the men may come in and take their clothes off (at lunch time ??,"d1PA for??) It seemed was off lirits' to everything. I was greeted by two men who introduced themselves and seemed not in the least perturbed by my presence. Throughout the whole day my partner was the only man who was considerate to me. He didn't waste any time explaining the procedure and respected him for that. The work itself did not seem difficult, but the weather certainly aggrav ated the situation. The prospect of lunch andcoffee breaks was very appealing. At ten went back to the superintendent's office to find that he had gone somewhere. After standing in the I I I I I cold for about another hour, felt defeated. No one had informed me to start working, or where the bathroom was, etc. How was to learn the ropes, or meet the men or even talk to someone?? Does this happen to new men on the job? I'm sure it does to some degree, but at least they have something in common- they're all men. I I When could went back to ask where go to the washroom. The superintendent, with no news from the union, instructed a man to take me to the secretary's office. I I returned to the site, was greeted by my partner who was eating his lunch while working. He informed me that we were not to take lunch or cofee I I breaks. The rt.tri had decided to work right through. Does this PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy I I At quitting time, went to pick up my lunch bucket in the superintendent's trailer and inquired what would be done about facilities tomorrow. He said he was calling the union in the morning about that situation. How long would this go on?? If he thought that these problems were discouraging me, and would not come back, he succeeded Perhaps this situation may seem petty to some,but certainly didn't feelthat way by the end of the day. I I I 041% et 13 Feeling defeated,discouraged and of CVISION PDFCompressor �exhausted, walked four blocks to the bus among cars of fellow workers (HA) No one offered me a ride even though some were going in the same direction. don't know why, after being alienated by them all day, expected an offer for a ride home. Arriving home in tears, had to make a decision whether to return for another day of humiliation. decided not to. I I I I I Perhaps some people feel didn't give the job a fair chance. wonder if the situation would have been better or worse if had gone back. really think it would not have changed, Putting in a washroom might cost a billion dollar company a few dollars, a week and that would definately not be appreciated. had given the job a felt damn good try and had done the could. It was under these best have just excircumstances couldn't return. pressed that Any woman interested in working on construction should try,and hope they do not become as dishave. Perhaps illusioned as will be willing to.try again; knowing now what to expect,I hope to succeed. I I I I I PEOPLE WHO DIU THIS ISSUE: GERT, DOREEN, EVE, WENDY,PAULAH, NOREEN,LESTER, LEONA, MARG. I I I *V*##V-V-V*V-VV4-VVVV-44-T4P-4-V I A WOMAN THINKS I I I began questioning my strength as a woman. Why had let these men intimidate me to the point of quitting a job knew could have done, if it had not been for them?? Although knew it would be difficult, really did not expect it to be like that. I I I I I I Because of the pressures put on me by other people, experienced feelings of guilt when had made my decision not to return. Being one of the first women in the union, had .I spoiled it for other women??1he position had taken with this company was not one of representing all women who.plan to make a career of conslructia6 work. nyself a very aggressive woman, and not easily intimidated by I I I men, realized I'm not as aggressive as thought. With other women on the job, we would have had the strength to combat the blatant chauvanism that prevailed. Unfortunately, was sent alone, and couldn't fight them myself. I I I I Losing my feelings of guilt and frustratration, was asked by the union if cared to return to the job. Maybe the company was feeling a bit guilty, because even though it sounds incredible, they wanted to give me another chance. Me, a woman. Would they have done the same for a man?? Did they not consider my pride(or what was left of it after the ordeal lad been put through??) Would the men not resent me even more because got this second I I I I :hance? Mine is a northern mind,it knows about endurance and survival and it knows about the gut strength that can live in the laughter that sees the ridiculous even in itself,Whether it lays easy in the sun or rushes about in some public cause,this mind of mine has done it's own thinking. One of the things it has thought a lot about is the folly of fragmentation,that human dimension to wall ourselves off in specialized units and pin badges on ourselves.We are moose and elk and beaver.We are institute and aide and auxilliary.We are catholic.methodist and penticostal.We are native and ethnic and wasp and franco phone.I could go on and on but when separate the wheat from the chaff find it increasingly easy to see us as we are,fueled by the same energies, driven by the same desires,moved by the same instincts,reaching out or turning in,hungry for love and approbation, victim and prey and always vulnerable as the pawns and pets of a. 0 0 N -- 0 V) Cu B n07(1) . I Co:0 I -0 fortune. rt This mind of mine knows the snow that sifts through ill-fitting windows in a primative setting,remembers the cold holes in a rural outhouse,waited for the hunter to return with the kill and cared for a sick child in utter isolation.I am native to my bones,the same desire to protect the forest,the stream and the simple life,the same amusement at mans committment to the ant. This mind has memorized the face of poverty,the dogged making do of the bare cupboard,the making over, the cutting down the patching up,the pride that will not ask or bend to receive.lf have escaped the cage have not removed myself from the family. This mind has been present at both bii-th and death and knows that joy and despair attends them both according to circumstance,in hospital or in a home for the aged it has seen that priveledge and power count for nothing,only the pain is relevant.Whether it is physical or mental or emotional it is real and devastating,responding in every case to the hand that cares,the heart that understands. This northern climate calls for accentuated thought,day breaks,night falls ,summers burst and winter attacks,the early settlers clung to-gether for warmth and support,they were not ashamed to say they needed each other.We who are caught in an industrialized society are as free wheeling as the exhaust it creates, without personal committment we are without substance. No-where is this lack of cohesion as critical as between women,this failure to see themselves as part of a whole,this great temptation to imagine we are more or less than we are. Does it need to be said that a rape charge should send us to the court in droves to say by our very presence that who degrades this victim offends every one of us,does it need to be said that the wife who is physically abused deserves the common defence of us all,does it need to be said the battered child is our business.Does it need terte said that part of us went out on a picket line last year,their cause was just,in failing them we were false to our selves. yes sadly enough it needs to be Said till we realize how intertwined our lives and our common goals are. I I Geo I% 0 MUST BE A MUSHROOM; BECAUSE EVERYONE KEEPS ME IN THE DARK AND FEEDS ME BULLSHIT i. c-, o0 v, rn rn tn > D H O 70 m rrn >z c-) > -I 3 m -I -rl c z O z -I Co 77 - r--I -< m cm (-) 7700 M cp c-) m co -0 0 MM 41 I . . PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �DON'T COMPROMISE ORGA NI ZE REPORT FROM JEAN HOLYK DELEGATE TO THE SEMINAR OF WOMEN FROM CANADIAN MINORITIES AND CULTURAL GROUPS WHICH WAS SPONSORED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE "WOMEN'S" PROGRAMS" held on Sept. 8, 9, and 10th, in Ottawa. There were 24 participants from different sectors of Canada - Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Quebec, Sask., Man., Ont%, B.C. and Alberta. Unfortunately, we participants did not receive a brochure of the agenda before the seminar. received mine on arrival back It poses a question of just home. how sincere our Government has been in helping Women achieve their rights and aims in this year of International Women. The seminar had 5 workshops: Visible minority Women. 1. Women in fam)lies. 2. The working Woman. 3. Services to Immigrant Women. 4. The women in black, dealing 5. with stereotypes. The study involved 5 stages: assessment of present sitA. I uation. B. identification of changes C. needed. Identification of barriers to change. Problem Solving (overcoming barriers). Formulating Strategies and E. proposals. There were at least five women in the working Woman's workshop I'd like took part. in which belong to to point out that Service E. Union and also to the Association of United Ukrainians, Canada, but the other women worked in positions of Social Work and Government employees. This posed a question at Are working women least to me. having the opportunity to participate and voice their opinions and to change their status in This was the working force. one problem presented in the working women's workshop. A Montreal delegate working with immigrants spoke on immigrant women on temporary visas who were brought to the country to work in factories, restaurants, agriculture, etc. They are being incredibly ex-. ploitedby the owners because of language difficulties, therefore not knowing their rights. They also work in jobs where there are no unions. Some average only 60 an hour at Panels recommended piece work. that minimum wage per hour be Note, paid to piece workers. these immigrant and minority work. ers are threated with deportation! Day Care was another important need for immigrant and minority and other working women. This need of subsidized day care was brought up in all workshops. Questions are now around the controls of government spending introduced in December, cutting back on monies for day care. This again questions the sincerity of the government in helping women enter the labour force. We women in Thunder Bay must continue the struggle with other like minded people across this country after the IWY has ended. We must strive to educate and organize men and women in our respective clubs, organizations, associations, and especially unions, and we must strive especially to help the unorganized The domestic, restaurant, worker. hotel, motel, baby sitting services which need better conditions and a decent work wage. We must pressure governments to change their bureaucratic ways to move us in the direction of Justice, Peace, and Freedom recognizing economic freedom as the basis for all three. We must actively work for a change in Government if the present Government fails to meet our expectations. The solution is as above, - Organization, Education and Solidarity. D. I I Jean Holyk is a member of the United UKR Canadians, A.U.U.C., a representative on the NorthWestern I.W.Y. council, a member of the Service Employees Union 268, a hospital worker with four childShe particpates in the ren. A.U.U.C. mandolin orchestra and She is also singing ensemble. treasurer of the Thunder Bay Peace Council. "Lady Dentist" In the past few years the number of women practising dentistry in Manitoba has more than doubled - from two to Most of these women are graduate; fivel of the Faculty of Dentistry of the University of Manitoba where the number of female students has increased from How has five to twenty since 1970. society and the profession reacted? Female dental students encounter many I can only relate different attitudes. Going to univermy own experiences. sity had always been an ambition for me But I was a very serious teenager; I couldn't afford a B.A. or B.Sc. with no job afterwards. So I decided to be This silenced the people a dentist. who always expected me to be a teacher or home economist. My pre-dentistry science year was a joy - lots of freedom - new people to meet - new Dentistry was a things to learn. shock - as late as 1970 the dental student was a 23-year old male with top-of-the-ear length hair, a tie, and a sports jacket or white lab coat. Many of my colleagues in first year had at least one 'friend' who hadn't been accepted into dentistry. They felt that I had taken the place of this After all, I was serious student. probably not going to 'stick it' for four years of school. Even if I did, it was unlikely that I would practise It was for more than a few years. unfortunate that society should pay for my four years in school when a man could have had this. It took two years of working along side these men to get them to accept me - a serious student who could really do the work. By third year I had become 'one of the guys' and was roundly praised as like a man. As a dentist I find that many of my colleagues are jealous of me. They feel that I have no responsibilities for family (which is true) and, once I find out how rough practise is, Even if I do marry and I'll quit. continue to practise, I'll never have If I ever do to support a family. support a family, I must have done something wrong or stupid to get myself into such a position. As far as my patients are concerned, there has been little or no problem. Apparently to the general public I'm sure a dentist is a dentist. there are exceptions to this but I have not met them in two years of Generally, people private practise. express surprise and friendly interest. Undoubtedly the attitude of the dental school is changing and will continue to change as mcre and more girls study The attitudes of the professior there. can only change as more and more of us live and work within the community. As with all the battles we wage for sexual equality, patience and persistat work. Elizabeth Birks (D.M.I rr o. our ccifo% policy ladies I / 44ps/- * The article entitled Lady Dentist by Elizabeth Birks(D.M.D.) is taken from,HER_SELF a news-letter of the YWCA Womans Centre,Winnipeg PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CRISIS HOUSING REPORT February 24, 1976, the Crisis Housing Committee met with Ed Zappier, the coordinator of the three Tarbutt Street residences. The meeting was organized by our committee amid rumour and speculation that Crisis Housing may be terminated because of social services cut backs. As we sat around the table informally with Mr. Zappier we discussed our concerns with policy as it exists in comparison to our original proposal. Mr. Zappier, well meaning but inexperienced, dealt with our inquiries as best he could considering he was ill-at-ease and obviously hesitant in answering terHe admitted tian questions. being unprepared but as far as we could ascertain he hesitated without the blessings of his supervisors. At times he appeared extremely uncomfortable and unaware. Mr. Zappier admitted that because of the social services cut-backs Crisis Housing's existence was threatened to the extent that it would have to be utilized in a different way. The city decided the Coach House (a city operated residence accomodating ten to twelve single troubled young women) which may close, would be incorporated with Negotiations Crisis Housing. to obtain a fourth house beside the Tarbutt Street This homes is in progress. house is owned by the city but rented to a government It was noted by agency. the committee that problems may arise because of this situation, i.e., overcrowding, priorities given to the single women and disharmony between troubled single women and women in crisis who have children. POLICY OF CRISIS HOUSING In practice Crisis Housing is a 24 hr. service (phone number 623-2711 ext. 430) with emphasis on local families. Transient families are sent to the Salvation Army or put up in substandard hotels. Single persons (without children) are not allowed the use of Crisis Housing but they are given consideration by Mr. Zappier and his supervisor, Betty Chalmers. Mr. Zappier expressed that the majority of women who utilize CrisiHousing are already separated or divorced and the minority are beaten and It was pointed abused women. out by one of our members that this report of minimal usage by abused women was contrary to experiences of Transition houses in other cities. Why is Thunder Bay so unique? According to by DOREEN WINKO AND EVE PYKERMAN its Vkowse- AtoAse, 411, documentation by the Northern Women's Centre and Community Action Centre (Human and Welfare Rights) many calls were received from beaten Is it perhaps that women. Crisis Housing has not been advertised sufficiently and are dependent on agencies to refer people to the homes. What does a woman threatened by a husband do in the middle of the night when she is not aware of an existing Crisis Mr. Zappier emphasized House? that they do not encourage women to leave their husbands or discourage for that matter but they stress the use of Crisis Housing as the very the lack of day-care facilities. There is no childcare provisions so that the mother or father is free to seek actomodations, employment or attend appointments. There is no opportunity for parents to escape from the responsibi ity of children for even a short while. Even if an outle was available, a 10:00 o'clock weekdays and 11:00 p.m. (Fridays) curfew is imposed. Also transportation for the children to attend their school is not provided causing a further disruption from the prior pattern of their lives. There is no follow-up of women after leaving the homes which according to Mr. Zappier is often the next day. What happens to these women after they leave? Where do they go? There are no recreational outlets; the basements are too cold and damp to be used for these purposes in the winter months. A ROOM OF ONE'S OWN??? We were taken on a tour of the homes, aware that the homes were occupied at that moment andfelt that we had intruded on the residents' last resort. privacy. According to Mr. Zappier 28 families (80 people) have used Crisis Housing since its opening in October. The fluctuation of families was termed "feast or famine". had Most of these been referred by other agenPeople are asked to cies. contribute to their stay in Crisis Housing if they are able to afford it. Mr. Zappier is considered director and counsellor but it appears that his main task is seeking alternative accomodations for clients. Because of the housing shortage in Thunder Bay, Mr. Zappier's time is probably consumed by Additionally this problem. Mr. Zappier's endeavours are divided between the welfare office and the Crisis homes. Therefore we feel the priority of counselling might be House mothers neglected. do not counsel according to the director but are available to talk to the residents. Their exact duties were not accounted for. The rooms were spacious but furnished sparsely, often with only one or two single Every room, including beds. kitchens in the two homes used for residents, had beds. There were no curtains, the roll-down blinds were often torn and there was no other furniture, except for The only decoration beds. on the wails were typewritten sheets spelling out rules that were placed next to Pictures light switches. were non-existent. One note, signed by Mr. Zappier that caught our attention was in the dining This is not a meeting area. place, it is an eating place:! Temphasis ours). This generally established the atmosphere of the homes. PROBLEMS Welfare assistance is not given to persons until they have acquired accomodations outside Crisis Housing. This created financial burdens whereby they must depend on other resources, i.e., Family Allowances, donations from family members or Provincial Welfare (if they're Those who have lucky). little or no savings have nothing for extras (cigarettes, toiletries, entertainment) that should be available to any person. Another problem area is 16compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of PDF SUMMARY: The general feeling shared by committee members was one of disillusionment and We did not regard depression. the homes as a supportive and congenial place and definitely lacking a homelike We found the home atmosphere. restricting and not conducive to emotional growth. Following are some comments made by Crisis Committee members: "Depressing..." "I'm sure glad our money was not invested..." "Isolated and treated like children..." "Certainly does not promote independence..." "We didn't have anything before but..." Further follow-up and action will be taken by the Crisis Housing Committee and shall be reported in CVISION PDFCompressor The Northern Woman. �THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 Bay St. Thunder Bay, "P" Ontario. return postage guaranteed RETURN TO: Poet Postes Canada P tape oa, Pr, Dave Bulk En hombre *Canada third troisieme class classe 220 TABLE OF CONTENTS 2 Rape Family Property Law Where Do We Go Berlin Conference N.W.O.I.W.D.C.0 Blue Collar Blues Don't Compr6mise Crisis Housing 4 10 12 14 Donna Shaw 627 S.High Street 15 Thunder Bay P,Ontario. 17 18 CZ3YOUR SUBSCRIPTION IS DUE CI THIS IS YOUR LAST COPY PLEASE SUPPORT US! #30z2, o 532 acb'lif. 4C; #04,7 Nso% cA§) 24f]v 4Ngv d ate' (six ISSuS) *3 93 2 YEAR sIQ BUSINESS OR TNST t TLITION Cfr7 4;=7 NAME GIFT ADDRESS 001.1AT-101\J 5 C.; CZ. EAT FU LLy' ACCEPTED WANT 70 GET A/Vol_ VED CALL 345.5241 ANY WED. oR SUN. ilFTR I:30 1 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 2 No 5 Description An account of the resource Vol. 2, No. 5 (1976) Title: Northern Woman: Women’s New Regional Journal Topics include: Rape legislation Editorial policy Poetry Family property law Rape crisis centre Letters to the editor Lesbian experience International Women’s Year news Rape study (University of Guelph) Art Where do we go from here conference (Confederation College) Equal pay for equal work Native women Government cutbacks to social services Women in distress Solidarity among women Feminist work at home World Conference for International Women’s Year Berlin Miss Canada Pageant Beauty contest critique Northwestern Ontario Women’s Decade Co-ordinating Council update Blue collar work Seminar of women from Canadian minorities and cultural groups Female dentist practices & students Crisis housing report Authors/Contributors: Gert Beadle Noreen Lavoie Barbara Coom Joan Packota Mallory Nueman Betty Dondertman Bonnie Hill Leslie Silver Estelle Freidlander Sally Cozens Eve Pykerman Elizabeth Birks Doreen Winko 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 1975 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/16/2743/1976_Vol_2_No._6_CV01.pdf d30fab72b0eeb57336a092c557cbc99e PDF Text Text PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �EDITORIAL 4- We are in this movement because we ourselves that we begin the work of are feminists, women who can no longer destroying the patriarchy." tolerate our oppression and who work to (Karen Lindsey, Boston Phoenix). We are begin the creation of freedom. We must remember this if sistercreating a revolution that will We hood is ever to mean anything. transform ourselves and our world. have insisted on an autonomous women's However, we must avoid the attitude that movement because we believe that sexis we in the women's movement are someis the most fundamental oppression. how the vanguard, the However, enlightened, we have divisions because, women towomen experience sexism, it who will lead Canadian while all We struggle out of different ways, according to liberation. in vastly necessity, not becauseclass, we arerace, al- age, education, sexual truistic missionaries.orientation...We cannot gloss over the Moreover, if we struggle around divisions by invoking the notion of our true needs, then we avoid the trap "sisterhood" conquering all. Sisterof becoming martyrs for some abstract hood is our ideal, politically and "The but it means struggle and ultimately futile spiritually, idea. woman who sacrifices her needs for to reach it and maintain it. the sake of the movement It is is no imperative threat that we strengthen to anyone, except to herself and the the communication links and networks. movement. Men have always repected an other feedback on We must give each Antigone, adored a Joan Arc, and an of ongoing basis, and make it easier why not? Such heroines fordeviate new women to become involved sacrifice little from the norm: inthey the movement. themselves for a principle or a vision The Other Woman Credit to rather than a man, but as long as they are sacrificing themselves, mankind The woman who endangers the is safe. partriarchy is the woman whose love for others grows from her love for herself--whose personal and political alliances stem from identification, not altruism. It is only when we love l- : , s. OUR READERS f the collective, whose assion is to send you nal is dangerously close g over, so good has been The nSe to our efforts. takes and the time we so easily translated into of love when we begin to eciated. There is little nventional press that rectly to the cause of d, one must either do of great import or someerly outrageous to be the context of being newWe here at the journal aded that all across this th west, in public or n, history is being written our being here. When the mes s us to new dimensions e encouraged to think of we have played in the the vista's that beckon us ery uture, we get an entirely lpt of the power and that is ours simply by tive". being women. There are edea must know about each there is no segment of e, that is not made better owledge of what goes on in and minds of one another. ood and strong and vital one of us must be made Knowledge to all of us. cedemic sense can be as statistics but the heart, mom ; nds calls for more. And ay thank you for your 1 OREEN, GERT, MARG,LYNNE ITo Dr.Chacko who equates the undesirable WENDY,qualities SHARON, LESTER of a social worker by the degrees iti 1 IMINIII PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �ACTIVITIES Indoor and outdoor play; art work and crafts; circle time; various trips, e.g., library, pet store, fire station and train and sleigh rides. DAY CARE LOCATION 1000 Huron Avenue (Vance Chapman School) THUNDER BAY CO-OPERATIVE NURSERY SCHOOL TELEPHONE For more information, call 345-8651 (School) or 68306722 (Registrar) PURPOSE For children, 3 to 4 years old, REGISTER- NOW FOR SEPTEMBER an opportunity for creative play and interaction with other NEWS RELEASE 1:8. SESSIONS A.M., 9:30 to 11:30 Tuesday to Friday P.M., 1:15 to 3:15, Tuesday to Friday DAY CARE IS "my first best friend" DAY CARE IS "a rocking boat, dry pants, and my thumb" DAY CARE IS "being captain of a ship for a day" DAY CARE IS "making pictures for our kitchen at home" DAY CARE IS "sand in my shoes" DAY CARE IS "helping make cookies" April 21st, 1976. children. SUPERVISION A qualified pre-school education teacher; parent participation (although not obligatory); students from Confederation College; maximum adult/child ration of WHAT IS DAY CARE? The Thunder Bay Co-operative Nursery School is now accepting registrations for September. Children, 3 to 4 years old, have an opportunity for creative play and interaction with other children Morning and afternoon classes are conducted at 1000 Hurone Ave. (Vance Chapman School). For more information call the Registrar at 683-6722. THUNDER BAY CO - OPERATIVE Nursery School 1000 Huron Ave. T. Bay, "P" DAY CARE IS "child-rearing support for the modern family" DAY CARE IS "a sub-community within our community - it's our kids' neighbourhood" DAY CARE IS "a service for the conscientious mother with a career" DAY CARE IS "a total growth environment for happy, healthy, normal kids". EPILEPSY THUNDER BAY EPILEPSY THUNDER BAY During the year 1975 a special committee was organized in Thunder Bay under the direction of Paulette Sitch whose goal was to work towards the establishment of an eqilepsy association in the Lakehead region. In October this group became known as Epilepsy Thunder Bay Steering Committee and in February of this year was officially recognized as Epilepsy Thunder Bay, a Chapter of the Ontario Epilepsy Association. Education of the general public is high on the list of priorities of Epilepsy Thunder Bay through dissemination of information with the main goal being the removal of the stigma currently attached to this disorder, thus creating an informed public who thoroughly underEducation stand epilepsy. together with understanding can help towards the achievement of that goal. With proper therapy, most epileptics can now live essenThe tially normal lives. most serious hazard of an epileptic disorder, in many instances, is not the seizures, per se, but the associated emotional disturbances which may develop in a youngster as the result of mismanagement at home, in the school, or in the community. TheChapter can be of great assistance by giving support and guidance to parents of epileptic children, the education of teachers and education of the general public. 200,000 Canadians are believed to have epilepsy. Prejudice is costly to society and wasteful in terms of human The old attitudes of fear and prejudice against people with epilepsy bars them from employment in many industries. It is estimated that one in four people whose condition is whole or partially controlled by medication is still not able to hold a job, just because he or she is epileptic. This costs the country millions of dollars a year in unemployment, welfare and lost productivity. Prejudice can be eliminated through education. Public attitudes are slowly changing about epilepsy as people learn more about it. But institutions and official policy makers are often more slow to change. Persons who wish to become involved with Epilepsy Thunder Bay can write to: Epilepsy Thunder Bay Post Office Box 481 Thunder Bay South or telephone 623-6764 or 623-2290. The Ontario Epilepsy Association's aims and objectives might be summed up as giving support and guidance to epileptics. This can be done in many ways--patient and public education, employer contact and education, information and referral services, parent groups, social groups and vocational assistance. Epilepsy in itself may not be tragic, but the superstitious fear and ignorance with which it is regarded by the general public is tragic. Vast advances have been made in the medical and neurological treatment of epilepsy, but limited social' or educational progress has been made in assisting persons with epilepsy to develop adequate personalities and self-confidence. The prime purpose of Epilepsy Thunder Bay is to combat the prejudice, fear and ignorance still associated with this affliction. Therefore, education of the general public is one of the most important functions of the Ontario Epilepsy Association. Epilepsy is not a disease. It is a sign or symptom, and it results from or is part of, an underlying neurological disorder. Seizures may occur at any age in both sexes, in any race, or in any individual. With proper therapy, most epileptics can now live essentially normal lives. The most serious hazard of an epileptic disorder, in many instances, is not the seizures, per se, but the associated emotional disturbances which may develop in a youngster as a result of mismanagement at home, in the school or in the community. The Chapter can be of great assistance by giving support and guidance to parents of epileptic children, the education of teachers and the education of the general public. Public attitudes are slowly changing about epilepsy as people learn more about it. It is the hope of the Ontario Epilepsy Association, now renamed Epilepsy Ontario, to create a public awareness that epilepsy is not a handicap, but, rather an inconvenience. , 3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �FAMILY PROPERTY LAW (part two) FAMILY PROPERTY LAW Ownership of other property of this series dealt with home ownership of the matrimonial (the principal residence of the married couple) For other property,ownership once again is determined by WHO HOLDS TITLE AND WHO PAID FOR IT. Let us look at several ways that married couples manage the finances and purchase of property. Part 1 Sometimes the spouse will (1) purchase property such as a car, furnishings,boat, or cottage by making monthly payments and the title (ownership Papers) is placed in the purchasing spouses name.If on the other hand the other spouse assists with the payments on this property from their savings or earnings,this spouse must keep an accurate account of the amounts contributed and prove the money used was their own,i.e. cancelled cheques from their personal account or proof of payroll deduction,e If norecord is kept they will have a difficult time proving any claim to ownership of the property. Often when both spouses (2) are working the husbands money is used to purchase real property i.e. payments on the mortgage,purchase of stocks and bonds,a summer home or car. The wifes earnings are frequently used to purchase food and clothing,music lessons for the children, or decorating the home. In other words,her money does not purchase property.If the marriage ends the assets(property)belong to the husband.The wife has nothing to show for her financial contribution to the marriage. Under existing laws, a married women in Ontario is under no obligation to maitain herself or to contribute towards her own support,or to children. If she is a wage earner the woman can invest her money,purchase real estate or spend it without her husbands consent.It is the husbands duty to support his wife while the marriage lasts. (3) The married womans contribution to the marriage as a homemaker has not been recognized under the separation of property system.So long as property disputes between spouses are resolved on the basis of direct financial contribution to the purchase price,the wife who stays at home on either a full time or part time basis will be shortchanged because her role as homemaker has deprived her of the right to earn money and obtain property. BILL 75. 1.(3) (c). States EXCEPT AS AGREED BETWEEN THEM, WHERE A HUSBAND AND WIFE CONTRIBUTE WORK,MONEY, OR MONEY"S WORTH IN RESPECT OF THE AQUISITION,MANAGEMENT MAINTAINENCE,OPERATION OR IMPROV_ MENT OF PROPERTY IN WHICH THE OTHER HAS OR HAD A PROPERTY INTEREST,THE HUSBAND OR WIFE SHALL NOT BE DISENTITLED TO ANY RIGHT TO COMPENSATION OR OTHERINTEREST FLOWING FROM SUCH CONTRIBUTION BY REASON ONLY OF THE RELATIONSHIP OF HUSBAND AND WIFE OR THAT THE ACTS CONSTITUTING THE CONTRBUTION,ARE THOSE OF A REASONABLE SPOUSE OF THAT SEX IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES;. Hopefully this section of BILL 75 will get rid of of the worst features of the Murdoch case and others similiar to it,situations in which a wife was not allowed any share of the home,it's contents or a share of any other property because of her contribution as a homemaker.Under BILL 75,What will be the courts evaluation of a wife's contribution if she remains a homemaker who manages and maintains a home?. To benifit from this clause in BILL75 both spouses will need documentation for proof of contribution. (4) Equally controversial is the measure of a spouses contribution to a small business owned by the other " spouse, i.e. (a) The wife who keeps the books and does the billing for her husbands garage or repair shop. (b) The wife who works in the smal corner store receiving no salary. (c) The husband who does repairs or keeps books for a small busine his wife okinC. The wife who works in the fie (d) and barns of the family farm. Hopefully BILL751(3). (c) will grant recognition to this typ of contribution to the assets of a marriage. (5) If a wife is at home and the husband is the sole owner,saving's made by the wife from house-keepin allowances,property purchased with these savings,or investmentd made with them,belong to the husband, strict separation of property mean that increases, decreases,rents profits,etc are added to h the value of the property of the owner There are obvious inadequacie difficulties,and unfair rules in t present laws governing property re ions between husband and wife. Whi we work for reform of these laws,h can the purchase of property and owner-ship be shared by married i couples. (1) LEARN AND KNOW MORE ABOUT FAMILY PROPERTY LAWS AND MAKE THEM WORK FOR YOU AND YOUR PARTNERSHIP. (2) CONSIDER JOINT TENANCY AS A METHOD OF OWNING AND SHARING PROPERTY. IF BOTH SPOUSES WORK,CONSIDEP (3) THE CONTRIBUTION THAT BOTH SPOUSES CAN MAKE TOWARD THE PURCHASE OF PROPERTY. EVERYTHING NEEDN NOT BE JOINTLY OWNED BUT BOTH SPOUSES,ESPECIALLY THE WIFE SHOULD CONSIDER INVESTESTMENT OF EARNINGS IN REAL PROPERTY. (4$ AS WELL AS SHARING INTHE PURCHASE OF PROPERTY,THE SPOUSES SHOULD SHARE IN THE RESPONSIBI_ BILITYS OF PAYING FOR THE NECESSP ITEMS IN THEIR DAILY LIVES. (5) DO NOT BE COMPLAISANT WOMEN HAVE A RIGHT ANU A DUTY TO THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES TO KNOW THE LAWS,AND TO BE INTERESTED IN THE PURCHASING POWER OF THEIR EARNINGS(or) GIFTS OF MONE'i WITH REGARD TO INVESTMENT AND PROPERTY. JOAN PACKOTA the suort of her husband and UNIVERSITY WOMANS CLUB An invitation to accompany Lisa Bengsston our good rep. from Sect'y State, on a visit to Kenora gave me an opportunity to talk with the originators and staff of the Water St. Residence for The simplicity that chose Women. the name is reflected in the house itself and personified in the person of Bertha Williamson, the single staff member who runs it with gentle authority and considBertha is erable good humour. native and while the house is available to all races it is her own sisters she has the privilege of serving most of the time. Formerly a hospital it provides accomodation for a maximum of 10 women whose admittance requirement is that she be referred from the treatment centre. The length of stay is flexible as Bertha explained, they stay till The the problem resolves itself. close community nature of the native family makes it easy to follow up their progress after The house itself is cheery and well kept. A sewing room is in the making; a piano is in the living room; an accessable kitchen. The women in the house were busily engaged in housekeeping duties and had the feeling from the woman who was ironing, that she was doing it for everybody, so great was the air of co-operation. "I don't do anything", Bertha told us, just talk and listen. The women do their own marketing, cooking, cleaning, laundry. A resident that upgraded her education from grade four to the place where she could qualify for training as a day care staff person, was cited as a success story. Some women do day work to help with their costs to the house. There is no staff at night. Bertha does not believe in people being hired to watch people. That is nonsense she says. Under a simple and civilized set of rules very few people will take advantages. That is a piece of wisdom that seems to have escaped my own race I'm sorry to say. I I enny :ra ey a member on th board of the Friendship Centre al ong with Kitty Iverson and Bertha Williamson conceived and brought the house into being. It is supported by funding from the Presby terian Church, subsidized by a p diem rate of $8.00 a day from Ont Social Services and a comfort all ante. Under this arrangement the future looks secure. find it very appealing that a church shou guarantee this security and do it without any manipulative strings attached. My congratulations to them for living the life--and my congratulations also to the residents of the house itself, who seem to have grasped a simple reality that while a problem exists the responsibilities of living col tinues and manifests itself in as simple a thing as keeping your surroundings and yourself as intact as possible. To do it in a sharing way makes it all the more appealing. Bertha has promised tc keep in touch through THE NORTHERN WOMAN. I continuel page 5 leaving PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �la suirmaymnrussiontammuitimmtmow I MEOW R111111WNIMINNIMME111.- SISTERS FROM WOMEN'S PROGRAMMES EXCLUDED by Noreen Lavoie As part of IWY the Women's Programme of the Dept. of the Secretary of State sponsored a series of 12 seminars entitled Interchange 75...A Forum For Action on Women's The last of these 12 semIssues. inars Women and Alternatives, held Dec. 2-5, 1975, saw about 35 participating women from all across was the delegate from Canada. Thunder Bay. These women were chosen, for the most part, with the exception of a few selected by the members of their groups, by the Secretary of State, because of their participation in women's legal aid clinics, health collectives/self-help clinics, women's centres, alternative media groups, transition houses, feminist therapy groups, lesbian fem., We were desinist collectives etc. as "grass roots feminists". cribed There was a feeling of discomfort and suspician almost from the No one beginning of this seminar. seemed to know why specifically they were chosen, or why they were there There was no material sent at all. prior, so that the delegate could discuss with their collectives the priorities of their particular groups or the purpose of the seminar. On arrival Mon. night each delegate was assigned a large room with 2 double beds. The implication was that the government did not want to encourage lesbianism by billetting two women together.. A silly and presumptious reason and a waste of I money. Tuesday morning we started off The structwith a plenary session. ure table arrangement, microphones, interpreters and the large number of women from women's programme had an intimidating effect on many of us, particularity those who had never spoken into a mike before or spoken It was in front of a large group. also strange to hear a male voice interpreting the words of a French speaking woman. A list of the delegates names and room numbers were requested as well as the per diem cheques for These were promised but meals. those with no money found it necessary to eat in the hotel dining room as the cheques never arrived till Thur., and the feelings of isolation persisted after leaving the plenary sessions or workshops as no list of names and room numbers materialized either. Tuesday after the short plenary session we were asked to read the Stimulus Paper and other material that was distributed (in our isolpersonally found ated rooms). the Stimulus paper heavy reading although assumptions about the women's movement (there is a recession and we are treading water--we are burned out feminists) bounced off the page at me. This was a liberal government's analysis of could not the movement, which agree with. Wednesday morning the workshops This first workshop is began. vague now, except for the feeling that nothing concrete happened and there was not a free flow of constill versation happening, and I I did'nt understand the reasons for this seminar or what we were supposed to accomplish at it. Workshops in the afternoon also produced little in the way of productivity and there was a noticible strain on the leaders to keep us on topic, i.e. what has the women's movement done; what problems could be encountered to create alternatives in this society; effective ways to produce more satisfying solutions regarding women's issues; what would the long term implications of these changes be. Wednesday evening saw the coming together of a small group of women who sat up till after 2:a.m. analysing and trying to justify the feelings of paranoia that seemed to pre vail on a wide scale. It was sensed and feared that we were there for an overall purpose, which we did'nt understand. JUSTIFYING OUR PARANOIA Comments on the process of analysis were taken by one of the women in the group at this meeting, and from these notes are some of their conclusions.r--we as grass roots feminists were seen as possible agents of social change-- information gleaned from us, i.e. experience, practice theory, values, could be used in a manner women from women's programme understand---this information would not stay at the level of women's programme (bottom level of Secretary of State) but go to a higher level---we agree this is not good, as women's programme have no power and those that possibly want power over us already have the most economic power---women in women programme are employees of the system that continues to oppress us---this seminar could be to design a modified form of social control using what we're giving them to diffuse us---delegates were chosen because of their political naivite---we were being led to see the trees and not the forest---Dept. of Women's Affairs may be implemented such as the Dept. of Indian Affairs which would isolate women's issues and be implemented by the heirarchy-this seminar is really a public hea'ring, but at the personal, not political level to make it invisible. Conclusions This is not the government of the people, even though it may have been the genuine feeling of women in the programm---women in women's programme now, are not necessarily going to be there next year---we are not going to isolate the variables that made us radicals- we are not making recommendations or telling them our processes in order to stop other women before they get to this stage---we were being cointo leadership positions to opted give the system we're fighting ammunition---this disallows us to identify the government as the enemy- women in women's programme may not even know where the reports are going and this is why we must exclude them---in no way were we faulting women from women's programme. WAS THE GOVERNMENT PAYING FOR US TO PLAN THE REVOLUTION?? NO IT WAS TO LEARN OUR PROCESSESS Thursday morning instead of going directly into workshops as scheduled, a plenary was called and women from the Tate nibbt meeting put forth their conclusions about the seminar. Nervous energy was high but guilt at rejection of our sisters from Women's Programme had not quite reared it's ugly head. Although they were assurred there was no hostility towards them, they were naturally defensive. THERE WAS UNANIMITY AMONG THE DELEGATES THEY SHOULD LEAVE. THEY LEFT. The interpreters left. We moved to the floor and formed a large circle. The Francophone women were very able to communicate in English. The remaining time was spent in analysing and justifying what we had done, whether it was a democratic decision or whether a certain few had a strong influence on the decision to exclude the women from the remaining part of the seminar. Emotions really fan high and guilt and searching for a scapegoat continued till late Fri. afternoon. Some women had planes to catch and some women could just not take any more of the emotional strain. Whether we were right or wrong in our feelings of paranoia about the motivitations of the government in sponsoring the Women And Alternatives Seminar and the fact that no resolutions came about, as did from all eleven previous seminars, this was a valuable experience for all of us involved. One woman stated she felt she had lost her political virginity, and I'm sure she spoke for many of us. Now, six months after this seminar, still feel good about what happened. For some of us we felt power for the first time. Personally grew a little and learned a lot from the women who participated in "the secret meeting". The women's movement reluctant to model themselves along the lines of the male pyramid structure, nevertheless needs leaders who have analytical minds and can share with those of us that don't. The radicalization of many of the delegates in itself justifies what happened at this seminar. As for what we did by excluding our feminist sisters fovm women's programme, we can be assured they understood why this had to be because they are firstly feminists and secondly employees of the government. I I KENO RA cc) ti gir A visit to the native women's office was icing on the cake. Lisa is helping them plan a conference. Nancy Morrison and Peggy Copenease seem to operate in a hive of activities. Only the truly committed could spend the energy one sees around them. It seems fairly certain a rep. from this group will take a place on the Northwestern Decade for progress Council now operating out of Thunder Bay. Our family of Northern women increases as we support and sustain each other. Over the raucous voice of Eleanor Jacobson, the native women of Kenora, care and share and struggle together, bringing honour to us all. I PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �HERE AND THERE 40, ,m same WOMEN'S CENTRE IS NOW d "Feelings" The following is written by a young ' NORTHERN INCORPORATEDY to her social workers t t convey some of Since Jan. 1976, The Northern what it means to I Women's Centre has been incorporated elp from the system. as a non-profit charitable organizati GS The centre is incorportated under the Iname NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO WOMEN'S CEN elings of despair, being no good, are e prejudiced attity the public in here are beautiful ming into the Social e most part, they are s friends. Occasionncounters the Their attitude ". ity and an atmosphere ust is created; thus he way of helping Soical workers shed. be able to relate, ct with their are so heavy, so the is impossible when has a hell of a time epeople. being unsatisfactory The rules in that geographically governing the procedu ue. ass for both sides. the in became ion was incorporated placed on could be named as a es and background, wishes to thank Mary Tomlinson whose The centre a will. ocial pressures, Ilegal assistance was invaluable. king a giant step The centre will continue to function people help themHowever, unstructured as possible. Iit was necessary to appoint (they volunteered) ten women to sit as If you are on tF Board of Directors. IBoard of Directors and wish to be replaced please notify the centre. THE FIRST ANNUAL MEETING WILL BE HELE ION SEPTEMBER 16th, 1976. ALL WOMEN ARE WELCOME. There will be elections to replace any vacancies on the boarc !ALL WOMEN CREDIT UNION A POSSIBILITY The BAY Northern Women's Centre has hi THUNDER Laurie Hill, with funding from the Secretary of State, to investigate 1 lithe feasibility of a Credit Union foi Iwomen in Thunder Bay. The Metro Toronto Women's Credit Union has beer m in operation for some months now and Ihas set a precedent in Ontario, in having women considered a community, which will make it easier for other Iwomen's credit unions to obtain a On June 24 at 8 p.m. at the charter. centre, 120 W. Amelia, a meeting wil just 9 - 5. Laurie will be prepared at kers to lighten I be held. time to share all the information shl If you are has obtained to date. incomes to curious, interested, or already ine in earnings If you are union, please attend. more incentive to work. enthusiastic about a women's credit . This will give IIn conclusion, let people help people I unable to attend, phone the centre I so that the people being helped feel than information. ` life is worth living, not just existing.' 'WOMEN'S CENTRE NOT BEING UTILIZED LS II MENNE MIME MIEN 1E1=1 f =MI room The Women's Centre welcomes small groups of women who wish to meet in Congratulations to:Colleen Izzerd,winner a quite comfortable atmosphere, of the hooked rug. perhaps to meet for consciousness raising, letter writing (lobbying) whatever. There are also a lot of trying to cope with depression. Son women have remarked that even coming to the general meetings has helped t e government's constraints to feel less alone with their problt We would like to see a grodp or groi. formed at which time you could talk al services, education, sociz! over your problems, with each other. Anonymity could be maintained. d public sector employment THE CENTRE'S HOURS ARE 10:00 a.m. tc 3:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays To inquire about using the only. centre for meeting phone 622-3989. For July and August only there will be no Thursdayevaluation general meeting, PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked copy HAVE A GOOD SUMMER: senseless attack on health d that it be stopped by the of CVISION PDFCompressor �_ May 11, 1976. Dear People, : ' Dear Sisters, Just received Vol. 2, Issue 5, and found it most informative, particularly the articles on "Legal Sanction of Rape", "Where Do We Go?" and the "Crisis Housing Report". am enclosing $2. to replace that with which you reimbursed Ann Garret, agree with your since opinion that there are many issues on which we agree, and we should concentrate on these for the betterment of all, rather than get hung up on one contentious issue. Congratulations on the paper - a worthwhile effort indeed. -Patricia Baxter, T.Bay. p.s. The poems are a real "To my first love" bonus. was particularly meaningful for me. We would greatly appreciate it if you would place the following as an ad in your newsletter advertising The New School for Peace "Humanistic approach to the probliems of injustice, pollution, poverty, prejudice, resource depletion, revolution and war. Actualizes the values of compassion, equality, freedom and nonviolence. The New School, planned for Jule 31 - Aug. 13th on Grindstone Island near Ottawa. Cost for 2 weeks of an intense, enjoyable and challenging experience is $200, including all necessities. Apply now if interested by writing to Nancy Bayly, 562 Johnson St., Kingston, Ont. I ' I 1 ' 1 1 Thank you, Nancy Bayly. 99 Braemore Adus. Toronto 4, Ontario. May 31, 1976. 1 1 Dear Sisters: was thrilled to receive an issue (Vol. 2, No. 5) of the Northern Woman in the mail this morning. Enclosed is $3.00 for my subscription, to be mailed to the following address: I 14-2120 Ridge Rd. Victoria, B.C. I'm pleased to hear that the Victoria Women's Centre is receiving your publication. I'd like to offer a comment regarding editorial policy on "censorship" of material. noticed that Ann Garrett's letter against abortion was printed. Although ideally the news-journal should reflect many points of view on issues that affect women, you should be cautious of allowing the journal to be used by people who seek to destroy the foundations on which women's liberation lie. The right to secure birth control is such a foundation, and the Right-to-Life organization will use any means to prevent women from obtaining a measure of this right, which is the freedom to have an abortion. Although thought that your reply to the letter was great, hope that you I I I Dear "Northern Women" Enclosed is $3.00 for one years renewal of your paper. Thanking you for the effort alone that goes into it. May urge you to consider joining with the Congress of Canadian Women, helping to make it stronger, and encouraging all women who participate in an orgazation formed 25 years, devoted to Equality, Development and Peace. Now this Decade offers us tremendous challenges. A strong progressive CCW across our coup can do much to advance women an work for Peace. We need to give every possible support to our Native women. Do you have the book by Howard Adams--Prisoner of Grass, now number one in the Trent University Native Studies? This is excellent and important reading. Out of our 16 Universities, 14 are now having courses in Native Studies. We must help make these courses real. Best wishes to all the good Northern Women. Sincerely Nora Rodd Toronto I I / I Dear Sisters, In addition to giving me a Subscription, could you please send me the issue in which you included some material on Wages for Housework. It may have been issue 2 or 3. Thanks a lot. The paper looks really good. CLICK! October, 1970, walking down River Street in Winnipeg, with a dear friend, now dead, talking about the husband who divorced her, after more than 20 years, for a much younger woman. She said, "You know how much he hated the outdoors, - picnics, camping, roughing it. loved it, but we never did it. Guess he's got the right wife, now they spent all summer on a northern lake". Click! and at 5:30 p.m. outside a kitchen boutique on River Street became a feminist. So now I'm a G.D. Women's Libber, sometimes a "lesbian" or a "whore" or just "frustrated". Don't know if there are any labels left. But do know that there are identifiable Women's issues, beyond that believe fervently that all issues are women's issues. I'm still working for peace and universal "humanhood". I I I I Tery Padgham, Yellowknife, N.W.T. (reprinted from HER-SELF, Winnipeg YWCA) Best wishes, Francis Gregory. don't feel obliged to print "challenges" or simply material, the intention of which is to destroy the very basis of the freedom we seek to establish. hear that "Birthright", By the way, an anti-abortion counselling agency (whose source of funding is a well-kept secret) is establishing an office in Thunder Bay I this fall. also would like to say that found both Mallory's letter and Eve's offer deep article very touching. I I I empathy to Eve, and suggest that she send her article on her construction job experience to the Labourer's Union and let them deal with their disgusting behaviour at the next union meeting. Enough verbosity. Thanks, best wishes, and love: Georgina Garrett. found this while reading, and thought you might be interested in printing it: I Dear Sisters, Please find enclosed a cheque to cover a subscription to your publication for one year, plus a very small donation. This is the first issue of Northern Woman that I've had the pleasure to receive and read. am very impressed with the quality of the articles and great variety of topics covered in just this one issue. might add that was not so pleased with one article,("The Socialized Penis) ", but am keenly waiting for its continuation I I I In November, 1974, an arbitrator found that Bell had been discriminating against two of its female managerial personnel by paying them less than the men in their department with the same The women were awarded $2000. skills. Apparently, this decision in backpay. undercut Bell's personnel policy which functions on the premise that a woman goes not have to use her 'bratins to say "one moment please", and so Bell appealed the case. The judges agreed with Ma Bell and overturned the award, claiming that only the job performed, and not the skills and experience brought to the job, could be considered in determining whether there had been any discrimination. The tour's decision severely waters down the protection promised women in the federal government's Female Employees Equal Pay Act. (from This Magazine, No. 5 & 6, Vol. 9, Nov. - Dec. 1975.) I in your next issue to see how the author can redeem himself from his apparently chauvini-4-ir description. PI, up the good work. I'm sure it must be very difficult at times. -Brooke Carfagnini The Northern Woman Centre has received a grant from Sect, of State for student summer employment to research the possibility of forming the first womans Credit Union in the city. She will also assist in a health choice work-shop to be held at Confederation College this fall. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �POETRY I I I saw a women sleeping. In her sleep she dreamed LIFE stood before her,and held in each hand want a women's revolution like a lover. lust for it, I want so much this freedom, a gift In the one LOVE this end to stuggle and fears and lies we all exhale, that in the other FREEDOM and could die just I with the passionate uttering of that desire she said to the woman"CHOOSE! Just once in this my only lifetime to dance all alone and bare on a cliff under cypress trees And the yeoman waited long with no fear of where and she said FREEDOM! To even glimpse what will become, had I place my feet. I I might have been and never never not had to "waste my life" fighting for what my lack of freedom keeps me from glimpsing. And life said" Thou hast chose If thou had said LOVE well". Those who abhor violence refuse to admit they are already I would have given thee exneri9n-_ing it, committing it. what thou did ask for,and Those who lie in the arms of the "individual solution," would have gone from thee,and the "private odyssey," the "personal growth," returned no more to thee. are the most conformist of all, Now the day will come when because to admit suffering is to begin shall return,In that day the creation of freedom. bear both gifts in one hand. Those who fear dying refuse to admit they are already dead. Well, I am dying, suffocating from this hopelessness tonight, I I I I shz. heard the woman laugh in her sleep. Olive Schreiner from this dead weight of struggling with even those few men I love and care less about each day they kill me. mmiTHE FREE INORTH --Robin Morgan, from "Monster" She was Northern, /deep in her secret marrow the depth of rock and forest claimed her, here in its swollen rivers she heard the whisper of the dipping paddles where the loon was hiding. More than the North, .00000°./ she was the quiet pool unpolluted.... The free north virgin Yet in the wilderness she played as fawn to doe, a target for the hunter, a raw resource...Ripe for picking. The lust of progress felled her like a pine, stripped her Stole the treasure she was hiding Left her like an easy lay discarded She was Northern, her braids as sleek 14%.. as feathers on a crow and yet Her destiny was wed to sorrow. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CUT BACKS FACTS ... FACTS ... FACTS ... FACTS "Everyone has a little bit of suffering to do." --Jean Luc Pepin Dec. 5, 1975. "Do not get discouraged if the consumer price index maintains a two-digit momentum for several months to come." --Beryl Plumptre, Oct. 11,1975 "Look lady, don't expect the price of a can to stay where it is because we've brought in a freeze." - -Pierre Trudeau, Oct. 10, 1075. GOVERNMENT CUTBACKS In October, Trudeau brought in a program of wage controls. He followed this in December with an announcement concerning government budget cutbacks. The main targets of the cutbacks are the people with the least power -- women, the elderly, and youth. CUT BACKSscuy "ticks salaries for a year (which they weren't planning to increase anyway), they increased their tax-free allowances as scheduled. II. Universities. The Henderson Committee has recommended: * A tuition increase of 65% over the next three years. The elimination of the grant The government also announced portion of the Government recently that they are spending Assistance Program, meaning $1 billion on 18 airplanes for students will be saddled with the Armed Forces, and increasing even huger debts when they Defense spending from $2.5 billion graduate. to $5 billion in the coming fiscal The University of Toronto year. has already attempted to cut back the Women's Studies PAID LABOUR FORCE Program without success, and will probably try again. With the cost of living increasing the way it is, more and more III. Other Social Services women are forced to take jobs outside their homes. Between The Ontario Government has: 1964 and 1974, the number of women in the Canadian labour Frozen force grew by 88.6%. 43.1% ofthe building of nursing and old age homes, meaning the women in the paid labour force more work for women looking are self-supporting. Despite after this massive increase in the the elderly in their own homes. proportion of woren in the paid * Frozen labour force, women remain in staff and service in hospitals the lowest paid jobs --"women's" in 1976, meaning more work for hospital workers, jobs. 70% of whom are women. In 1963, 61.8% of women in the Toronto, threatened paid labour force were In in Metro clerical cutbacks sales, and service. By 1973, in social services include: this percentage had increased * to 63.1. Family Allowance. For a saving of $221.3 million, the government is eliminating the 10.8% increase mothers were supposed to receive beginning January 1. This is the largest single saving in the government cutbacks program. * UIC. Claimants with dependents who used to get 75% of their earnings have been cut to 66 2/3%. People over 65 years of age are no longer eligible, at a loss of $120 million to those claimants. * OFY eliminated. A saving of $3; million and 35,000 more youth without a wage this summer. CYC eliminated. A saving of $6.1 million and 450 community workers wageless. LIP cutback by $35 million and 80,000 more people unemployed. The Native Indian Brotherhood has calculated that the above cutbacks will mean a loss to native people across Canada of over $6Z million. These cuts come at a time when the national unemployment rate is 7.3% and over 10% of women and 13% of youth (14 - 24 years) are unemployed. However, the government is also "going after the rich". They have imposed a 10% surtax on those with incomes over $30,000. There is a debate going on in Parliament whether this means that a married man with two children making $35,000 will pay 19 or 35 more tax per weekl GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURES At the same time as the governis saving money on women, old people, and youth, it is increasing expenditures elsewhere. While the MP's and Senators have frozen their ment *A 50% cut in shelter allowance And the difference between men'srecipients. for welfare and women's wages is increasing. The end to supplementary In 1971, the average man earnedto Family Benefits benefits 44/ more than the average and woman. Old Age Security recipients, By 1973, it was 45.1% which In for eyeglasses, more. paid Ontario in 1974, women dentures, waged hearing aids, etc. workers earned $1 billion less of staff and services *Reduction than if they were men. in old age homes. *Freeze on spending for POVERTY AND WOMEN visiting nurses and homemakers. Imposing poverty these All is of what which means MORE WORK FOR WOME cutbacks are all about, and a woman on her own is assured a place among the poorest! IF YOU PUT A MAN ON A PEDESTAL, 2/3 of all women below ageGETTING YOUR HEAD YOUthe RISK of 25 have annual incomes of KICKED OFF. less than $5,000. * 85% of single-parent families are mother-led. "In this struggle, we must accompli * Almost 50% of mother-led families nothing less than a wrenching adjus have an income of less $ expectations." ,000. ment than of our 23% of single father-led families --Pierre Trudeau, have less than $4,000. Oct. 13, 1975. * A male head of family hasgetting a "We are tired of always 9.3% chance of living below theourselves for somebody sacrificinn poverty line. A female else'shead goodofor profit. We want family has a 40.1% to chance. stop inflation where it hurts most -- in our pocketbooks. We CUTBACKS IN SOCIAL want SERVICES IN ONTARIO the increase in our Baby Bonus If you don't live and in Ontario, we want wages for all our work use these figures as model as awomen." to find out what's happening --Sallie Shum, in your area.) Dec.24, 1975. . I. . Daycare. From a letter to the Toronto The government cutbacks are forcing an Globe increasing and Mail. number of women out of their paid jobs and into total economic dependence on a man.WAGES HOUSEWORK COMMITTEE The FOR government has: 745 DANFORTH AVENUE, SUITE 301, TORONTO, ONTARIO. 466-7457. * Frozen any expansion in the Parry Sound, Ont. (FNS) number of daycare centres after March 31. A young native woman was raped * Threatened to double the subby sons of the Mason Lodge here. sidized fee from 251 to 50 daily. First, they pounded salt into Frozen the number of subsidher vagina, they then gangized children. banged her. Nothing was done * In effect reduced the operating after the incident since she budget of subsidized daycare is a native woman and the men centres by allowing only a were sons of Masonic Lodge mem 5.5% increase this year. bers. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �P,ROJECr Although many widows'Wdrkedwhile they were married, the vast majority, 70% preferred to stay home to look after their families. The impression given was that t5 ON WIDOWS The following article is a condensation of a research project done in the Kingston area on tl-e status and conditions of life of some widows in that city.- Funded by the Dept. of the Secretary of State at the request of Widows United, Kingston, Ontario. We feel it will be of interest to the general public since widowhood is universal and inevitable in many cases. The following then contains exerpts from the research papers and the entire subjective evaluation. This research consisted of 80 persons Anglo Saxon in origin, 70% of whom had resided in the area for a minimum of twenty years and of whom over 50% had been married for over 20 years. The average age was 53.4 years. Most of the subjects had been widowed for over 2 years making it difficult to examine closely the reactions to the severe grief which immediately follows the death of a loved one. Many of the widows could not remember and fully discuss this aspect because of the time lapse. The sample group was by no means random. Therefore, this report cannot reflect the total profile of widows and their problems, but there are significant trends seen in this group to support a meaningful examination of these subjects. Although most married couples assume that the husbands earned pension and life insurance together and would provide for the widow's livelihood in the event of death, only 51.3% of our sample were receiving a widow's pension from BREAKDOWN OF PROBLEM AREAS Loneliness and general isolation -53.7%. General adjustment problems -27.2%. Financial problems -19.1%. Advantages 72.r% saw no advantage in being a widow. The rest listed freedom, relief from worry over his illness, solitude, no need any longer to be servile, more mature and independent. ATTITUDES TOWARD WIDOWS BY COMMUNITY Over 80% of those widowed believed they were treated unfairly by the community, taken advantage of by car-repair people, house repair people, salesmen, men, lawyers and real-estate and bank personal, -in general, devalued and ignored while 13.8% saw themselves as well-treated and valued. It is interesting to note that few widows advocated more independence and responsibility in wives before widow-hood strikes, rather opting for more social security after the fact. Only three widows wanted more control in pension and life insurance decisions. Only one felt girls should get a good education and learn a trade. SUBJECTIVE EVALUATION Certainly not all widows have problems but many of the widows that their husbands' employment and only were interviewed seemed dissatisfied 21.3% were receiving a life insurance with their lives. The change from Canada Pension, designed to annuity. the status of wife to widow seemed supplement personal resources was being to present most of the problems. paid to 56.3% of the widows, but in Grief, of course, was very difficult some cases the widow commented that to live through, but the problems of the payment was less than ten dollars adjusting to be a single independent In 78.75% of the cases, a month. woman seemed to continue for years income had dropped. 57.1% had dropped and years. The strongest problem over 50 per cent. More than one-fifth area we discovered was an inability had to sell their homes and move to to make decisions and solve problems cheaper lodging. (a certain passive acceptance of things). Many widows would complain NEED FOR ADVICE AND HELP about certain issues and then would be totally unable to conceive changing A large portion of the group, 70% and solving them. For example, many needed advice after the death of their women were very lonely and wanted In order of priority, the husbands. companionship, yet would never think most needed was financial assistance. of meeting a new man, out of loyalty Understandably, many widows found it to the dead husband. Others would difficult to express trouble and grief complain of lack of money, or a need to strangers, and often to friends. for bigger pensions, but they would For this reason, they felt open to not explore possible avenues of If there only their closest family. retraining or employment. was no close family, these strong Some widows complained of nowhere feelings were repressed and controlled. to go for help and advice, yet when Many of them felt no one was really asked later about what social service They helpful to them at this time. agencies they would use if available, felt they presented a threat and they claimed that they wouldn't use embarrassment to others. any because they like to be independent A large majority of widows were upset REACTIONS TO THE DEATH by the attitudes society had towards them, yet when asked what changes Shock, relief that illness is over, they would like to see in the society sorrow, numbness, depression, confusion, only a small percentage mentioned a nervousness and mental problems, change of attitude. hysteria, loneliness, fright, resignation Our feelings are that many widows bitterness, surprise, helplessness, guilt, believe consciously or unconsciously disbelief. 13.8% rejoiced, were angry that their life is over, that there at husband for leaving her alone with is no point in actively changing kids, nothing, wound-up, haunted, anything. In fact, many widows tragic, supressed feelings, wanted never do make the adjustment to to go home, or had no answer. being single, independent women; 32% would consider re-marriage. they appear as wives who died with 67.5% would not for various reasons. their husbands. Such an inability Re-marriage is not commented on with to change and adapt is understandany enthusiasm and companionship was able with older women who become the only popular reason for consider in it. widows. housewife and mother in the home, They found value and worth in the domestic work that they did, and many felt most competent in perform Once the family ing such activity. disperses and the husband dies, a woman loses her role as housewife She is no longer value( and mother. for what she has done and been trail to do all her life. These skills are not easily marketable and the sense of value derived from this Now, the widr work soon disappears. must face a world of survival entirely foreign to what she has bec Though many women have used to. worked before widowhood, this work most often low paying and she has n( consistently pursued it all her life Also her age and sex may go against because many employers would be hesitant to hire an older woman who has had no consistent experience. Very frequently, the widow is left in a situation with which she She totally unprepared to cope. must survive in a working world she may be unused to, she must make financial and business decisions on her own, perhaps for the first t in her life, she must make new friends on her own and the midst of all this change, she must redefine herself from that of housewife to single woman. The role of housewife and mother an essential role, in this society, to the exclusion of all other livin skills, it can become a trap to the If the housewife has no widow. 'marketable skills, no financial or business knowledge, cannot make independent decisions; cannot survive in the male world, she is for the biggest cultural shock of i her life. As long as marriage remains an integral part of our society, there There are 2,92 shall be widowhood. widows in Kingston, 560 of them he Every woman who marri of families. must realize that she is a possible widow, and must prepare herself for that state realistically. The youn er a couple is, the easier it is fo them to recognize widowhood as a natural extension of wifehood. In our study, less than half of widows had discussed the possibility of widowhood at all with their husbands, and even for those who had made provisions for widowhood, their preparations were often less than The lack of involvement c adequate. the part of many of these women as wives in issues that directly determine their future living standard indicates either a complacent or a Perhaps some COUf passive attitude. still believe that the woman should shielded from complicated money matt even when they determine her future 1 security. So strong is our taboo against recognizing the effects of death in our midst, that many writers lump widows, divorcees, and single women together as one coherent group. But singleness is not the issue for widows; it is grief, and learning to cope alone with economic and emotional problems, exactly what she has been protected from all her married years. Our study shows that woman, who has seen her major functi as that of housewife, loses her love one, her job, her income, her social and sometimes her home. And she mus continued on pas PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �C RED IT $ COUNSELLING WANTED - MORE CREDIT COUNSELLING In a classic double-bind statement designed to hide the dismal truth about "easy credit", David Ogilvy, a British advertising executive once told an audience "Gentlemen the consumer is no moron, the consumer is your wife." Unchallenged the statement places the full burden of money mismanagement on the everyday housewife. The truth is more complicated than advertisers can afford to have us Credit Counselling shows that believe. the lure of easy credit is oblivious Men and women, we find, are to gender. equally vulnerable to subtle invitations for indulgence in a seductive market place. In addition to deliberate corporate consumer manipulation, credit or financial management difficulties may be caused by any number of reasons illness, employment difficultsuch as: ies, reduced income, and so on. Regardless of cause, the result of financial difficulties can be extremely hazardous to the victims well being, sometime jeopardizing employment, home life, and even health and mental stability. The Ontario government has shown some leadership in providing counselling for troubled debtors. Province subsidized programs are operating in a number of centres throughout the The debt counselling program province. operated by the Thunder Bay Family and Credit Counselling agency receives 60% provincial subsidy for operating The remainder, 400, is expenses. raised locally by donations from credit grantors, and through United The counselling service Way funding. is provided free of charge to all During 1975 the agency clients. assisted 229 clients with a variety of Services financial problems. included budgeting assistance, general financial advice, and proSimply stated, a pro-rate rate. service is an agreement arranged by the agency between the debtor and all creditors, which repays debts in significantly reduced monthly instalments. Though only a small number of individuals require debt-counselling services, the amounts involved can serve as a warning to those who may be on the verge of falling prey to easy credit. Total debts for 229 clients amounted to a staggering $1,218,019. (one million, two hundred and eighteen thousand, and nineteen dollars) owed Only 84 of the to 1445 creditors. 229 clients required pro-rate assistance. Pro-rate disbursements to the credit community (banks, credit unions, finance companies, stores), came to a sizeable $110,065. In human terms, the results of debt-counselling are extremely People, once at the mercy gratifying. of wage liens, legal threat, hassling telephone calls at home and at work, regained peace of mind and personal and family stability. Many families were spared the debilitating psychosocial symptoms of financial stress: divorce, desertion, depression and general dispair. informed future consumers. Lastly, Despite the proven effectiveness individual consumers have a responof credit counselling services, the sibility to become better informed program has not reached maximum about the many hidden issues related A significant effectiveness in Ontario. to consumer spending. part of the problem is that the province Ogilvy might not have been right, takes a miserly approach to the but how would we answer P.T. Barnum? development of needed social services. Provincial subsidy policy, for example, -Arend Visser. deliberately excludes funding for NmsoiroplI 4111141.1m. program advertising or community. promotion - the hassle tools of the market-place are not available for developing a well informed consumer! Imeet this trauma alone. 18.1 percent With over This point is important. found that no one was helpful, no 1.5 billion spent on advertising widows found social services to be annually in Canada (2% of our gross helpful, and children emerged as national product), the high risk the only significant helpful group and even ordinary consumer is subof all those that widows turned to. jetted to intense pressures - for many A good idea is an annual reassessit results in a wealth of vexing ing of the financial situation, problems including the ills of a adequacy of life insurance, wills, A current prayer,7 debt-life style. pension retirement plan and sur"Dear Lord, please give me the luxuries vivor benefits. Both partners should of life and I'll gladly forego the participate and understand all necessities, typifies the attitude aspects of future plans and present It makes the modern situation. of many customers. A good time for this producer King and Sovereign of all would be the couple's anniversary. human needs (real or conditioned This day can be a commitment that by advertising), and relegates the their love and concern for each average consumer to life-long other's welfare will extend beyond the widows cont'd serfdom. grave. Inequalities in the advertising equation reveal themselves in a steady avalanche of consumer complaints to the Federal Government's official listening post, Box 99, Ottawa. Here is a quick run-down on the type and number of complaints. -Food (2,180 complaints): quality, prices, and labelling. -Cars and accessories (2,133 complaints): quality, failure to receive goods, guarantees and warrantees, repairs and service. -Housing and real estate (1,800 complaints): quality, price, failure to receive goods or ser- Women must accept the fact that the security of a housewife is too often short-lived. Girls must secure adequat education and employment training so they can maintain the standard of living for themselves and their children if necessary. The original purpose of this report was to study the problems of widows in Kingston in order to make recommendations for changes in the community and in legislation. But through this study, we have discovered that only a minority of Kingston widows could propose positive changes in community and vice. legislation that they would use and -Prices (1,911 complaints) benefit from. We as researchers -Advertising (969 complaints). feel that we cannot rightfully tell widows what they need. In fact, Complaints cited indicate the the one recommendation we do make is tremendous impact of calculated that no one should tell widows what marketing strategies on the more or they need. Widows must explore and less unprotected consumer. The become aware of their own needs and modern market place has become a wants, then perhaps they will take initiative in solving their own jungle of confusing product claims problems for themselves. These by manufacturers and has given birth widows must be given an opportunity to a veritable explosion of consumer to define their own problems in a products. Only a couple of decades constructive way together.. ago, for example, grocery stores used We hold that no one can really help to stock 1500 items on their shelves, widows until they are given the compared to 8000 (of which a thousand opportunity to help themselves. a year are new), in 1976. We recommend that a drop-in centre Vhat should the Federal Government should be formed for widows similar to do besides listening to consumer those centres for senior citizens. complaints. How can it counteract tht The centre should be available for forces of "normal" corporate sales widows to drop-in and socialize strategies, and abnormal mass media a certain number of days a week. hucksterism. Besides making business In this way, the isolation that surrounds more competitive, stronger policing each individual widow may be of the market place, allowing full lessened, and she may see that her consumer participation in decisions problems and concerns are those of affecting them, and providing better other widows as well. Such a centre grievance-solving mechanisms for would supply a safe environment for individual consumers, senior widows to interact and perhaps government must develop a national then they will be better able to network of credit counselling agencies. specify their needs. A counsellor may It has been estimated that it would help with these discussions. A only cost $3.3 million dollars to set :entre will also encourage widows up an effective nation-wide counsellin to take responsibility and program. Meanwhile, the cost of initiative in running something as personal bankruptcy in 1970 was an :oncrete and tangible as the centre. People should be available to give estimated sixty to ninety million financial and emotional advice to dollars. The business communtiy too widows who need it. Together has a responsibility for "cleaning widows may be able to help themup its act", perhaps by diverting selves, for no one else can live for a small percentage of its annual them. A widow must learn to know profits towards developing a more herself as a woman, independent informed consumer. Schcols also and single. must play a stronger rolc in preparing 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �FEMINIST PRESS These small news-letters and grow-ing journals are like yeast in the dough of complacenty to a sex that has been eating the unleavened bread of oppression for too long. We must preserve and support this voice as a priority,it is the only voice of women totally free from the manipulation of those whose aim and desire it is to keep us ignorant of the power and confidence that is our right by birth. In almost every case the women who write and distribute this press do so on a voluntary basis,oper ating on crumbs of cash provided by small grants from Gov -with the support of a growing readership. Survival is a constant threat from issue to issue we must find the drive, the ener the cash to sta e our case What is the feminist press? The true believer will tell you it's not MS or the woman's homemaker mags,its not even Chatelaine although one finds in its pages, a certain appetizer that creates a hunger for a deeper meaning,a closer walk with a movement that has become like the cry of our own hearts. Across this Canada of ours from the north-west territories, to St Johns Newfounland the Status of Women Councils and the centres of radical feminists comes the written expressions of discontent og women who are emotionally and mentally ready to assume a larger role in a man-made,male controlled world. REPORT ON FEMINIST WEEKEND AT CEDAR GLEN In the conference centre of the United Church at Cedar Glen, Bolton Ont. the Toronto collective hosted, without government participation a feminist weekend of what turned out to be, as far as could see, a meeting of true belieThis person in spite of a vers. non perceptable generation gap was enfolded in that special warmth that is generated where ever women meet without the props of pretension. Planned without a set structure of workshops, it made a random selection of groups to first come up with subjects for further discussion in a later workshop approach. found the small group discussion not as productive as the general discussion which took place in the One constant large conference room. theme emerged time after time, the pervasive impotence that women feel who are mentally and emotionally prepared to take a larger part in the planning of changes that must take place in society if woman is to reach her full potential in this The hetersexual relationcountry. ship as defined in both emotional and economic terms as a form of dependancy was one that found responce in both straight and lesbian It became a bridge that women. both sides could cross over with The conference could well ease. have justified it's exsistance by this fact alone; a mutual recognition that differences in life styles crumble under the harsh realities of economic pressure. The lesbian collective of Wages for Housework was vociferous and militant, they are embattled and bitter, twice oppressed, many with children finding themselves pushed to the wall by the society they equate with male supremecy. We may question the approach but never the motive; there is no question survival is the driving force, to keep their children and preserve their life-style. Wages I I without apology-to a society who have found it all too easy in the past to dismiss women as the appendi of the real power in control. One of the more comprehensive journals in the feminist press is THE OTHER WOMAN out of Toronto,a good and solid read for 50G or $4 a year to subscribers,free to prisons and Native Women it provides a larger look at lifestyle and the general health of the movement. We at the northern Woman will keep a supply of this fine paper for women and solicit your support for it as well as our own.We will also the first time print a list of other news-letters that have impressed us. CEDAR GLEN for Housework did not find support in the conference, it was seen as one more dependency gimmick that allows the state even more participation in the lives of women. The number of times the words money, power and control were used as a panacea for all the problems would have delighted any member of the board but in general this was a conference prepared to face up to the realities. The future and fate of the movement and all women hinges on their ability to defend and susstain each other in the struggle. Joint ownership of land and property, lifeskills for a feminist community, the role of the feminist press, the pros and cons of separation of the sexes, the third option of celebacy relin avoiding the hassle of deep ationships, the subject of cooptation from the extreme male left, from social services, from the moderate liberal; a more realistic approach to the non declared feminist groups whose long term goals in the struggle for equal right lay parallel to their own, the growing interest in credit unions for women, the increasing crisis housing starts, the passion to have them owned and operated by women as true havens, the sexist literature in the schools, the push of the anti-abortion groups, All these topics combined to make the general discussion groups a fascinating study, the freedom and ease with which all took part was extremely gratifying. My personal impression was one of tremendous vitality, not always channeled positively but a tangible physical presence; one who has always believed the spoken word is the most unreliable form of communication, can now dismiss much of the words my own included and say with perfect It confidence the spirit lives! struggles from frustration to depression and from depression to celIt is in healthy flux ebration. politically aware yet obliged to If buy into privelege for survival. it has a fault it is the impatience that sets it at odds with the compI lacent and unaware, of it's own sex. Those who have opted out of the hete sexual relationships have paid their dues. It is unthinkable that straig women everwhere should withhold the Man and full measure of sisterhood. woman relationships under the present structure are enforced and continued as an imbalance of power to th highest level of political maniThe personal is political pulation. and many times freedom begins and The word radical ends in the home. is misused and abused in the context of human relationships. Personally can't see anything more radical than challenging sexism where ever That is how radical it is found. suggest in am prepared to be and that context we are all equally radi The burgeoning spiritual and creatiN growth in the movement should give us all a measure of satisfacttion. 1 Sat. night concert at the conference was a real power-house, singing, comedy routine from the Three of Cur a feminist tea-room in Toronto, poetry by Alexa de Wiel and from A most engros! Thunder Bay as well. ing film on the life of Gertrude Stein, that great literary genius, was the delight of the most creativr minds of her time. The fact that si was a known lesbian posed no threat to her popularity. The part Alice Tooklas played in her life was fascinating. would'n It was an experience learn listened and have missed, was not alone in my age group. Kay MacPherson from NAC was a great companion and took me back to Toronto. Whatever the conference hoped to accomplish in the way of concrete directions palls into insignificie beside the friends made, the communication established by a short IA to-gether along a path that is our common destiny. I I I I I I I GERT BEADLE 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �REPORT FROM COUNCI L NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO INTERNATIONAL WOMAN'S DECADE CO-ORDINATING COUNCIL Minutes of May 15, 1976 Meeting held in Conference Dining Room at Confederation College with 19 members present. A group picture taken by a photographer to be used in submission to the Chronicle Journal's woman's issue, June 29. Minutes of previous meeting were RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT ACTION GROUP: adopted as read. Paulah Edwards reported that the core group are presently enrolled in Secretary's Wen-do classes, a self-defense course. Publicity report: report stated that an information They will be sponsoritig a seminar on package, containing a pamphlet, rape and sexula assault at Confederation a covering letter, and a copy of the College, June 19, and brochures will follow. Northern Woman journal had beenThe sent group will speak at Hillcrest highschool, to approximately 100 woman's organizations with the highschool health classes, A press release in N.W. Ontario. and have already appeared at a Woman's re: formation of the council andInstitute. its aims had appeared in all local papers. Moved by Marg Lanchok that Gert's and Paulah's reports be accepted. Discussion on Council's approach Seconded by Leone Lang. Gert Beadle suggested to the media: the action groups report on their own HERSTORY projects under the supportive structure of the Council and that BerniceMarg Lanchok reported that a grant Cain be the official spokesperson in the Secretary of State was grom the interests of the Council in received, and interviews of the Motion that all reports be accepted by Micky murray Seconded by Marg Lanchok.' . HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION HEARING Marg Lanchok reported that she attended an organizational meeting on behalf of the council and will present a brief at a public meeting June6. Meeting adjourned. Next meeting June 12/76 future. students were completed. Paulah Motion by Gert Beadle, secondedEdwards by will continue the project Joan that the publicity committee operating out of the Northern be dissolved and that action groups Woman Journal office, Bay Street. be responsible for their own publicity. NATIVE WOMEN LIBERATION I cannot breathe this air of COMMITTEE REPORTS Bernice Cain reported that she had sent letters to Marlene Pierre, Gert Beadle reported Crisis Housing: Nancy Morrison and Edith MacLeod, on her meeting with Dorothy Akram, asking them to join the Council. councillor at the Tarbut St. Houses. It was pointed out they were presently She stated her committee was encouraged involved in the Native Women's Lisa informed the with the progress. Conference. group that she and Colleen and Gert will visit the Kenora women's hostels SOCIAL SERVICE CUTBACKS At present, no active in June. citizen's committee is operating there. Sharon McKay reported. Our Council is not affiliated with the Coalition for Social Justice in opposition to social service cutbacks. Bernice Cain will send MEMMEMEM NUMMI a letter of support to Norm Richards. Sharon McKay will be Council's liason with this group. ROOTS A telegram of protest from this Council's My grandmother had a word for sex, seminar had sent Intercourse,fornication, or the by Sharon. common screw,and all the other definitive terms were not incluEQUAL PAY GROUP ded in her repertoire.She had her own wore It was"accomodateY Leona Lang reported that a strong got the feeling rather early core group was established. Weaknesses that accomodating each other in wasthe labour laws which accounted something my grandparents didfor the labour contract failure rather well,and with considerable at the Port Arthur Clinic was merriment. wasn't sure whatdiscussed. Changes in that area will it was but knew it was enough have top priority with this group. to make her give a rough tongue Motion that we affiliate, with to a neighbour who had the bad N.A.C. who are actively lobbying for manners to catch the act in the legislative change. Unanimous consent. hayfield one day while she and Bernice will request affiliation by letter. grandfather ,AAt building a hay II MIMI stack. II II MINIM. M heard her tell my mother, got some pretty definite "It's nobody's business where ideas about my grandmothers accomodate my man and told meth6ds of accomodation. For one him so,he wont come snooping thing,it never occurred to me around here again can tell you". that it wasn't she who decided just when she felt accomodating. PDF compression, OCR, web a watermarked Theoptimization word duty wasusing dust in her mouth. heard her say many unequal values where the lyrics for shunted womanhood ring to the tune of "pots 'n pans ugly hands' and "aging witches becoming bitches". I know another part of me the part you fail to see the real meaning of me I Thus fulfillment is found I I in womanhood creating a restored image I I I in the femaleness I in me. I I -Wendy Peterson Kenora evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �NATIONAL ACTION COMMITTEE mi ni st ers absent was In April of this year On Sunday _the to resolutions fortunate enough representwi presented to theOntario voting as delegate North-Western a delfor refusal Very egate from or theacceptance. Northern Women's In support of the North West Territories little was raised for Centreopposition to the annual NAC (National Status of Women Action Committee's any of the issues with some delec Action Committee) conference in ates exercising reserved position Brief to the Mackenzie Pipeline The conference began Fri. Ottawa. on evening a few. April Inquiry, re the effects of the pipeline The three issues until 23 andmain continued arising out of the resolutions on N.W.T. women, BE IT RESOLVED that Many piwomen Sun. evening, April 25. sed were: economic matters NAC encourages member organizations also stayed for the lobby such of M.P.'s wage birth cc 26. to make representations at hearings on controls: Parliamentabortion, Hill, Mon. April across Canada of the Mackenzie trot and dayconference care; and began the organThe on a someization of an effective communicPipeline Inquiry re the effect of what disappointing note when the ation system which could reach 0 of the pipeline upon women. panel of Marc Lalonde, Minister women of Canada on issues concerr Health and Welfare and also Ministing WHEREAS Native Women In Canada suffer Other deal erthem. in charge ofresolutions Federal governwith such thing as the MacKenzie a double discrimination and are thereIWY, Ron Basment participition in Pipeline, the presentation fore the most oppressed in the country, wonJohn ford, Minister of Justiceofand inMunro, the media, energy WHEREAS the Supreme Court of Canada Minister of alternatives Labour, did not priorities in government spending has upheld the right of Indian appear after they had agreed to do etc. Councils to strip Native women of Details of these resolution It was immediately apparent to so. will givenpresent in THE how STATUS OF their heritage when they marry, thebewomen important WOMEN NEWS. outside the band, while similar these men considered the conference penalties are not inflicted upon men participated in sent th place they reto On be.Mon.In their lobby of MP's, in which who marry outside the band, lobbied for Munro and Baspresentitives; BE IT RESOLVED NAC urge that the Bill an ford individual MP;their the NDP caucus, they had Deputy Minister took part in the luncheon attende reof Rights be embodied and entrenched and Assistant Deputy Ministers, by spectively John Munro in andattendance. Marc Lalonde an in the BNA Act... that NAC mount a delegation to the visited For the Lalonde, office ofthe Bobrepresentative Andras, Minister of Indian Affairs, Judd my was local who had agreed BobMP, Kaplan, an not MP and alsot Parlreceive any lobbyists. Buchanan to ask that evictions of iamentary Secretary toThe thelobby Minister Native women on the Caughnawagna wasofthe high point of the weekend National Health and Welfare. reservation be halted pending resolution forAlso it presented an opportunity t on the panel was Martha Hynna of their appeals which are before the speak face-to-face withof the men aPrivy Coordinator, Status Women, courts, and that the rights of Council, and Jeha Roberts, women who have so much to do MP. wit The Native women should not be jeopardized men there on behalf ofinfluenci Munro and passing the legislation in any contemplated changes to the were placed women. in a rather diftheBasford lives of Canadian Indian Act;... ficult position for The conference wasalthough attendedthey that ... (NAC delegates and member could provide some of information women from all parts Canada it to organizations be asked) to write questions asked of them could cluding Newfoundland, B.C. they and tfletters of protest to the Minister, not answer the Ministers Yukon. was for grateful for the that and to Ian Watson, M.P., in whose Marth they to were representing. chance articulate the particul riding Caughnawagna is located... Hynna was very informative concerns of Northern women to and the appeared to be committed to the work present. Mary Two-Axe Early and several other As for the two that she isthe doing. Despite regional, class, Indian women took active part in politicians; they displayed an inethnic and political differences discussions and lobbying M.P.'s.They execusable ignorance of women's that existed among the women at t are threatened with loss of homes, issues and to make this ignorance conference, almost unanimous agre separation from families, loss of even palatable, theyall spoke ment waslass reached on almost of in rights, (and their children also lose very patronizing, sometimes theaissues. think that this wotolrights) such as to advanced education,... erent, have to besometimes stated asnot-so-tolerent the success if they marry a man who is not a Although the questioning of the manner. conference. registered Indian. As one vivacious theSaturday panel was a a frustrating experwas busy day win "Montreal older woman said: ience for all those present, workshops almost constantly in me it people can come and bury their dogs certainly a greatthe deal to bring ion, first to did determine prior in the pet cemetary on our reservation, together the anger and disappointities and then to draw up resolul cannot be buried with my own but ment ofthe theworkshops women gathered ions from chosen there. people there! the delegates according to the i5 ues they felt to be most importar The workshop attended was to dr resolutions for the following foL The Herstory project begun issues; mass consciousness-raisin I.W.Y. will go into it's 111111111 IMMO MOM ing, abortion, wage control and second phase this season with backs, and political equality. a summer work project grant. the workshop attended was typic Paula Edwards will index and of the others, as I'm sure it was complete the material,to those it is a miracle that we were able students who applied we can only to arrive at an acceptable statesay we are sorry we couldn't ment on these issues, considerinc hire all of them. the wide scope of involvement one militancy or lack of same among ENGLAND the women participating. But agr ment was reached which was a verb A Bill Battered Wives (Rights encouraging achievement. to Possession of Matrimonial Home) has received first reading in the It would English Parliament. OTTAWA Hill - A pilot project to continue BY Laurie "require the courts to make an the initiatives in the field commenc order giving the wife of a man by the IWY Secretariat in 1975,eight who has been convicted of an act consultants experienced with women's of violence against her the comgroups and community education have plete right to possession of the been hired to work in eight regions matrimonial home if she applies across the country. One of the confor such an order and for purposes sultants is Colleen Hughes in Nothconnected therewith." western Ontario. "Loserism is when oppressed -Spare Rib (English feminist do something. Well just DO Colleen Hughes can be contacted by magazine) Establishment's jobl" leaving a message at 623-5241,the SecI NAC NEWS RESOLUTIONS FOR URGENT ACTION I I I I I I I I QUOTE 14 can't I OMEN- retary of State office,or through her Ihome,358 N.Syndicate Avenue,Thunder P7C 3W5. Phone 623-3990 IrrU 1E3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy ofMIME. CVISIONMIN PDFCompressor sit around and think up reasons why they �CONVERSATION HE SAYS. SHE SAYS I USED TO LOVE TO DANCE,BUT HE DOESN'T CARE TO ANYMORE. MY WIFE CAN DO ANYTHING SHE LIKES AS LONG AS SHE DOES IT ON HER OWN TIME, C I'M SO BORED WITH MY LIFE I COULD SCREAM. 0 M M I'M JUST AS TRAPPED AS SHE IS I CANT DO EVERYTHING I'D LIKE I'M EATING TOO MUCH AND I DONT KNOW WHY. EITHER. I WANT A ROOM OF MY OWN WITH A LOCK AND KEY,I WANT TO KEEP MY DREAMS FROM BEING SMASHED. WHY DOES SHE NEED HER OWN MONEY EVERYTHING I HAVE IS HERS. U N I WANT TO STAY LOVING BUT IT'S HARD. I WANT TO STAY THE WOMANS MOVEMENT FRIGHTENS ME 'M AFRAID SHE'LL HATE ME. C I GIVE MYSELF OVER TO THE RAGE THAT IS IN ME,I'LL SMASH EVERYTHING WE HAVE BUILT TOGETHER. IF T HOW CAN I SAY THIS FRAME IS TOO SMALL TO GROW INJWITHOUT SAYING I WANT TO GROW AWAY FROM HER I 0 HARD. THE WOMANS MOVEMENT FRIGHTENS ME, THERE IS SO MUCH OF IT THAT APPLIES TO ME I DONT WANT TO THINK ABOUT IT. IF I GIVE MYSELF OVER TO THE RAGE THAT IS IN MEJI WILL SMASH EVERYTHING WE'VE BUILT TO-GETHER A LOVING BUT IT'S HOW CAN I SAY THIS FRAME IS TOO SMALL TO GROW IN WTHOUT SAYING IWANT TO GROW AWAY FROM HIM. N HOW CAN WE TELL EACH OTHER HOW WE FEEL WHEN WE ARE BOTH SO DEFENSIVE WE'LL ACCUSE EACH OTHER OF NOT CARING. I MOURN FOR MY SISTER Credit to Country Women Journal. leisurely enjoyed This morning as my second cup of coffee.I reached for the local suburban newspaper and read with horror that a 36 yr old woman had been murdered during the night. A neighbour had seen the figure of a man with a gun in did not her doorway.Even though know her personally,nor her two children,nor her estranged husband (described by the press as having no regular address or place of employment)nor her co-workers where she was employed as secretary,I wept for her. She was my sister. was overcome with rage at this violent act,a symbol of the final or ultimate sacrifice of personhood which men have historically demanded of us as a separate species: woman. has The male/female relationship probably best been characterized by the females willingness to sacrifice any or every portion of her own individual needs,goals and basic personhood.Direct confrontation was out,so she developed covert manipu. anion as a method.I consider it a frightening statistical fact,that married women make more suicide attempts and carry them out at a alarming and higher rate than single and dissapated,they either give one last sigh and surrender,or take a deep breath and come out I fighting. I I women. Some men,in there honest groping search for new roles to play,are themselves many times lost,it takes a very self assured woman to gently guide them in the relationship. It is however a fine line between guiding andteaching a person to allow himself to be free with you and yet not attempting to dominate him denying his needs,under the guise of our own liberation. have watched women friends try to please men who cannot be pleased,remembering as little girls,that pleasing their fathers and grand fathers and uncles brought them love and acceptance.The circles enclosing ,their worlds grow smaller and smaller as they try harder and harder to please until they are mere things, objects.Their life energies I personally find intimate relationships with men draining.I find myself in a ping pong cycle ,getting need from the emotional support can be strong enough to women so with men.I find myself hassle it out representing every female relationship they have experienced from mother an interaction on down;taking of with them,means taking on their garbage and accumulated myths.lt is tiring to discover that each friend ship turns out to be a CR experience for both of us I I I sapped The tension of being powerless The waiting and knowing that with each shadowy figure on a dimly lit street your very existence could be wiped out,or with luck you could only be raped,molested and beaten.The physical power,the physical meat muscle strength which is held over women from the time of small wobbling toddlers threatened with "when father gets home",or the gangs of boys on the way home from school-the pushing shoving,hair pulling,rock or snowball throwing.or the adolescent male sadistically teasing with an arm twist or a locked grip on your wrist. This constant taunting of muscle power over our bodies as we remember the the neighbour lady with the cauliflower ears from her husbands beating.The very real vulnerability of our experiences recorded in our minds and ever interfering with assertiveness in our adult day to day relationships with men. How many ways do men kill women? Killing us softly,slowly,eating away at our capabilities,our self-confidence, our dignity,self respect and self esteem;eroding our hopes and dreams the Dream Killers,the Mind Killers the Soul Killers,and the epitome of their domination,when we act out their fi nal demand and take our lives or have them taken from us. So to-day mourn my sister's death,shot in the head with a shot. gun by her former husband,and mourn the suffering that all my sisters have received at the hands of the men they have loved. I I . PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �T HE F OR NEED The rage we feel in our day to day encounters with peo,ple who lack understanding of women,the constant frustration of exploitation and belittlement,and the ever present fear of destruction ,are but a few of the problems we,as women must face. Try to imagine for a moment how all these problems would feel,given a few details of another persons life.For example,men making passes at you,that you dont recognize as a pass,because you have no idea what a pass is. Or imagine being made love the to,enjoying it with pure animal instinct we all have within us,but with none of the tenderness or care that is such a vital part of lovemaking.Or let us take it one step further7imagine yourself pregnant,imagine drs. checking you over,discussing your life,then doing something very painful to your insides,that you cannot recognize as an abortion because you dont know what an abortion is.Then you go through a post partum depression and lose control and they lock you up ,.in a room.You get over it and everything is the same,except they give you a little pink pill,and you dont know what it isbut you take it because you have sJo much faith in the people who give it to you that you would trust them with your life and sometimes you do. This gruesome imagery, is unfortunately not imagery at all its not science fiction and its had last night, not a nightmare It's all true.It happens to a very misuderstood,and completely oppressed minority of women. It happens to mentally retarded women who are misfortunate enough to be forced to live behind the walls of an institution. The glaring facts came to me quite by accident in 1973/74 was working on an indep. while endant study for the college was attending at the time. My study involved sex education for the mentally retarded. while studying,working, surveying and researching--I became quite famwomen iar with many retarded who lived in a southern Ont institution.Iwas also working within the walls of this place as a councellor.Some of the slips of the tongue,that were inadvertantlyspoken to me shocked me at first,then came astonishment I I I EDUCATION S EXUAL then devastation that we could have come so far in the movement and still be so ignorant of a particular minorit.Y.which needed our help so desperately. Sex Education is almost vital to the survival of these women but for some unknown reason,we haven't taught them what they need to know. You may be justly surprised at some of the details of my study which am about to outline,it is simply proof of our innocence on the subject. will be discussing The women are classified as "borderline intellnormal",they have igence" or dull I.Q.'s that could run anywhere from 50 to 85*,and still be in this category.For the sake of argument we will avoid discussion of the severely and profoundly retarded. will define normal as not retarded to avoid confusion since the term itself is questionable.I will go so far as to say that to the best of my knowledge"sex drives" in the M.R. are more closely linked to the mental,rather than chronological age of the person.Compared to the normal therefore,the borderline person,will usually 'exhibit less sexual be' haviour,and not more as is sometimes I I I believed. Many more retarded women are taking their place in the community as self supporting adults,Others until destined to a life of recently dependance are now viewed as capable of becoming at least partially selfsufficient.As the M.R. woman assumes a more productive role in society the more she also assumes responsib- It should be added,and am quoting a resource guide put out by the National Institute on Mental Retardation" young retardates are vulnerable and easily mislead,without careful preparation can and do fall victim to sexual seduction and exploitation". It should also be added there is no evidence of increased promiscuity among the retarded.I would also like to destroy the commonly accepted myth that aggressive sexual acts are common in the retarded,as is usually assumed) and that cases like this are extremely rare,in fact less common on the averag( than in the normal population.Such act! that do occur are usually due to a lac) of emotional control rather than malicious intent. It must also be pointed out that,t1 intellectual limitations of the mental retarded present certain difficulties in the development of sex education relevant to their needs.Generally speal they are not capable of understanding the complex biological structure of the reproductive system,nor can they anticipate the social consequence of inappropriate sexual behavior.Yet,they ml be prepared for the social roles they will assume in the future. The term sex education covers all area which hSve to do with human sexuality including our attitudes,our feelings, our behavior,and the way we relate to ourselves and others. Guilt is an emotion we must be very careful not to instill.If for example ,we slap her fingers for playing with her genitals but smile when she plays with her toes,she will be confused and may associate her genitals with I ility for her own---behavipur.-_,_maintain that this very responsibility entitles her to the same respect we receive,both sexually and emotionally,not only because we are all women,but because we are all people. It's so sad to see the abuse these women are subjected to as a result of their lower level of understanding. As our sisters, we should be helping them get the very best of treat ment,rather than the all to obvious reality ofour shortcomings. My study therefore was based on the premise that retarded women ,can and do learn;and the ability to learn varied greatly from woman to woman but,for the most part she can behave in a socially acceptable fashion in s-of-NpuM-%_4wmi But time takes care of mo embarassments,when she is old enough to go out in public,you can teach her not to masturbate,just as you teach her not to pick her nose and so on. Theses are a few of the points researct brought about through careful and determined questioning. have outlined for you here What merely involves the introduction,and first chapter of my study.If signs of interest are evident,parts of the whole study will be published by the Northern Woman Journal,I hope sufficier interest will warrent this *I.Q. levels are those of the National Institute on mental retardatic Paulah Edwards I all areas of social and sex related aspects of life.If we assume she can,and does learn,then the development of sex education programs become' a reasonable goal. I M PORT A N T NORTERN WOMAN CENTRE....622-3989 WOMEN IN NEIGHBOURHOODS..622-8187 345-5841 THE NORTERN WOMAN 622-2863 MOTHERS ON BUDCE'TS 344-2431 SMITH CLINIC Paulah Edwards came to us out of Winds( This article is only part of a study she made for her thesis.Idealistic and loving she offers herself to the further understanding of what it means to be a woman and defenceless. NUM BERS SOCIAL SERVICES....623-2711 344-3571 CRISIS INTERVENTION 623-9596 FAMILY COUNCILLING 3451972 LEGAL AID 344-1192 TELECARE 623-2711 CRISIS HOUSING HUMAN RTS. COMMISSION..475-1693 EMPLPYMENT STANDARDS...475-1691 344-3922 MUNICIPAL DAY CARE 622-2450 OR 16 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �1* THE NORTHERN WOMAN RETURN TO: 316 Bay St. Thunder Bay, "P" Ontario. return postage guaranteed Canada Poster Poet Canada Bulk En hombre third troisieme class classe 220 111111011111 NM TABLE OF CONTENTS Donna Shaw 4ag 627 S. High St. City P Day Care 3 Epilepsy Thunder Bay 3 Family Property Law 4 4 Kenora Visit Women & Alternatives 5 Letters 7 Cut Backs 9 Project on Widows....I0 Credit Counselling...11 12 Feminist Weekend 13 D Report N.0 National Action Cmtt 14 Mourn For My Sisterly 16 Sexual Education 71111400Ee I THIS IS YOUR LAST COPY I YOUR SUBSCRIPTION IS DUE RR law womos Nom= ism mom PLEASE SUPPORT US (Six ISS1-45) 4 3 2-2 YEAR 72Q BuSI NESS OR rNST t TUrtONt NAM E GIFT want to get involved? call 345-5841 any Wed. or Friday. ADDRESS -- DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 2 No 6 Description An account of the resource Vol. 2, No. 6 (1976) Title: The Northern Woman Topics include: Alternative political institutions Critique of political authority Anti-capitalism Epilepsy Day care Thunder Bay Co-operative Nursery School Family property law Women’s treatment residence Kenora Interchange 75 – A Forum for Action on Women’s Issues International Women’s Year Tenant rights Women’s Credit Union Northern Women’s Centre Letters to the editor Poetry Art Government cutbacks to social services Research on the lives of widows Credit counselling Feminist press Feminist conference, Bolton ON Northwestern Ontario International Women’s Co-ordinating Decade Council Rape and sexual assault action group Human rights commission hearing Sex National Action Committee Mackenzie Pipeline inquiry Indian Act & sexism Indigenous rights Indigenous housing crisis Battered wives Bill (England) Grief & violence against women/femicide Sex education Authors/Contributors: Joan Packota Arend Visser Gert Beadle Wendy Peterson Laurie Hill Paulah Edwards 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 1976 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/16/2744/1976_Vol_3_No_1.pdf 22ab1b7d8aa8323261eaa709c15b7d8f PDF Text Text PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �EDITORIAL Some point out that a long year has passed since the valiant The Port Arthur Clinic has once again hit the headlines. women workers,at the clinic went out en strike. Within the last few days, several news items have pointed out the fact that the struggle has continued throughout these many months, with the women who,--in good faith, terminated the strike and went back to work, bearing the brunt of the doctors' ill will and harassment in defense of their legal right to unionize. To them I tip my hat. It takes courage dedication, and understanding, to stand up for principle in the interest of a group, despite intimidation and harassment. In a situation such as exists at the Port Arthur Clinic where the doctors have a monoply, and where many patients, because of special needs, had to cross the picket lines, because they could not get the required care elsewhere, on the one hand; and on the other hand, where you have a situation among the trade unions, who were committed to support the strike on paper, but who failed; and still fail to carry out sufficient educational work among their membership regarding trade union solidarity. The combination of these circumstances, along with the weak response of the then acting Minister of Labour, Dr. Bette Stephenson (past president of the Canadian Medical Association and a self-avowed feminist) who merely said she had done all she could, make the outcome of the strike predictable. Just what did Bette Stephenson do?? The doctors at the Port Arthur Clinic have proven themselves to no longer being a breed apart, but have now moved over to being nothing more than ruthless businessmen. They have effectively destroyed the image of dedicated men and women giving their lives to the sick and maimed as first class humanitarians. They have indeed emerged as a tarnished breed. As if the destruction of our faith in doctors were not bad enough there appeared also on the scene a nitwit in the guise of a female employee, who has taken it upon herself to call for decertification of the union, I wonder why?? Has this woman heard of the struggle everywhere that women are waging for equal pay and equal treatment in their places Of employment? Does she have the mental capacity to read the local paper? Did she read the result of a very recent Has she ever official survey which showed that Ontario women are being paid $44. a week less than men doing the same work? bothered to look up the meaning of the words 'unity' or 'solidarity' in the dictionary? Does she understand that some of the gains she has achieved since the strike were won by those who struke the clinic and remained steadfast? I feel pity and contempt for this individual. At long last there is a glimmer of hope; Journal, Aug. 17) Did this ding-a-ling read that a contract has been achieved (Chronicle- and that decertification will nullify it? Did she see the Aug. 18th article in the same paper, pointing out that the difference.in wages paid the unionized St. Joseph's hospital employees and the clinic workers is substantial? Perhaps this will tell her soMething. AlimilMemmowon. It is gratifying to know that a secred ballot vote of all eligible employees on the questjon of decertification has been granted by the Ontario Labour Relations Board. I hope they will use it well, and to their own advantage. In unity there is strength. **********************************************************rtrroVers****orintAt with talented and courageous women of 1 should be evicted. Some courses provide new the past. A booklet entitled "Your rights perspectives of the present. All of the and obligations under the landlord and courses address the great potential tenant act-Partiv 4( residental for the future. es) is available from; Ruth Cunningham, Director of Wamen's rd and Tenant Booklet Programs, and Lynne Thornburg, Super! ox 520, Adelaide St ,Toronto, visor of Women's Programs, continue to 6 work within the framework set by these ur conclusion that the law is result has been a delines. e rich andThe injustice prevails ber of high calibre, exciting rses offered to women throughout thwestern Ontario, as well as inars, workshops and conferences. This fall and winter there will be a Letters cont'd from page 3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �:************************* 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E IJETTERS E*******400********01010WK*** 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 sympathy and understanding, but by the-general public who are all too eager to dismiss from their minds any subject that doesn't fit into the lifestyle of their choice. The subject matter of the Northern Woman Journal is "Women in Distress", and we feel this letter fits well within that frame. Dear Sisters: still have a long way to go, and the going will be rough at times. think if had had counselling in my early adolescence it would have done away with a lot of my problems. I I I hope you think about this because you can get through to the people and make them aware, by running some articles in your feminist press. I If Thank you for reading my letter. it does nothing else it has given me an outlet. I'm surprised at myself and a little proud to be able to even say for the first time that am gay. Even if it's only in print without my name, it still feels good. I Your paper is fantastic. am so impressed. It is such a good feeling I Dear Sisters; am writing this letter with sincerity, hoping you do not think it ridiculous. don't even know if my problem will be of any interest to you. truly hope it does for feel you are the individuals who will be able to do something positive about it. I I I I I am an 18-year-old female student who is finding it extremely difficult to deal with my bisexuality. have never had relations with another woman, - my lack of lovers is not the probje, the problem is, what my bisexuality has done to my relations with my friends and family. have an awful feeling of isolation because can't really get close to my family or be completely honest and confide in them. have friends but how can discuss bisexuality with them when they openly joke and ridicule gays. I I I I I have liberal friends who consider themselves open-minded but even so, know if confide in them, even if they don't prejudice themselves I I I would feel that every time against me, joked with them or put my arm around their shoulder in friendship they might feel uneasy, as to my guess I'm trying to motives. What know my situation say is that can hardly be unique. I I I I A lot of my problems could have been gotten rid of a long time ago if could only have spoken to someone who is bisexual and learned to deal There is counselling services with it. for just about any problem an adolescent can come across except this. Drugs, family problems, alcoholism, you name it, the high-school counsellor is prepared to deal with it, but how can you cure homosexuality. can't think of myself as being sick. Unfortunately, it is hard to maintain this belief when one is told homosexuals are sick and deprived and just plain queer. wish the Northern Woman could set up a place where kids could go freely without being slandered or Kids in an identity crisis ridiculed. are the most vulnerable of all and the ones most in need of help. I I I work. I I Thank You, Unsigned. I I Sure to have your group in Thunder Bay. say your, but feel am a part of it for feel for every issue you are involved in. While we were pleased that you reprinted the Fact Sheet on cutbacks compiled by the Wages for Housework Committee in your latest issue, it was a mistake that you did not explain what the Fact Sheet was all about. The Fact Sheet is an addendum to a petition that we wrote protesting the freeze in the Family Allowance, which says that the Family Allowance is the only money many women receive in recognition of the work of raising children, and that not only do we refuse to let that money be taken away from us, but we want it extended to a full wage for all women for all our housework. The Fact Sheet goes along with the petition to give figures on how the wage controls and government cutbacks generally hit women the hardest by giving us less money and more oilmmmmiwemmeeelmm Over 15000 petitions are in circulation across Canada, and the response has been tremendous, with many women taking the petition themselves to circulate among neighbours and coworkers. We have just published the first issue of the Wages for Housework Campaign Bulletin, which contains many articles on the Family Allowance Protest, and on the campaign for wages for housework internationally. For copies of the petition, Bulletin, and other information, write to P.O. Box 38, Station E. Toronto. Frances Gregory - Wages for Housework Committee Hello from an enthusiastic and dedicated reader in Kingston, Ont.! As a member of the Kingston Women's Centre, really enjoyed your little article 'What is a Feminist Press'? When you defined this as one "that creates a hunger for a deeper meaning, a closer walk with a movement that has become like the cry of our own hearts", you spoke for so 4)4111111111114141=1114)4110 many of us across Canada who are working on women's newspapers. And Dear Sisters: although our newsletter in Kingston is small, with a minimum number of A helpful plumber told me the following which women doing a maximuM amount of work, would like to share with your readers. the faith that you express in the mean(1) ing of our work gives us heart to keep purchase a plunger for unpluggon going. 41111111111.1.111MITIONIMIMIIIIIMMaking (2) if you have a plugged double Unlike other great steps forward compartment sink, you must stop up in intellectual thought, the Women's one drain for the plunger to be offMovement is not centred in an 'artsy' ective on the other side. capital; because of its membership, it (3) There is if the plunger doesn't work, is everywhere at all times. Draino or other light commercial prono one voice of this revolution, nor ducts probably won't either. should there be. Buy (at wholesalers) Hot Shot or Drain Bane. We are, all of us, working, thinkFollow directions carefully and note ing, and radicalizing in cities all whether it can be used on plastic Each little newsletter is over Canada. (black) pipes. an important part of the feminist press; (4) once a day, or oftener, run hot each women's group is a component of water, full force down your drains for the movement, a minute or so, and try not to let thought I'd drop you a line So hair, garbage, etc. go down. to let you know how much your paper is (5) if you drop something valuable must mention enjoyed in Kingston. Oh, in drain, don't run any water, it is the 'Roots' article about the accomop probably still in the trap (curved dating grandmother; that was fine. pipe underneath sink). Although our centre can't afford Put a basin u under trap and remove the nut with a to pay subscriptions, we hope we can wrench. continue to exchange with you. Keep ( (6) modern or defective toilets plug up the good work; you have a quality e easily. paper. Lots of love from Kingston. Don't put tampax down them or flush-a-bys. Julie Morris for Kingston Women's Centre also learned to check fuses on range if an element 200 Montreal St. Kingston, Ont. doesn't work and to check water intake tap to washer if clothes washer P.S. forgot to mention Wendy Petersons doesn't work, before calling a repair poem "Liberation", which said it all in person. a nutshell, yet managed to include her It's worth framing, emotions as well. In sisterhood - Donna Williams T.B. really. (I usually dislike 20th C poetry. I I ( I I I I 91011.41)11111111.0r 4104111114710)() RAPE STUDY Dear Sisters: Although there is much discussion and concern about the issue of abortion today, there is little information on how Canadian women have responded to having an abortion. We are now doing a study of the experiences of Canad- ian women who have sought and obtained a therapeutic abortion inside Canada or elsewhere. If you have had an abortion and would be willing to fill out our questionnaire, please send your name and Address to us and a questionnaire will be mailed to you. Great care will be taken to ensure your anonymity and confidentiality and no names will be associated with If you will help us with the study. this research, please write to: Kathy Logsdail and Lorraine Wood, c/o Department of Psychology,, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ont. cont'd page Z3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �When Women Were Not "Persons" Taken from: Believe it or not, only 45 years ago women had no legal status as "persons" in Canada. Today it is difficult to recall that up to 1929 five successive Canadian governments and the Supreme Court of Canada had insisted that Canadian women were not "persons" at all with the definition of the British North America The SENCA, Vol. 2, Issue 3 Act. What was to become widely known as the "Persons Case" started in Alberta in 1916 when the provincial government appointed Emily Murphy as magistrate The of the family court in Edmonton. appointment, the first of its kind in the British Empire was a tribute to the outstanding role played by women But from the day of in World War I. her appointment Magistrate Murphy's rulings were challenged by male lawyers on the grounds that she was not a The Alberta "person" under the BNA. government acted speedily to enact legislation but the federal government refused to amend the BNA Act so that all of its terms of reference would include "female persons". The question of the legal status of women kept surfacing until mid-summer 1928 when Magistrate Murphy invited four other leading Canadian women to join her in seeking clarification of the BNA Act. She had found a section of the Supreme Court regulations that permitted five citizens to solicit such information. The four other women were Nellie McClug, author, lecturer and a leading figure in the fight for women's suffrage; Dr. Henrietta Edwards, author of two books on women's legal status; Irene Parlby, a member of the Alberta cabinet; Louise McKinney, a former Alberta The petition, signed by the MLA. five women, asked if the word "person" in the BNA Act included "female persons". The Mackenzie King Liberal government of the day put their best legal talent to work to defeat the women's petition. They went back to Roman law, ancient English custom, and even argued that the BNA Act had been framed by men at a time when won The had absolutely no rights. Supreme Court of Canada (five male judges) ruled unanimously that it was bound to interpret the BNA Act as it was written an that women were not "persons". The decision was appealed the British Privy Council and on October 28, 1929, the Council ov ruled the Supreme Court of Canad In its ruling the Council was sharply critical of the Canadian Government for relying on antiquated laws and customs to deny It said equal status to women. that all constitutions must be s ject to change and development through public opinion and custo *%*********** ************ ******* *** *** ************* ******** *44* * ************* A Searching LooA AN OPEN LETTER TO OUR READERS FROM THE CANADIAN CIVIL LIBERTIES ASSOCIATION al Ahren "s; itrireArs What do you think of an organization that protests the government policy of forcing deserted wives on welfare to sue their husbands; seeks the elimination of sexual discrimination in the Citizenship Act; is training citizen advocates among native Indians in the north; goes to bat for women on welfare who get cut off simply because of a "man in the house"; constantly exposes and criticizes the periodic police practice of denying arrested persons access to telephones and consultations with counsel, and is fighting for East Indians and West Indians whose bona fide visitors are denied admission to Canada? The organization that is doing these things and much more is the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. This letter is your invitation to join the ranks of this vital organization. Committed people are our only source of support. We won't ask or take assistance from Our independence is too important. government. Membership dues are a minimum of $10 per year and can be paid by cheque in favour of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, 1554 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ontario. Thank you for considering us. Hon. E. M. Hall H onorary Pres. June Callwood Vice-Pres. 4E 4E 41 The following quotes are taken from advertisements for women's underwear: 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E if 41 if 4E 41 41 if 41 41 41 if if 41 41 41 41 if if 4E 41 41 4E 4E 4E Pierre Burton Director 4E 4E 4E Inrulmmommeww.rup...0* 4E My Selective Poems and Prose by Hazel Clink A delightful book of poems written by Hazel and published after she was seventy years young. Write The Northern Woman Journal for copies. $4 plus postage. 'Ma Ssiscliva. items : Aga ROMP * 4E fit Stretch sides for gentle comfort Has elastic mesh back insert to keep waist in place, tummy panel And the last one: Beautiful Bronze won't show under light colours. Hood closing crotch. If you are thoroughly turned off, disgusted or even amused, you have the right to any of those reactions. The advertisements were not seen in a Sex shop, but in -the pages of a shop-at-home catalogue. And in case you haven't guessed already, the quotations all came from the advertisements for ilN6ERit; The photographs0601# women With ftgures 44611041 perfection. 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 41 41 4E 4E "When you give up freedom for security you eventually end up with neither." Thomas Jefferson Double control with zipper convenience gentle stretch power net controls you firmly Add a little with lightly padded cups Exclusive Cordtex for uplifting support The natural look The French look Naughty but nice Take the plunge in this smoothie Moves with you, adapts for precise ank 41E 4E 4E 4E 41 4E 4E 4E 4E If, however, you look at the ads for men's shorts, the two men pictured must have been in sheer agony from being flattened out, (in the strategic places) for there is not the slightest bulge The descriptions themselves in sight. ;give details of testing and re-testing 'done to prevent shrinkage and ensure The material the shorts _long wear. 'are made of, and the colour and size are the only other selling features, there is no mention of sex appeal, or cont'd page 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor 4E �Lembit A FABLE 268 In the city of the Sleeping Conscience, where Pride and Paranoia live in big houses, Sagit, daughter of December, dreamer,of dreams and viewer of the human scene, share my visions,for the hand of truth is upon me, and my tongue has been unharnessed by age. see a great long house where the power Prisoners of the Medicine Man is absolute. of the long house have turned into numbers on So great is little cards, in black files. the power and prestige of the Medicine Men that the numbers sit placidly for hours to hear, "My Lord will see No. 22 now", whereupon shivers of delight and gratitude send the Number into the inner sanctum to do homage. see the long house fall, and the numbers disappear as if written in invisible see the numbers cry with confusion ink. "We "It is the Women", they cry. and fear. must sacrifice the Women to appease the gods." So they gather to stone the maidens. Then did the Medicine Men beguile the maidens to divide and betray each other, and did put in the hand of each betrayer the first stone to cast as penance for having failed to do homage to the great god Class. see the gods are not appeased. "You must destroy the root before your number is visible in our sacred black box", they tell I I I I "It is the the frantic, invisible numbers. commies at the root of this great disobedience." Now the commies are a great threat to the Medicine Men, for they are little ideas that burrow beneath the skin, causing an itch that has no cure in the little bag of tricks the Medicine Men call private enterprise. see the invisible numbers searching them out, they look under the pillows, behind the doors, under the eyelids and even in a smelly They have regressed to the primitive, armpit. like picking the lice out of each' others' hair. see an angel in their midst, and she calls who drove the money to the numbers, "It is who destroyed It is changers from the temple. who erased the numbers It is the long house. But the numbers, crazed that held you captive." they nailed with fear, cry, "Crucify her", and her to the cross of rough justice and ignorance. Not until they had hidden her beneath a stone did the numbers become visible--not on the square card, not in the black file, but burned into the forehead. I, Sagit, saw and understood, for the signs heard the Angel of the times are on me, and say, "I will rise again on Mountain Moving Day." I I I I I I I ********************************************************************************** I WIFE ABUSE terms of criminal justice, for example, rape laws make it nearly impossible for a woman to convict her rapist. Police refuse to arrest and the courts refuse to restrain the wifeIn both areas, myths have beater. evolved to place the blame for these acts of men on the women they In rape, it's that women victimize. want to be raped, they lead men on, In wife-beating, it's they provoke it. that women are masochistic, they like to be beaten, they nag, they're frigid. Wife abuse, defined as physical violence against a woman by her husband or lover, is probably the most common and widespread form of male violence against women. Ten thousand cases of wife abuse are reported As with rape, the reported annually. cases represent only a small fraction of the actual cases. Until very recently, there was no public recognition of wife abuse. In the past year a dozen or so groups have organized around the issue, and the media has taken an interest. There is still very little feminist Wife abuse remains involvement. the domain of lawyers and social service professionals. The issues of rape and wife abuse are very related, and there is a growing need for feminist awareness. (In Thunder Bay, feminists clearly identified the need for services to abused women. However, City Social Services took over and assumed full control, leaving us with no place in either planning or function.) At the most basic,level, rape and wife abuse are related in that both involve acts of violence perpetrated In both cases, by men against women. In society condones these acts. In both cases, liberals characterize the perpetrators as sick. Stereotypes and myths concerning class and race shield white, particularly middle and upper class men from reponsibility for both rape and wife abuse. Black men, according to the common mythology, rape white women. This myth serves the dual purpose of directing white women's anger and fear away from white men while, at the same time, providing white men with a tool for oppressing black men. This myth persists despite the fact that the examination of crime statistics clearly reveals that most rapes occur within the same race. Similar myths also obscure the area of wife-beating. According to the stereotype, wife-beating is a phenonmenon of the lower classes. Thus, middle and upper class women are reluctant to reveal their abuse. StUdies have shown, however, that wife-beating is common to all classes, In Norwalk, races and at all ages. Connecticut, a community with a wife socio-economic range, the police received the same number of complaints of wife abuse as in a comThe County parable area in Harlem. Council in Montgomery County, Maryland, which claims to be the nation's wealthiest county, recently released a report which found that wife abuse was a serious problem in that county and recommended the establishment of a shelter home there. There won't be an attempt at this point to examine all the myths and stereotypes that abound concerning rape It is clear, however, and wife-beating. that there are parallels in the misinformation that has clouded both One effect has been to hide the areas. fact that violent behaviour is a typical and frequent response of men to women, and that all classes and races of men fully participate. Another effect has been to conceal the fact that women receive this abuse, not because their skirts are too short, or dinner's not ready on time, but merely because they are women. In terms of organizing tactics, there are many practical differences between rape and wife abuse. The hotline was the major activity of the early It provided a anti-rape movement. needed service, and, through victim contact, gave rape groups credibility and a base from which to organize. Its operation required a great deal of energy but little initial resource investment. Wife abuse does not lend itself to this tactic as well as rape does. The most pressing problem in wife abuse is often that the women do not have the resources to leave They need shelter their husbands. and food for themselves and their children in their transition period between leaving their husbands and establishing themselves independently. In this period she also needs assistance in finding a job and apartment as well as medical and Establishing a legal advice. project to meet these needs obviously requires substantial funding and organization. Most cities are extremely deficient in providing services Some public for abused wives. or private agencies that were contacted, stated that they would provide shelter but did so reluctantly and only for short, specified periods of time. The Salvation Army, for example, does not like to "break up homes" and cont'd page 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �that the majority of rapists ha O previously acquainted with thei the maximum stay is for three days. A paralegal who deals regularly with situations of wife abuse as part of her job at the Citizen's Complaint Center where police send women who want to take legal action, stated that she had no place to refer women for shelter. She knew of women who spent the night in the bus station to avoid returning home. Obviously, a hotline for abused wives could not function as a referral service. There is no place to refer. It could provide useful emotional support and information, but without concrete resources, would do little to help women escape their situation. There is the danger that it would serve just to further frustrate the abused women. Rape law reform also is a major organizing device in the anti-rape movement. Corroboration requirements and rules allowing evidence of a women's sexual history are obvious injustices and the solution of changing the laws seems equally obvious and attainable. There is no comparable area of law reform concerning wife abuse laws to rally around. On the books, it is as illegal to assault your spouse as it is to assault a stranger. Many jurisdictions provide wives with the additional remedy of a civil protection order (peace bond). Theoretically, if he violates it, he's held in contempt of court. On the books, a woman is - protected. In terms of wife abuse, it is the practice, not the law itself, that is unjust. Police won't arrest, prosecutors won't prosecute, and the courts won't punish. It is difficult to obtain evidence of this injustice since statistics on actual practice are rarely -"'kept. 'Therefore, unjust practices are harder to attack than unjust laws. Even if it could be attained, the reform of law enforcement and judicial practices is not necessarily a solution. Will criminal prosecution of a man, upon whom the woman is often financially dependent, really improve her situation? And even if she can survive without him financially, will he get bail or probation and emerge from the experience even more vicious? Aside from being more difficult than rape law reform, legal reform in the area of wife abuse has no well-defined area of overlap - rape in marriage. rwmainiii=vymmI . err ...m. This is a common, unacknowledged form of wife abuse. A woman is the property of her husband and this ownership gives-him certain rights. This summer, when According to the law, he has thethe Northern specific groups of working wren Women's Centre received a grant from as random households. In this w absolute right to have sex with her the Secretary State for a project even if it means sexual of violence. hope to be able to determine as of its choosing, was Because this right is not the onlychoice law as possible what the attitude of immediate and unanimous to find but has been wifely accepted, it is local women is to the idea of a out if and why how wife Thunder Bay could easy to understand abuse credit union. have a women's It If a credit husbandunion. has is also condoned. Fran here the next stage wi has became painfully apparent to all the right to be violent for one do the actual setting up of the of us how important is to have purpose (forced sex), it is a it small union. To do this, a group of 2 access to money. Many of the aims founding members and two signing leap to extend that right to include we in the movement are working witnesses will complete the appli other purposes. The great resistance towards, will never by realized for abond of assocation. Once th feminists have met in attacking until women have a firm footing in charter is received from the gov the marital exception in rape laws the financial world. A realistic of Ontario the union must elect gives an indication of the resistance and concrete step in this direction of governors; a credit committee to be expected when we challenge is through credit unions for women. will meet weekly to approve loan wife abuse. Toronto started one in November of applications; and a supervisory It is important for feminists to '75 and already it is moving forward committee which will conduct peri become involved. abuse affects at a very Wife encouraging pace. We are checks on the books of the credit vast numbers of women, many of whom fortunate in Thunder Bay for having A treasurer must also be elected; are trapped for economic reasons. the precedent established by the person should have a solid backgr Metro Toronto Warren's Credit Union. in accounting. Article by Lois Yankowski, Difficulties that they encountered By becoming a member of the Feminist Alliance Against Rape. in the formation of their credit union Credit Union League, the local wo Printed in the F.A.A.R. will not have to be repeated locally. credit union would be protected f Newsletters 1976. I was hired by the Northern possible failure and all those di Wren's Centre to determine the involved with monetary transactio 1..... feasibility of having a women's be bonded and insured through the credit union in Thunder Bay. The The credit union may be situ first thing I did was to go through the Northern Women's Centre in Thu a self-education programme so that Bay South where there is ready ac I could learn what credit unions are the local transit. To be a membe and have been. This involved reading cost only $5 which willpurchase a 1 . literature available in local libraries in the credit union. the history of credit unions and Having reached thispoint th their present status. I have also had Ion of the credit union will depend o to acquaint myself with the Credit commitment of the members and all Union Act and the Standing Committee financial support they can give. 1 Report on Credit Unions. I spoke to no reason why Thunder Bay cannot 1 people locally who are involved with successful women's credit union. Iexisting credit unions, and to the If you are interested in wor local Ontario Credit Union League this end please contact me, Laurie * Representative. I have also made a 524 N. McKellar St., 623-8577, or trip to Toronto where I saw the Northern Women's Centre, P.O. Box * operations there and spoke to the 622-3989. women who are actively involved in the ongoing functions of their credit union. While in Toronto I visited the headquarters of the Ontario Credit Report on the Credit ("Won 'ps purpose. 11111111 Both rape and wife abuse involve a woman's right to self-defence. One fourth of all murders occur within the family, and one half of these are spouse killings. The wife was the victim in 52% of these cases and the husband in 48%. In contrast, women are almost always the victim in cases of non-fatal abuse. It seems that often a woman's only recourse to her husband's attack is to kill him. Since most women can't fight well on a man's level, they just resort to the only level that is effective. In one celebrated Philadelphia case, a woman endured 20 years of repeated and severe abuse before she finally killed her husband during an attack. Judge Juanita Kidd Stout acquitted her of all charges and asked her why she had waited so long. Unfortunately, Union League where I gained valuable most judges are not that enlightened information. I am now in the process and women who do defend themselves of contacting the local media to let risk murder convictions. the women in the community know about Thus far in this article, rape and " the possibility of a women's credit wife abuse have been treated as union and what it would mean to the distinct but related issues. Howwomen of Thunder Bay and Northwestern BV ro there is one critical Ontario. A survey is currently in progress which will be distributed to 1 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �padding to enhance the male body. Somehow I can't quite see Stanfields, (for example) running expensive television commercials of a man wearing only provocative bikini shorts leaping around in public places, while a lascivious woman photographer captures this nymph on film from every possible angle as the commentator talks about being "uplifted, padded and pointed to make a more beautiful you". According to a group of women who made a study of the Eaton's catalogues from the late 1800's to 1974, they (the catalogues) reflect the values, wants and expectations of the current society. It would be really sad to believe that the 1975 edition depicts people as they either see themselves or would like to see themselves. `1""\ dye- AA N-2.- - Josephine Stadden Reprinted from UP, Lethbridge Women's Place publication. Hands Off The Family Allowance No Increase in Baby Bonus The $220,000,000. Baby Bonus increase we were all expecting has fallen victim to the government's "antiinflation program". Why have they seen fit to make one of their biggest cutbacks from the pittance they give mothers? As always, we women are the ones expected to do without, to put outselves last, and sacrifice "for the good of others". WHAT BETTER WAY FOR TRUDEAU TO LAUNCH HIS "LOWERED EXPECTATIONS, WAY OF LIFE" THAN BY TAKING MONEY AWAY FROM MOTHERS, THE SYMBOLS OF SELF-DENIAL: We refuse to be a Good Example We know it means EVEN MORE WORK, AND LESS FOR OURSELVES AND OUR CHILDREN. It also means we are more of a discipline on the men so many of us depend on. Nurses said "dedication won't pay the rent" and have fought for well-earned increases across the country. Teachers are refusing the blackmail of paying for cutbacks in education and are going on strike. All round us others are demanding their share of society's wealth which our UNPAID WORK IN THE HOME HELPS CREATE. We want our increase too And we need it more than most. Many of us are sole-support mothers and $36.00 a year per child - little as it is - does make a difference. Much more than anyone with a 10% surtax on their $30,000. salary can begin to imagine: And for those of us with husbands, the Family Allowance is often THE ONLY MONEY WE CAN CALL OUR OWN, the only recognition that we WORK in our homes. Trudeau's cutbacks in Family Allowance represent a widespread effort to make women pay for the present crisis. On top of all the unpaid work we do in our homes, we are faced with: - HIGHER PRICES which mean more work shopping for bargains and more time in the kitchen - A GROWING WAGE GAP between women and men in the paid labour force, and tougher policing of women on UIC - ELIMINATION OF GOVERNMENT-FUNDED PROJECTS (LIP, CYC, OFY) which provide wages for young people (many of whom are women) and sustain community services for children, old people, immigrants, etc. - CUTBACKS IN DAYCARE SUBSIDIES which mean more work finding adequate childcare or looking after our children ourselves - CUTBACKS IN SOCIAL SERVICES which jeopardize the wages of many women and throw the burden of the work back in the home - MORE HARDSHIPS FOR WOMEN ON FIXED INCOMES like the sick and the aged who are expected to live on next to nothing after a lifetime of hard work WE WOMEN ARE AN EASY TARGET BECAUSE WE ARE SO USED TO WORKING WITHOUT PAY IN OUR HOMES AND FOR LOW PAY OUTSIDE. But we don't intent to stay at the bottom. Let the government go after the banks and the corporations - they have more than us: WE DEMAND: THE FAMILY ALLOWANCE INCREASE AS SCHEDULED THE REMOVAL OF FAMILY ALLOWANCE FROM TAXABLE INCOME And we won't be satisfied with only a pittance for mothers - all women need more money, MORE POWER, to fight the lower standard of life Trudeau has in mind for us all. WE DEMAND WAGES FOR HOUSEWORK FOR ALL WOMEN FROM THE GOVERNMENT. Wages for Housework Committee Toronto PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor GER7r °AS GOSPEL �WELFARE WOMEN = ALL WOMEN REDS TOOK INGS MANIFESTO Editors' Note The Redstockings Manifesto and the Wages for Housework issue engendered a great deal of dis cussion during one of our meetings. We (the Northern Woman) are not in complete agreement with either the article or the campaign, however we offer them both to our readers hoping you will respond with your opinions on these articles. After centuries of individual and preliminary political struggle, women are uniting to achieve their final liberation from male supremacy. Redstockings is dedicated to building this unity and winning our freeI. dom. Women are an oppressed class. II. Our oppression is total, affecting We are every facet of our lives. exploited as sex objects, breeders, domestic servants, and cheap labor. We are considered inferior beings, whose only purpose is to enhance Our humanity is denied. men's lives. Our prescribed behavior is enforced by the threat of physical violence. Because we have lived so intimately with our oppressors, in isolation from each other, we have been kept from seeing our personal suffering as a political condition. This creates the illusion that a woman's relationship with her man is a matter of interplay between two unique personalities, and can be In ,reality worked out individually. every such reT.tionship is a class relationship, and the conflicts between individual men and women are political conflicts that can only be solved collectively. III. We identify the agents of our Male supremacy oppression as men. is the oldest, most basic form of domination. All other forms of exploitation and oppression (racism, capitalism, imperialism, etc.) are extensions of male supremacy: men dominate women, a few men dominate the rest. All power structures throughout history have been maledominated and male-oriented. Men have controlled all political, economic and cultural institutions and backed up this control with physical force. They have used their power to keep women in an inferior position. All men receive economic, sexual and psychological benefits from male supremacy. All men have oppressed women. IV. Attempts have been made to shift the burden of responsibility from men to institutions or to women themselves. We condemn these arguments as evasions. Institutions alone do not oppress; they are merely tools of the oppressor. To blame institutions implies that men and women are equally victimized, obscures the fact that men benefit from the subordination of women, and gives men the excuse that they are forced to be oppressors. On the contrary, any man is free to renounce his superior position provided that he is willing to be treated like a woman by other men. We also reject the idea that women consent to or are to blame for their own oppression. Women's submission is not the result of brain- washing, stupidity, or mental illness but of continual, daily pressure from We do not need to change ourmen. selves, but to change men. 4E 40401c* "There but for fortune go you and I" summarizes well the relationship bet4E ween welfare women and other women. if The most slanderous evasion of 4E All of us derive our livlihood from all is that women can oppress men. * men and white male-determined The basis for this illusion is the 4E * systems upon which we have been isolation of individual relationships if forced to rely. What differs from from their political context and the woman to woman is not the quality of tendency of men to see any legitimate this relationship, this dependence, challenge to their privileges as 4E but rather its degree and extent. For persecution. 4 * women not on welfare, it is the husWe regard our personal experience,: band/father who preserves her place V. and our feelings about that experience 4/. and her role in the society, through .. whom she lives, upon whom she is as the basis for an analysis of our 4E dependent for financial and emotional We cannot rely on common situation. security. (Robin Morgan writes that existing ideologies as they are all 4E if the word "family" comes from the Oscan products of male supremacist culture. 4E famel, a servant, slave or possession; We question every generalization and * the word "father ", pater, means owner, accept none that are not confirmed by 4E 4E possessor, master). For women on our experience. if welfare it is the bureaucracy of the It welfare system itself that tries to Our chief task at present is to fill these roles. Public Assistance develop female class consciousness through sharing experience and public- if can be seen as the not-so-benevolent 4E dictator trying to keep women locked ly exposing the sexist foundation of It into their roles as child-bearer, all our institutions. Consciousnessraising is not "therapy", which implies * socializer, and homemaker. the existence of individual solutions * * Through the women's movement, we are and falsely assumes that the male4E female relationship is purely personal, if seeing a new relationship between * women on welfare and women in society but the only method by which we can ensure that our program for liberation 4E as a whole. Women can be class enemies It but remain caste sisters. Being women is based on the concrete realities of if is our caste - this means that whatour lives. 4E ever our place in society, it comes to 41E The first requirement for raising AL us via the men to whom we relate. The * fact of this dependence on men never class consciousness is honesty, in 4E changes; caste is permanent. Our class private and in public, with ourselves * however, has mobility and according to and other women. 4E if the man with whom we live, we can * rise or fall in the society's hierarch; VI. We identify with all women. We 4E define our best interest as that of 4E This creates a problematic set of the poorest, most brutally exploited 4E if relationships for women. While we woman. 4E might want to relate to each other as 4E sters, as people oppressed commonly We repudiate all economic, racial, if sisters, if by our caste, we operate out of very educational or status privileges that 4E different economic or class background' divide us from other women. We are It which divide and disturb us. These determined to recognize and eliminate 4E differences are real and cannot be any prejudices we may hold against * ignored in the discussion of women other women. 4E * uniting. 4E We are committed to achieving 11 A ruling class woman has privileges internal democracy. We will do whatever is necessary to ensure that every 4E unavailable to other women in the woman in our movement has an equal # society. She can use other women to if lighten her load, to ease her physical chance to participate, assume respon4E tasks, to take care of her children. sibility, and develop her political * Ruling class women have these privipotential. leges to some extent at the whim of * their men -- the freedom to pursue VII. We call on all our sisters to 41. other activities is not a guaranteed unite with us in struggle. 4E freedom, but a dispensation granted 4E if which can be taken back at any moment. We call on all men to give up The fact that this privilege has a 4E their male privileges and support It temporary quality, shows us that the women's liberation in the interest of 4E problems facing women are greater our humanity and their own. * than simply those of redistributing * privilege more equally in the In fighting for our liberation society. Privilege does not guarantee we will always take the side of women against their oppressors. We will not 4E certain rights -- the right of free 4E choice, self-determination, economic ask what is "revolutionary" or * independence. To discuss the "reformist", only what is good for Icr. women. 4E 4E 4E The time for individual skirmishes* has passed. This time we are going all the way. July 7, 1969 REDSTOCKINGS P.O. Box 748 Stuyvesant Station New York, NY 10009 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E cont'd J PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �relationship between women only in terms of privilege is to obscure the fact that without the rights mentioned above, we all will be, in the end, dependent and powerless. All women are denied these basic rights. But lower class women have things to contend with in their lives that middle and upper class women are spared. Racism and poverty are obvious distinctions on the "privilege" scale. Even when the welfare recipient receives her check (which in is only about half of what she needs for the basic essen,tials of life, according to the latest government cost of living figures), it has come after long waits in dirty and understaff6d offices, after harrassment, endless personal questions and forms to be filled out to prove she is truly "worthy" of the money. The ultimate insult is that along every step of her life society says that it is doing her a favor - the favor of keeping her alive, but just alive and nothing else. The welfare system and its accompanyong myths operate to keep women divided and thereby powerless. It is difficult for women to get off the welfare roles because of the current recession -- and its accompanying lack of jobs - and totally inadequate child-care facilities. Middle class women with families are similarly trapped. If their husbands were no longer able to or willing to support them, they would be hard pressed to find a good job and to assure good care for their children. Ask any separated, divorced, or widowed woman. 1 1 1 future. The Iroquois People of the Longhouse know their Original Instructions given ito them in the Beginning: . 1 Mtn Motheu and thein 6L tens 6etect the chie.46, and remove them 4nom 1 oice when they 4ai2 the peopte. The Ctan Mothers ate the cu6todian6 1 /o4 the Land, and away think o4 the Unborn GenetationA. They neptaent Li4e and the Earth. Clan Mothet6! You gave uz Li4e - continue now to 1 place out 4eet on the night path." 1 1 1 1 1 / 1 1 Taken from: AWAKE & MOVE March 1971 "We tutn OWL attention now to the 6eniot women, the Clan Mothers Each nation a64ign4 them centain dutim. Fon the Peopte o4 the Longhocoe, the 1 1 Once again women who have natural similar interests (self determination, decent and fulfilling lives and jobs, financial security, etc.) are going to be pitted against each other and made to feel they are on opposite siies of a barrier. This is said to us by Kaianerekowa, the Great Law of Peace given to the Iroquois. You are what your mother is. The ways in which you see the world and all things in it are through your mother's eyes. What you learn from the fathers comes later and is of a different sort. The chain of culture is the chain of women linking the past with the 1 Anna Mae Pictou Aquash was born and Iraised on the Micmac reserve called Shubenacadie in Nova Scotia. Her sister says that life in Shubenacadie is much better than that which the Western reserves in Canada and the U.S. experience: at Shubenacadie, everyone is on welfare. Since no one has a job excepting for pickup government jobs for a few months out of the year for a few people, having everyone signed up and receiving welfare is quite a social accomplishment for the bureaucracy. Anna Mae had a talent for infusing humor into even the most grim of circumstances, and was considered a magician in turning government food commodities into very palatable meals. "She was a bright woman," Isaid Nogeeshik, "spirit-minded and strong-willed. She wanted to make some sort of mark so that her children would not have to grow up the Iway she had been forced to live." In time, living with her husband and two daughters, life on the reserve became too oppressive, too devoid of options. At Shubenacadie, 4Nocri04.....0.10411.00.m..004....0.=... an essential ingredient of life was The Brave Hearted Wonten in short supply: hope. Nogeeshik explains how Anna Mae felt: "There isn't much hope in looking towards picking in the potato fields and blueberry fields for a proud people. The way the world is made her suffer, because she was sensitive and had strong feelings." She had dreams to be educated someday and to get a job working with children, maybe as a teacher. To be a teacher of children is at the same time both the most prosaic and the most awesome of aspirations: for someone from Shubenacadie to aspire to an Anglo-certified teacher's degree was like seeking the Nobel Prize. "The Pinat de6cent o4 the Peopte o4 the Five Nation 6hatt tun Ln the 4ema2.e tine. Women 6hat2 be conLidened pnogenitou o4 the Nation. They 6hatt own the Land and the Soil. Men and Women 6hait 4ottow-the 6tatu6 o4 thein Mothen." There are traditional migratory patterns that trace the paths of native peoples from their home communities to one city, and then perhaps another city and another - and of course, back again. Boston is a funnel from Canada and much of the northeast for those who do not go directly to New York City and Brooklyn. Anna Mae went south to Boston with her family when life at Shubenacadie failed to bring answers to their needs. She got a job as a teacher's aide in a prekindergarten child-care center for black children in the Roxbury area. Unlike so many native children in Canada and the United States, Anna Mae had not been removed from her family and shipped hundreds of miles away to a boarding school. She had escaped the aching loss of family and she had also avoided the indoctrination efforts of the boarding schools. Native children by the thousands in both countries serve time for as many as twelve years in federal schools geared to their gradual and eventual assimilation of the Anglo way of life, the untimate solution to the "Indian Problem". Anna Mae did not have to choose between being a secretary, a domestic servant, a hospital attendant or a cosmetologist - the traditional range options for boarding school girls. She did not view her future as a choice between being employed as a menial or living on a reservation where even those minimal skills are superfluous. Instead, Anna Mae Pictou dropped out of school in the 9th grade, perhaps it having had something to do with changing from an all-Micmac reserve school to a mixed high school with Anglos. She became involved with the Boston Indian Center and was sent by the center to Washington, D.C., at the time of the Trail of Broken Treaties when the Bureau of Indian Affairs headquarters was trashed. The white male-dominated media focussed their attention on who they determined were the leaders and organizers that is native males. Their cameras and tape recorders only grazed the faces of Martha Grass from Oklahoma or Ann Jock from Akwesasne, or the many strong women who like Anna Mae Pictou breathed life into an idea. The expressed themselves in this way: "We ate the Kwenonkwaonwe, the Indian women o4 thus continent. From the 4emate -.de o4 we extend out Zi4e 6uppott to out chitdten .04 thee tennitonieL in North Ametica. We have much work to do. Out pmition with out people and nothing can 6tand -Ln out way to 4ut4itt out job: to tell the peopte o4 earth c)4 out swtv.Lvat and to expo6e the genocide being done to Native Ametican nations by the U.S. Government. We mu6t do th,iis 4on we cane {yon out childten." Yet credit for the love of all people for their children is sometimes not accorded as a universal sentiment nor is the commitment to the survival of one's children recognized by some people. For native peoples of North America, since the Pilgrims arrived, this has far too often meant the wholesale abduction of their children, to be raised by Anglos in their own image. Native peoples see no dimunition of this fearsome practice. Bernice Appleton, an officer of the Native American Children's Protective Council chartered in Michigan, tells us that "There is a shortage of white babies for adoption, so since not too many whites want black babies, they are coming for the next - and that's India. These agencies are going into Indian homes and telling them their homes are unfit because they have two children, or three children, sleeping in one bed. It isn't necessary for cont tt 'd 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �ves Indian children to have one bed apiece. in Canada, children needing I don't even think it's goodhomes for are removed from theirapart. communities andOur children children to sleep learn sharing right from the start." 0 $ PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �A MOTHER ASKS PRESIDENTIAL PARDON Mr. President: My name is Berdina Holder. I am frbm the Waco Band of Sovereign Wichita Nation. My age is 55 years old. I have been blessed with ten children and 16 grandchildren, all of whom I love and cherish as any mother or grandmother of any race. I am writing to you in behalf of my son, Stan Holder, and the other Wounded Knee defendants. As Stan's mother, I feel great pride and honor that my son has dedicated his life's work to effect beneficial change for Indian people. Am I wrong to believe this is the same pride and honor White Americans feel for the founding fathers of the United States Government in this the Bicentennial Year? I ask you, Mr. President, what do Indian People have to celebrate? We have been cheated and robbed out of all the most precious gifts the Creator blessed us with. Our Nations, our homelands, our religions, our languages, our traditions are now at the point of extinction. Lost to us now are our systems of self-government and true Indian self-determination. Do you realize that Indian people have given much and are giving more every day to the growth of this country you call yours? Do you realize that Indian people - men, women and child ren across Indian Country - are threatened by open hostilities from your courts and law-enforcement agencies every day? I am a praying woman; I prayed lives would be better for the Indian people. I said nothing, as I watched the promises and agreements that were made to us being broken. I read of the treaties that were never honored. We number 800,000 people - we have the highest suicide rate, we have the highest alcoholism rate, some of our people live in conditions that make your ghettoes look like a paradise. We are people that have no place to go and it makes my heart sad. My son, Stan, spent two years in Viet Nam on the front line; he was_in the Marine Corps for six years. He received an honorable discharge from the Corps for medical reasons. He was wounded near Da Nang while attempting to get ammunition for his company. He fought for the liberation of a people that wanted to be free and live in their own way. Yet when he came home, he realized his own people were being threatened, war was being waged upon them in the form of assimilation, discrimination, greed and outright theft and murder. He began to realize all the treaties that had been made with the Indian Nations had been broken; 371 treaties ratified by the United States Congress and each signed by a United States President - these all turned to words with no meaning because they were not honored. Our people stood up at Wounded Knee and were willing to give their lives to effect changes for Indian people. Does that make my son and others fugitives to be imprisoned for their actions? What more can you want from me and my people? My ways are poor. I am a pitiful and humble woman in every way. The only wealth I have are my people, my family, my children and grandchildren. One of your FBI agents came to see me last spring. He told me I had two children that were at odds with the United States Government but by July of 1976 the Government would have it all straightened out. Can you tell me what he meant? I was afraid to ask him. Did he mean that the Government would honor all 371 treaties and that things would be good for my people again? Or did he mean that my children would be killed or improsoned? This causes me great concern for the safety and well-being of my children. Some must have felt there wasn't enough pressure on my family, because the FBI harasses us, questioning us, even our small children, questioning our friends, searching their houses for my son. For Fugitive Son & Other Convicted Native Activists All my people are asking for is freedom and justice. What is there for Indian people? Our first treaty was signed in 1778, not quite 200 years of empty and broken promises. Mr. President, you granted exPresident Nixon a full pardon for all the things he did pertaining to Watergate. He never came to trial. Amnesty was granted to the Viet Nam draft dodgers and deserters. I am a proud Indian woman, but I am humbling myself before you and the leaders of your Government. I am asking that you, as President of the United States, grant, my son, Stan Holder, full amnesty, and all full pardons and amnesty to all the defendants of Custer '73, Scottsbluff '73 and Wounded Knee '73. I ask for full pardon for Carter Camp, Leonard Crow Dog, Russell Means, and full amnesty for Dennis Banks who is fighting extradition, because if he is sent I saw my son back to the Dakotas, he will be killed. in June 1975, and this is what he thought would happen to him if he went to prison - HE WOULD BE KILLED. These are some of our leaders who are doing the best they can tb better the lives of the Indian People. Mr. President, give us something to celebrate this your Bicentennial Year by granting in a good way the amnesI will continue to ties and pardons I have asked for. pray for my son and all Indian people who face these I also ask my terrible things I have written about. people when they go to the tipi meetings and other places to pray for the Indian Nations and the Creator to make way for us. Sincerely yours, Berdina Holder 1204 S. 25th St. Lawton, Oklahoma 73501 Taken from: Early Summer, 1976 AKWESASNE NOTES NOTICE NORTHERN WOMEN'S CENTRE INCORPORATED First Annual Meeting Evaluation of the Centre and elections to fill any vacancies on the Board of Directors. PLACE: Sept. 16, 1976. CRISIS HOUSING COMMITTEE First Annual Meeting PLACE: -T(...V4As 41. tor" g41..houstos.,V\t. erVACJI. VemP\4 ..e1Mr44N^ \410 120 W. Amelia St., (back entrance) TIME: and Elections 120 W. Amelia St., (back) 9:00 p.m. SHARP! Sept. 16, 1976. ALL WOMEN WELCOME - YOUR SUPPORT AND DIRECTION IS NEEDED! PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �BRIEFS VITAL STATISTIC S RAPE CANBERRA -- The south Australian State Labor Government has decided to outlaw what it terms marital rape. Under the proposed legislation, a husband could be charged with assaulting his wife if he acted as if the marriage contract implied ownership of his spouse with the right to demand sexual intercourse at the husbands will. The south Australian Gov. says if a wife claimed rape against her husband, police would investigate and lay fcharges. The attorney-general concedes s that it may be difficult to prove any such claim of marital rape. NEW CITIZEN ACT Canada's new nationality law, Bill C-20, was passed in July. The new Act implement several recommendations of the Royal Commission on the Status of Women, which include: - The alien husband of a Canadian wife now has to fulfill the same residency requirements, that is, three years, as the alien wife of a Canadian husband. - Either the father or the mother of a minor child may now make application to obtain their child's Canadian citizship. - For the next two years, a parent may apply for Canadian Citizenship on behalf of a child born abroad to a Canadian mother under the present Such persons are not Citizenship Act. now Canadian,citizens unless their father was Canadian at the time of their birth. - Women who lost citizenship through marriage prior to 1947 can now recover it automatically upon notice to the Minister, whereas previously they had to reside in Canada, make an application and take an oath. TOPS IN NUMBERS Clip and save this for the next time you hear someone say that women have no head for numbers: Of the 560 Chartered Accountants who received their diplomas last month in Ont., 39 were women. Top student was Patricia Ursell of Toronto. Linda Ablett shared second place honours Women's Bureau with Kevin Dancey. Newsletter, March 1976 NI IC) RC; ENTALER The government continues its brutal harassment of Dr. Henry MorgIt has postponed a retrial entaler. for performing an illegal abortion ordered by Justice Minister Basford Forward 1976 until next Sept. OLYMPICS The modern Olympics were eighty years old when the 21st Olympic Games opened in Montreal on 17th July this The first Olympics in modern year. times were held in Athens in 1896. A long period of discrimination ended in 1928 when women were allowed to take part for the first time. Women Of The Whole World No. 2, 1976 An amendment to the Vital Statistics Act on May 25, 1976 had made it legally possible for a couple to give their child a hyphenated last name combing the last names of the mother and father, provided that the father's name comes first. Under the old law, all children born within a marriage had to take the surname of their mother's husband, even in cases where the mother had chosen to retain her own name after marriage and wished to pass it on to her children. Children born out of wedlock would previously take their mother's name unless the father swore out a statutory declaration of paternity, in which case the infant had to take the father's surname. KISS YOUR FREEDOM Mon. July 13, 1976 a Toronto judge decided that a public kiss is an indecHe fined two men $50 each ent act. for kissing at the corner of Yonge and CPP The Canada Pension Plan will now be shared equitably between spouses upon dissolution of the marriage, and upon death of a woman her spouse and children are entitled to CPP earnings. However, there is stil no provisions for a homemaker to accumulate her own pension separate from her husband. A government spoke man stated that homemakers do not wor therefore are not entitled to a C.P.F As you can see, there is a great neec to raise the consciousness of certair government officials and representatives. UP, June 1976 WOMEN'S., PROGRAM The Secretary of State money for Women's Programmes has been increasec from $200,000 to $500,000. It was pointer out by one of the delegates at the NAC conf. that this was a measly sum when compared to a bill ion dollar increase in the defense budget. National Action Report l Bloor. No it wasn't because they were two men. The judge agreed that the case couldn't be decided on those grounds. The act itself was found to be indecent. Now every So now there's a precedent. public kiss is an indecent act, every embrace an offence. Now theres a crime where there was none before. Justice's face should be red over this one. Gay Alliance Toward Equality and The Body Politic -.GOODBYE CHANGES SOUGHT The Federation of Women Teachers' Associations of Ont. would like to enlist the support of N.A.C. member organizations to change the Unemployment Insurance Act so that an adopting parent may obtain benefit to the same extent as a natural mother. A pregnant working woman who has sufficient weeks of insurable employment during the year prior to her confinement receives a maximum of 15 consecutive weeks of benefit around the time of her confinement from the UIC. A working woman who adopts a child receives no benefit. FWTAO wants this discrepancy in treatment of working women removed by permitting the adopting parent to obtain benefit under the UlA for the same length of time as a natural mother. We would welcome the support of individuals and member organizations of the National Action nn Committee on the Status of Women to bring about such a change. NAC on the Status of Women, 40 St. Clair Ave. E. Suit 300, Toronto, Ont. RAPE---Flow the law has changed 1. A judge mus'p21_12201 instruct th jury that uncorroborated evidence is dangerous to accept and that corroberations of a rape victim's testimony is needed to obtain a convictic 2. The victim may no longer be quest ioned as to her past sexual experience unless a written request is file and it can be shown that this information is necessary to defend the acc used. However the resent law still does not cover the o lowing. (1) Rape is still considered a sexua offence rather than an assault of a violent nature and therefore implicates the victim. A male cannot be raped. (2) (3) A husband cannot rape his wife. This gives no protection to a wife who is separated from her husband and or seeking a divorce. In addition, husbands do assault their wives and such assaults often take the form of assaults on their sexual organs. Therefore the defense of marriage should be abolished. (4) The present section 146 assumes that a person between the ages of 16 and 14 years is unable to consent to the act of sexual intercourse. Although this may be seen as a protection for young people, the clause "of previously chaste character" tends to cancel out any actual protection whic is meant to be afforded by the sectio (5) It should be up to the victim to request a closed court if she feels the necessity. The open court system protects the civil rights of an accused. In addition, closed rape trial only perpetuate the attitude that rap is a shameful and embarrassing crime to happen to a victim. Eudene Luther UP, June 1976 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �pia UNIIMINI MIMI= MINIMIE INININNIII MIN= 11 MINNS I INN.. 111 MINIMNI I MINN II s of Sole Support recently did it o support eady had and a ecogdidn't 1 STRIKING SKYWAY LUGGAGE WOMEN By SALLIE NEED SUPPORT SHUN The members of the Upholsters International Union struck Skyway Luggage April 5th for better wages and improved working conditions. Most of the 100 workers are immigrant women who presently earn from $2.80 to $3.10 per hour. At the same time their production is 700 pieces of luggage per day and the company's declared profit Mothers my of his worthme.Then some money pay me ey gave d direct last year was $10.7 million. The workers need the support of other workers and particularly their sisters in the form of picketing, leafleting, fund-raising and organization. A Skyway Luggage workers' defense committee has been formed to organize support. ined nt to he is, ncec e. wowst %....) Tt. ®. t INN lnau,seNvkab\lass (It? j So when you talk about crisis, know always cringe,because what you're talking about is tak= ing something else away from me. We have to cut back social services, we have to cut back education and health care.What does that mean, Mr.Davis?It means you want us women to absorb the crisis! WellMemories are said before: tough. It's like a mind-blown We've got our own crisis,it's an economic crisis,it costs us a you lot.pick a Only this time we know where it's Remember .. coming from and we intend to do am runnin something about it I I rganr ages thing and tell us t good ut our kids the ? Well doing it ng,You are there's e sick Mr Davis, ome of thers having aving to m taken d cheating ks,and es heard'of who ener coat. e one ot of not an 8 hour rs without pay. as work, charity ect us to r tried living when you l with holes ants to join nt afford fford the day ord a holiday. ight with the ay and night r there by your that has to do ford a baby-sitter -care is out work. d no to the vies and you've begin to feel ed and you lie T ABOUT ME... ive in all this misery that people call start to get mad ause you know its e,Your not a bum, our life you Its You MR DAVIS f your friends big business ren.You dont who care a mothers,and ers. ert. I I from sorrow,an We want more money and a better with an old shame life...We want to regain our dignity. Pay us for the work we do in up a grass-grown frail the home. We demand it that knows my bare 1.Parity with foster parents. brown feet. 2.Higher earning capacity for She is old, benefit mothers. 3.Free 24 hour community controlled her hair self cut day care. and grizzled grey, said before,I've just come her cotton shift off welfare...I took on a second bereft of vanity. job.I work in a distress centre for women and children.The women He left her there who stay with us there,come from before my time,and situations of marital breakdown, thay have often been married for went away with 10 to 15 years and they have noelse thing to show for it.No home, someone no furniture,no dignity and no money. She went strange, When they leave,they move into cuts her own wood apartments with their children... the welfare gives them beds and a and gathers hay for the cow. welfare cheque that is no where It's not your fault nearly enough to live on. It happens all the time and it's time that love dont last we did something about it...whatsometimes it just gets tired ever we are doing,whatever situation we are in,we are all exploited in of holding fast. the same way as unpaid houseworkers. It's wrong to live with one Because am now a community worker isn't to say that am not who cant abide you, still a housewife.I work for 8 the heart just turns to stone hours in the distress centre,then pick up my children and go home and lays inside you and work another 4 to 8 hours... two jobs,one paid one unpaid. So eighty spoke to nine If lose my job 171 be on welfare across the years As I I I , I again. as womem still to woman drying tears. The leaf has fallen, ) 411111MIKIINIIIWI0 the vision fades, the wisdom remains I MEM II 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �VOOK ItE'VIE 30 MUCH ANGER, TOO MANY TEARS: 04101i0.114)4iO4111110411INIIKIP04P1111=14)4111MMMI04111111111=114MMOWINNI THE PSYCHIATRY TRIP Many women who have emerged from careers as psychiatric patients have written about their experiences in therapy and hospitals. Typically these accounts end quasi-romantically with the woman being "cured" through the help of benevolent, usually male, psychiatrists, or with resigned helplessness to the conditions of despair and incarceration. Too Much Anger, Too Many Tears differs markedly from the tradition of this literature in that it strongly challenges the political nature of the psychiatric system and asserts the strength of one woman in the face of its corrosive practice. In the first section of the book, Janet relates in detail that is often painful, but never tedious, her entry into a ten-year-long career as a mental patient. Hoping to comprehend the pain and fear she experiences in growing to adulthood, she at first naively seeks help from psychiatrists. But she is taught to reify her experience, to regard her feelings as alien "symptoms" rather than as a part of the process of growing up. The anger this engenders, she is told, is part of her "illness" rather than a justifiable response to the self-deprecating view of herself she must take as part of her "treatment". With this convoluted load of mystification upon her, she steps into a cycle of hospitalizations, releases, readmissions, drugs, and electroshock. I could read this account only a few pages at a time, so-keenly did it evoke my anger resulting-From my own years spent in and out of psychiatric prisons. Janet experiences the full onslaught of the psychiatric jargon and paraphernalia used to convince those caught in its system that justifiable anger is "sick" and that despair is invalid and must be masked by dependency-fostering drugs, and that the answer lies in the cure of the individual by medical authorities. At this point the rage Janet experiences she turns against herself by feeling suicidal ,although there are glimmerings of the realizations she later makes. Yet the (male) shrinks who treat her are not portrayed as one-dimensional villians; they are overwhelmingly paternal, convinced of the power of psychiatry to "cure", and that the use of this power to coerce is justifiable. "After all, it's for your own good", "You have no other choice", Janet is to told when she is badgered into hospitalization and electroshock. Their self-righteousness and omnipotent posturing will provoke the wrath of any feminist. Paul, the man Janet meets, lives with with, and eventually marries, takes up the second part of the narrative. At first, aware of Janet's past as a mental patient and confronted by her anguish, he acknowledges some trepidation at the prospect of their life together. After a year spent trying to live a "normal" life together, Janet re-enters another cycle of hospitalization over the next several years and Paul, acting against the dictator of his better judgment, is also subject to the psychiatic mystification trip. He becomes a hesitant accomplice in perpetuation Janet's Career as a patient--driving her to her electroshock treatments, conferring with her doctor, and doling out her daily quota of mind-pills. Despite the strength of commitment between Janet and Paul they become resigned, along with family, friends, and doctor, to the idea that she is a chronic invalid. With so little basis on which to assert an identity as a strong and independent woman, 'Janet attempts suicide by overdosing, coming to in the hospital after a five-day coma. As a consciousness-taising tool, tl book is indispensable, especially feminists who haven't entirely disabused themselves of the notion thz mental hospitals can be "therapeuti places for people who fan't "function". And as straight personal narrative, it is inspiring as an expression of the strength of a won who ceases striving tomerely function and finds the-determination to live and survive. 1 In the third and final part Janet resumes her story, but with a profound difference. Janet writes of a moment some months after her suicide attempt, when the events of the past several years become meaningful. 'Thete has been despait,' By Tanya Temkin Taken from: Off Our Backs, June 1976 Too Much Anger, Too Many Tears: A Personal Triumph Over Psychiatry by Janet and Paul Gotkin Quadrangle/New York Times Book Co. $10:95 I whispened. 'That is pat oi out condition, to 6eet despait. That is what I am keting and it i4 black and it webs up inside you until you ket that you witt exptode with the heaviness o4 this sense youuet, atone, in th,(:)s un6eeting datkness that can be the woAtd...no amounts oi Thotazine wilt even make this ieeting go away. After acknowledgement of these all too human feelings, she feels rage at what has happened to her: COAMM)1010.0411111114 MIIIIND411111041 M page IL I had nevet been sick and 1 wasn't now. The who& idea o4 my Liana's and my eventuate cute were inventions o4 my oychiatti-Ds ... I Azmembeted, bittekty, the yeaA's of dtug-taking, dependency, shock treatment, set,6denigAation. In the succeeding months I teviewed my own ten -yeah hi6toAy, going aver the detaLbs with a new view, seeing it att, ttuey, 4ot the ,f_tst time. These realizations came to Janet suddenly, without any clear explanation. To alter But this is as it must be. profoundly your perception of life 1 and recognize its implications is harrowing, as those of us who have been through any kind of conscious1 ness-raising can attest to. And after years of having your every action, gesture and though under constant psychiatric scrutiny, there is a part of that germinal strength you must appropriate for yourself. Most importantly, Janet and Paul perceive the implications their experience has for others, and act on Janet could have merely them. harbored bitterness toward her past and chosen to dissociate herself from it completely. The prerogatives of private therapy and voluntary hospitalization derived largely from her middle-class status, but she recognizes the commonality of all of us who have been victims of psychiatric excesses-- that personal guilttripping, masked coercion, fostering of self-hatred and divisiveness are institutional tactics that everyone within the institution of psychiatry is subject to 1113 ';NIMIND.041111104MINNMI0114)11101101Eli011111.0411=114/4/1104Dellic for the volunteers from the confere A room has been obtained from Mc Ke hospital to set up an information centre there. A suggestion was made that we seek to arrange some k of co-ordination with Parents an&iiii and telecare, A motion made and acc4 A motion to pay baby-sitting fees fi mothers-on -budgets to attend counc meeting was approved. Coleen reported on Council of Women meeting at the Y.W.C.A.-a federal g They are in need of representation North Western Ont but we decided it of no advantage to us ,So Move' was Report on Crisis Housing Gert reported on visit to Kenora House. The Water St residence is fully functional and St Mary's will be operational in a few month The tarbutt St Houses are full 8 w omen and 22 children under schol age, WE are providing Pampers. 1 The womans Credit Union The student researching this projec for the Northern Women Centre is 1 hopeful] it will be ready to go in the fall. 1/Joan Farrow from Kenora who has been a committed member of the council since it's formation will replace Paula Edwards as Vice Chai 1 Joan is also on the sub-committee Iof the HERSTORY project IReport on Equal Pay Mickey Murray reports they will be going ahead in the fall with speakers and possibly a conference. The next meeting will be held in th 1 conference Dining Room at the colle Aug 21 from 10 to 3 pm. A wine and cheese party at Gert's place,a sle 1 over and a Sunday Corn Roast ()=1MINSIII PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 Bay St. Thunder Bay, "P" Ont. return postage guaranteed RETURN TO: Donna Shaw 627 S. High St. Thunder Bay P HAVE YOU MOVED? LET US KNOW PLEASE. THIS IS YOUR LAST ISSUE (We must pay postage on your returned paper in order to keep our mailing list YOUR SUBSCRIPTION IS up to date). DUEL PLEASE SUPPORT US 1 ,413.01610 09v4ow 3714)4p. ecit cyset 24).%#,AN, 4)\06 (six T.9su5) *3 22 YEAR. 02 BUSINESS OR INST 1 TurioN * 7 NAME GIFT. want to get involved? call 345-5841 any Tuesdays or Wednesdays ADDRE9S f DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED ../.101. I Free to one parent families Free to senior citizens 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 3 No 1 Description An account of the resource Vol. 3, No. 1 (1976) Title: The Northern Woman Topics include: Port Arthur clinic strike/unionization Letters to the editor Women’s studies programs Rape study Person’s Case 45th Anniversary Canadian Civil Liberties Association Critique of sexism in underwear advertisements Wife abuse Women’s Credit Union Baby bonus Wages for housework Redstockings Manifesto Welfare for women Native motherhood Classified ads Justice for convicted Native activists Canada Pension Plan Rape legislation Federation of Women Teachers Association Ontario Sole support mothers Skyway luggage strike Poetry Book review Crisis housing Equal pay Authors/Contributors: Tony Carfagnini Donna Williams E.M. Hall June Callwood Pierre Burton Hazel Clink Lois Yankowski Laurie Hill Josephine Stadden Wages for Housework Committee Toronto Berdina Holder Sallie Shun 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 1976 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/16/2745/1976_Vol_3_No_2.pdf a7c8cf49ba350ea0a8b70f83147b780d PDF Text Text r M...6 Volume 3 Issue 2 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: ABBY HOFFMAN VISITS THUNDER BAY 50 MMO 1111111111111111 MONO ION= I 11111111111 111111O11111 IIII111111 1111111 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �editorial The Northern Woman Journal began as a newsletter out of the Northern It's reason for being was to keep informed our own Women's Centre. members and interested local women of the issues that we were trying Embattled and beleagured, without public support, we to deal with. became an oasis for the woman who had reached the end of her endurance and needed the support that only women who genuinely care, can give. The newsletter bound us 4egecher and in it's pages we poured out all the rage and frustration that comes when we are surrounded by an indifferent, uncaring and sometimes malicious public. It has been a year since the Northern Woman Journal changed its publishing format and dreamed of a wider distribution, a broader range of gut issues that effect all of us as we explore the ever growing move The word feminist still has the power to equal status for the sexes. to threaten the unenlightened as to its sincere intent. The idea of women caring for, and about other women with all the committment of a sister has an unreal quality. To a thousand years of military mentality The the banding together of any group is a direct intent to do battle. adversary system calls for retaliation and we end up embattled and defensive. To choose ones sisters is the ultimate weapon of the divide How can we, in the exalted state of our own and conquer strategists. in our opinion, less than what we frail humanity choose what is, Hence, we fragment into like-thinking perceive ourselves to be. groups using the yardstick of conventional society to wall ourselves in and maintain in our own eyes and that of the public, a difference of quality that is in the final analysis a figment of our own imagin- .1 '111P o WHAT H ation. The readership of the journal now ranges far afield from Newfoundland to the Northwest Territories, from libraries and universities in every province, to American university archives requesting the journal as a historical contribution in the ongoing record of the Women's Our exchange list grows as dozens of newsletters and Movement. Status of Women publications request that we share. The weakest spot in our subscription list is at the local level reminding us again of the old adage "a prophet is without honour in his own country". Even here we are encouraged as the faithful stand fast and a new name appears from time to time. As we move with the times and sense the changes in our own perception of ourselves, we are overwhelmed again at the responsibility of a To keep the core intact, the values defined, to feminist press. question the legal structures that betray our right to be full and participating partners in this society and this country and keep to the energy, the sacrifices, and the uncommitted women informed as If, in the triumph that a struggling minority make on their behalf. final analysis, through our pages a clearer vision of the term 'sisterhood' emerges and calls for your support and goodwill, you will join a growing number of women who have taken a second look and found us worth the price of a subscription. Our intent is to consolidate not divide, to inform not to persuade, and to charge us all with the growing times. excitement of what it means to be a woman in these changing m Eleanor Pg 2 person who can put t before the board for tells us in an inter Northern Woman's Jou PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �H ello to you all! Where does one look to find the familiar faces again? Thank gawd can see for the Northern Woman so you're all out there still fighting for changes for woman. Please renew my subscription and also put my youngest sister, Paula, on your subscription list. She's a pretty special woman, trying to find herself in her unique lifestyle on a piece of land in the I'm sure she'll Slocan Valley. enjoy many of the things the Northern Woman has to say. enjoy the paper immensely, particularly the local content. hope the energy and money to keep up the good work is endless. Dear Sisters, am a Toronto-born woman, a feminist and a subscriber to your Most of my friends are not paper. many are in fact, from Toronto; This summer, from Thunder Bay. went home with my lover for the summer, her home being in Thunder We spent the time with her Bay. Since both parents were parents. on holiday, we were chauffered around the countryside and spoiled Both her by home-baked goods. parents are ardent nature lovers and berry pickers. They knew the bistory of much of the surrounding area and the people in the area, the rivers and woods. was most I I I I I Keep healthy and happy, Laurie I impressed with how naturally my lover's mother fitted into the whole experience. have enclosed The poem is not only about her, but about all the women know or have had the pleasure of meeting while was up there. have never experienced a more natural environment in which learned so much about my ignorance of the north. admire and respect as well as envy their beautiful countryside and delightful nature. was made very welcome by many prople in Thunder Bay, but none could compare with that very personal experience of discovering strength in women in an entirely different environment from any have ever known. The northern woman is a beautiful example of what we all could be if we gave ourselves the chance to be free and one with I I I I I I I I nature. Thank you, ladies of the north. will always have a good feeling about this summer and will indeed I return. Charlene D. Robertson Enclosed is $3.00 for six issues of the Northern Woman. enjoyed reading you June issue that borrowe4 from a woman in town. Would it be possible for you to send me your mailing list for Kenora? have just moved here from Toronto where was a member of a consiousness-raising group, and would be interested in meeting with people who may have similiar ideas to mine. Perhaps the easiest way to do this is to know the women in Kenora who subscribe to your paper. hope you Thank you. can help me with this. I I A businessman is aggressive; a businesswoman is pushy. A businessman is good on detail; she is picky. He loses his temper because he's so involved with his job; She's I I I Long time no see - keep meaning to drop in - and think of you all often. am renewing my subscription to the Northern Woman plus adding a small donation. The last few issues were outstanding - looks like lots of hard work. Sharon Mertens I Best to you all and the paper Love Lewy Dear Sisters, Are there any of you or your families who are taking vitamins in magadoses for headaches, forgetfulness confusion, senility, dysperception, depression, alcoholism, or related If so, are there any who illnesses? would be interested in forming a group in order to remind each other Its easy to get careto take them? less when you feel you are alone in your treatment via vitamin approach, even though you know it helps. Perhaps depression causes this, ante a group has been known to lift depression, as in the case of AA's S incerely, Thelma rill 110111111 ITHUNDER CLAP Thunderclap to Rita Ubriaco of Thunder Bay recently appointed on Federal the Status of Women. to the Advisory Council bitchy. When he's depressed '(or hungover), 41111.0111111111 everyone tiptoes past his office; she's moody, so it must-be her time of month. He follows through; she doesn't know when to quit. He's confident; she's conceited. He stands firm; she's impossible to deal with. He is firm; she is hard. His judgements are her prejudices. He's a man of the world; she's been around. He drinks because of the excessive job pressure; she's a lush. He isn't afraid to say what he thinks; she's mouthy. she's power mad. im exercises e il mmilm. authority diligently; He He's close-mouthed; she's secre 4 He climbed the ladder of succes . she slept her way to the top. I He's a stern taskmaster; she's to work for. . He's witty; she's sarcastic. M.O.B. reprinted from Toro U I I I Phone 683 6703 I I immocmomemos..4141..mammoommopcmoimmiN People who did this issue: I IGert Thyra, Eve, Lynn, Noreen and Marg. I To the Crown and Prosecuting Attorneys who bargained a vicious sexual attact into a lesser charge of attempted Rape for reasons we find hard to understand a UM II 0 II 1 Location..224 Drop in centr Monday throug Time..±1-4 P. Clothing depo Wednesday and Everybody Wel 1 Meetings 2nd . of the month and 4th tuesd 1 Donations nee 1new members w Main Motto 1 imPEOPLE HELPI 10.mmommmm... 5 MI= II PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �The Brave Hearted Women "Anna Mae Aquash was atkested at Rosebud Indian Reservation, South Dakota, on Septembet 5, 1975. 100 to 150 agents invaded Cnow Dog's Paradise and At Running's.tesidence ,i_muttaneourty. The FBI agents identiiied het immediately as Anna Mae Aquash and though thete was no warrant bon het ayes t, they handcuikd het and ptaced het undet aittest. She was titans otted to Pienke (S.D.) immediatety where 'she uncle/ went inten- CONTINUED FROM LAST ISSUE Throughout the Seige of Wounded Knee 1973, women organized, planned, provided support and material, and in effect, gave continuity to the endeavour. They travelled back and forth through the battlelines backpacking in the food to sustain the Oglala and AIM defenders. In Dakota tradition, they were called "Brave-Hearted Women". In the media, these women were ignored. The cameras hummed and clicked upon the faces of male AIM members. And after the Battle, these AIM men were arrested, neutralized, or eliminated by one means or another. The white male enforcement officers, blinded by their own sexism, failed to recognize the power of the women and that the heart and soul od the women would carry the movement forward. With so many males no longer functional the American Indian Movement more than ever became a woman -run organization. One older woman observed that "it is sad how few men are involved in the movement. It's hard for just us little old ladies with out pop bottles (to sustain it).' The AIM offices were run by women as they had at the start. One said, "We are here because there is work to do". The Wounded Knee aftermath continues to the present time like devastating seismic shocks bringing repercussions In a seige in of violence and death. July, 1975, at Oglala on the Pine Ridge Reservation, one native man and two Federal Bureau of Investigation agents were killed. A full-fledged military operation was launched which left Pine Ridge a living hell while some 150 FBI agents ransacked homes and ran search parties through fields and woods. As of April, 1976, 35 deaths have occurred in this bleak poverty-stricken corner of South Dakota since Wounded Knee. The Government-supported political faction - the original cause of the Second Wounded Knee - has acted out its burning hostility against AIM and the traditional Oglala people who support it with an unrelenting series of beatings, shootings, car "accidents" and other destruction. Dino Butler, now awaiting trial on the charge of first-degree murder of one of the FBI agents, tells another chapter in Anna Mae's life: Pg 4 sive intettogation bon 4ix on seven homs, being questioned about the June 26, 1975, Ogtata shootout between Native Amoticans and Oteign AmeAicans. She coutd not tett them anything because she was -in Council Btu, lewa, that day. The FBI agents made he the zame oi6et they made me that day in Piet/Le a4ten I too was attested and ttansponted pcom At Running's home - 'cooperate and tive; don't cooperate - die.'" Anna Mae described her encounter with the FBI agents. "While I was standing there with a group of women, waiting, I was being verbally harassed by some of the agents. They were implying that they had been looking for me for a long time, and that they were very pleased that they finally found me." Now that essentially all the mediaprominent male AIM members and supporters were effectively neutralized - in hiding, in jail, in courtrooms or dead - the mid-70's was seeing a new pattern in battlefield sexism, the targetif,g of women by enforcement officers and vigilantes. A foreshadowing of this occurred in the Northwest where Native People have struggled to preserve their "In traditional fishing rights. Washington State," one of the embattled survivors explained, "women have had to stand in (the men's) place because we are supporting them and supporting our unborn. There have been issues like fishing rights where our men were put in jail and all that was left was women to go out and fish. Yet the women were still treated the same, with the same harassment from the police, being beat up and going to jail, even women with children." Nor was death a stranger to the women along the banks of those rivers, sudden violent death. In Wagner, Sioux Falls, Custer, Gordon, Rapid City and of course, Pine Ridge, greater and greater pressure came down upon women as a new point of attack. Gladys Bissonette observed that "every time women gathered to protest or demonstrate (peaceably) they always aim machine guns at us women and children". But with the work of the women, AIM did not die. Nor did the greater movement for natural rights of which' AIM has always been but a part. As the Cheyenne people say: A nation Zs not conquered Untie the hearts 6.6 its women Are on the ground. Then it is done, no mattet _How brave its wattiou Not how stAong its weapons. The women patriots who bore a heavy share of the task of physical and spiritual survival of their people through all the years would not now surrender. The list of native women who have been harassed, jailed, beaten, stabbed and shot grows long in this new -campaign. On February 24, 1976, the body of a young woman was found where it had lain for many days and nights along the highway north of Wanblee on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The coroner contracted by the BIA declared that death was caused by exposure, that is, natural causes. FBI agents severed the hands from the body. They said they had to send them to the Washington office for identification. A week later, the body was buried in an unmarked grave at the Holy Rosary Mission. By that time, however, the identity of the yound woman was known and communicated to family and then to friends. They insisted on an exhumation and a second autopsy. This time, the independent autopsy read differently, the horror of its statement blotting through its precise language: "On the posterior neck, 4 cm. above the base ob the occiput and 5 cm. to the tight (14 the midtine .is a 4 mm. peqmation o6 the skin with a 2 mm. 'um o4 abrasion 4untounded by a 1.5 x 2.2 cm. area oi btackish discototation. Suttounding thi4 an area o6 t-eddi6h discotokation measuning 5x5 cm. This area cis gto6ty compatibte with a gunshot entrance wound .. Removed (6/tom the bra -in) .ins a metallic pellet dank grey in meon gtoty comiztent with tead." March 14, 1976, dawned windy, flinging snow upon those who had come to bury Anna Mae Pictou Aquash. "Creation was unhappy," one woman said. Some women had driven from Pine Ridge the night before - a very dangerous act - "to do what needed to be done." Young women dug the grave. A ceremonial tipi was set up. Anna Mae's naked body was removed from the morgue's body bag. Her severed hands - from which the fingertips had also been severed - were returned to her. The women clothed her in a ribbon shirt and jeans with a jean jacket emblazoned with the AIM crest and an inverted American flag on the sleeve. Beaded moccasins were placed on her feet. A woman seven months pregnant gathered sage and cedar to be burned in the tipi. Young AIM men were the pallbearers: they laid her on pine boughs while the religious leader spoke the sacred words and performed the ancient duties. People brought presents for Anna Mae to take with her to the Spirit World. They also brought presents for her two sisters to carry back to Nova Scotia with them to give to her orphaned daughters. The executioners of Anna Mae did not snuff out a meddlesome woman. They exalted a Brave Hearted Woman for all time. The traditional leaders of Oglala released the following statement about her death before the second autopsy was performed: cont'd on pg 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Familis ProPertY Lair RECOMMENDED CHANGES and 2 of the Family In parts Property Law series, we have had a look at existing Ontario laws that govern ownership of the family home and ownership of property other than the family home. The Ontario Law Reform Commission appointed by the Ontario government in 1964, has made a positive recommendation in its 1974 Family Property Law Report regarding ownership of the matrimonial home and the household goods contained in the matrimonial home. It recommends that the matrimonial home which is the principle residence of the marriage, should be co-owned in joint tenancy by the They also state that cospouses. ownership should be retroactive to The include existing marriages. principle of co-ownership of the matrimonial home and household goods would entitle the husband and wife to equal sharesin the home and its contents, secured by their joint control and rights of occupation and use, retained for their joint enjoynent and capable of being dispos ed of or otherwise dealt with only by the consent of both spouses or by court order. The Ontario Status of Women Council supports this recommendation and states that co-ownership of the matrimonial home should be given immediate, widespread and retrospective effect as a general legal principle, irrespective of registered title and irrespective of the financial contribution of the spouses It is also recommended by the Ontario Status of Women Council that "matrimonial home" be defined as the principle family residence or where co-habitation has primarily taken There can be only one place. matrimonial home at any given time. In rural areas, it may be defined as the principle family residence area of land as may be and such of severance capable 1 Whether we support or reject these recommendations for change in Ontario's Property Laws, consideration must be given to the following: 1. Perhaps we should be apprehensive about introducing a novel system (such as deferred community of property) alien to the established principles of our common law. It is always safer to adapt an existing system to any new needs than to implement revolutionary change. 2. Serious thought should be given to enacting the immediate legislation to protect the spouses in the matrimonial home, and to give each spouse a fixed share on death or divorce.... which share could be varied upwards or downwards by the court following specific guidelines set out in the legislation. Once such a system is in operation, it should be carefully monitored and assessed. If it is found seriously wanting them further consideration can be given to a more radical solution. Remember that no legal system can alone and unaided solve interspousal difficulties or social Note that the system injustices. proposed by the Ontario Law Reform Commission (deferred community of property) will not apply to existing marriages unless spouses jointly agree to have their family property affairs governed by the deterred community of property system. One must ask how realistic It is to assume that the majority of married couples will opt in. 4. The Ontario Law Reform Commission has recommended (in view of the rigid formula propcsed by them) that persons who are about to be married be given a choice as to which matrimonial system to have govern their they wish property relations. One must ask: a - Will the majority of people understand sufficiently the consequences of choice to make an intelligent one? b - How can a young couple possibly forsee their economic future? c - Will prospective brides not be influenced by their prospective mates to go along with the latter's wishes? 5. Experience in countries where a similar- system to the proposed deferred community of property system has shown that persons with any substantial amount of property, including the professional classes, opt out of deferred community of property. Think for a moment of the consequences on a man (or woman) who owns a small business if he has to contemplate selling it or mortgaging it to meet his wife's equalizing claim. Deferred community of property will be of little value to those people who are in a lower income bracket, for example, the family whose total income is a weekly wage of $200. Half of nothing is nothing. 6. Deferred community of property will cause serious accounting and valuation problems if spouses wish to claim deductions. 7. If the women's liberation movement is to have any success whatsoever, it must surely result in a better informed, more economically independant woman. If this is going to be afforded the middleaged woman of to-day by the Ontario Law Reform Commission's proposals, is the price of a comprehensive scheme such as deferred community of property for the future too high? Hopefully, fewer numbers of women will require its alleged protection! EXAMPLE CALCULATION OF AN EQUALIZING CLAIM For property acquired during the course of a marriage, other than the matrimonial home and its contents, the Ontario Law Reform Commission recommends that it be governed by the Matrimonial Property Regime. In this Regime the spouses would continue to own acquire and dispose of their separate property during the marriage. On termination of marriage, either by death or divorce, the spouses would share equally the financial product of the marriage. This is known as Deferred Community of Property. Division of the assets aquired during the course of the marriage would be accomplished by means of the equalizing claim rather than by claim to specific assets. Sharing would take the form of a cash payment from the spouse with the greater assets to the spouse having the lesser assets. 1. Calculation of the husband's residuary estate. Net Estate.(total value of the husband's property less his debts and liabilities) $58,000 (property) - $3,000 (debts) = $55,000 (net estate) From the net estate are subtracted the value of property acquired before the marriage and the value of property acquired as a personal gift. $55,000 (net estate) - $10,000 (property owned before his marriage) = $45,000 (residuary estate) 2. Calculation of the wife's residuary estate Net Estate (total value of wife's property less her debts and liabilities) $12,000 (property) - 0 (debts) = $12,000 (net estate) From the net estate are subtracted the value of property acquired before the marriage and the value of property acquired as personal gifts $12,000 (net estate) - ($4,000 bonds acquired before marriage +$3,000 personal gift) = $5,000 residuary estate $. Calculation of net financial product of the marriage Husband's residuary estate + wife's residuary estate net financial product of the marriage $45,000 + $5,000 0. $50,000 (net financial product of the marriage) con't pg. 6 Pg 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �ABBY 1101411i N about some of the influences which keep women out of fitness and sports activities, and talked particularly about the influence of school programs. She stressed at one point that women were only partly responsible for not being involved -- that there were other factors like stereotypihg and lack of encouragement which also worked to keep women out. From the studio, we went to the College, where Abby opened the Conference. Here she expanded on the kinds of social pressures she had mentioned earlier. Specifically she dealt with the myths and stereotypes our culture perpetuates when it comes to women and sports or fitness. A lot of these are reviewed in the booklet Abby wrote in co-operation with the Ontario Status of Women Council, "About Face ... towards a positive image of women in Abby Hoffman came to Thunder Bay to address participants of the Women's Fitness Conference held October 16, 1976 at Confederation College. She arrived Friday, the night before the Conference, and I was lucky enough to be one of the three women from our Planning Committee who met her at the airport. Sport". They included the myths that women are basically physically in inferior; that sports activities damage our child bearing potential and that to be successful as an athlete She made you had to look like a man. particular reference to the slams given by the media (and losing competitors) to the female gold medal swimmers in the '76 Olympics. We took Abby to her hotel where we discussed the Conference -- our plans and our hopes. We also talked about a lot of other things too. Like how Abby had left a teaching position at Guelph University (Political Studies) to take her preAnd how her job as sent job. Co-ordinator of Athlete Assistance Programs for the Canadian Olmpic Association ends soon, leaving her unemployed. We told Abby we'd like her to work in Thunder Bay, so we could have her Who knows? full time. I drove Abby to CBQ first thing Saturday morning for an interview. She had done freelance work with CBC Radio on "This Country in the Morning", and is virtually an "old hand" She talked around radio studios. The evening before, Abby had talked about sport as an area which should be of primary concern to the women's movement, as it was here that the concept of biological destiny/inferiority is a fundamental issue. Abby talked about our right "to fitShe mentioned that some ness". countries like West Germany, this right We is guaranteed in the constitution. have the right as citizens and tax payers to equal access to public There would be as many facilities. opportunities, time allotted and funds Day care would allocated to each sex. be available so that mothers (and fathers) were as eligible as nonparents. Abby drew some rather obvious comparisons between our system and alternatestyles in other countries, particularly She spoke of culsocialist countries. tural and recreational centres in socialist countries which were beyond our comprehension given our experience with such centres. Entire families could go to a single facility where many activities, for all ages, were happening. There was no need, as in Thunder Bay, to drive one child to a Boy Scout meeting in the church basement, another child to swim class at the university, while Mum goes to a fitness class at the Y and Dad goes to play in a chess tournament at a local Lodge. All of these activities can be centralized in the community centre. Abby talked about how Olympic athletes are more effectively encouraged and financed in socialist countries. She also mentioned the evening before how the stereotypes regarding women are not the same as ours because generally women's contributions as workers and athletes seem to be valued more highly. She talked about male-dominated commercial sport as a hurdle to equal opportunity. It works to perpetuate the idea that women are not athletes and that, for all of us (men and women) our role is as spectator rather than participators. Abby referred to her own high school experience in a school which gave 1,160 students time off to watch only forty student/football players compete. In her talk and in her workshop, Abby looked at strategies for effecting change which included the integration of male and female sports programs, compulsory physical education classes every day in school, an emphasis on participation and personal fitness, equal allocation of funds and programming and media coverage of events other than strictly maledominated, commercial sport. Having Abby with us, even for a single weekend was like a shot in the arm. The things she talked about were valuable on an intellectual level, but there was something else there too. There is a physical sureness and grace in Abby which comes, I believe, from training her body to I would perform at its potential. like very much to be more in touch with my body -- its limits and its potential. I think, for all of us, it is the best thing we can do for ourselves and our self-image. Source material: 4. Calculation of the Equalizing Claim Net financial product of the marriage smaller residuary estate 2 = equalizing claim $50,000 1. Family Property Law Report, Ontario Law Reform Commission 2. A Brief Over-view (report of the O.R.L.C, on Family Property Law)bprepared by the Ontario Status of Women Council. Joan Packota Thunder Bay Club - Canadian Federation of University (net financial product ) - $5,000 (smaller residuary estate) 2 = $20,000 (equalizing claim) t********************ic******** * This year,the Law reform commission 5. Calculation of the financial situation of each spouse at termination of the marriage. a. Larger residuary estate - equalizing claim = financial situation of the husband at termination of marriage $45,000 (husband's residuary estate) - $20,000 (equalizing claim) = $25,000 (husband's financial situation) b. Smaller residuary estate + equalizing claim = financiii skuation of wife at termination of marriage $5,000 (wife's residuary estate) + $20,000 (equalizing claim) = $25,000 (wife's financial situation) Pg6 4E Itof Canada submitted a report on 41 41 family law which merits the attention The Government 4E of all Canadians. intends to carry on discussioni,(Ho-Hum): 41. 4E 41 4E with the provinces to encourage the 41 41 creation of unified Family Courts 41 with comprehensive jurisdiction 41 41 4E over Family Law permitting disputes 41 11 4E to be dealt with more constructivly. 4E In addition,the government will 41 nce an and with 4 discuss scuss w thee pr 41 1 41 the public other aspects of family 4E law bearing on the stability of 11 marriage,the protection of children, 41 41, 4c. and the fair sharing of the economic 41 consequences of marital breakdown. .11E PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Physical Assertiveness An article, written by Thomas Boslooper, appeared in the Journal of Physical Education and Recreation, May 1976. In it, he spoke of the need for more opportunities for women to engage in sports activities of all sorts--particularly, competitive, co-educational and contact sports. H e felt that it was not cultural attitudes alone which could account for the lack of opportunities for women--money, or lack of it, is an important factor. "Men don't want to share the money with the women." He points out the contradiction we tolerate when we acknowledge the high incidence of physical aggression directed toward women, and our refusal to allow warren the means to cope with this aggression. "Girls and women are struck and beaten, hurt and humiliated physically by brothers and sisters, a few mothers and many fathers, male friends and bosses, lovers and husbands. This is true on all economic and social levels." "Women, however, are told not to fight because it is not ladylike, and are kept from developing an kind of experience that will be beneficial to them in trying to cope with physical aggressiveness that has been directed against them." Based on 20 years of counselling and research, Boslooper is certain there is a correlation between physical competence/confidence and mental health. RECIPE FOR HEALTH He has found that women who feel they cannot cope with life "lacked satisfying physical activities, were unrealistic about their physical strength, had had unfulfilling experiences in physically competitive activities, or had been hurt physically or sexually abused by someone at some time, and so had cane to characterize various forms of physicality as a denial of femininity. Although not all emotionally distressed women were negative in all of these areas, most were negative in at least three out of four, and all were negative in the fourth." "On the other hand, I saw that women who felt they could cope adequately with the problems of life, and generally thought themselves to be vigorous emotionally and physically were likely to be what I call positive in all of these factors. They had developed and maintained a satisfying form of physical activity or sport; they had a realistic image of their physical strength and liked the feeling of being strong; the competitive element in physicality was stimulating to their awn achievement; and they never been hurt physically by anyone and/or they had the capacity to conceptualize physically assertive activity as a nonsexual or nonhostile act." THE HOOPLACHEERLEADER GLADIATOR SYNDROME He makes quite the case for coeducation, competitive, contact sports for women. "Certainly, men and women of insight and goodwill should be able to devise, develop, and regulate various forms of individual and team contact sports between females and females and between females and males for the establishment of energetic and wholesome activity that will promote the physical and social development of both sexes." "How much better human beings we all would be if males and females could learn to have the kinds of physical contacts that terminate in mutual feelings of respect and liking and the recognition that each participant is strong--where skill, rather than hostility, becomes the prerogative for winning, and the sharing of self-esteem becomes the mutual reward for both participants!" Can it be that, as boys and girls develop individual physical skills and learn in games and sports how to compete with one another playfully, they will be well on the way toward learning to relate constructively in marriage, in business, in the professions, and i n politics? Can wholesome contact sports promote healthier social contacts between male and female?" To these questions, Boslooper answers affirmatively. He joins the chorus of female voices asking for increased opportunities in sports. MID Robert Hue, in an article entitled, Athletics and the Community College, or...the Hoopla-Cheerleader- Gladiator Syndrome, looks at how school and college sports stress winning rather than participation and education. He addresses the star-making process which can only accommodate a limited number of people "at the top". Starmaking, and the need to win, are both products of a system which seeks public recognition/financial gain above educational value. In such a system, there is little opportunity for students to meet one another with the intention to develop skills and strengthen their sense of community through encouragement and understanding, and female students are taught to take on a supportive role; not to develop their own skills but to rejoice over the achievements of male athletes. Rue discusses these and other issues which require changes in attitudes and changes in behaviour. He makes yet another plea for the use of sports as a vehicle for learning, fitness and respect for the skills and efforts of others. Pg 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Marlene It takez a wide net POETRY to capture the zpitit that knows Lt's cwn The 6inezt mezh (.-(1.et net cortin LETTER TO ALL NV att phantasy temo ved, thetez power in the stone 14 I am quiet now; Lt -ins becaus e, the, here The sent; L 1\4 E that cant be moved. / am thinking 6aeze concetn iz dross, o6 you,each ob you. W ith yowl dietent ti6eztyLez all zympathy zuzpect, and habitz;and ways o6 bon those who scorn thinking and 4eeting; to pray the game on I admite you pt yours courage; battet zeti -tezpect. Gert It takez coonage to be dietent,and each o6 uz are di64etent. At some point in out Zivez; W e may meet and sit down and tatk, We may not agree on a tot o6 things; I We may be at dietent ztagez o6 growth, REASONS but we mItt tezpect and accept I out di66etencez. Thete ate two /Lea/sons thi/s quest teaLized, I believe aa women ate strong arm in atom- - I want to zee I and getting zttonget. we have a gent& inzight into things; Each o6 uz,we want to teach out in at kinds oi ditectionz,that many oi uz have only dreamed about. N ow Lt's happening in 40 many ways; We zee it and beet Lt every day It iz exciting. The 4a4-t, 40 obviourty, it ha4 been 40 tong coming, And Let's 6ace Lt, quite overdue... The second, same maticious dezite to show even so zubtey those who nevet betieved in women that the incapacitiez they saw in ws wete metety the 't own tegectionz theit own inadequaciez zhining thtough-and theystt know. . their childrei She's at home in the fields and in the woods, s he can identify sound or smell, S he knows what to in earth that only weeds,and, she'll still have of that growth on h er table next The Northern Woman can drive a tracto a truck, a school bus or a bicycle; she can clean,cook . Pautah Edwards It -o a good andiviondet6oLe thing to be a woman, we ate not only ptoving every day,thatide have b/Lainz;but W e have physicat and mentae strength and have fresli blu pie the same day; Her teeth are stai and patience to do amazing things in each o6 out Li6e time. We ate Leatning that we, as women Can have mote conttot overt w hat we want to do, And what we don't want to do So Li I am quiet tight now, It .cis becauze 1 beet att these things, and I had to Let you know. CaxoL Anne Waugh "Het-zete The Northern woman a brown eyed susan that she calls an ox-eyed daisy; S he's a jackpine w ith wild bluebert at her feet, a log camp out in the bush thi she helped build; She's the northern lights in full dre! The northern woman the one who s knows the names of all her neighbor their history their gossip i To zee at Last my ziztutz and I I THE NORTHERN WOMAN art day Long out argument have ch azed the cat outside thL from pure spring w and you couldn't h notice them b ecause The northern Woman smiles at stranger house L growing incteazingLy neutotic Charlene D R t 6it your ting in my noze then turn Lt on my 6inget a noose on a tiny neck az you ignite your wands with matchez my skin cut-P Like ceaophane unwtapping ate Lts de6encez against you i can only tetteat inzide my shredded 4!Mn zttetching tarn edges to covet th,i4 strange evidence oi Love. P g 8 Myna McFattafte itom B.C. ixom "The Fat Executionet" PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �NIIII..4"1.14)004).flabom4 ramom mmoscmooimmot sGaim.0 00404011m4 mi04 ANI4 r4soo4004mmt I OlYmPia I I wanted to say the dteamet was mad, His ego and ptide was a sin. I wanted to tett him, the castle he buitt was a btot on the season we've in. I wanted to say the ptanetz at bay, and some whet e a child is dying. I wanted to choke him, and scream in his eat. What manna o6 man is unabte to heat when hati od the wottd is ctying? RAPE The final outrage,the ultimate insult to the human spirit.... forget the flesh, all bruises fade. I , By physical, assault man's point is made. but in that dark,and secret place,a violated spirit drinks the distillation of revenge. Who rapes has made an enemy to all his kind, exposed that real potential for a rapist, .... and more andmore her sisters empathize and strip him of pretension through her eyes. I Stitt as the vision KM stowty ttans6used in the cynicat ()toad od a nation. I somehow dotgot, that the otiginat thought and vatued the dream as divetzion. Fot nobody cried and nobody died, and nobody screamed disastet. The potitics tumbted behind the dacade, making theit points with invisibte Gods, teaving no Wad on the gteen sat tut Gert od Otympia. The youth od the ptanet was on pa/Lade, -att muscle and brawn and grace. A or under my arms either, visibte skating od energy with a tired and spitittess twice. but don't hate men! So to the dreamer, who dreamed the pume That didn't quite contain us I'm not supported by a bra, dot paying the pipet is the ptice, or pluck my eyebrows blue. and the dteamet's dream may &Lain us. I es don't shave my legs I One thing I know sure for my Brother my sister always' love you. Donna Shaw TO GERT What a beautidat spot 04 a massacre I thought, when the Indians entered the ting, i6 under each bonnet and deatheted cape a hatchet shatp was hidden! What a tovety time dot vanity to meet its dinat doe, to h ang the dreamer upside down where once the citctez gew. Gent Beadle It was cages, and cages, on and on 'ery hex timbs row ees ne uly; stretched.... They ran through the dietds to mote cages and cages. They ctimbed oven and over the w'tought .iron bans and on and on they tan thtough cages sew :rry POEM Untitled by Marg Smith and cages anti weary they tested by an ad woman who spoke.... When / was young p but I ran thtough cages and cages b ut tined atso teatizing.... there witt always be cages and cages to tun itom, to tun to )ertson z o now / zit knowing my timitations, ittuminated by my possibitities. I Live! / tive! seeing no baAz £n my btindness" and so they sat,sat and thought o4 those cages, :er cages and ball.;... And they heeded, heeded the o!d woman, knowing one mat realize timUations,in olden to be itee. Kate Give me a hole to hide in, and I'll obediently disappear from view You need not ever more consider whether live or die, prosper or pine. My pain can be as nothing to you because it is not seen by you. don't fit into my body, knowI'm too awkward, lumpy, scratchy ever to be containable by skin. So go, don't look at the grotesque thing don't hear the cacophone of my clamouring desires don't taste the bitter taste of failure to come to terms with what is not smooth and neatly packaged. That's what we always said stay, or go if we can be together gently, that's cool if not why stay, why hang around and waste the sunshine? But days are made from clouds as will, I've found, So, when yoU go, that's fine but don't expect to leave with my I I I respect. credit 'She Ain't Heavy' Pg9 1111111.0111111111.0414 blimp( pinimpoemm 114.111111111141N10111114,11411411041111M1410041111111.11M11111.0. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CRISIS WOMEN' S CREDIT UNION AWA I TS CHARTER *************************k 4E Over thirty women assembled, on short notice, at the Northern Women's Centre on Oct. 14, to meet and be signators as founding members of the * credit union. Bert Richards from the Ontario Credit Union League, 4E 4e Toronto, and Jim Zebruk, the local 4e representative were present and answered many more questions asked 4E by the women. 4E One of the requirements, before 4E obtaining a charter from the Province * was that four women allow their ie names to stand for nomination for President, Treasurer, Credit Committee 4E and Supervisory Committee. Women were selected for these positions. The election of these women, and any 4e others nominated for these positions will be held after the credit union has obtained its charter. 4E Another requirement was that the credit union have a bond of association, i.e. ethnic, company, etc. 4E The credit union's bond is with the Northern Women's Centre. However, since the centre does not demand a 41 membership fee, the membership will 4E be drawn from sbuscribers of the 41 Northern Woman Regional Journal and/ 4E or volunteers of groups such as the Rape and Sexual Assault Centre, 4E Equal Pay Committee, IWY Decade Coun4E cil, Citizen's Group on Crisis Housing, Etc. Sounds complicated--don't worry. 41 The easiest way to become a member 4E is to subscribe to the Northern Woman. This will make you eligible 4E to receive loans and make deposits 4E 4E in the credit union. 4E The name Northern Women's Credit 4E Union Limited was voted as the most 4E popular with Women's Credit Union 4E (Thunder Bay) a close second. 4E The response to the fact sheet sent * to many women, indicated an overwhelming positive response that a women's 4E credit union will be a success in 4E Thunder Bay. The charter will take 4E six to eight weeks to prepare. We if will keep you informed. Save your money for the union! ic************************** HOUSING The annual meeting of the Citizen's Committee for Crisis Housing was held in the dining room of the Crisis House on Tarbutt St. on Oct. 7, 1976. Dorothy Akram, counsellor and manager of the homes, met with eight of us from the Committee. Mention should be made that there are four houses. One house is used as the communal dining room. This is where all the meals are made and served to the residents. Another,house is used for the young women who formerly were housed in the Coach House. The other houses are provided for the women that we are concerned about, woman in an emergency crisis situ- NCO -OP BOOKSHOP and RECORD CENTRE * Excellent selection of Canadian literature, classics, 4E 4E 4 film books, science fiction, crafts, poetry, many unusual titles. Best folk, ethnic and blues selection in town. .E Open till 8 eadi day it. and all day SundsV 4E182 S. Algoma Street. On campus eve ry Thursday beside the Main Cafeteria phone 3458912 ************************** Pg 1 0 Woman, there are still no cribs or highchairs, and according to Dorothy Akram, they are overspent on their budget. The city, without bothering to inform Dorothy, has closed off access to these houses. A mountain of dirt blocks Tarbutt St., just off Victoria Ave. A detour down Lillie St. to a narrow unmarked dirt road between Hogarth Hosp. and Grandview Lodge is now necessary to get over to Tarbutt St. A while back, Lakehead Living, our free paper on life in Thunder Bay, as approached by one of our committee, hoping they would do a feature article on the sad situation that prevails for abused women in Thunder 3ay. Tom Grand didn't feel the number of women in distress warrented any :overage by his paper. After our depressing talk with Dorothy, we reaffirmed our original agreement to supply what we could out of the interest on the money we received from Grenville Group Homes. Money is presently being used to transport one child to and from the Ogden Day Care Centre, as the city cannot afford the $6 taxi fare. The mother of this child is ill, requires surgery and cannot cope with her two children. Other children temporarily housed in crisis housing, are missing school till permanent housing is found for them. The bulk of the money will remain in a preferred savings account until a situation presents itself to invest in a crisis shelter for women only, that meets our expectations, or failing that, perhaps invest the money in the Women's Credit Union to a,id women in crisis with a small loan situation. We have undertaken to make a personal appeal to service clubs and church groups and have written a form letter asking them to intervene on behalf of women and children. Trudy Perroud will take the Sec. Treasurer office vacated by Janet Owen. Gert Beadle will continue as President for another year. Trudy and Gert are the signing officers. The fund is now in the new name of our charter "Crisis Homes Inc." ation. Dorothy told us of the difficulty of locating permanent housing for these people, mainly women with chil dren. The housing shortage in Thunder Bay coupled with the reluctance on the part of people to rent to women with children makes the task twice as difficult. Many women are being turned away from this emergency shelter, thus remaining in an intolerable home situation, where beatings may be frequent. (One woman related to one of us that she is well known at McKellar Hosp. Out of five pregnancies, she has only two live children because she was beaten.) Records of exactly how many women are turned away are not kept. However, most of us on the committee have been contacted or know of such women. For the past couple of months there has been a waiting list to get in. Women with children are a priority. While we are very aware of the problems encountered in finding permanent accommodation for these women, after being admitted, it is still our main concern that NO ONE in a crisis situation is turned away. The need for more emergency shelter is evident to us and we feel that every woman refused accommodation, due to lack of space, should be documented. Shelter for men in Thunder Bay seems adequate but for women, two houses w ith approx. 15 beds is appalling, especially when you consider some women nave many children. One woman housed there presently has eight children. In Toronto, emergency beds for men total 1,184 and 77 for women. The ratio in Thunder Bay is probably worse. Women have never been a concern of the government. The operational costs of running these homes are shared by the province and the city. Our mayor beats his-chest for the working man while many of these working men are beating their wageless, powerless wives. As for the rest of the city council, they are hardly aware these houses exist. In spite of invitations, none have 411"c"*"*"**********)1414cg"lbothered 4E the REPORT (he Crisis Housing Committee. 7 o visit. Intoaddition, the judge said, per o Themitting governments cutbacks toin social the name change this case 4E services women the hardest 0 mighthave havehit "serious repercussions o 4E --theperhaps poorestthroughout and weakest. The cuto the country". 4E o backs budget named for operating :'Heleft saidthe a person Jackson could 4' thesepetition houses less than adequate. 0 to change the name to o 4E One house had toanbeindividual opened before o Jackchild; namedit o 4E was furnished (furnished means beds 0 Manning would want his surname 4E 0 to Peopling; andprovided a woman 4c. and0 achanged T.V.) mattresses were 0 0 called Carmen would insist on being 0 4E then, and not much else since. Wino o AL 0 called Carperson. 4 dowsO are without curtains, beds (cots) o without spreads. 4 are Towels and insane," o endless and increasingly bedding ooare being depleted. "This One would tru'y wrote Scileppi. broom between four spite be in ttghouses! realm ofInnonume." of our last appeal in_the Northern , i BABYLON, N.Y. (AP) What's in a name? A legacy of sexism, says a Long Island feminist. But Justice John Scileppi of New York State Supreme Court disagreed and denied the woman legal permission to change her name to Ellen Cooperperson rfrom Ellen Cooperman. In denying the petition Scileppi said such a "ludicrous" change would expose the women's liberation move% ment to ridicule. "The possibilities are virtually 0 0 o : o o i o o 0 o o .0! PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �:************************************************************************************i Decade Council goes to Gera idlon ********************************************************************** ************* Oct. 16/76 Saturday morning, fifteen membprs of the Decade Council drove about 170 miles to Geraldton to share with the women there some of the progress reports of the various action collectives that function under the support and leadership of the Decade Council of Northwest Ontario. This has to be one of the most beautiful drives in the area. The first winter snow we have seen accompanies us and deepens until near Geraldton we see that the Our thanks snowploughs are out. to Reiko Maeba for arranging the visit and providing the lovely lunch and coffee for the group. We also appreciate the Separate School lending us the class room for the meeting. The meeting was called to order at 2 PM by chairperson Bernice Cain with 32 persons present, all having been identified and introduced to each other. The committee reports w ere each followed by a question period and appeared in this order; E ual Pay Report - Leona Lang Leona gave a 'retailed report on lobbying efforts to date and the Working Women's Conference to be held sometime in March at ConfedHopefully, it will eration College. be co-hosted by Trades and Labour She stated Council and the College. that Grace Hartman of CUPE has accepted an invitation to attend and more good speakers will attend It will be a two the workshops. day affair and will stress unionization as the shortest route to equal pay. The Felt Feea Manket vats a zuccus {yon The NottheAn Women'4 Centre. One Hundred and 4ixty-4ive dottaius wa4 made. Spec a,2 thank4 to ate those i that donated and ezpeciatty to Leistet I Conga son att. the good junk 4he We- description of the project, an outline of what we hope to preserve the progress to date and the appeal for participation from the women of Geraldton. , il-111LHousinv Gert Beadle, Pres. of Citizens committee for crisis housing support. Gert gave the background to the establishing of the city-run crisis houses in Thunder Bay, the original philosophy of a house for the women in transition as opposed to the shelter and food for displaced families, that the city provides. She spoke of the pressing problem of physical abuse in a marriage situation and the public indifference to a subject they prefer to pretend doesn't exist. The discussion on this report and the questions asked indicated a general interest on the part of our 1.414=IimmitIINIMII1410111111141i4114P+11111100114 NEW WOMAN DOCTOR IN TOWN Dr. Fulford is with the Spence Clinic and those of us who have had occasion to need her advice and medrical attention recommend her highly. Ra e and Sexual Assault Report - eri lee Berry and Marg Wallington Much progress was made this Marg outlined the previous summer. attempt which the Northern Women had instigatea, wnich failed from lack of public support and stated that the time seems right for progress All local hospitals in this area. Her group now carry a rape kit. has met with the police force and found a willingness to co-operate. They have a room in McKellar Hosp. and a counselling service. Paula Brooks is the first woman in Canada to be hired as a co-pilot 1!operating out of Timmins. She is iemployed by Nor-Ont Air to sevice a northern route from Timmins to North Bar, Chapleau, Sudbury, etc. In an interview with CBC Radio, 1 Paula stated there was some fear that she might not be capable of 1 loadi ng her own baggage, but she was able to calm the fears of her 1 counterparts. Paula was a imale flight instructor and had 1500 hrs. flying time before she was consia She ered for her present position. 1 hopes to one day sit in a co-pilot's seat in Air Canada. In the meantime, she savours the knowledge that she 1 has broken another barrier. Ruth Cunningham from Confederation College gave the Family Property Law Report for Joan Pakota of the University Women's Club who was unable to attend. She spoke also about the Status of Women of Ontario of which she is a member and her position as head of Women's Programs at the College. She gave tribute to the Northern Woman's Centre, which she said had contributed greatly to her growth as an aware, dedicated worker in the women's movement. Women's Credit Union rratrer777757,rn the absence of Laurie Hill, reported on the progress of the Women's Credit Union (see report on page 10 of this paper) I .Lo..i.tated. Herstory Report 77777-17Fay gave a loose WS 1 ' ' ! 111101c************************* it 4E 4E 4E 4E A poem to my friends, with thanks for helping me through the roughest time of my life. * 41 4E 41 4E .* 4E 4f 4f 4E 41 if 4E if if 4E Acknowledgement to My Friends. Journes Northern Woman. Apprehension mingles with fear the collike the clouds that form on a grey lective, spoke about the journal as menacing day. the collective and joint property wonder what the future holds And of the women in Northwestern Ontario.* for me 4E She stated her desire to broaden * Calm, peace, serenity, the vision, to have it make a clear 4E and the knowledge that and positive statement on the 11 always intended to do what was right iE She issues that concern women. if 41 said "We want to remove ourselves 4f Chaos, confusion, pain II from the portrayal of pathetic if 4E and the reality of my shortcomings 4E iE losers to a great sisterhood who in my everyday existance? 4E if knows where they have been, where 4E Or will the middle of the road il they want to go and will arrive 41. iE be my fate, my destiny if 4E there without losing either their in this time of my life? 4E 41 sense of humour or their capacity 4f 4E to love both th eir sisters and 4E ifWhatever the case iE if. their brothers. Whatever the feelings 4f 41 This visit to Geraldton was a am secure right now iE 4E pilot project and will no doubt 4f 4E Because as long as this new life 4E 41 be followed by the Decade Council within me surges forth 4E If we moving out to other areas. and pulls from eternity *find the same warmth, the same if A kick for my awareness, woman-to-woman rapport in the 41 am close to myself, know future meetings, our Decade Council 4E * and to you my friends, will grow in strength and stature. * who helped make this state of I sisters in Geraldton and told us they may have cause to consider the value of one in their own community. Hilda Holm is also keenly interested in the plight of elderly women in isolated communities who have lost their mates and are without financial advice are emotional support. The responsibility of women to help women is widely accepted; only the means has not been established. Home-makers Group - Eleanor Eryou m.ming-gillintrirtup have been monitoring television and the printed word for sexual stereotyping, stating with much good humour that we are still weak and passive but men, poor dears, are still dumb and bumbling. Hopefully they will do more monitoring. I I I - we must work collectively if we don't , our energies die 4E 4E if I being a reality. 411** Love Paulah ************************9 Pg 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �HERSTORY PROJECT .1 % %i /IS LP YOU R IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW HAVE A STORY TO CONTRIBUTE, PLEASE SEND IT ALONG. THE HERSTORY GUIDELINES BELOW MAY GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF SOME AREAS YOUR STORY COULD INCLUDE. HERE IS OUR ADDRESS: HERSTORY PROJECT 316 BAY STREET THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO FOR HERSTORY GUIDLINES 1. Now old were you when you came to N.W. Ontario? 2. Were you rural or urban? 3. Did you have a sense of adventure at the prospect? 4. Did yiu think of yourself as a pioneer? 5. Were you disappointed or elated at the reality? 6. Did you realize the importance of coping on an individual basis or was your husband the one who shielded and protected you and took the load? 7. Did you expect it 'to be hard or did you perhaps romanticize the life? 8. What was the thing you missed most? 9. How did you meet the needs for spiritual growth,for creative growth? 10. Did you cope with loneliness, was there music, books in your first home? II. Do you remember the first radios, the first phones, the silent movies? 12. Were you interested in the politics of the country? Did you vote your own vote? 13. Did you lose anyone in the First War or the Second? 14. Do you remdmber the bread lines,the hoboes in the depression, the great Welfare roles, and the labour camps that paid $5 a month for a man? 15. How was it with you then? 16. Was educating your children a passion with you? 17. How much value did you put on personal vanity? 18. What beauty preparations were available, for instance - who cut your hair, and did you curl it and how? 19. How old were you when you married. Were you prepared to be a wife and later a mother or did you find a surprise waiting for you? 20. Have you thought much about Women's rights or have you been content to have men take the lead and decide what is best for you and the family? 21. Have you ever done a really militant thing because you knew it was right even though your husband disagreed? 22. Did you feel the generation gap they speak of these days with your children. 23. Were you able. to trust their judgement, push them out of the nest or did you long to protect them? 24. Was there a difference in protective feelings between your daughters and sons? 25. Was there any time you had to fill the breach in supporting the family (husband sick)? 26. Were you active in the communtity, see (9) 27. What was the health facilities 28. As 29. ; the famity doctor; the flu epidemic, the fever epidemic? you look back, is there anything you would have changed or has your life pleased you? Does the Divorce Rate disturb you or do you feel there is some merit in woman asserting herself more today? Pg 12 30. What do you feel you have contributed as a friend, as a parent and a citizen? PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �as loose a statement as "we support the Native woman's cause" without realizing it is their own cause. She cannot be wounded unless the pain is general, the anger allencompassing. When we know this, and our native sister knows that we know it, she will forgive us for our patronizing pity, our sanctimonious rhetoric, our self-seeking indifference and lend to us the pride and power, the natural affection that sustained her through the nightmare our society has imposed on her. The poem Sylvia read to us is below and says it all and we in the Decade Council say Amen. 4E "Anna Mae worked hand setving het 4E Indian people and assisted in out 4E e6iont4 to shed the shacktes o4 4E She is with 4E Government patetnatism. 4E us. In het btook is Ogtala. We 4E So theteiote 4E considet het a Wend. 4E we ate concerned because we beet 4E that het invotvement as out ally 4E pxobabty brought hex death... We 4E 4E want to know the truth about Anna Mae's death and the possibitity o4 31 the Government's .involvement in it. * Anna Mae Pictou was tespected and 4E We loved by the people o4 Oglala. 11 mourn hex, and we urge all law4E abiding citizens to demand the teat 4E 4E truth about het death." The Brave-hearted Women who remain to face the dangers of the Indian world have sadly been given a martyr, Anna Mae of Shubenacadie, Boston, Washington, St. Paul, Wounded Knee, Los Angeles, Oregon and finally a frozen grave site on a ridge in Oglala. 4E 4E 4E lt 4E 4E 4E It * 4E 4E Among the Iroquois, it is the women It who decide when the people will go 4E to war * because when the war is done, it is the women who weep. 4E Will the Brave-Hearted Women decide 4E 4E that, with Anna Mae's death, the war is over? Or will they decide with Lorelei Means who declares, 4E "Hell, we're struggling for our life.* * ='e're struggling to survive as a , people". 4E 4E 4E Anna Mae Pictou Aquash faces the 11 sun's first light with the white, black, red and yellow streamers 4E flapping overhead on poles placed in 4E the Four Sacred Directions cornering her grave. 4F 4E The Brave-Hearted Women have decided * 4E there will be war. The Second Battle of Wounded Knee found Anna Mae among the many young and old women who shared a common denominator: the loss of patience. Regina Brave put it into words: WE'RE TIRED' We'te tined oi seeing out men dtiven by despait, tutn to alcohol, commit suicide, or end up in penal instituions. We've neared out chitAen only to 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E * 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E It 41 4E 4E 4E 4E see them brain -washed by an atien system with a genocidal poZicy which 4E 4E desttoys out tanguage, customs and 11 heritage. We'te tited oi seeing out btothens and on go oi.6 to wan only to come home and be stain by United States Govetnment iotces. 4E 4E It 41E. 4E 4E Wet 483 yeau, we're Cited - we're damn sick and tiled. So, we've standing up next to out We're standing up and taking men. up the battle here and now to ptotect out young so theit unborn can know the (xeedom out gAandpatents knew. 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E * 4E 4E * 11 The iutuu oi out young and unborn to butied in out past. We axe today 4E who wLU biting the tebitth 04 spiti- 4E 11 dignity, and 4oveteignty. 4E We ate Native AmexLcan Women! HEARTBREAK * 4E 4E AL 1IT ERALDTO ************************4 Sylvia Ullich is a beautiful native woman. Physically and mentally, it shows itself. Yet, in the town of Geraldton, she has reason to believe the townspeople have not seen the person she is. They have dismissed her and her people as only Indians. She came to the Women's Council meeting to tell us that we have nothing to give her, that we are part of the structure that has taken away her pride and her heritage, that our problems are as nothing to the problems of her race. She is almost right. The structure that declared her Non-Indian when she married a white man is ours. It is obscene and utterly without a redeeming feature, but it's ours and it must be changed. Who will change it, if not women, for she is one of ours, beyond the Indian beyond the white, is woman blood and bone, doubly oppressed in her case because of her race and our indifference. She struggles to teach 42 native children, away from their homes billeted in white homes whom she feels have no personal interest in them. There are tears in her eyes as she tells of a social she planned for the pupils and their house parents, inviting them by letter, but "not one turned up". Does this make them racist? Probably not. Unthinking, insensitive, preoccupied with their own small affairs, more likely. But she was wrong w hen she said she wanted nothing from us, for at the first sign that she was in the presence of women who truly cared and suffered with her, she broke and we wept together. Perhaps we wept for the things that divide usb.for the love we deny each other, for the support we need from each other and perhaps we wept because there's a revolution going on and we know love is not enough. It will take controlled anger and we don't know who to be mad at. No woman truly tuned in to her own female core could make am am of am am Indian and proud. Indian you could pick me out a crowd. Indian stand tall. Indian you'll never see me I crawl. am Indian am Indian am am of am am I live on a reservation. Indian and proud. Indian you could pick me out a crowd Indian stand tall. Indian you'll never see me I crawl. am Indian lived on a reservation am Indian need the white man's education. am Indian deep down inside. am Indian I've got my pride. I I am Indian ain't greedy. am Indian am not Treaty. am Indian without any land. am Indian is that hard to understand? I I , am am am am Indian Indian Indian Indian proud of my race. not a disgrace. set me free. let me be. am am am am Indian Indian Indian Indian day and night. I'm not white. doing time. is that a crime? Ronnie Syrette, Ojibway Nation 11**************************V 4 'By nice women...you probably mean * selfish women who have no more thought *for the underprivileged, overworked 4E * women than a pussycat in a sunny window 4E for the starving kitten in the street. *Now in that sense I am not a nice 4E * woman, for I do care." 4E - Nellie McClung, The Stream Runs * Fast, 1945. 4F 4E 4E 4E 41 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E 4E * 4E 4E 41:**************************4 P g 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �The members of the Thunder Bay Rape and Sexual Assault Centre have composed this questionaire in order to gain data on the frequency and conditions of rape, sexual assault or attempts at such in Northwestern Ontario. This form is to be completed by any woman who has been a victim of sexual assault of an attempted sexual assault in this geographic area. Names, if provided, will be kept in the strictest confidence. The compiled results will be published at a future date. Hopefully, by identifying the times and places in which sexual assualts occur in this area, we can prevent some other women from having this traumatic experience. By filling out this form, you will help us identify the need for the Thunder Bay Rape and Sexual Assault Centre. Location: Time: Date: Were other people present? Describe how you arrived at this situation: When did you first become aware that your attacker's intention was to sexually assault you: Did you know your attacker previously? The day long conference sponsored joi ntly by our centre and Confederation College on June 19th was attended by over seventy persons. The conference dealt with a wide range of issues concerning rape. We began the day with a speaker from theeToronto Rape Crisis Centre w ho spoke about the way our society's rearing of male and female children and our traditional way of looking at male and female sexuality contribute to the myths about rape and to its high incidence. Workshops w ere offered on assertiveness and self-defence, the role of crisis centres, methods of supporting rape victims, legislation, In the and assaults on children. afternoon we viewed the film "How to say-No to a Rapist...." (Storaska) and offered a critique and discussion result we reAs a of the film. solved that we would object to the use of the film for any attempt at serious education of women of the We general public regarding rape. will attempt to find or develop more meaningful media presentations. We've gotten a number of new volunteers since June, but need many more if we are going to provide full crisis and counselling help. Volunteer training has begun, and will be an on-going activity at the Centre so volunteers can join us at any time. You can be involved in a number of ways depending on the time you can spare and the type of help you would like to give. We need volunteers for phone service, counselling, typing and preparing materials. We will be settled into a permanent location by the new year, at which time we will be able to publish our phone number. Until then, anyone wishing to contact us can call Women's Centre (622-3989) or the Journal office (345-5841). Your message will be passed on. Thunder Bay Rape Our address is: and Sexual Assault Collective, P.O. Box 314, TBF. We'd like to hear from you. We w ill need a great deal of support from women in the area to meet our goals of educating the public about what rape really is, and providing w oman-to-woman support for victims of rape. A panel discus sion with a police officer, lawyer, nurse, rape counsellor, and a rape victim concluded the We felt that many issues conference. w ere discussed quite frankly and Pg 14 If so, describe the relationship. What was the attitude of the attacker? What force was utilized by the attacker? If you resisted the Could you describe attack, how did you resist? (ie. physically or verbally) details of the actual assault? What did you do immediately afterwards? Did you report the incident to the police? What was the attitude of the police? Did an arrest or conviction result? Would it have been helpful for you to have had a woman from a rape crisis group to talk to? Who did you talk to about the incident? How has the incident affected your life? Who or what has helped you deal or cope with the sexual assault? Could you give us characteristics of the attacker if known or remembered? Age: Height: Weight: Occupation: Marital Status: Could you give characteristics about yourself? Name:(if you wish) Age: H eight: Weight: Occupation: Marital Status: Please cut out this form and mail it to: Thunder Bay Rape and Sexual Assault Centre Box 314 Thunder Bay 'F' Thank you for helping women! that the day had given us all valuable information and the opportunity to discuss our feelings and beliefs with a variety of people. A video tape is being made based on the conference. This wLll be used for educational purposes and will be available for community groups, new volunteers, and other groups interested in a discussion of rape and its effects. The centre has received a $3000 grant from Secretary of State to be used for the educational aspects of our work. The centre has a resource file on rape arid related topics. W e are now developing an educational package which will be distributed to libraries and schools. One section of this package Will contain a collection of verse and thoughts from local women. Please send us any items you'd like to share. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �1 411, THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 Bay St. Thunder Bay, "P" Ont. return postage guaranteed RETURN TO: Coned* Postai Post Ftr,cm0 Bulk Ennombre third troisikno clams demos 220 414************************ * page of Contents Table Eleanor Morin makes her move Letters The Bravehearted Women Family Property Law Abby Hoffman Decade Council Report Women's Credit Union Herstory Daycare 2 3 If 5 7 11 11 12 16 * * * * * * * * * * * Donna Shaw 627 S. High St. Thunder Bay P **********************400 HAVE YOU MOVED? THIS IS YOUR LAST ISSUE LET US KNOW PLEASE. (We must pay postage on your returned paper in order to keep our mailing list YOUR SUBSCRIPTION IS DUE up to date). PLEASE SUPPORT US (six mssuEs) X32 YEAR Tact BuSINESS OR rNIST I TvnoN NAME GIFT t -want to get involved? call 345-5841 any Tuesday or Wednesday ADDRESS DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED Free to one parent families Free to senior citizens 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 3 No 2 Description An account of the resource Vol. 3, No. 2 (1976) Title: Northern Woman Topics include: Journal distribution and readership Letters to the editor Native motherhood Family property law Women athletes Abby Hoffman Women in sports Access to sports and fitness for women Poetry Women’s Credit Union Crisis housing Women’s Decade Council Homemakers Group Rape & sexual assault report Herstory project Racism Anti-rape conference Authors/Contributors: Gert Beadle Paulah Edwards Myra McFarlane Carole Anne Waugh Charlene D. Robertson Ronnie Syrette 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 1976 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/16/2746/1977_Vol_3_No_3.pdf bec7b2d4e1b72d0eeb004dbbe3136dbb PDF Text Text NORTHERN WOMEN JOURNAL VOLUME 3 ISSUE 3 500 WORKING ./774; WOMAN ISSUE PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �editorial OPEN HOUSE Open house at The Northern Women's Centre is a ritual and this year Starting at two is no exception. pm. we begin arriving together and singly, loaded with good food and the Old faces and stuff of the spirit. new faces blend into a tapestry of One has occasion loving solidarity. to ponder the significance of this house of women, where having stepped 0 in College Canada became on January a reality 12th in when Con. ()Moo ials from the Credit Union Central S The Second Women's Credit Union r, all pessimism vannsions dissipate and are ntagious hilarity. It will be known as : League presented a charter to an 0 enthusiastic group of 35 committed Ontario Women's Credit PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Daar People; We like your work and would like We would to trade subscriptions. also like to trade the right to reprint articles, with the provision that proper credit be given. We are hoping that this will meet with your approval and that you will favour us with an early reply. Yours very truly, Dear Friends, Your periodical is to be mentioned in our resource guide in preparation, "Non-sexist Teaching Materials and Approaches", as a recommended resource for Teachers/ Learners against sexism. With relation to this: We are also in the process of putting together a mobile exhibition of a selection of the materials and publications which appear in "Nonsexist Teaching Materials and Approaches", to tour Teacher's Centres, Colleges, Conferences, etc. If you should wish "Northern Woman" to be included in this exhibition could you send two or three assorted issues for display, plus a number of subscription forms so that potential subscribers need have no difficulty in ordering? Many thank's for your kind look forward to your attention. Jeanne Georgeso:1 Apple Cider Press Dear L.E.D. Please contact the Northern Women's Centre, 622 3989, on Tuesday or Friday. Someone there may be able to help you concerning your enquiries. In sisterhood, Northern Woman Journal L Dear People; attended It's two weeks since the rap session at the Northern am at anchor Woman centre. Here for an indefinite period--evidently no one wantsNo.1 feed barley. Seeing all of you,such divergent personalities working to-gether for a common cause has sustained my drooping spirits. Perhaps Sisterhood still lives in the outlying areas. It certainly doesn't in our urban centres. Meeting all of you was such a shot in the arm- it gave me the courage and inspiration to hang in I . 'NEWS RELEASE 'NEWS o o The 1976 edition of the "Direc- ! o o storyof Community Services" is now i reply. The Directory: joint :o :available. Very Sincerely, o endeavour of the City of Thunder :endeavour o Bob White :Bay and the Lakehead Social Planning. New Childhood Press :Council, provides information con- -: London, England :cerning the many community services : :available in Thunder Bay - health, : o :social services, and recreation o : :agencies, citizen groups and com0 The 1976 :munity organizations. o Directory contains over 440 listings: 0 there. A new inclusion in the 1976 o The ship remains an uphill Directory is the "media resources" : shall be glad to get off battle-section, which outlines the services: in about five weeks,go home for two This : offered by Thunder Bay media. and then get down to the theory of : Dear Sisters; listing is provided as a guide so navigation. When woman embraces . that community organizations may o It's always a nice rush to receive feminism her sensibilities sharpen make the most effective use of the It reminds me the Northern Woman. considerably. Being submerged in a media resources available to them. of Thunder Bay women and the year : business andisindividual: male chauvenist enviroment is hell. guess this spent withAgencies, them have to found thewith Directory to: The further dimension of racism a belatedcitizens love letter those had isolated doesn't help either. $ be a most valuable information recan't And was involved. whom myself from the "real" world for so Directory, which sells think of source. a better The person to convey find the adjustment very long that $3.00 the love at than you.per copy, may be obtained hard. There was nothing in my "haute from astonishes the Lakehead It always me Planning to see a Council Bourgeoise" colonial up-bringing to George St. Crisis or from the City page-long409A report on the think we prepare me for this. For further Hall Information Desk. Houses - that they actually exist. feminists have not done enough prosinformation please And yet they were such a bigcall partthe Lakehead have been elytizing. For myself, Planning Council at 623-7071. of my life. content to sit around with people of Please continue sending the like minds and forget that the Northern Woman to big, bad Toronto "movement" has not touched 65% in any rg Phillips it feels good. way. In Toronto, we labour under not ecutive Director ...we*. Love, only a gay-straight split but a Mary Tomlinson main-stream-counterculture split, a I I I I I I I I I I I ..q, radical-political split etc.etc. realize now that the section calling for reform of the system has to join hands with those calling for restructuring of roles;rhose advocating revolution have to dialogue with those calling for an autonomous" movement" for women. It's Got to be"rumps in .. horns out". will be able to cope hope with the isolation better next June. Next time we come into Thunder Bay I are six new subscriptions l. As these woman only to glance at my copy, y would appreciate it scription started with for distribution least some of you to I I again.(I am going to save my pennies for a trip toThunder Bay in March PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Had Myself a Merry AU I want OA Chtiztmaz iz myset4 Just wrap me up and give me back to me Flom ancient myth and custom zet me 6tee I'm not a tinset angel on your Chtiistmaz ttee /'m just a hungry zeatchet Sot my own teatity Who zees the 4habby pnomize in thiz 6a -be equatity Can't you zee the giSt I'm &teaming oS lz giving me to me with Love. Gent Little Christmas THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS T' waz the night beiote Chitiztmaz when out oS -the notth, A 4tesh wind was btowing Sot att it waz worth. Fot Etma Ctauz had Santa Ctauz down upon the Stoot, She'd taken Uiendo Sot a yeah and wasn't passive anymore. She took hiz ttouzeAz and h-L cap and zttoked away hiz beard, Not heeding att hiz wild ptotezt that beatdtezz men. wee Seated. She btew a zingte pietcing note that onty sistets heat, And hold "Come thtow this tascat out to pasture with hiz deep" They ttazhed the peas tic toots wan and all the Batbie DottZ The sound oS cheeting zptit the ait and echoed thtongh the hat's. Only cuddly things were saved and beauty Sot the spit it Such things ad open up the mind or gave some meaning to it. They carted on Doe and Fawn, come Nettie and come Jean, Come Hitdegatd and ALUzon, Noreen and Getatdine They broke the ctockz o' 90 ptooS and tan them in the snow Untie. they made azkating link at Sotty-Sive below, Because they knew that Santa Ceauz and alt hiz metty men Would tie one on to cetebtate the Sight they didn't win. Down on the planet oS wanly and din The mothers .lay steeping tight as a stAing Fat that heathy Ho Ho! that tang through the snow Always nailed up the box she was in. When out oS the darkness she heard a zoSt voice tee choice" "Deco. Mothet, I bring you the git oi "Your chadten ate greedy, your mattiage hum-dtum, Stoned with regret and Valium, So I give you the ikeedom to {gorge gout own key To open the door to equatity. Yout edges ate tattered,' you're .Less than a whole Sweet mother, the giSt I give L6 gout soul. The 6athet was zobet, the chitdten dizmayed, Something went wrong with the peans they had made. They looked £n the iiteptace and up on the ArIq And pund -the' -the trace oS a deticate hooS And night there beside it, as plain as could be Was a print Stom the heel oi a 61/2 B. Wet they ztatted to cuddle the cuddly toys, Fot cuddeing's a pleasure Son both gittz and boyz. Now Sather who saw thete were Sew Chtiztmaz biJXs Turned glad in a (.lash, .looked in his wallet And Sound there some cash. "Come, sweetheatt" he cried "Leave thiz toiling behind" I'm slanting to pay what the {y amity owes ya, By soinging Sot steaks at the Ponderosa!" "Oh! Thank you, thank you Etma Ceauz The chadten heard het say "Fot giving back the thing I .Los -t, Th.to .lovely Cht-iztmaz Day." Gent Beadle :. o r o oWho did this issue: o Gert, Eve, Thyra, Marg, Noreen,: o o o Lynn, Peggy, Faye. o o o o a career? How come nobody ever asks a man how he manages to combine marriage and .0 Pg 4 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �ALONE I cty out in sell pity But they say, in that, I bind no answet. I cty out qtaid I say nothing that I'LL be passed by I won't be able to Oa ative Just passing by unta I die. P. W. I woad Love to go and see alt the wondens there coact be in this would 16 I were attowed to be the person I woad Zike to be. THE RAPE POEM To do the things 1 Like to do. and go where I woad tike to tee Land of ouits but in this It is not attowed. We must con6oAm We must do as tad to be accepted we Ballow out own minds but we ate outcast by the system becauae we ate to be seen not hewed, It £4 ea -Let to, be oppressed it takes nej enetgy but to stand and speak out Loud takes stamina and couitage and ptobabty an eternity. Until the whole woted changes and men zee and accept us as we ate witt we escape being squeezed into a mold o6 someone ea-5y to Live with. Thyta WHAT HAPPENS WHEN What happens when youWant to try and undetztand yout Zi4e, when aft. around you they ask why you stUt ate not a wiie. POETRY ARE WE HERE TO: west pink dress es play with dotes, don't maize messes wash the watts. play with gitts not with boys, have cute cuffs don't make noise. go to schools be nice and sweet, Leann gift's tines stay very neat. don't be tough thAow no kisses, don't be tough change to Mts. Do ate these things and never vary, God help you please you'll ptobabty maw. Eve What happens when you try to tee them and stite they wonder why, It makes you want to stomp and yett and maybe even cry. From what I heat and what I tead husbands aren't that great, I don't want to sound too cruel but I think I'd tathet wait. Eve. There is no difference between being raped and being pushed down a fligh t of cement steps except that the wounds also bleed inside There is no difference between being raped and being run over by a truck except that afterwards men ask if you enjoy ed it. There is no difference between being raped and losing a hand in a mowing machine except that doctors don't want to get involved, wear a knowing smirk, the and in small towns you become a veteran whore. There is no difference between being raped and being bitten on the ankle by a rattlesnake except that people ask if your skirt was short and why you were alone anyhow. There is no difference between being raped and going head first through a windshield except that afterwards you are afraid not of cars but half the human race. The rapist is your boyfriend's brother. He sits beside you in the movies eating popcorn. Rape fattens on the fantasies of the normal male like a maggot in the garbage. THE RIVER artily The tivet we had known as blue Has funned to mud much too soov Eat it was beauti6we and btight But now it is an aw6wf sight And boats that have gone by Have said their -fast good-bye. To the tivet which was blue Has died much, much too soon What a shame it Ka'S to you Daddy since it's no Long et deep blue FOA the teams on his ace Feet sontow Got the mistakes of the things people do To the smatt tivet once blue. Pg 5 Colleen, Aube Age 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Bears make the difference In most of the personal stories have come across, the author appears to dwell on the pure joy of the experience or takes the martyristic attitudes describing the persecutions in detail. found that could not stick to either route, as my emotions have always seemed to bounce around, like a child on a trampoline, hitting all the highs and lows, with an occasional pause for coffee break. Once had decided to relate the experience of moving to the country, debated on who would appreciate the effort. Certainly not most of the people who live jn the country, as they have come to grips with it and live quite comfortably in their chosen locations. As for the confirmed city dweller, my story would probably not in the least encourage her to 'come over to the rural side of life'. suppose the only reason have for writing this, is a feeling have, that somewhere there is someone who feels the same way as I, and it might be beneficial to her to know that there are at least two of us stumbling around on this earth I'm not a country girl, nor did ever expect to become one. We had talked of moving to the country but felt safe after making the stipulation that would consider only moving to either of two relatively unobtainable locations. As per usual a wife should never underestimate the determination of a man bent on following a dream and found out that one of my locations was not quite so unattainable. So under BY PATRICIA SHAW reminiscent of highschool days, cheering on the football team and think that draw them out of the ground a little higher each day, just wishing. Crooked little rows, maybe, but there's going to be a whole lot of boasting going on if they ever make it to the pot. The prophets of doom over the past six months have been placing bets on the length of my stay; the general consensus is that the first sign of a bear would most likely be the last sign of me. I, of course, reassured them, along with myself, that we would most likely never see a bear. Naturally, as with most of my predictions, out came the bear (not too big, but not too small) right up to the garbage cans. Now, if bears weren't called bears, they'd be called litterbugs and don't know if what felt at the sight of him was actual fright or indignation at the nerve of him as he spread garbage all over the area that had been working on. presume the bear assumed that this had been bear country long before it had been people country and that he had as much right to be there as anyone. called the Lands and Forests in my attempt to determine who would be the boss of my back yard. It had yet to be decided who would leave and who would stay. A trap was set and two days later, the bear was caught. As went towards the cage, the bear raged from fits of growling and banging to calmer spells when he just sat and shook. The only previous time had seen a bear, he had been in a zoo and that sight had sparked little interest in me and certainly no emotion, but as watched this pathetic animal trapped in his own environment, had to keep speaking softly to the bear to calm him. It is unsettling to find yourself over and over experiencing new emotions, compassion for the bear, kinship to strangers and awareness of nature. After years of feeling that had it all together, there is quite an adjustment to be made. I've come to know that nothing can shatter your sophistication like moving to the country. Without realizing it, began to enjoy all those corny old sensations like the songs of birds singing in the trees, the orchestration of choruses of frogs in the evening, the smell of the woods following a rain and the feel of warm sand under my bare feet. The semi-isolation offers you studies in everything, from the nature around you to mind-boggling self-examination. Our city friends' reaction to our move differ considerably from those who come again and again to bask in what they call our wonderland to those who periodically stop by to check on my sanity. I'm finding a change in attitude creeping in, replacing my 'never admit you've made a mistake' with I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 6 d° I I I I I I 414 \Oa Alh I I i toit a feeling of smug satisfaction when someone raves over the beauty and tranquillity of it all. One day as was riding through an old and busy section of the city, was surprised to find myself visualizing the people rushing up and down the street as scurrying ants methodically carrying on the repetitions of life without pausing to ask: "What is it all about?" Just lately drove down a street where a young woman had paused a few moments to sit on her steps in the sun and felt as if were intruding on someone sunbathing at the side of the road. felt an odd sympathy for her because she didn't have my privacy, or beautiful view, and had only the noise of the traffic to accompany her thoughts - a strange reaction from someone who, less than a year ago, was satisfied to sit on her steps for a few minutes' rest from a busy schedule. want you to know that would have never passed an agricultural course (the longest could keep a plant alive was three weeks) so when gardening season hit the area felt as out of place as a skunk at a garden party. My husband's overenthusiasm on the subject only served to dampen my spirits. As the little pots of seedlings began to clutter the house, up came the old defences and spent most of the time figuring out how not to have anything to do with it at all. Our first attempt at gardening last year, through inexperience and neglect, had turned My the yard into a disaster area. response to the commotion around me was that this year's endeavour would only result in a more spectacular failure, though at the climax we may be able to declare ourselves bankrupt farmers and seek some tax relief. Like a person who enjoys what he is doing, my husband planted with precision and was aghast when the corn had scattered around popped from the ground in rows showing no sign of uniformity at all. originally felt resentment for the little green beasts that are causing me so much trouble, but like most things out here, am watching in awe as they grow. Sometimes get a feeling I ,/ I the old whither thou goest' rule of thumb, become a rural resident. After a combination of triumphs, tears, hard work and plain good luck, our home was built and we moved in. Adjusting from six months of feverish activity to daily routine can, at the best of times be difficult, but when it occurs just as the long winter white settles in and most of the neighbours are going into hibernation, the results can be almost disastrous. And crashed into this period with a loud thud. January and February have always been my blue months, but this year cartwheeled through them alternating between deep depression and near hysteria. When, at last, drops of water began seeping from the ice on the roof, had to give realized that up the good fight and at least reconcile myself to the fact that here was, and here would likely stay. Probably the most confusing emotions came as watched the rest of the family really enjoying their new life while was being squeezed and prodded into the niche that had been designed for me by another. Fortunately, have learned in the last little while, that when you ' I I I I I I I I I I relax your defences, it is possible p g6 to stumble over a little pleasure. I I I I C1:34If o 444P40.. I 4 CPO I I I I Someone else could probably have written a better story of living in the country. There are a lot of women born to country life or women who have made the transition more gracefully. The conflict between being manoeuvred by another person's vision and the determination to fit into his plans is still going on inside of me. know that have to find a way to be my kind of person yet follow his kind of dreams and make it our kind of life. There's a long way to go before the conversion is complete. can't sniff the air for a hint of frost; don't have hayseed in my hair and you wouldn't catch me alone outside in the dark if the trees sprouted $10 bills at midnight. But, like the bear, think that belong here. I I I I I I I PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �family law reform ONTARIO Two years after the Ontario Law Reform Commission recommended changes in family law, the Ontario goverment has introduced new legislation, which; they claim, will "abolish the last remnants of the married woman's inferior status". The extremely complex new legislation aims at redefining property rights, support obligations, marriage contracts, common-law spouses, and the function of family courts. If the nemilbill is passed, homemakers will automatically be entitled to a part of the marriage estate upon divorce, even if they have not contributed capital directly. This will finally recognise the value of their work and their real contribution to the marriage. Support laws have been revised so that children, even those born outside the marriage, have to be supported until they are sixteen. The concept of support has been extended to cover common-law spouses. After two years of co-habitation, such spouses will be treated as legal marrieds in as much as they will be under the same obligation to support each other and their children as married people will be. This, it is claimed, will remove the stigma from common..law marriages. Sounds great? For years, women have been fighting for an equal distribution of assets upon marriage breakdown. But does this legislation really represent a victory for feminist rights? It does not. It does, however, grant women the 'right' to be equally responsible for the support of their families. This despite the fact that women earn less than men, and are harder hit by the desperate need for daycare. The real thrust of this legislation is not to work towards the true equality of women and men, but to prop up the tottering institution of marriage. Attorney General of Ontario, Roy McMurtry)admitted as much. The new legislation on commonlaw marriages should, he says, "act as an encouragement for common -law couples to regularize their situation by entering a formal marriage". Only then will they be able to enter into contracts outlining rights to property, to support and to the custody and care of children. It is in the interests of our provincial goverments to emphasize the obligations of couples to support each other and their children. It relieves them of the responsibility of providing adequate,social services. "Saving the tax-payers dollar", they call it. Again, Attorney General Roy McMurtry explains: "certainly it is more desir able to place a support obligation on common-law spouses than have a large number of persons who are living common -law looking to public welfare for support instead." More desirable_for whom? Many details of the legislation have yet to be publicized and discussed, but feminists across the country will be checking it out carefully. We have fought too long and hard to be fooled by false promises of equality. The Ontario Tory government cannot hide behind the claim that they are abolishing women's inferior status if all they are really doing is evading their responsibility for providing adequate social services by thrusting the burden of support back upon individual families. Kinesis CANADA THE FAMILY COURT The Law Reform Commission of Canada believes that many family problems could be better handled if a unified family court were to be established. At present, families facing divorce or separation, are channelled through complex court structures and procedures which often prove slow, expensive and even contribute to the already existing emotional tensions arising from marital breakdown. Quite often husbands and wives have to go to a number of different courts at different times to resolve matters concerning property, the maintenance rights and obligations of each spouse, and child arrangements. One family court could and would be capable of dealing with all legal problems that arise from family breakdown. The parties could appear before one judge, a specialist in family matters, and have most of the problems settled at one time. A 'unified family court' would provide public accessibility to information officers, family counsellors and maintenance enforcement officers available. Advice and assistance for spouses attempting to settle their differences, could eliminate much of the now complicated slow and expensive practices of resolving problems. Many family problems might find a better solution if a 'unified family court' were to exist. What do you think? If you have an opinion, write to: Secretary, Law Reform Commission, 130 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 016 ;PP FOR HOUSEWIVES On Oct. 13, 1976, MP Ursula Appolloni of Ontario asked if the Federal government would finally recognize housewives under the CPP during this session of the House. The Honourable Marc Lalonde, Minister of Health and Welfar'e/Minister Responsible for the Status of Women did not confirm when this would happen. On Oct. 29, 1976 MP Lincoln Alexander of Ontario asked if Mr. Lalonde would abandon the new amendments to the CPP plan since the Ontario Status of Women Council had objected to the amendments which would effectively subsidize working women while homemakers would receive less benefits. Mr. Lalonde replied Mr. Alexander was mistaken and he hoped the OSWC would change its mind. On Oct. 14, 1976 MP Iona Campagnolo of BC noted that the new amendments to the CPP, if passed, would ensure that children of the homemaker would be protected in case of her death and the homemaker would also be protected under the CPP against disability, aside from pension benefits. She advises that under the new amendments, the woman who drops out of the labour force to raise children will not be penalized for that period of low or zero earnings in calculating her benefits under the CPP. Kinesis FEDERAL HUMAN RIGHTS On Oct. 25, 1976 The Honourable on Basford, Minister of Justice/ MP Vancouver, in debating the throne speech said he regretted that the newly proposed federal human rights bill had not been passed yet. However it gave him more time to meet with women's groups to consult on amendments. As a result he said he will introduce a greatly improved human rights bill to prohibit discrimination on grounds of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age marital status as well as physically handicapped. He did not, however, say when he would do so. Mr. Basford noted he is now convinced that "equal pay for equal work" is not adequate as a legal clause to protect working women arguing that since most of us are in a job ghetto where no men work, we cannot claim equal pay. Thus he has decided to adopt the definition of "equal pay for work of equal value" as proposed by the International Labour Organization and he said this would be a 'milestone' in the commitment of the Canadian government to women's rights. Basford also said women's groups could congratulate themselves for this change and advised us to press the government now, to pass this bill speedily. However, VSW still has some criticism of the new bill. from Kinesis A woman's place is where she wants to be. A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. Pg 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �WORKING WOME CO-SPONSORED BY NW° INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DECADE CO-ORDI FRIDAY- SUNDAY, MARCH 11-13,1977 CIARCl/ // FR/DAY, 11e/co n e. 2e' --z/ ce- ecii/v Ato.--rx /i7/c-,667.-4/5 i/.<ey.-7o71-r 7be n2e/?// 5c2cicil /WA RCP /Z. 5A7711? DAY, 0. .3o -.9 3a a r22 - s-/-47e . 3o /2: 3, -3:49( p- /22 3.. 00 - 30 5-- oo 2 aps WO /---74)25 V/ /ea /y2/00,5/Y-79, - /152/72 of Me /7 a .- Do /-7/ar---67-23c?w //Can //7 o74-' am;,/& ' SI/ A/ PAMARC k/ /-/ d90 a. ,k). Ce3n eve-/y 12 Ar/r2s-4-n,29, 9: 36 Q 7.5" a_ 192 - /77c;-frvce"-ds cr /67"-ar'e yord i/(72:r7f C-07e3)e,c,-. . 3o a. /22 . .5/f /A/ >/oe/47 ow/v p,27. G-77/9;5- REGISTRATION FORM (Merl AcA dress 'Bus- }4orys.e. Tel. Pleckse- 1c51.Rctue--(-- Plectsecial core. C-cree,), rte. oa cirt-arer,(.L.,,r)Ae.r n blVe-A-ivv3 Su,k7sck'cz:inca\ give-x-se.ns tv\-mres i(t=.1r1Gaczi) inn caiex\s:Un \141,\c) S Er NiL FEE= Kal No-re. A,;(:),S Mc,:t 1 -4 \r"i6 01v\ 4 10°-' 5, c'c' *2 cn 4.c) : . no-4- cc-V1/4erdirn ce,h1.Aefi-vv.,evccr.) e, Ci>6.co.te.4-oAic.r. Co F'1 OrvIc) r) r i-nc-15rrno-4:-Lon co .t\ \No rAe-AA -Sp..Aszk't CAS Co 1-Nc-tgaeArtx-6 on Co 1 577-557.5 t Pg 8 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �I'S CONFERENCE COUNCIL t -THUNDER BAi DISTRICT TRADES # LABOUR COUNCIL AT CCVEDERATION COLLEGE LABOUR CENTRE NOP5 WO ge/7/ 4.5 c Ogi / z/ ?y - y pv 05Q/7 0/cyaz z_e-c/- Wha, Nexl- ? 0/917,;t7 - Pa)/ 7zA--7 7/-7/n4/ /off //49(sewiice /17 Pt/e- hic7-K /74 ? Arev-%-/ 4 ,t//- 7isie X706 5/76-A N GIG-ANTE S /t1P,49 /I/cc/47,0,2W .q --e6; e/ GRACE HARTMAIi EVE 49/' C4V2a.d/ a./2 Od-,0/4/ //7,/d/Q05- EVEL>1N ARMsTRoNE-, A(a7;-,20/,*,.;*/--z/,-zzed e doioo&,--d ojz--7o Coe-J/2 / of 46,/opa.//77/-; BERNICE CAIN 10/me/I fs NORM RICPARDS, ,77,--eside#2t /-ew /Kw, .Z,2ie,-/7a7liao/ 70e- gay / /t1 SALT OF EAKTR tv74r 21 /27), ///e-/ -//7 `-7)ave-- ODN'T; GALL- ME SABY be7,7 cry 77o,-):2a.7 ,./1/7/;9 5er-7easy 47 /he /PM c Ii/O/7/e/2 7.5 4r/a..q0,6` a.,7U1 7/./D7',//2.9' 7.5 1,05 teift"7-e'd /df/ /./ 97 PhD /.-en/ 7.%7/7 /776//e t.o /3/7/.5 ki./x; /2-2,Aie a/ccisir0.5 72)),!4/ ,:77-y7Ved h/,b.-i7e,,7 (.5 ..5?-/-eee 2i,=w7 of /2a, 0 on a-/cos7 c/b-ica/s- OPFRAT1ON FINGERP141<\/o/- a/7/z7e,2,9 e-1-p-/--2'ee- 3 .6-777-/-177-. //te-/- a/7ii a&;'e/(//7 '17C7P/ ey ThE AMAZING EQUAL d SHOWP4' .55e.."7 /77o /6 5/ a n7/)2erg ,ae_e_74//i7e- awd .7`-ew/Ca/ o,/_-9/>70/4/ YOU' RE URGED TO PRE-REGISTER! -.4rmw i ncl Vi pho-Lo bl Yeas/ Ala rvi Pg9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �111 horrors! Women)at that!women's While waitBy now, guess the local to get into the mainstream of strike ing is past history - filed away traffic one day,won't one of them astever in dusty archives. us allwas by involved suddenly in throwing forget onished it becabse his car into reverse, when in his this much -publicized dispute which rear view mirror he caught sight was to become known as the "battle a few of us scurrying to safety of the of women versus the doctors". The ecstatic look It was behind one of his the car. most frustrating, of pleasure on revelations his countenance, hilarious, inspiring of made us positive thatand he devhad an my life. My determination orgasm every surprised time he terrified otion to our cause me more us. goodmymany daysand thereafter than itA did family friends. looked would will like neverscenes regretfrom it, the and "French Connection" with tires squealing as do it again. The grandmothers, chased picketers all over the widows,they wives, mothers and daughters parking lot. who spent six months on that line, We heat harboured no grudge against through the of summer, refreshthe patients we accepted ing fall winds, and freezing galestheir need pitted of medical aid.oneMany a day of winter, against of the wasmost spent listenifig to elderly richest, powerful establishments tales all of woe, their lonein the patients' country, would agree. liness, andany their never once heard one concerns of them overillnesses. Perhapsofthey felt expresstheir regret over the wisdom that no one listened to them inside. their choice. HowOne didday this in conflict particular, takea that very nice littleold flame of feminism gentleman stopped think his car, was always flickering inside of me rolled down his window, and-in the and feed it with a fuel so great, middle of the entrance to the parkthat iting islot, roaring furiously launched into now, a sad tale In renever of to his be quashed again? past three operations. As trospect, was up a pattern of slow and cars it piled on the roadside plodding thegrowth main thoroughfare over the months, became bottleof struggles, necked, of we gaining started a topainful get obscene new consciousness, and thenby a furious gradual gestures accompanied joyousmutterings affirmation one which will all of and- shaking fists, never which be denied we couldn't again. understand through closedthe windows. Perhaps first incident Despite that repeated pleas myself and fellow picketshattered myfrom sense of self-worth occurred the course of mynot move, ersduring to proceed, he would daily for duties he had whenfinally heardfound one of a sympaththe 'healers of humanity' confide etic ear. He was finally persuaded in onetoofmove his on most when learned a verycolleagues angry young womanknow pulled her -"I don't why up, theyrolled want adown union, after window, all, we and hirepromptly monkeys here, went up one that'sside why of we us payand them down peanuts!" the other, for Our harrassing polite, apologizing and intimidating picket such a line started sweet old with man. everyone feeling Oh, well---you win somenervous and youand lose somewhat illsome! at ease, We from did have pet peeve, suffering that one chronic diseasehowever. mockery organized men and calledThe guilt - an that affliction parthad ofAstheir we tried tomembership union icularwomen to women. hide behind our crossed picket signs from line.. when they our picket a group of themselves annoying news many werereporters on strike at reflected with popping the time. flashbulbs, Perhaps they would have on howbeen difficult more appreciative it was to ignore of the benefits they enjoy by belonging to xism. After unions if they had all experienced eternal our struggle. y accept think perhaps the action felt MOSES most difficult to accept was how ade around women could betray other women by d with crossing their co-workers' lines. der the Many of the striking women were ks here! single, widowed or single parents. ote Robin Perhaps the women who crossed'the Passage" lines to work throughout the duration ew code of the strike would have joined their need to sisters on the picket line if they ty--".,so had experienced living on one source that soul. of income - clinic wages. Women tion when must learn to realize they will ion we continue to be segregated in deadend low.paying job ghettos until ctors bethey can express solidarity and day. It support for women who are enlightor them ened enough to fight for change. We fter all, can't waste our energies fighting arking each other. lowed As the months wore on, we didn't ion. Come cry as easily as at first. We got years at used to being called bitches, whores can't and phrases like "Go home to your when a kitchens, you sluts!" rolled off treat male our backs like water. We became s female adept at dodging pop cans, beer cans first firecrackers and even human spit. too much We learned what the obscene gesture cept the for every finger on the hand meant. ecided We were bumped by cars, knocked over m.-and by trucks and flipped onto carhoods. One day, a huge brute stopped his I I I I I I I I I I I 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 would not do. These day -today 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 strikersijobs. We wouldn't give them this satisfaction and returned 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 behaviour 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. 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, 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. I I by a former employee m The L.S.P.C. Annual Meeting will be held Thursday, January 27th at 8 p.m. at the Da Vinci Centre. The meeting is open to the public and a cordial invitation to attend is extended to all citizens. The Ontario government is proposing new legislation concerning matrimonial property and supportobligations. The legislative proposals have engendered much discussion and controversy and are of significant concern. Persons interested in studying the proposals should obtain the booklet "Family Law Reform" available from the office of the Ministry of the Attorney General. I 1. 1 MOINE I II 'Milli I MINIM 1111... Readers of the Northern Woman may be interested to know that Family Law Reform will be the subject of an address given to the Annual Meeting of the Lakehead Social Planning Council. Guest speaker is Mr. Larry Grossman, MPP, Parliamentary Assistant to Attorney General Roy McMurtry. 111=1111 111111 n PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Women in Neighbourhoods This is a program women to get together interests while their under the guidance of developed for and share common children play a Child Care Worker. This programme is planned for the winter months because when it's frosty outside contact with other women is less frequent ent and cabin fever runs high. We hope that getting together one morning a week for fitness and exchange of ideas may bring spring closer for some and en hance winter for others. If you are interested in joining a group in your neighbourhood, or starting one please call the Fort William "Y" and ask for Linda or Peg for more information. Call 623-8411. Despite the wide diversity of women who settled on the prairies, they all shared a common dilemma. They were self-reliant, independent individuals, while the traditions of their day constrained them tot to step out of the bounds that were considered 'ladylike'. A Harvest Yet To Reap, published by the Women's Press, is an unusual book about the unusual women who first settled on the Canadian prairies. THE CO-OP BOOKSHOP AND CRIAW UPSTREAM The aim of the Canadian Re- OPEN TILL 8 P.M. EACH DAY AND ALL DAY SUNDAY. 182 S. ALGOMA STREET PHONE 345-8912 The Canadian women's movement has another newspaper. UPSTREAM is published every two weeks by Ottawa feminists. The first two issues have been excellent, with an emphasis on labour news, and a superbly professional format. The lead stories in the second issue are: the Ontario Family Law Reform legislation and a comparison of Ottawa's high school CRIAW wants your MEMBERSHIP NEW AND RECOMMENDED women's studies programs with those elsewhere in Canada. Having UPSTREAM coming out of Ottawa will hopefully give us access to up-to-date news of government inaction/ action vis-avis women's RECORD CENTRE BOOKS: GIRLS WILL BE WOMEN is a collection written and illustrated by Canadian girls. It is available from All About Us/Nous Autres Inc.,Box 1985 C.P., Ottawa, Ontario, KIP 5R5 for $2.00 plus $.50 postage and handling (40% discount for 10 or more copies) search Institute for the Advancement of Women is to foster a underand, particithereby promote their full greater knowledge and women of standing pation in Canadian society. CRIAW needs your SUPPORT BECOME A MEMBER 3 ways to help issues. The year's most important book on women has received no reviews and is virtually impossible to find in the bookstores. A goal It is Opportunity for Choice: for women in Canada, a paperback bringing together six scholarly essays examining the position of women in employment, Evidence coleducation, and the family. lected in the book suggests that Canadian women are increasingly curtailing their lifelong maternal and homemaking role, although they continue to marry at the same rate and, perhaps, at a slightly younger age. by Mary Eberts, One of the articles law professor at the University of Toronto, and economist Gail Cook who edited the book, provides a particularly searching analysis of how public policy affects private choices for women. The 217-page book is a joint publication of the C. D. Howe Research Institute and Statistics Canada, and may be obtained by mail from Information Canada, Ottawa, KlA 0S9 or from the Institute at 2064 Sun The cost is Life Building, Montreal. MEMBER NOTICE The 11th Fort William Boy Scouts are having a tea Jan. 29th at First Church United 2 to 4.30 pm Individual ($10.00 per year) Institutional ($100.00 per year) DONOR Individual ($100.00 and up, tax deductible) Institutional ($500.00 and up, tax deductible) CONTRIBUTION Any amount less than $100.00 (tax deductible) Make cheques or money orders payable to the Canadian Research Instituteforthe Advancement of Women, Suite 415, "What do you meanfellshe down an open personhole?" $3.75. LNS 151 Slater Street, Ottawa, OntaAn official NN*Dt rio K1P5H3. will be issued. Pg PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Decade Council FAMILY PROPERTY LAW: Joan Packota informed council members of a few of the problems encountered with Bill 75, giving rise to the proposed Family Council members Law Reform. were urged to get the brochure from the Attorney General's office and send comments to Roy McMurtry. Much concern was expressed over provincial family property law reform conflicting with federal divorce laws. A new Family Property Law subcommittee of was formed with Colleen Hughes, Thyra Digby and Joan Packota. A motion was passed including a review of Bill 75 to lay groundwork for comparison to family law reform on the next The SOCIAL SERVICE CUTBACKS: Coalition for Social Justice has dissipated. Sharon McKay will now act as liaison for the Lakehead University's Faculty of Women's Status of Women Committee. Thirty people CREDIT UNION: have signed the founding charter for a women's credit union in Thunder Bay. The Herstory HERSTORY PROJECT: project is progeeding well. Forty-nine manuscripts have been typed and edited. Gert NORTHERN WOMAN NEWSPAPER: Beadle briefed the meeting on her intentions to initiate a series on pioneers of Herstory No in Northwestern Ontario. names will be used or material The from the herstory project. material used will be of personal experiences and experiences of acquaintances in an effort to arouse the readers' interest in the pioneer trend. It will be reminiscent in nature. RAPE & SEXUAL ASSAULT: The collective has a room at McKellar and has received a $3,000 grant from the Sec. of They are busy planning State. their education campaign. KENORA REPORT: Maria Seymore was presented with the Woman of the Year award for KenoraKeewatin. Lorraine Smith of Ear Falls has been appointed to the Ontario Status of Women council It was noted that she is the first Metis woman to be appointed to the council. A motion was passed to send letters of congratulations to Maria and Lorraine on behalf of the council, and to invite Lorraine to sit on the decade council. A motion was passed to send a letter of thanks and appreciation to Nancy Forbes and the staff of Kenora Library for displaying council's "Directory of Women's Organizations", and for their help, interest and willingness to distribute it. agenda. Following discussion of the recent court case in which a judge decided to dismiss charges of indecent exposure because the woman pressing the charges was going through menopause, a motion was passed to send a letter with copies to the Attor ney General, Roy McMurtry, the Globe and Mail, and all local and district newspapers. WORKING WOMEN'S CONFERENCE: The program has been finalized. See this issue for further information. mom newS Two hundred women met at Alberta Status of Women Action Committee's first Annual convention and presented a brief, "Joint Initiative: a goal for Women in Government" demanding appointment of a minister directly responsible for Status of Women and the formation of a Cabinet Committee Deputy Premier on equaloppertunity. Hugh Horner assured them' they have to suggest eqqality in Alberta; that they hadn't was to place them in the category of the Native population Kinesis who had real problems. quotes Fetheringham as saying Alberta males think more of their horses than they do of their women - and agrees. Lorna Marsden, National Action Committee president, warned delegates at the convention that a backlash of public opinion against women's Despite issues may be developing. much publicity about the increasing There was NEW BUSINESS: discussion on proposed plans to meet with Atikokan women_ A TALE OF TWO UNION CONTRACTS In the previous issue of the newsletter, we asked for information on claUses in collective agreements which may=be exceptionally beneficial to women or for examples of progressive practices voluntarily introduced by employers. FUTURE COUNCIL MEETINGS: I January 29 - Atikokan February 19 - Thunder Bay The following is the letter sent by the NWOIWDCC to the Attorney General protesting an Ontario judge's decision. We welcome the response of Jane Adams, staff representative of the Federation of Community Agency Staffs. Ms Adams calls our attention to innovative The Honourable Roy McMurtry clauses in the collective agreement beAttorney General of Ontario tween F.O.C.A.S. and the Y.W.C.A. of The agreement affects 65 Metro Toronto. . Dear Sir: employees, most of them women, working for the 'Y' at seven locations in Toronto. The Northwestern Ontario InterBecause of the difficulty many women have national Women's Decade Co-orm in attending union meetings in the evedinating Council must protest ning, there are provisions for seven union the precedent-setting remarks meetings a year during working hours. made by Judge Victor K. McEwan The employer agrees to assist mothers of I recently as reported in the preschool children with a childcare Globe and Mail, Nov. 18. There is to be allowance of $15 a month. To indicate that instability m no discrimination in hiring, training or is the natural consequence of promotion on the basis of political menopause is an insult to inaffiliation, sexual preference or the . number of dependents an employee may have. telligence, as well as a colosWorking parents may use their sick leave In an sal put-down for women. credits to stay home with a sick child . age of enlightened approach, opportunities for women, she noted, and fathers may take a paternity leave of this type of nonsense emanating women are still kept apart, as a five days with pay plus a two-week leave from the bench does no credit segregated group in the labour force. requested, at thenor timeto of the departwithout pay, if to you, sir, Moreover, she said, the unemployment the birth or adoption of a child. ment that you represent. rate among women in Canada is much Instead of the statutory 17 weeks, We are unanimously outraged higher than "we suspected...and up to six months of maternity leave are ' at the possibility that this unconnected to the cyclic unemployallowed, one week of which is at full pay. could set a precedent and ment plaguing the male (labour) We have also force." heard from Local 4592 question the criteria that danger The women's of movement is in the United Steelworkers Union, whose allow this kind of unenlightenm Now, of losing momentum, shework said. members for International Harvester ment to aspire to the bench. is imperative more than ever, in it Hamilton. After for two years of service, We would hope that your office women to organize in a unified a woman in the bargaining unit has the will take the strongest steps manner, and notoption to permit solidarjty of taking a year-long unpaid mapossible to see that this type to be corroded by in-fighting. She must then be reinternity leave. , of incident does not recur. Kinesis stated by the company though not necessarily in the same job she left prior to Bernice Cain the birth of her child. Let's hear from more employers or I union representatives about this topic. I P g 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CREATIVE DIVORCE An analogy between Creative Divorce by Nel Krantzler, and Elizabeth Kubler-Ross' book On Death and Dying. Divorce, like grief, requires periods of mourning and adjustment. To cope effectively with divorce, you must come to terms with your grief, recognize self-defeating behaviour Most and be willing to change it. important, you must recognize that The the relationship has died. feelings of anxiety, guilt and anger that erupt with separation are healthy and, interestingly enough, are the feelings which provide the impetus to new growth. With this growth comes the ability to be assertive; to express yourself directly, honestly and spontaneously. This is vital to coping effectively with the new situations that were never encountered before divorce. Children go through a similar process of adjustment, and parents must recognize their children's need for a period of growth. Divorce often brings peace to the home and children, if allowed a mourning process, seem to weather the storm ,yell, and continue to function effectively with their peers and in their schools. Mel Krantzler, in his book, Creative Divorce, stresses that divorce does not have to be completely life-shattering. For many families it saves the emotional and physical lives of adults and :hildren. Divorce can be a positive learning experience, less painful and more rewarding than all our religious and societal pressures would have us believe. Patricia Cooper and Ann Kos From Her-Self. would seem more progressive than we could hope for, but one could readily see the value of the kind of dialogue it could create in this There is a people orenage group. tation to it that is appealing in spite of the female directed message If Betty Fredans 'Feminine Mystique" is the bible of the feminist movement, "Girls Are Equal Too" could well be the primer that whets the appetite for a stronger fare. Dale Carlson has written seven novels for children, several picture books, five workbooks and edited an anthology of children's literature. Her approach to bringing the potential realization of equal personhood is so reasonable one cannot imagine anyone being so perverse as to challenge it. This is a clear and lucid statement of the evolution of female thinking written for a new generation of women who already have begun to question the mythology of woman's place in a modern society. To make it required reading for both sexes in the Educational System In the Islamic region of Yugoslavia, wives are still sold for an average of $4,000 and are expected to be complete slaves to their husbands. Zihriaja Hussein, the rebel leader of women in the area, is training young women to take as much as they can from their husbands in gifts and bridal fees and then to run away and 'remarket' themselves. "We old-timers were taught to be guerillas in World War II, and can train guerillas again," she said. (BMR) Gert NEWS NEWS BRIEFS One Battle That Got Results. On Jan. 1, 1977, the indexing of family allowance payments will be resumed to compensate for the rise in the cost of living during 1976. From the Speech from the throne, Oct. 12, 1976. In response to the need for good day care services everywhere in Canada, the government will help provide more and better day care services by encouraging the provincial governments to adopt a new system of fees related to incomes. A great many more Canadian mothers who seek employment outside the home will thereby be free to do so, because partially subsidized day care will be more widely available. Amendments to the Canada Pension Plan are being considered, which would further recognize the value of the contribution made to the family and society by both marriage partners, in the event that one remains at home to raise children while their partner works outside the home, or in the event of marriage breakdown. This year, the Law Reform Commission of Canada submitted a report on Family Law which merits the attenThe governtion of all Canadians. ment intends to carry on discussions GIRLS ARE EQUAL TOO - by the Womans Movement for Teenagers -Dale Carlson Dedicated to a free soul, her daughter Hannah Published by McClelland and Stewart in Canada. YUGOSLAVIA (ho hum) with the provinces to encourage the creation of unified Family Courts with comprehensive jurisdiction over family law permitting disputes to be dealt with %more constructively. In addition, the government will discuss with the provinces and with the public other aspects of family law bearing on the stability of marriage, the protection of children, and the fair sharing of the economic consequences of marital breakdown. PENSIONS FOR WIDOWS On November 3, 1976 M.P. Stanley Knowles of Winnipeg asked the house to urge the Federal government to amend the Old Age Security Act to provide pension benefits to widows, spinsters, (widowers and bachelors, too) between the ages of 60 and 65, who are not working..The motion was defeated. On October 23, M.P. Jack Marshall of Newfoundland asked the Minister of Veterans Affairs when he would introduce an amendment to the Pension Act to get 100% coverage for widows of veterans who were covered for 43% or less. On October 26,M.P. Stanley Knowles urged the House to review all federal employee pensions to provide that all widows or widowers will not receive less than 70% of the contributor's pension and that the eventual goal would be 100% for either survivor. The motion was seconded by M.P. Douglas of B.C. but was defeated by the house. WRITE TO YOUR MP URGING HIM/HER TO SUPPORT BOTH OF MR. KNOWLES MOTIONS NEXT TIME IT IS BROUGHT UP. (kinesis) WOMEN ALCOHOLICS The battle against alcoholism may be even tougher for women than for men. A Canadian study has shown, for example, that nine out of ten wives stick by their alcoholic husbands while the same percentage of husbands abandon their alcoholic wives. A HARVEST YET TO-REAP by Linda Rasmussen, Lorna Rasmussen, Candace Savage and Anne Wheeler, published by the Women's Press $8.95 paper 9 x 9 1/2 100 photographs $20.00 cloth Pg 13 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �From what could see in all the explanations offered by the Handbook what the 'type' of job meant was more accurately a 'woman's job' or a job which women do which is therefore lowpaying because it is women doing I MORE WAYS DISCRIMINATION: THE UNMENTIONABLE WORD was quite surprised by the picture that was emergingjespecially since had the general impression women were making progress in the labour force. wanted an explanation. looked to the Handbook on Women Workers, a government publication put out by the Women's Bureau, one of the standard sources of such facts. The Handbook had a lot of facts, but as read on realized was going in circles looking for an explanation. The Handbook had no explanation. The few times they tried to offer one, it was contradicted by their own statistics. Of course, the questions wanted answered were why women made less money than men and why the labour force remained so segregated. Some of the more common explanations currently in vogue started coming to me: that women are absent more from the job, that women don't need the money, that men are the supporters of the family, that women really only work for pin money. But the Handbook itself says our job absenteeism rate is the same as men's. As for needing the money, all women need the money I I I I I I I I See-R /6 for personal independence. In addit, ion most women have no economic choice but to work in order to maintain an adequate standard of living. Many work to support families either because they are the head of the household or because their husbands don't make enough. So lack of need is not the explanation. The argument that women don't stay attached to the job market and so lose continuity of work experience which lowers their wages was refuted by a New York Times article that said a recent census bureau study of 5,000 women showed that women aged 30 - 44 who worked every year since leaving school had much lower incomes than men who were the same age, had the same education, and held the same types of jobs. The only thing that came close to being an explanation for the sizable discrepancies in pay and the segregation of jobs was the recurring reference in the Handbook to what is vaguely characterized as the 'type' of jobs women held. Just exactly what they meant by the 'type' of jobs however, and what the defining characteristics were, was very unclear. If women made less money than men working in the same occupation and industries, whether they were highpaying or low-paying, then the specific occupation or industry could not be what they meant by 'type'. the job. thought the Handbook would clarify my understanding of discrimination but found that the word doesn't even appear in the first 250 pages, the bulk of the manual. It is finally mentioned in the appendix in talking about the laws governing women's employment. As the picture gradually became clearer, it made me angry. was naive, confused, politically unsophisticated. had been led to believe there were a lot of good reasons why we weren't able to compete equally I I I I with men in the job arena, things based on past discrimination, certainly not present; things based on discrimination against women by society in general, certainly not by the male employers themselves; and had bought it. Well, my consciousness is clearing now. see that all the theories, excuses, and explanations for our inferior job status are inadequate. see that education, skills, job occupations, continuity of work experience, seriousness about the job, are all factors which influence salary, rank and job status but only when the girls are playing against the girls and the boys are playing against the boys. When women conpete against men such factors are all but irrelI I I evant. POWER TO THE PEOPLE!! In Lunenburg,where Allied Sea Food run a tidy ship, The management has flipped it's lid and put relations on the skid,because The rules say twice a shift ON BEING FIVE the panties peel The zipper zips. There's magic in being five. all hands must bring their urge to heel At five, one is old enough to cross streets without holding a grownup's hand, but young enough to snuggle into a parental lap at bedtime for a story. So ask the question, Pee in five, wash your hands,and all that Jive. At five, one can be very big and brave and businesslike in carrying out an errand at the grocery store, but very little and loving and sleepy when it's a bit past bedtime. In Lunenburg, the Union struck at this indignity, both male and femme and country-side that Capitol A five year old can hob nob with the fairies and elves and make believe folk, and still boast gleefully over a recently acquired mastery of roller skates and zippers and knots that really stay will rule your mind until no thought can soil it,and having turned it At five, one can spank and scold dolls, and say grace at the table with equal dexterity. side by side,informed the press tied. into crap will barricade the toilet. P 14 "The surest way to get a job done is to give it to the busiest man you know - he'll have his secretary do it." In a five.year -old's world, there's scarcely ice cream cone won't cure. 0 0 0 0 0 0 an ill that an Five years is the age of decision. Dresses are discarded for blouses and skirts, one cuts her own meat and butters her own bread, one has stridently verbal and voluable preferences in breakfast foods and hair bows and cousins. At five, one is queen of hearts and mistress of all she surveys. 0 0 0 0 Hazel Murphy Sullivan. 0 0 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �DRY CARE NEWS A tremendously enthusiastic and hard-working group of parents and community citizens in Atikokan have investigated the need for a Day Care Centre in their community. The group presented a brief to the Atikokan Town Council on November 23 requesting Council support to implement a day care program. At the request of the Atikokan group Julie Fels and Margaret Phillips of the L.S.P.C. Day Care Committee attended this meeting. The Atikokan Council responded most positively and established a civic committee composed of a Town Councillor, a town staff representative and members of the parents group to further investigate all aspects of the development of a - Support for programs to meet other identified unmet needs eg., homemakeA service, playground programs, baby-sitter training, should be encouraged. The study has been organized into four reports - i.e., Thunder Bay, Paipoonge, Oliver and Ontario Government (the Province has jurisdiction in the unorganized areas). Recommendations have been made to the respective municipal/provincial authorites concerning the development of new or expanded child care facilities and services. Copies of the reports may be obtained from the Lakehead Social Planning Council office at 409A George Street, Thunder Bay F. Centre. We understand that the Day Care Centre at Sabaskong has been completed and that the new Heron Bay Day Care Centre should be ready in January. RURAL DAY CARE STUDY In the past two years, interest has been expressed by a number of families living in the rural area surrounding Thunder Bay, concerning the need for child care services. Because of this interest, the Lakehead Social Planning Council Day Care Committee undertook a study in 1976 concerning child care needs in rural Thunder Bay. A summary of the study's findings shows: 117 respondents indicated a present or anticipated future need for child care services; 107 responses noted less than complete satisfaction with the child care services they used; preference for type of service indicated 73 respondents would prefer to use a day care centre - only 11 presently have children enrolled in a centre. 44 indicated a preference for private home day care - only 6 were presently served by private home day care. Concern was expressed for the need for flexible day carefor emergencies, for occasions when parents have appointments (eg., doctor) in town. Conclusions reached from the study included: - There is a demonstrated need for child care services in the municipalities of Paipoonge and Oliver and in the unorganized areas of Blake, Scoble, Nolalu, Gillies, Gorham & Ware and the Kaministiquia area. - There is a significant need for child care services for the rural neighbourhoods of the City of Thunder Bay. There is a demonstrated need for additional private home day care. - Latch-key services continue to be an unmet need. - There is a significant feeling amongst rural parents concerning the need to provide a socializing experience for pre-schoolers, whether or not both parents work outside the home. Support should be provided to parent groups wishing to organize play-room facili- 10************************** 4E On Oct. 14, 1976 MP lona Campag- 4E *nolo of BC noted that daycare is no * 4E *longer seen as a welfare service *for the poor and that the newly pro- 4E *posed federal daycare legislation 4E :would increase the number of families * *eligible for reimbursment of fees. * On Oct. 29, 1976 MP Aideen Nichol - * *son of Ontario said that the federal * * government had recognized daycare as if' 41 the single highest expense of working *parents by doubling income tax deduc4/ tions for daycare. 4t Then she noted * that the new measures proposed by the: * federal government would increase the* :availability of partial subsidies. * *Nicholson also advised that the fed*eral government would be encouraging if * the provinces to adop't a new system 4F *of income related daycare fees. Ms. iF * Nicholson quoted the following day* care related figures: from 1971 to if *1974 the number of daycare centres 4E * doubled while the number of spaces it * tripled. However, she noted that in * 4E *1974 fewer than 3% of children under * 4E *3 years of age, and less than 9% of 4E * children aged 3 to 5 with working 4E f;parents attended daycare. Alternate * * inadequate daycare by relatives and lt * neighbours accounted for 4/5 of all * *daycare, she said. Kinesis t************************44 WHAT UNIONS HAVE TO DO An excerpt of a speech given by Shirley Carr, Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress. "....Before International Women's Year caused women's issues to be taken from the social pages and put in the business section, the humaniaing of the work place was often a common theme of articles. While it was a popular theme among writers of a variety of opinions, in fact most such plans boiled down to means of increasing the efficiency in the work place. Thus, working units replaced assembly lines, or work tasks replaced work to the clock, because they produced either higher quality or greater quantity. However, the question of human values in the work place should not be lost. indeed,the question of women's rights is also concerned with this issue. "This human issue is most clearly seen around the question of child care. As a society, we have accepted two assumptions, but have not followed through on the necessary conclusions. The first assumption is that any willing adult should be able to work regardless of race, creed, colour, age or marital status. The second assumption is that children are necessary for the continuation of society. "The conclusion would draw from this is that we must make provision both for people to work and for children to be raised. However, until now we have sadly neglected this area of child care. Until relatively recently, society continued to solve the dilemma by excluding women with small children from the work force. Indeed, the very fact that a woman was married might have excluded her from the work force. The events leading up to International Women's Year have tended to correct this assumed solution. But what, then, of the children? Indeed, are not both spouses responsible for their upIt is true that in Canada bringing? we do have some form of maternity leave. Anci it is certainly better than it was a generation ago. However it is still a patchwork system. Our oldest assumptions still shine through. To take an obvious example all statistics refer to working mothers and their children. What happened to the fathers? I "In Sweden they have introduced parental insurance. 'Fathers are, under this measure, also entitled to stay at home during the immediate pre- and post-natal period to care for other children, receiving compensation on a level with ordinary sickness benefits. Finally, during the period following the birth of a child, its parents will be free to decide which one of them is to remain at home with the child after the 29th day of post-natal leave for the 180 days coverage period.' "One of the reasons Europeans are often ahead of us in this field is that they have recognized women not as accidental participants in the work force but as essential parts of any employment policy what suppose we would refer to as 'manpower' policy. I "Unions must push for more child care facilities. However, this is better done as a society rather than through collectiveS. ties. Pg 15 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �New Ways of Keeping Women Out of Paid began this paper to find out what the current situation of women in the paid labour force was. At the outset of the investigation knew that women were discriminated against in the paid labour force but figured there must be some_ good reasons why. don't exactly mean good reasons, because feel that probably all the reasons have their basis in unfairness, but it may be that at this moment in history it could be said that women in general are not on a competitive par with men. Byt then again what does women in general mean? I've always felt on a competitive par to the men I've worked with. tend to feel on the defensive when confronted with those stories of so-and-so's sister-in-law who makes so much more money than her husband, or the woman supervisor on the job who's in charge of all those men', or the promotion of a woman executive to yet a higher level...the exceptions which disprove the rule. understand that it's supposed to calm my basic feelings of any wrongdoings, and at the same time stop me from talking about it since the opposite can be demonstrated. But it's the intimidating aspect trip up on. All this in the way of showing why I'm the perfect candidate to research this topic since obviously haven't got an idea or feeling on this issue which is clear and not immediately contradicted by another idea or feeling. And so started looking for the reasons I I Labour I I I I ' I I I I why. FALSE IMPRESSIONS FROM THE MEDIA recognize confusion as a tactic and an effective way of paralyzing the opposition. The information had taken in from the usual media, newspaper sources, was a mass of unresolved contradictions. One of the most common ploys used by the media is to state the problem as if it has long ago been solved making it look like more is changing for working women than really is. If there is a legitimate story about a woman or women reaching executive levels at jobs they get paid for, the papers blow it all out of proportion and make it seem like we're taking over the industry. The papers are flooded with plea articles in search of talented women and with tales of women 'firsts'. This is just to show us how much progress we've made. Every era of agitation from women brings with it some temporary strides in the labour force. We suddenly start hearing about all the 'women firsts' who are allowed in previously male fields. How many of these firsts are a matter of regaining lost ground in the past. Some women are allowed in previously exclusively male occupations and some make contributions in their new fields. Then the pressure dies down and not many seconds precede the firsts, The women and more importantly their contributions, are forgotten. When the next era of agitation arrives we start off again as novices, without a history, without even a trace of our former contributions. This keeps people from knowing what women have actuallrdone...again and again and have already proved themselves Pg able to do. I I We got our 'first' woman airline pilot last year, even though 66 women were earning their living as aviators in 1930. But you see, they mean she is the 'first' woman airline pilot with a 'major passenger 'carrier'. But she got laid off six months later. How long will it be before we have out next 'first' woman airline pilot? And in 197 we got our 'first' two women miners. But The History of Woman Suffrage says 7,000 women were engaged in mining interests in the 19th; century. There are women alive today who worked in small 'family' mines during the lean years of the '50's and '60's. The argument is often advanced that technology makes it possible for women to work in the mines but this ignoresthe fact that for centuries women have known how to handle the pick, shovel and shot of the mines. Yet the onslaught of news coverage of women 'firsts' outside the traditionally female occupations continues. While I'm sure the initial intent of such a thorough coverage is to impress upon us the recent flurry of activities and advancements surrounding women workers, it is more acurately serving the purpose of enumerating for us all the jobs we've previously been restricted from. THINGS ARE GETTING WORSE, NOT BETTER From these reports it's easy to get the false impression that steady progress is being made by women in the labour market. thought things were changing, what with the Women's Liberation Movement and its imvolvment with these very issues in the past few years. Certainly women's consciousness about working has changed enormously. Women's participation in the work force continues to rise, and there has been an increase in the numbers of women attending professional schools. But when looked at the statistics of the actual job situation for women...their low pay with respect to men and the all-pervasive job segregation...things hadn't really changed, not for the better, anyway. Since 1955 women's pay as a percentage of men's has been on the decline. In 1955 women nade 63.9% of men's salary; in 1972 women made 57.9% of men's salary, a decrease of 6%. This neans we were actually closer to receiving equal pay 18 years ago than we are now, despite all the highly publicized ,equal pay and back pay cases. Nearly 2/3 of all adults over the age of 16 living in poverty are women. One out of every three families headed by a woman lives in poverty as compared to one out of every fourteen families headed by a man. Today half of all full time working women are earning less than $5,903 a year. Any woman trying to raise a family on that u salary would be in poverty. I I Reluctantly edited from Redstockings 1975... by Colette Price For the most part, the position of women workers in the segregated labour force has remained stationary; the claim/accusation that women are invading men's jobs is false and there may even be a danger that the flow is going in the opposite direction. It may be men who are riding the wave created by women's militant efforts at breaking through sex barriers on the job. It was reported that the biggest break-through for men are coming in the telephone and airline industries, two major employers of women. The telephone company said anyone picking up a telephone five years ago who dialed the operator had one chance out of 100 thousand of hearing a male voice. Today the chance is one in 20. Eastern Airlines said it received more than 9,000 applications from men since it began running unisex ads in March. (Such ads were fought for and won by women). Before then they had about 150 stewards, the male counterpart of stewardess; now they have 320 stewards. The situation of men moving into women's jobs without a mutual counterflow would be bad enough in a period of economic stability, but at a time when the economy is worsening, women's unemployment rates rising steadily, jobs for everyone getting tighter*--------such a trend is disastrous. Yet such a trend does seem evident. As well as the airline and telephone companies, men are moving into nursing, secretarial work, teaching and library work, while maintaining their monopoly on traditionally male occupations. There is a lot of talk and news coverage these days about large numbers of women moving into the police force and also the field of medicine. "Moving into" however is not quite accurate Since women have been in both these fields since the 1800's. It should be pointed out also that the reasons for themovement of men into all-female fields and women into the all-male fields differ tireativ. Men have not been restricted from allfemale fields; whatever social taboos stood in their way have been greatly reduced by the activities 6f women's liberation. 'Women,howevershave been restricted from all-male jobs; in the police force by quotas, height, and weight requirements and the assumption that women were not equipped for certain jobs; in medical schools by admission quotas which restricted the number of female applicants. Special efforts are being made to attract men to teaching and nursing. The only efforts being made in the other direction however are the removal of blatantly discrimin.= atory criteria, under legal threat, such as the police force's previous Dolicy of giving separate entrance xaminations which gave preferential treatment to male applicants. The current Depression has undermined what little progress was being made. As New York City police officers have been laid off, the old hiring practices resulted in women being the first to go.CoAr p Aq PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �TABLE OF CONTENTS Editorial Page Had Myself a Merry Little Christmas Poetry Family Law Reform Credit Union Report Decade Council Report Day Care News New Ways of Keeping Women Out of Paid Labour RAVE YUU MOVED? 2 14 5 7 10 12 15 THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 Bay St. Thunder Bay, "P" Ont. return postage guaranteed RETURN TO: 16 LET US KNOW PLEASE. THIS IS YOUR LAST ISSUE (We must pay postare on your returned paper in order IS DUE[---1 YOUR SUBSCRIPTION to keep our mailing list esuE5) YEAR PLEASE SUPPORT US up to date). I uSINESS AT I Tclr1ON I 1 1 1 get involved? 5-5841 any Tuesdays sdays - DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED Free to one parent families Free to senior citizens 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 3 No 3 Description An account of the resource Vol. 3, no. 3 (1977) Title: The Northern Woman: Working Woman Issue Topics include: Women’s Credit Union Quebec election Northern Women’s Centre open house Letters to the editor Christmas & capitalism Poetry Rape Rural living experience Family law reforms CPP for housewives Federal human rights Working women’s conference Healthcare striker testimonial Consciousness raising groups Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women Women’s Co-op Bookstore Women’s Decade Council Alberta Status of Women Action Committee Divorce Pensions for widows Women slavery in Yugoslavia Women & alcoholism Women’s movement for teenagers Workplace discrimination Rural day care study Atikokan day care Day care legislation Swedish day care Unions & day care Women’s experience in the formal economy/paid labour Authors/Contributors: Bob White Jeanne Georgeson Mary Tomlinson Marg Phillips Janet Gert Beadle Colleen Aube Eve Pykerman Thyra Kinesis Patricia Shaw Bernice Cain Hazel Murphy Sullivan Colette Price 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 1977 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/16/2747/1977_Vol_3_No_4.pdf f80f56c197c7bc0697fbbcea7e2db9f7 PDF Text Text orfRon Voincon NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO WOMEN'S PUBLICATION 1.1-1.1....1-.91...1.-1-1-..1.1-1-1..-1-1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1-.., )1. 4nslieo ea,/ HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WORKING WOMEN'S CONFERENCE GUIDELINES TO EQUAL CREDIT OPPORTUNITIES PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Dear Gert Beadle: dvertising in the Woman's Journal: (25 sq. in.) $35. (15 sq. in.) $20. ( 6.qq. in.) $12. e the right to select we are prepared to Some non-profit groups ceived Margaret ble for from reduced rates. she stated her sup- $ Gert wrote ournal. lowing her answer. : I was very touched by your letter and want to assure you that I am interested in groups working on improving the quality of our society in all regions in Canada. I know that the specific needs must differ from community to community, but that in the end they reflect the general $ need. 0 0 0 24 ,111X9ES PritIt 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 I look forward to receiving a copy of the Northern Woman Regional Journal. Sincerely, and in sisterhood, 0 I 0 0 o 0 o 11.11- relevent the philosophy) ional maturity plays its s we approach our persons with our own sisters ity and a code of behaosters trust, we cannot e an impact on those who h justified suspicion. t itself flows in many but like rivers and creeks a certain sea. Let's rrent open and the water THE SNOB STORY Snobbery is an old vice. When the wily serpent thought himself to have a truth that superceded every other truth, he printed it chapter and verse on the only audience he ernational Women's Decade had and established himself as a ng Council Sub-committee, superior intellect and a first class Collective, for the fantasnob. Myth or fable, the drama plays ng Women's Conference Held its little charade in the name of th, 12th, and 13th. truth whenever a difference of opinion dares to challenge. One normally supposes snobbery operates from the top down but on closer scrutiny, we see it up, down and cross-wise and it takes some fancy footwork to avoid the selfsatisfaction it brings. Our truth is our total experience, as fluid as tears. It forms and reforms and it grows no larger than we grow. Why we should imagine foisting as Works" (the new Manpower tenuous a thing as the'sdm of what ation make work programe) is ours alone on our human family is the worst kind of snobbery. be exploiting workers by es of $122. per week. Splits and factions and divisions, slevels and strata and classes, high style, no style and life style, progressives, regressives and passives - a million truths and all with something to teach us. What a feast tive just az women but for the intellect to pick and choose without pressure/ Would we see each other differently if we had nothing to sell? Would we love each other better if we felt no need to buy? The Messianic fever that sends minorities flailing about to establish their personal and collective wisdom as eternal truth, is retarding out growth as thinkers. We are the truth and in us resides the capacity to distinguish what refines or retards the person we like to live with (our selves). We can be weary foot-soldiers in a divided army that may or may not stone each other to death before we ever "see the whites of the enemies' eyes". Indeed, we may 0 be so preoccupied pushing our own 0 0 point of view that we will never recognize the all-pervasive danger that threatens us. 41. atit a PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Dear Editor, and Friends of "Northern Woman", With the enclosed cheque for three dollars, I shall be glad to receive your paper for another year. Owing to eye trouble that makes newspaper reading difficult, I have sent the latest issues to Hazel Wigdon of our Editorial Committee. As the struggle of the Women's Decade goes on, and we do our best for Development and Peace, and take as full a part as we can to bring these about in our country and across the world - then I think we shall win Equality. But until we do, the gap between men and women will possibly even widen. In our society)so largely controlled by the multi-national corporations whose aim is money and power, we as women are the easiest victims. If not always just in Canada, then in Taiwan South America, Africa - where ever the great companies are powerful - even our own Alcan in Jamaica for instance. But I do believe in the growing struggle, and believe that the women's part in it is extremely important and it will help us to win out. Sincerely, Nora Rodd Toronto, Ont. We cannot express too strongly what a joy it is to hear from a woman we know to be over eighty years old, an expression of solidarity and encouragement. Our deepest admiration and love for this senior sister. Dear Northern Woman; Please find enclosed six dollars for my subscription to Northern Woman which is long overdue. Hope this will at least bring me up to date. I enjoy your paper and I think you girls are doing a great job. Keep up the good work and good luck in the future. Sincerely, Ruby Roulston Abbotsford, B.C. Dear Sisters; Received Issue No 3 of the Northern Woman on the last mail plane and cannot express the joy it brought me. Have been teaching Adult Education here in Webequie Ont.for the past five months and as a consequence have been totally out of touch with the outside world except for news passed on through letters from friends. Your paper certainly was enlightening; congratulations to all who have worked so hard to give women the support they need. I will be returning to Thunder-Bay in April and as soon as I have an address will be one of your ardent supporters. Peace and Friendship, Chris Torre, Webequie Ont. Dear Women; As a subscriber and an avid reader of your paper, I would like to know more about those of you who put it together. To some of my non-subscribing friends, you represent a nebulous group of "women libbers". However, whatever else your name and image implies, it does seem to pose a threat to many men and some women. Reddem yourselves. Why first nanes only? You would appear far more credible with some background info on yourselves. No harm in asking! Curious Dorothy Dear Editor; I was really impressed by the radical view on women in the work force, "New Ways..." in your last issue but was disappointed that the writer didn't even suggest one positive remedy for improving the situation.* No mention was made either about discrimination towards women who work for self-empThis area is not too loyed husbands. visible or well-known perhaps. I am only one of the many wageless women who are so employed. By law, an unincorporated business cannot deduct as a business expense any money paid to a wife who works in any capacity for such a business. The'attitude)eing(in my view) that * Although you didn't sign your last such women are not viewed as working name, we are printing your letter. for the business, but rather working We, as a collective don't put much for their husbands ,so are not entitled credence in marital status, age, etc. to a wage. However, you have a point about last Women are still legally the pronames. Perhaps we don't take ourperty of men and any service provided selves seriously enough. See next is considered as just part and parcel issue. of being a wife. The inequality in Editor. this law is more'blatant when you consider this same self-employed business man can employ and deduct as a business expense any wage paid to a son or daughter. I have been working for over 8 years with my husband and alone for three of those years while he was recovering from a stroke; expanding, operating, being open long hours, and doing the bookkeeping for our/ his confectionary store. We have a large family and the child-rearing duties were also my job. We, or should I say my husband)is now talking about selling the store. For my contribution, I'll get nothing, not even C.P.P. as I was not eligible Hello! to participate. I'd like to subscribe to your magSorry for going on like this, but azine. I heard about it through I am angry. I hope Women's Laurie Hill. I was travelling from Conference can in some way protest this England to Holland, and met Laurie injustice. I cannot attend; I am on the train to Amsterdam. We got working on Saturdays. In the meantime, a place together in Amsterdam and I hope other women who work for their Laurie continued the next day to husbands will write your paper and also Copenhagen, and I to Assen, Holland. write to the new minister in charge... I joined up again with Laurie in The Honourable Monique Begin, Dept.. of Oslo where we stayed with a friend National Revenue, Parliament Bldgs. of hers, also from Thunder Bay, for Ottawa, Ont. a few weeks. I returned home shortly Sincerely, before Christmas, and have received Jane S. a couple of letters from Laurie since. You probably already know *We were remiss in adding she's in Greece and it sounds like that the article would be she's having a great time. She just continued in the next issue. said to let you know that I'd met See page 10. her, so....I have. Back to business! I'm not sure of your subscription rates; I'll send a money order as soon as you fill me in on the price. Thank you Judi Gough Dear Northern Woman; It seems that I have been delinSault Ste. Marie quent in paying for my subscription, and there is no excuse for it. I can only apologize for my procrastination. Dear People; As I am enlightened by)and enjoy I am writing on behalf of myself reading your publication, I would and one of my friends. We are doing still like to continue receiving it. a project on Women's Rights. Please accept the money as a payment We are wondering if it would be for two years subscriptions. possible for you to send us inforOh, and keep up the good work, I'm mation on Women's Rights in the form sure our sisters everywhere appreciate of pamphlets, newspapers or other your hard work and dedication. Thanks material. again! Our project is due on April 20/77 Lots of love so we would be most appreciative if your sister you could send them as soon as posKate sible. Thunder Bay Rosemary Shuslawry Thunder Bay 3 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �AND CONGRATULATIONS TO Lorraine Smith from Ear Falls for being selected for the Ontario Status of Women Council. Her presence on the council indicates another step in removing barriers that were a detriment to the potential of that Council. OUR CONGRATULATIONS TO Maria Seymore for being chosen Woman of the Year by Kenora Business and Professional Women for outstanding service to her native brothers and sisters. A teacher of Ojibway language for the past six seasons at Confederation College, she also translates on a volunteer basis at the Kenora Jail, works in the summer camp for children in the care of the Children's Aid Society, teaching them Indian crafts, and advises the Foster Parents Association in the care of native children. She currently works part-time for the probation after-care in the Juvenile Division. These are only a few of the things Maria has lent her time and talents to. Her recognition as Woman of the Year is simple justice. That she accepts it as a tribute to her race's potential makes her a worthy candidate of the honour. TO Roberta Wren from Ignace, who has been chosen Citizen of the Year by the township council. Through her efforts, Ignace now has a Library with 9,000 books on the shelf and a membership of 700 adults and 300 youngsters. 182 S. Algoma Str. Phone: 345-8912 Open: 10 A.M.-5 P.M. Monday to Saturday AL ANON 345-2711 ARTISTS CO-OP 622-9577 ANTI-POVERTY 622-1538 NORTHERN WOMAN'S CENTRE 622-3989 WOMEN IN NEIGHBOURHOODS 623-8411 NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL 345-5841 SOCIAL SERVICES 623-2711 CRISIS INTERVENTION 344-3571 FAMILY COUNSELLING 623-9596 LEGAL AID 345-1972 TELECARE 344-1192 SMITH CLINIC 344-2471 CRISIS HOUSING 623-2711 HUMAN RIGHTS COMM. 475-1693 EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS 475-1691 MUNICIPAL DAY CARE 344-3922 344-0727 FREE CLINIC News anais nin dies LOS ANGELES--Anais Nin, the widely-read writer, died of cancer at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital on Friday, January 14. She was nearly Her diaries and seventy-four years-old. novels discussed sexuality openly and were enjoyed by many women. SPECIAL THANKS To all those who included something extra along with subscription rates both brothers and sisters and especially to Marg Bengtsson whose gift of calligraphy has given us a new look. THE NORTHERN WOMEN'S CENTRE, for reasonable rates, will produce copies of notices, announcements, etc. We retain the right to refuse work from groups affiliated with a political party. Good Numbers In New York City, a class action suit is under way against the New York Police and the Family Court.It is being filed by one of 12 married women who were seriously beaten by their husbands and were then refused assistance by the police and the family court. This is the first time ver that such legal action has been taken by women. The National Congress f Neighbourhood women and other omen's groups who were active in rganizing the suit are also demanding funds to provide shelters for attered wives. They insist that these shelters must be controlled y women's groups, not by the state. is class action suit follows on the eels of a large speak-out in NYC by attered wives, most of whom were oor and working class, nearly half f whom were black. In Vancouver, a research group sponsored by the United Way has just completed an extensive study of Wife attering. Included in their Recommendations are the establishment of Transition Houses. We must ensure that such new Houses are staffed and controlled by feminists. LAST LAUGH New York - Tex Antoine, TV weather reporter/sketcher of a quarter-century, blew his cover and his $100,000 a year job; after a news item on the rape of an eight year-old girl, Tex guffawed that, according to Confucius, if a rape victim can't avoid attack she might as well enjoy it. Within 25 minutes, 650 unamused watchers called the station, ABC, to Tex was indefinitely complain. suspended for an "inexcusable lapse of judgement". info from Washington Star EQUAL UNDER THE LAW Chicago - Angela Winslow was arrested on charges of failing to have proper gun registration and discharging a firearm within the city limits. She had discharged this improperly registered gun within the even narrower limits of her 15th floor apartment - at a man who broke into it, raped her friend who was visiting her, and then threw her friend from the window (her friend escaped death by landing on the building's canopy and was taken to hospital in serious condition.) info from Lesbian Voices WHAT'S THE WORLD COMING TO? Adelaide, Australia - Rape within marriage was made a crime by the South Australia parliament, the first such law in that country. In the US only Michigan wives have the right under the law to accuse their husbands of rape, but similar provisions are being considered in Florida, California and Washington, D.C. info from Washington Post BEATER BEATEN (NY) - Julio Elias was sentenced to three years in prison for beating his wife with a kitchen chair, a screwdriver, a bicycle wheel "and anything else he could get his hands on." When he was arrested, he said "What's wrong? She's my wife." Elias pleaded guilty to first degree assault; the case was resolved by plea bargaining. Info from Washington Star c.;s PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CINDERELLA: We, Led Ate Fox TAKE ONE Swept and shovelled and zctaped and zcAimped and saved onty a dottat a week but that was enough to putchaze a winning tottety ticket entitling het to iaity godmothet pumpkin coach dtawn by mice boatmen good box 1 passage to bale and netutn by midnight oi same day onty the witting by the unknowing doing the impozzibte the ungtateiut- 1 We have been doing zo much Fox zo Long, with so eittee, We ate now quati4ied To do anything With nothing. 1 Weendamahgawin Newt (Indian Ftiendzhip Centne and a4tet the bat wads aver and the prince disappeated and she needed an abottion SAILING ON THE SEA Sailing on a zait boat and piling itee, To be able to zee the beauty which haz zutitounded me. To be able to tide on the water and to Arnett the zea. Thiz iz heaven Which I have just seen. I'm glad to sail on the sea. Fax it btingz a great beefing to me. It 4eeezaz 4.4 the tea ato pant c)4 me. I'm happy to sail on the tea, So bond Let it be. at the tate o4 saving only a dottat a week and the had the baby and was Lucky enough to be given her ad job back and who knowz the baby might grow up to purchase a winning Lottery ticket o6 itz own. WHAT IS LIFE? It 4...6 the gnacquenezz oi a gooze in 4tight It iz the breath oi a buiiato in the wintet time It Ls the swi4tnezz o4 a deer in 4/Light, Eve Metz] iam coedit Newioundeand Statuz o4 Women Council Newztettet. Sailing on a tail boat and 4ee2ing the breeze, Where thete'z no -zmoke that could choke the ait out oi me. I ptayed Lotd that I zee there thingz. Then, the good Lotd Let these things be. It -cis the teat on my bale. Colleen Aube For it can be wiped away, Like nature can slowly be. (age 14) Thundet Bay J. Pie Ate Feat o4 tape L a cold wind Hawing all o4 the time on a woman's hunched back. Nevelt smote atone on a sand toad thtough pinewoods, never to ctimb a ttait actozz a bald without that aeuminum in the mouth when I zee a man climbing towatdz me. POETRY It izn't always way to zee anothet point oi view. In out conceited tighteouznezz We want out 4niendz to think tike uz. We only zee the zuniace o4 what moves the people that we Love, and so we ztnike to wouqd and shame -hose who te4use to play out game. How necktezzty we make the bteak, when only FRIENDSHIP L at stake. Gett DREAM OF TROPICAL ISLES Nevet open the doot to a knock Without that tazot just gtazing the thuat. The bean o4 the datk side o4 the What I am tetting you hete iz that I have lost what he called a state oi grace hedges, and what I bet the back seat o4 a cat, the empty house tattting keys tike a snake's az a thread o4 mist. watning. The beat o4 the 6m4ing man in whose pocket -1.4 a kni4e. waiting to glide zhatkiz Length between the tibz. The bean o4 the zetiouz man in whose 4ist Ls Locked hatted. ALL it takez to cast a tapizt iz to be able to zee yout body as jackhammet, as blowtorch, as adding-machine-gun. Atl it takes -is hating that body your own, your seti, your muzcte that zoitenz to blab. All it takez iz to push what you hate, It KVZ Lost Long ago I tete you And the beack tivet 4ot the thitd time iz &wet on Lts banks. Fitzt 4utt with zpting Second gone in the winter Thitd gone in the Ott. I tizten to many voices I tell you and they at hum and my wotdz goat out I stile heat the dtipz o4 watet Loud and echoing in the steel ztAuctute that once issued clangs that once aaz not thete. 14 it being buitt at tarn down I azk you tell me tett me am I being buitt of torn down? what you beats onto the 4c/it alien gezh, To bucket out invincibte as a tank anmouted with tneadz without rented to passers and punizh in one act, to tip up peeazute, to mutdet those who date live in the teaiy itezh open to Love. Mange Piency Wettgeet, Mazz. (Betceuse, betceuze, will you always mourn ?) And I am tort goddamn you id I cannot conceive that I am being buitt and torn down simuttaneourty Even as I tread unevenly in the muddy ttachz o4 a giant machineEven az a Lead bAuzhez my neck and Leaves it wet. Deitdte Hamitt When tined oi winter's sleet and snow, To some ttopicat izte I Long to go, Whete watm gentle bteezez blow And palm tteez way to and 4to, Over tunny silvery sands. In teae tibe it does not seem possible, Enjoyed by the /Lich setdom the pock, In dteamtand bate evens up the score, How could you azk ion mote. Sheila DesChenez age 12 Thundet Bay IDENTITY Call me Mrs. Miss, Ms, It doesn't mean A damn. I am what I am. I do not need To pose. To quote G. Stein: "A rose, is a rose, Is a rose" Janet Craig-James Thunder. Bay 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �9 Guidelines to Equal con't from Credit Opportunity Two major guidelines have been set out for consideration of the individual's application: m 0 . pg 11 1. A married woman shall be granted credit in her own name if her credit Ieach spouse free to engage in a busqualifications, including her earnings ~ iness without having to have the othe or separate property are such that a spousels agreement or opinion in inman possessing the same credit qualdividual transactions. However, ifications and property or earnings where both spouses actually particwould receive credit. ipate in the business, the contribWHY A WOMAN'S UNION? woman shall be granted . ation of each would be recognized. 2. CREDIT An unmarried credit if her credit qualifications, Bill 14C 7(2) "where one spouse has Those of us property who are founding mem-are such that or earnings contributed work, money or money's bers of the newa Women's Credit Union man possessing the same credit *worth in respect of the acquisition find ourselves qualifications, explaining dailyproperty why or earnings management, maintenance, operation, it is that we who so vocally strive would receive credit. 1 or improvement of property in which for equality should now exclude To expand upon thethat general statements - the other has an interest, the court other sex who have plainly believed above, creditors shall continue to Imay by order: that the handling of money their conduct theirisbusiness affairs, a) direct the payment of an amount forte. holding to these principles. 'in compensation therefore; or Our case was1.made us by Holdfor women andRobert men to the same Ib) award an interest in the property Cooper, the ombudsman forinC.B.C. on standards determining creditworth- appropriate to the contribution. Feb. 6 when the question of woman's iness. JOINT TENANCY OF REAL PROPERTY, JOINT right to borrow2.onExtend her own merittoand credit a credit worthy BANK ACCOUNTS, SAVINGS, DEPOSITS, ETC ability to pay married was challenged a own name. woman inbyher Sidneyfrom Handleman manager of a bank. 3. Refrain refusing to extend Bill 140 8a) The fact that property the Provincial credit Minister, clearly to awho newly separated, divorced is placed or taken in the name of draws the government position non- because of or widowed womanofsolely _spouses as joint tenants shall be discrimination,her shifted changethe in responmarital status. prima facia proof that a joint ten sibility to those in positions ofstandards to the 4. Apply the same ancy of the beneficial interest in authority at the executive in including mortextending of level credit, the property is intended the money lending gageinstitutions. transactions, That regardless of which b) money on deposit in a bank, saving: these officialsspouse have not as yet per- supporter of is the primary 1 office, credit union or trust company sonally accepted as equally thewomen family. min the name of both spouses shall be Observe thesolvent same standards in reresponsible or 5. sufficiently deemed to be in the name of the spousl quiring credit to pay will remove women from data the on the spouse 1 ga joint tenants" and that beneficial regardless of thea sex touted government policy until new of the appli' interest in the property is intended. generation of men or women, as the cant. Next issue: Bill 140 - Support 6. Change in marital status shall not case may be, bring an enlightened Obligations the sole consideration in requiring iby Joan Packota, Thunder Bay Club, approach to thebe lending institutions. re-application for previously issued The new women's credit Union was Canadian Federation of University credit out cards conceived and formed of or ourthe ownre-negotiation .Wairiamm . I MEM 11 n n of the credit arrangements. impatience to wait forexisting that great We a have under-income, if 7. Consider spouse's rebirth of new values. when a couple taken to do fornecessary each other what clear- applies for ly is not beingcredit. done in the market News on the Metro Toronto Women's 8. Consider alimony place, and to make the exercise a and child support Credit Union: learning experience the process. as a in source of income. They have been in operation for Our officers have been chosen with 9. In appraising a woman's credit one year and have 430 members and worthiness, consider Among our shareholders is a her credit hiscare. assets over $100,000. They now are 1 former, now retired,manager of one of tory when single or married. =offering five-percent interest on the most successful credit unions in 10. An individual's credit-rating savings, to be paid quarterly on Her shall knowledge andaltered advice solely on the not be the area. the minimum quarterly balance. 1 sale of ensures our success. basis ofThe the credit-rating of the shares is brisk spouse. and encourages us to believe that most do not ques- agency shall 11.women A credit reporting .1m tion the reason upon for our existence but request Theirs of a spouse, a are assets keep to date over women. NORTHEN WOMEN'S CREDIT UNION NEWS f obtaining see goods, services, in us an avenue to broader equality. separate file on the husband $6300.00. They would like and to thank all They have been in existenctfor approx. ey in exchange for a promise To our aggrieved brethren would them to date and wife.women who who supported two months and have a membership of 70 for them at support some future us iftime. weCredit allowed it, we apolis a form ofwomen borrowing. It is= to invest. encourage more credit has both advantages .1 I NEI= 11 1 ogise for the necessity that shuts I advantages. you out, but we are convinced for the Although credit-granting policies and practices have changed moment that the credit union slogan - considerably in the past year or so, the whole credit-granting THEFOR NORTHERN UNION industry will not necessarily be aware of all the changes. If you "NOT PROFIT WOMEN'S BUT FOR CREDIT SERVICE" will PM ON and believe you have been discriminated S NOW FROM 1 PM TO 9when are denied credit find its OPEN highest expression WOMEN'S of your sex or marital status, ask to see the TUESDAYS ATdedicated THEagainst NORTHERN intelligent, andbecause compassion., AND FROM of the agency involved. Be prepared to CENTRE, 120 W. AMELIA ST senior credit ate women deal with other women officer in ATclaim THE and to back it with facts. If your request for your 1 PM TO 4 PM ON assert TUESDAYS the money marketplace. is still refused and you are not given a satisfactory exc NORTHERN WOMAN REGIONAL JOURNAL, contact the Women's Advisor of the Ontario Minisplanation, 316 BAY ST. Consumer try ofAND MEMBERSHIP IS $5.00 DEPOSITSand Commercial Relations, 555 Yonge Street, mm .... sm. . mir um. Toronto. CAN BE MADE. 1 Imi lam 1 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Plea to Ombudsman! Mr. Robert Cooper CBC, Box 500 Stn. A Toronto Sir: Enclosed is a copy of a letter written to Mr. T.V. McCallum of the Law Society of B.C. I am sure that in this vast country, there are many women who have been or are in the same position as I am. There are many questions which could be asked - why are women treated as they are? It is my opinion that too many women are in complete ignorance of 2711: talsnd=tpildi:hyt:n;hemn can use the law to his own advantage there are many cases of "battered wives" that have never come to light. Being a woman, I can understand why many never do - if a charge is laid against the husband, he may very likely lose his job, which would leave the family in dire financial straits. In this case any sense of security that a woman has had is then completely done away with. If a woman is ignorant of the law, she does not have any knowledge of what can be done and she is fearful of retaliation if she stays in the immediate area. I believe every woman should have the opportunity to be as well-educated as she can in Family Law and her rights as an individual, and not just as a woman. Naturally, every woman wants to keep her family and home together. For her, this has been a small source of security and safety, but why should she have to tolerate violence, abuse and mental anguish to do it? Would it not be far better if she were able to take steps to see that these things were not allowed to happen? My personal experience of trying to get help was met with indifference. The children of such a union are the ones who suffer the most - torn between their love for both parents and unable to understand why these things are happening. How many women in the country have suffered the anguish of a mental and physical breakdown, simply because they were forced to become too dependent on the husband to supply them with their only material and emotional needs--only to find that the husband cannot be relied upon for those needs when they are needed most? When a woman has been out of the labour force for a number of years, a job is not easy to find, as I am In many instances discovering myself. it requires re-training, or perhaps even returning to school to complete an inadequate education. She has spent all her time caring for her family and home, which is really no different than if she were out working except that she is receiving no salary for her services. Her days are aftenzmuch longer and she must be able to perform many tasks--nurse, housekeeper, laundress, chauffeur, carpente gardener--and on and on. It is an established fact that if every hus- band had to pay his wifetor all the services performed, he could not possibly afford to pay for them. For a woman, therefore, who has spent half of her life, or more, in this manner, it comes as a big shock to suddenly find herself, and has lost all or most of her possessions- a cruel and terrifying experience! At this point she is depressed and the very thought of court appearances and dealing with the law is one whe simply CANNOT endure. I believe that all household furnishings and other possessions should automatically become the property of both parties, and therefore an equal division be made of all these articles or a fair monetary settlement made for the person who has been deserted or forced to leave. Perhaps the husband did pay for all these possessions, but who but his spouse works hard at keeping them in good condition and caring for them. Why then are they not just as much hers, as his? It seems to me the rights of women have been very badly neglected. How is a woman to survive when she has all her dignity stripped from her, and must try to begin again when she has so little earning power? And what of a woman who has small children who is going to care for them and how great is the cost of any care she can secure for them, when she finally does' find employment? It seems to me that men have dominated women long enough - they sould no longer be allowed to do so. How many more women in this big country will suffer the same indignities and mental and physical abuse that I did, before something is done? Why must a woman be pushed to the very brink of mental and physical breakdown before anything can be done to help her? It hardly seems fair for a woman who has been faithful, frugal, and hard-working, to be treated in such a shoddy manner! If my own personal investigation into this matter helps just one woman, then I shall feel that I have accomplished at least a small triumph in winning equal rights for women everywhere Yours very truly, Lillian E. Turner The following is a copy of the letter to Mr. T.V. McCallum of the Law Society of B.C. Sir; Re: Divorce between Turner vs. Turner, Dec. 13, 1976 I am writing to you to inquire about legal procedures in a divorce case which was recently completed before Judge Wetmore of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. My lawyer, here, Mr. John Hornak had asked for a copy of the Decree Nisi before it was to be heard in court, but never received one. At that time, certain properties had not yet been settled and to this day have not been proI feel I was deceived perly settled. and denied any rights to object to or have any agreements changed, in that I received no copy of the Decree Nisi BEFORE the 3 month period was I also have not received a up. copy of specific charges laid against me, and the only ones I read were ones in the Petition for Divorce which I read at my lawyer's office all of which were quite incidental. Had not my oldest daughter Lori come to Thunder Bay for Christmas, I would still have no knowledge of the divorce or other agreements made. This, to me, is a highly unethical procedure and I wish to voice my strong objections to such procedures. I had to get in touch with my lawyer who then wrote for copies of both the Decree Nisi and the Decree Absolute. It was rather shocking and unnerving to find that legal action in which I was a participant had gone through legal channels without my knowledge or my counsel's knowledge. The Petitioner and his legal counsel, were all in communication during the entire 2 year period, and I can see no reason why I was not sent papers of any kind. The Petitioner has repeatedly reneged on agreements made, and now that the Decree final, I have no other way to handle it, except through legal counsel in British Columbia, which I can ill afford, especially with 2 yound children to care for. This was also the reason why I did not appear or have legal counsel in Vancouver to represent me. Simply because the Petitioner is a member of the Vancouver Police Force, does not entitle him to any special or favoured treatment. Of a houseful of expensive Victoriaville French Provincial furniture, I received only a few items, worth less than $2000. The separation was one known as "constructive desertion" in that I had been threatened repeatedly by the Petitioner. The Petitioner refused to support me, and has repeatedly been late in sending the minimum child support he is supposed to, to which I also strongly object. In the past he has been irrational, brutal and very abusive. I would strongly urge that every man applying for a law enforcement job should be very carefully analyzed psychologically. I feel this whole case was mishandled and my right6 as an individual have been denied me, and I would appreciate it very much if an investigation were made to determine why it was allowed to happen, and what recourse I have in settling this in a more satisfactory manner. Lillian Turner CON'T PG 13 7 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �WORKING WON CO-SPONSORED BY NW INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DECADE ( Evelyn Gigantes Evelyn Gigantt.s set the mood. for the Working Women's Conference on Friday Night. Her plea to be relentlessly determined while maintaining the feminine qualities that set us apart from the Macho approach is one that finds response in most women. She noted that every oppressor is oppressed and stated equality for Women would be a step in the direction of freeing men from the bondage of stereotyp ing in their own Roles. She reminded us all that we are the best Educated,the most affluent in the world. We have birth control which guarantees freedom of choice and s tability in our lives and we have the vote. As such we have the responsibility use our strength and our energy in to promoting equality for women all over the world. The hostility of women to women must be seen as a challenge to better communication. Those who stay at home must not be made to feel as parasites,which lends itself to a natural feeling of hostility toward the aspirations of her sisters in the paid labour force. She reminded us again the feminine culture respects fertility,warmth, sensitivity and love. Grace Hartman The banquet of the Working Women's Conference was highlighted by an address by Grace Hartman, National President of Canadian Union of Public She spoke on "Role of Employees. Women in their Unions". The following is an excerpt of her address. "The inequalities suffered by women at the hands of insensitive employers a few years ago are now perpetuated by legislation. Unions are the only vehicle through which women can seek equality of opportunity at the work place. One would have hoped that the trend of women turning to the labour movement for this kind of support would have continued in an effort to end discriminatory practices. However, the Anti-Inflation Board mechanism has had a very substantial effect in slowing the But the obvious question process. is being asked about the advantages of joining a union, negotiating a decent increase in earnings only to have a large part of it taken away from them by AIB decision. The end result of this practice can be seen in the organizing statIn the first istics for Ontario. six months of 1975, the Ontario Labour Relations Board heard 609 applications seeking certification for new local unions -- this was the six months prior to the wage controls For the same six month legislation. period in 1976, after the legislation was in full operation, the Ontario Labour Relations Board heard only 509 applications -- a drop of 16%! I believe that any thinking person can accept some things as self-evident And it's self-evident that women who want to have a say, and to have some influence in their destiny at the work place, will only get that opportunity by joining unions that will speak out and act on their behalf. But the AIB has discouraged it. By their very existence they have That is the Trudeau discouraged it. gift to working women. And in so doing, they are further widening the gap between unionized and non-unionized Or perhaps being more wage rates. realistic -- they are permitting a a widening of the gap between male and female rates of pay. When the AIB legislation was first introduced, I was most critical of it, There did, however, seem to be one feature of it that held a ray of hope I'm referring to that for women. section of the regulations that permitted wage increases in excess of the guidelines for the elimination of discrimination by sex pay rates. I thought it might permit us to work toward the elimination of male-female pay discrepancies. As a matter of fact, this part of the legislation was hailed by both Beryl Plumptre and her eventual successor, June Menzies, as a recognition by government of discriminatory practices and was essentially a feminist regulation. My expectations in this regard proved that I was naive indeed. Instead of the AIB permitting increases to women in order to observe the principle of equal pay for work of equal value -- they had riders on the It would allow an upregulations. ward adjustment for women only in cases where women were performing the same work in the same establishment and the jobs were called by exactly In addition, to seek the same title. redress against the obvious wage discrepancies, the local union must first be convinced that the case is just -the local union then must approach the employer and obtain their agreement that the employer has been discriminating! The employer - and only the employer - must then appear before the AIB and ask consent to end the discrimination which they, themselves, imposed! The sinners must voluntarily go before the Board, admit they are sinners and then ask permission to stop sinning! How is that for a "just society"? This may help you understand why, out of 4000 applications filed with the AIB seeking redress against rollbacks, only 20 have been appeals against sex discrimination in wage rates. When I learned that so few applications had been filed with the AIB, I couldn't help wondering what the results of the 20 applications were. So, I had June Menzies office contacted for the in- They couldn't tell m formation. They didn't refuse to tell me. just didn't knowl" "It cannot be denied that the controls legislation has had a d astating effect on the labour ma The unemployment statistics in t country are just staggering. As reprehensible as that situation for everyone, women haVe suffers from it most. As an example, la fall, there was a decrease in th number of unemployed men by twen one thousand, coupled by an incr in unemployed women by taenty-fo. thousand. The September figures released by Statistics Canada shy that unemployment fell from 6.3 6.0 percent. The unemployment f: ures for women in that same peril rose from 8.7 to 9.4 percent." "The role of women in the unil has changed. They are no longer passive viewers at unon meetin& They have things to say and they They no longer sit with a them. raised hand to second a motion. make the motions. They have lonl since ceased to be token anything at conventions. They are at the microphones airing their opinion! So, the role of women in the ions has changed. The unions wil: never be the same again and that a step in the right direction. contribution of women in their ul ons has been enormous and it is ongoing process. 'their union is obvious vehicle to provide for ti the opportunity to be heard - th, hicle for self-expression. And very short period of time, I sug that they will be a voice, and fc that will give pause to governmel everywhere when the contemplate islation that interferes, in any with their right to play a prope] and meaningful role in the Y.fe this country. : N RV for "Oh, I don't think a woman on e is bad luck - especially when E your navigator." PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �N'S CONFERENCE TING COUNCIL t 'THUNDER BM t DISTRICT TRADES t LABOUR COUNCIL PRESENTATION TO THE HOUSEWIVES WORKSHOP OF THE WORKING WOMEN'S CONFERENCE. by Florence Richard Anything that can be had for free is usually regarded as of no value. The position of the housewife in today's society is directly related to attitudes developed throughout To use an analogy ages of history. from what has become known as the "third world countries", we have all seen the TV documentaries where, in subsistence level societies, the birth of a female child is regarded by the family as something of a On the other hand, the calamity. birth of a male child is celebrated This way of as high good fortune. thinking cannot be explained by economic considerations alone. True, the boy will work for the family, but so will the girl. Her burdens will not be less by reason of sex. True, that when the girl comes of age a dowry must be provided. But from where does this tradition originate? Why have dowries never been provided for sons? Why is the son considered to be a gift himself while the daughter must have a dowry in order to be acceptable? The only conclusion to be arrived at is that Vomen, in a male dominated society, are generally regarded as part of a man's goods and property. Whether that man rides a camel or a Cadillac, his wife occupies pretty much the same position. Her usual role is to take charge of all domestic This may entail anything from duties. running the home, to making the meals, to mothering, to chauffeuring, to taking care of household accounts. When and if the housewife works at a paid job, whatever she earns, as a rule, becomes part of her contribution to the home, which she may or may not a legal share in. With a more erl2Y: tened husband she will, of All too course, share all benefits. often, however, we are reminded that comparatively few men are so enlightened. In our society, because of pressure and lobbying by women, laws are grudgingly being changed. The process is slow and painful. The housewife and mother who is employed outside the home must accelerate her activities in order to cope with two jobs. If her traditional home duties are neglected, she will be confronted by husband and family. If she is imcompetent on her other job, she will hear from her employer. She is constantly under obligation to others. She has lived so long without rights or consideration, she no longer thinks herself worthy of either. We all know some housewives (in more enlightened situations) who enjoy working for their families and We also ask nothing more in life. know many whose lives are a nightmare. As the family unit has long been considered the backbone of the nation the wife and mother has certainly been There the mainstay of the family. is something inherently wrong with a society where this essential member must rely for her welfare on the vagaries of human enlightenment. Thirty-six percent of Ontario's work force is made up of women. Needless to say, they are generally employed at the hardest, most menial jobs for the lowest pay. Since woman's traditional role has been to marry, to have children, and to be unpaid slaves of the nation, her employer is not suddenly going to become generous as soon as she emerges out of the home. Wherever she goes, she is haunted by centuries of abuse. Only recently has organized labour taken a second look, and realized that women are in the work force to stay, that their reasons for working are largely the same as men's reasons for working. "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em;" or have them join you. The dominant male is aware that this vast pool of cheap labour represents a threat to his own job sec'Why hire urity and rates of pay. a man, when a woman can be hired for Women are now being included less?' in the mainstream of organized labour. This is indeed helpful for the But no "gainfully employed" woman. one has as yet reached out to the original base of that cheap labour source, the exploited housewife. It is unlikely, however, that anyone will see the housewife as an meploitad person until she herself makes this discovery and moves to cast out time-worn, self-effacing images. If anyone objects to being seen as an exploited person, do not be concerned. The housewife is not seen by society as a person of any kind. She is not seen period. Even when she reaches the age of retirement, only her spouse qualifies for Canada Pension. Even though she may have spent her entire life caring for him, putting sons and daughters through school, into the work force, and/or armed services, her contribution to the common good of the country is recognized as precisely ZILCH! When and if the husband (who has been the contributor) dies, his widow may apply for the survivor's benefits. She will still receive by virtue of his contributions. She is not even allowed to make any monetary contributions as the 'selfemployed' person is encouraged to do. It is fairly obvious that no matter how essential the housewife is in our society, she will just have to muddle through without her rights or recognition until she demands pay for her services. I think that the time has come to talk about salaries for housewives. And let us keep in mind that even universal education was at one time ridiculed as some crack-pot's utopian dream. Evelyn Armstrong Evelyn Armstrong addressed the Conference on Sunday morning on the future of women in Unionized Labour. A strong woman with a strong voice, she stimulated her audience to consider the past and the present as well as the future. She stated that the inequality in wages for the sexes is a bonanza for the corporations who derive over two billion dollars in extra profit just because of this injustice. I.W.Y. was the catalyst that for the first time raised the awareness of a broad spectrum of women from all walks of life and challenged the sham of the presence of equality being practiced and perpetrated. She berated the advertising media that portrays women's biggest concern as being the "whiteness of her laundry" and drew hoots from the audience at "the ring on a shirt collar that leaves HER apologising because HE has a dirty neck," the Education System that still is rank with sex`Ism and those unions still not pushing for day care (she made an exception in the case of CUPE). She encouraged the group to affiliate itself with the Toronto based Organized Working Women, who are committed to a massive educational process to inform working women of labour issues and suggested that women's committees be formed within the union structure to lobby the union itself to make women's issues appear in the bargaining process She left us with her favourite quotation, which also happens to be mine, "BEHOLD THE TURTLE, THE ONLY TIME SHE PROGRESSES IS WHEN SHE STICKS HER NECK OUT." The conference endorsed a resolution to organize a chapter of O.W.W. Gert Beadle. con't pg 16 9 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �New Ways of Keeping Women of Paid 'labour Out CONTINUED FROM VOLUME 3 ISSUE 3 OF NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL WHY CAN WE NEVER REMEMBER THE FACTS: THE NEED FOR ANALYSIS The more statistics I read, the more reservations in my mind were disposed of, the clearer my consciousness became and the more furious I "Women must know this" I became. kept saying to myself, "If only women knew..." and then another thought struck me. How come I didn't know? I've been in Women's Liberation for about six years, and a worker for longer than that... how come I didn't know? Had I just become privy to some sacred information? I expanded my research. You know there are volumes written on this subject... magazine articles, newspaper stories, doctoral theses, best-seller books, pamphlets, manuscripts, all telling the same tale. Worse yet, as I looked over the material it dawned on me that I read most of this before. Something was terribly wrong. I read all this stuff now with my present awareness, my present consciousness, and I can envision female workers lining up for battle Monday morning; I read it then and can hardly remember having done so. Maybe I've just never been very interested in the issue before. But, what does that mean? I'm a worker, why shouldn't I be interested? I was interested enough to join W.L. so how come I didn't get the lowdown on this issue from my connections with the Movement? It is very clear that a radical feminist approach to the job in question is necessary now. We must have a way of understanding reality. As a political feminist movement we must have a political feminist way of understanding that reality. Trying to "make sense" of the facts, much less organize ourselves around them, is all but impossible without such a guiding principle. When you are serious about building a political movement designed to effect real change it is essential to be clear It is when presenting the issues. essential to be definite, to be precise, to be simple, to avoid confusion. Confusion halts progress and saps the energy unnecessarily. To analyse a situation means to defend the reasons for something, but the liberals seem to deny there are reasons for discrimination, for example, or for good reasons. Liberal economist Barbara Bergman, for instance, goes under the assumption that there are no good reasons, only psychological hang-ups. Bergman denies that there is a conflict of interest involved, even suggesting the employer is going against his "...Discrimination does interests. not by and large serve the economic ends of those ?who do the discriminating...the financial gains to those who do the discriminating are low or The major cause served is negative. 10 psychological (it feels so good to have women in their place)." Whenever I run across this ambiguous, erroneous nonsense, I see stars. Keeping women in their place may feel good but it pays in a lot more ways than that. For instance, if discrimination does not by and large serve the economic ends of those who do the discriminating, then how is it economists have computed the total underpayment of women workers as amounting to $109 billion each year? Bergman is making a plea for irrational causes by advancing this idea of oppression for the 'hell of it', or because 'it feels so good'. Though I don't doubt it, aside from being a bit naive, I'm afraid it's a bit more serious than that. This clouds the very real benefits... more than psychological...which men receive Discriminfrom keeping women down. ation benefits male employers in terms of money, status, recognition, power, prestige and fame - to name just a few factors. To make matters worse, some liberals, while they imply that men and employers have nothing to lose by ending the present system, imply that Juanita Kreps, a liberal women do. economist who has done a fair amount of investigation into this issue of job discrimination, suggests that a reason for discrimination is women's desire for protection. According to her, the real issue is the stereotyped roles of the male as the 'protector' and the female as 'protected'. ^C7MliTC "And if the protected gains equal status, would she not lose more than she gains?" But what are we protected from in the labour force? We cannot run elevators late at night when the pay is higher and we cannot serve in restaurants and cabarets at that hour. We can however clean office buildings till all hours of the morning because cleaning office buildings is a low-paying job and nobody wants to protect us out of It has nothing our low-paying jobs. to do with the issue of protection, it has to do with the issue of money. I can envision by no stretch of the imagination or flight into fantasy Re-edited from Red Stockings by Colleen Price how women could possibly lose anything by equal status, except for the monopoly they seem to have on the lowest paying jobs in the entire labour force. Caroline Bird doesn't have an analysis either, though she claims of Born Female that "this is a frankly feminist book. It counts the social, moral and personal costs of keeping women down on the job and finds them high..." But she doesn't question why, if the costs are so high, employers are doing it. For whom are the costs high? Are they high for men or for women? For private interests or the general public good? She says "We are destroying talent...we are wasting talent... we are hiding talent..." But who is the amorphous "we" she is exhorting? Women can't be discriminating against women on the job because they're not the ones doing the They're not the bosses, hiring. very few of them anyways. Born Female is an exact example of what's wrong with the liberal Bird does excellent approach. research and lays out the facts of discrimination for us precisely, and Since the book lacks there they lie. a political analysis...a frankly political analysis... a way even of understanding the full impact of those facts, they never become the stirring, moving force they could Instead they're just another be. pile of statistics. THE ECONOMIC ISSUE APPROACH The liberals avoid analysis by taking the problems they're dealing with out of their political context then proposing to resolve them. The liberals don't see causes, they don't see inter-relationships, they don't see connections, they just see problems'. When you discriminate against women because they're women, whether that results in not letting them have full control over their own bodies or not paying them an equal amount of money for an equal amount of work, it is a political problem. You might think that I am squabbling over words and ask what the big deal is about emphasizing that job discrimination is a political problem. It is essential to understanding the problem that the issue be viewed in this broader political context, because doing so reminds us that unequal power is the ultimate problem. Whatever strides are made in the paid labour force, whatever reforms are won, they will never be permanently secured unless 'we are simultaneously building a power base equal to the power of men. Women have at different times in history made tremendous advances in the paid labour force... witness World War 11, for example, but we didn't have the power to hold our ground. con't P914 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Decade Council Goes to Atik9kan with the need or a crisis house, and o) start documenting cases of women Fourteen members of the NWO Decade in crisis situation to present to Council travelled to Atikokan on Council as proof. Jan. 29/77 via chartered bus to meet Lisa informed women of the Young and visit with interested women in Canada Works Program grants available that community as part of the out(deadline August 29th) and suggested reach program the council has es they choose this route to start their poused. Although the representation project on a crisis house. from Atikokan was less than we had A home which provides a real haven hoped for, the interest and enthusand emotional support for women and iasm made the effort an unqualified children in crisis situations was success. the home and food to be envisioned; Members of the council introduced provided, with the care of children themselves, giving their occupations and housekeeping duties done by the and committee on the Council; the Lisa advised the women themselves. Atikokan women introduced themselves Atikokan women present to lead an and stated why they had come. interest group in seminars and workLisa Bengtsson gave a short desshops in crisis housing and daycare cription of her job as a Social A copy feasibility for Atikokan. Development Officer for Secretary of of Mary Tomlinson's Model of a Crisis State; she is a resource person with House was presented to Joyce Meyers. contacts in NWO communities. Lisa Other Concerns: can be contacted at the Secretary Concern was expressed regarding of State Office, 240 S. Syndicate the problems of Atikokan's teenagers Ave., Thunder Bay at 623-5241. (male and female) Colleen Hughes is a Community Need for a social centre for teens. Educational Consultant for the SecNeed for more preventative care retary of State and she gave a short r rather than crisis situation care of description of her job, dealing with teens. the organization of groups throughout - Failure of High Schools to educate Northwestern Ontario. ( She can also teens for their future regarding be reached at 623-5241.) interpersonal relationships. REPORTS: - Realization that girls of 14 - 15 Reporting for Herstory - Gert years old are more mature in their Beadle congratulated the town of thoughts than a generation ago. Atikokan for its response to this important chronicle and stressed the Goals: Get more Atikokan women project must take the time to make involved in Atikokan teens' problems a quality presentation. Get a teenage social group set up Leona Lang, Secretary of the let teens plan the direction they Decade Council and Chairperson for will follow. (Sue will see Lisa the Working Women's Conference Comre: possibility of applying for grant mittee reported on the coming confrom the Secretary of State to fund ference co-sponsored by the Thunder a feasibility study by teens of a Bay and District Labour Council to teens' social centre.) be held at Confederation College on Meeting was adjourned at close to Mar. 11, 12 &13. 5:00 pm. Trudy Perroud for the Northern Women's Credit Union reported on the granting of the charter to this group and the progress to date. Joan Packota of Lakehead University Women's Club gave an extensive review of Bill 75, comparing it to the new Family Law Reform - Bill 140. A stimulating discussion followed. The role of the Northern Woman Regional Journal in the ongoing reporting of progress made in the interests of women was presented by Gert Beadle who said she hoped a clearer vision of the term'sisterhood' would emerge from its pages and called for the support and goodwill of all women - complimentary copies were distributed. FAMILY PROPERTY LAW Gert, who is a member of the CitIn October 1976, the Attorneyizens1 Committee for Crisis Homes Inc. General of Ontario presented the described the formation and motivation Family Law Reform Act - Bill 140 of this group - which stemmed from to the Ontario Legislature. Bill a blueprint of an 'ideal' haven for 140 has received first and second women as set out by Mary Tomlinson reading, but it was withdrawn from (who with her group first approached the order paper in December 1976 for city council to set up a crisis house) technical revisions by the Ontario The Atikokan women felt there was Justice Committee. It is quite a desperate need for crisis housing possible that it will be re-introduced Children's Aid has in Atikokan. for third reading during the spring been approached many times by women session of the Ontario legislature. in crisis situations but this is out If it passes third reading it will of their jurisdiction. become law very quickly, possibly Gert advised the women to a) form by the summer of 1977. a Committee to approach Town Council DECADE COUNCIL GOES TO ATIKOKAN FAMILY PROPERTY LAW DIVISION OF MATRIMONIAL PROPERTY - BILL 140 Family Assets System. In Bill 140 the Family Assets System has been adopted as the basic system of governing property relations between husband and wife in Ontario. The division of matrimonial property under Bill 140 applies only at marriage breakdown where: - judgment nisi of divorce if pronounced. - a marriage is declared a nullity - spouses are separated and there is no reasonable prospect of the resumption of co-habitation. - judgment absolute of divorce is pronounced. 4. i) "Each spouse Bill 140 Part 1 is entitled to have the family assets divided in equal shares notwithstanding the ownership of the assets by the spouses: Bill 140 Part 1 3a. "Family assets' means property owned by one spouse or both spouses and ordinarily enjoyed by both spouses or one or more of their children for shelter or transportation or for household, educational, recreational, social or aesthetic putposes, and includes: i) money in an account with a chartered bank, savings office, credit union or trust company where the account is ordinarily used for shelter or transportation or for house hold, educational, recreational, social or aesthetic purposes. ii) where property owned by a corporation or trustee would, if it were owned by a spouse, be a family asset, shares in the corporation or an interest in the trust owned by the spouse having a market value equal to the value of the property. JUDICIAL DISCRETION Provision is made for Judicial Discretion to be used in certain situations where a spouse appeals to the court because he or she feels division of the family assets in equal shares would be unfair. Bill 140 4(2) "where, upon the application of a spouse, the court is of the opinion that a division of the family assets in equal shares would be inequitable, having regard to: a) any agreement between the spouses b) the duration of the marriage c) the date when the property was acquired. d) the extent to which property was acquired by one spouse by inheritance or by gift; or e) any other circumstance relating to the acquisition, preservation maintenance, improvement or use of property rendering it inequitable for the division of family assets to be in equal shares, the court may: f) make a division of the family assets resulting in shares that are not equal or g) order other property of a spouse to be transferred to or vested in the other spouse as the court considers appropriate." BUSINESS PROPERTY The family assets system does not subject business property to automatic sharing and would thus leave con't Pg 6 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Greater Need For Crisis Homes! BUT WHY DOESN'T SHE LEAVE H IM? tive values of our society, his earning money outweighs her possible injury". The growing movement which demands an end to wife-battering also recognizes that the violent expression by the man upon the woman is an expression of a violent society. He's taking out his anger upon her ANALYSIS which is produced within him by Until the women's movement raised having to compete for his job, by the issue, wife-beating went unrecbeing pressured by his boss, by layognized and unreported. Beaten offs, speed-ups, etc. Instead of women were forced into pretending fighting back against this exploitthat theirs was a non-problem. In ation, he finds it easier to release this way, wife-battering has much his frustration by kicking his wife in common with rape. Both were around. It's one step up from kickseen as personal rather than socing the cat. The battered wife is ial problems until the women's movethus a casulty at the end of a long ment raised consciousness about them. line of abuse and alienation which Both stem from the system of male is integral to our capitalist system. supremacy within which women are pieces of property to be used/abused Transition Houses are a necessary by men. But there are two important step in combatting this brutality: differences between rape and wifewomen must have a safe place away beating. One is that the "wife-batfrom their attackers. But finally terer is supposed to be the very it's a temporary Band-Aid solution person to whom the woman can turn as are more sensitive responses for shelter from the storm. The from the legal system. What we are other, and this is vital, is that really opposing is the violence of a in the case of wife-battering (part- whole society. ner-battering might be a more accurate term), the woman is economically dependent upon the man. ACTION Woman's position in the family as an unwaged worker is one which socThroughout the last decade, femiety has trained her for and encour- inists have been working upon public aged her to enter. Her skills, education to dispel myths surrounding those of home maintenance and child wife-battering. When TIME, in Sept. rearing, are not skills she can of '74 professed to enlighten us on easily sell, as society can conventhe subject of "Wife Beaters and iently pretend that these are nontheir Wives" by telling us that the skills. Stemming from this economic men were 'mother's boys' and that the dependence is a whole network of beaten women were "aggressive, efficemotional and psychological relation- ient, masculine and sexually frigid', ships between the woman who is being we didn't let them get away with it. beaten and the man who is doing the The women's movement has consisbeating. Then there's the kids. tently opposed the ideology of the Even if the woman is working, she's church and of psychiatry which ratearning less than the man 90% of the ionalizes the oppression of women. time. Her income is keeping the ("Women are like the masses in wantfamily above the poverty line. To ing to be mastered and ruled." Freud) Myths surrounding female ask a woman to walk out of this overnight (as in "If a man ever masochism have been widely brought into doubt. struck me, that would be it....I'd be out that door so fast...") is to Along with public education, the ask her to abandon not only her women's movement has demanded social, physical shelter and her arrangements economic and legal changes which will for having something to eat, but make it easier for the battered woman to escape her husband. For an excelalso the whole social fabric she Betsy has been trained to accept. lent account of these demands, and of Warrior writes: the current parlous state of Canadian "Women's economic dependence justice with respect to battered women, of males must be abolished and the read Violence Begins at Home, which family structure itself must be appeared in "The Canadian" (The ProvSexism, like racism..is a ince's weekend supplement) on Nov. 2, changed. 1976. political philosophy of which wifeVancouver Status of Women membeating is but one expression. Only ber Arlene Gropper and Joyce Marvin when this political crime is not investigate the alternatives for the simply a matter of male-female sex- battered woman. Where can she go? ual politics but reflects the domin- The police consider 'family disturbance' calls trivial matters. In a ation of our society by those who exploit the many for the profit of recent six-month period in Vancouver a few. As long as our social dethey bothered to make written reports cisions are being made on the basis on only 17% of such calls. And locally, of what is humane, the wife-beater only a few cases ever do reach the has a whole arsenal behind him. As courts. Gropper and Marvin quote a a feminist lawyer puts it, "A judge JP's remark: " Most charges by battered isn't going to put a guy who makes women are withdrawn at a later date a living in jail and his wife on and besides, these are private matters welfare. In terms of the respecbetween a man and a woman.." 12 Where can a woman go? An extensive study of wife-battering in the Vancouver area in the fall of '76 indicated that well over half of the women contacted Emergency Shelters, Transition Houses, Crisis Centres and the Vancouver Status of Women. Almost a quarter of the cases in this Vancouver study contacted Vancouver Transition House. Of the 330 women contacting the Transition House, 180 had to be turned away because of lack of facilities. Credit Kinesis (Vancouver Status of Women) ip 111 11111111t(111100 Alm "Why get drunk and beat up your wife? Your co-ordination is so much better when you're sober." 111104) 41111!041 Locally 1 1 1 1 I I The following was contributed by Lucy Rissanen_of a L.I.P. project (social support for Native People) ending in July who asks for public assistance in finding homes for 16 native women and their 38 children. Case 1 -Native women, 8 children. -came to Thunder Bay, Oct. 75 first person in city Crisis Homes. S.S.F.N.P. found them a home - a slum. Rats in basement, frozen water lines, drains clogged, unsafe steps, windows broken, etc. Application to O.H.C. not successful, has money for rent; feels children a cause for discrimination. -sister Hilda arrives, 6 children husband abusive, burn marks on body, held over a stove. City Welfare says 'Go home - not out Children responsibility'. temporarily at C.A.S. Upset, emotional problems, one child disturbed. Woman ready No money, forced to give up. to return to brutality if no place found. Daughter arrives with baby. If you can help, phone 623-0391 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �A Memory Forever:Rape seemed like there was a crowd all taking turns. I cried out but to I will never forget the time I no avail. Quickly, one locked his was raped. It was a nightmare. It thighs around my head. I started was after work, around six o'clock to vomit and cry and kick out but and I was walking home with an asthey pinned my whole body down and sociate of mine, Kevin. We'd been the assault continued on. working together for seven months It seemed like an eternity before and he seemed nice enough, wellthey finished and then they left. mannered, polite and attractive. As I lay there looking through a All the-way home, we told jokes, veil of dirt and tears, I recognized talked about our jobs, ourseltes one of them. It was Kevin. I screamand some trivia. We separated at his ed and pounded the earth, wishing I bus stop and then I was alone to were dead. After I was all cried out walk home. I wasn't scared, since I got up and saw that there was no thought of rape entered my mind, blood across my stomach and running and besides, it wasn't dark. To get down my thighs. Deep, dark bruises to my house, I had to cross a field, swelled about my arms and my back used as a short-cut, cross the drive hurt violently. I traced my fingers way and I would be home. over my face and felt it was wet, A group of boys were walking puffy and sticky with blood. through as I entered the field. They Struggling to get up, I vomited came closer and I was thinking about again and headed home just a short what kind of a snack I'd make myself way ahead. I was so close to safety, before supper, when all of a sudden so close. I walked into the living I heard a high crack and fell to the room and everybody stared. My mother ground. screamed, my two young brothers cried, I fell on my face and as I tried and my sister ran to the phone. to get up, I was hit again. SomeThe result of the trial was that where, as if echoing in my mind, I Kevin was acquitted; I and my family heard laughter and shouting and were humiliated right out of town. felt blows to my arms and face. It Kevin's story was that he'Walked me A MEMORY FOREVER. home and I enticed him - there were no other people. By Julie Stojko This article was submitted as fiction from a young author from Terrace Bay. Her insight will, we hope, find more exposure in the Northern Woman Journal in the future. RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT CENTRE III NEM I con't I EMIR 11 MEM II MIMI II MEM MOM from pg 7 ny neighbour - no charges laid Physical abuse while on holiday 1974, thrown from car with thre killing me - damage dome to rig leg and hip - inflamed hip join required several weeks of treat from chiropractor. Has damaged broken furniture, punched hoLe bedroom wall, deliberately dri erratically when angry, making suffer emotionally. Has used f and abusive language against me times for which there was no re IREGARDING TURNER VS TURNER MENTAL CRUELTY Spent several weeks at Hollywood Hospital for nerves - unable to remember date, but hospital would have records. Complete mental and physical breakdown at age 28 - largely caused by harassment and cruelty by husband plus physical abuse of boy we were to adopt. I called the Welfare and had the child removed 1 from our home before the situation could worsen. I . THUNDER BAY RAPE & SEXUAL ASSAULT CENTRE The Centre is not permanently located at McKellar Hospital. Our new address and phone number: THUNDER BAY RAPE & SEXUAL ASSAULT CENTRE McKellar Hospital, Box 47 Thunder Bay, Ont. P7E 1G6 623-3220 (answering service) The phone is handled by an answering service. A Centre member will return the call within 24 hours. We are getting ready to print our educational package and to distribute brochures throughout the city. A general meeting was held Feb.8 at Confederation College to acquaint more people with the Centre and to recruit new volunteers. The turnout was far less than expected but we hope that those who attended will pass information along to others. We plan to hold a workshop later this month to prepare volunteers for the activities that the Centre will be undertaking, especially for victim support and speaking engagements. Further notices of the workshop will be sent out soon. The Centre still needs many volunteers. Even if you have only limited time available but are willing to support us in the activities of the Centre, please call. We especially need volunteers who have time available during daytime hours. The Centre is preparing a resource library on rape and we will gladly make this information available to anyone wanting it. Spent 6 weeks in Riverview Hospital under care of Dr. Adler - received 6 shock treatments while there. At at later date, I received 6 more shock treatments at Royal Columbian Hospital as an out patient under Dr. R. Harrington, Psychiatrist, at whose office I attended for some time I also spent another week at Riverview Hospital at a later date for nervousness, at my own request be!cause of the pressures and home situation. At present I am under ' care of two doctors re: nervous'ness, due to stress of the situation at hand. On two occasions I was deserted by him - no charges laid. IHe also tried to stop the adoption of the child Shawn on his last desertion, but it had already been completed. im Was forced sexually - even to point where I was fearful of h I had major surgery and still stitches - admitted he had mar to make sex legal - used force times to the point where I COU respond and would fight him off self defense. Fired service revolver in house first year on police force - I also had to struggle with him s times since for his gun. Many incidents too numerous to menti but all equally cruel. During the entire period of mar to him I cared for the children him in the best way I knew, and made sure his home was in the b possible order, with no thought ever committing any wrong again him deliberatellair otherwise. im Elm= I Nom O MOM ;PHYSICAL CRUELTY Has made a number of threats on Emy life - has threatened suicide on numerous occasions. We spent approx. 31/2 years in marriage 1 1 o counselling. I found that when I 'began to become more independent as a person, he began to become more i owards me. Physical attack 1964 - police called II MIMI I MINIM 5 William (Bill) Cook previousl quitted of a rape charge has charged with attempted rape. wishing to attend his court c do so on June 13th at the cou house. 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CONT I NUED FROM PAGE 10 Does this mean we should not fight We No, not at all. for equal pay'? should always fight for what is rightbut we should also keep fully ours; our analysis clear. Women aren't oppressed because they are paid less money for equal work (which is the implication of the "economic issue" approach), they are paid less money for equal work because they're oppressIn the first case, the focus is ed. on economic advancement as a way of overcoming oppression (that's 7why liberals refer to a woman with a successful career as 'liberated') and this tends to be individually advanceIn the second case the ment oriented. focus is on political power building as a way of both fighting for and securing economic advancement and this tends to be collectively oriented. The point is that economic equality for all women can never be achieved without political power. ever. It almost seemed like a logical divsion of labour, at least for the time being. And so, radical feminists temporarily left the fight for jobs now to the liberals, and the fight for socialism to the male left and their non-feminist women. Jobs and socialism didn't follow. standards It doesn't seem to make a damn bit of difference where we are in the labour force, what sphere we move in or what position we occupy, compared to men it's a less advanIf we're in an alltageous one. female occupation we make less money than comparable male occupations; if we're in an all-male occupation we make less money than the men in If we work in the that occupation. factories or the universities we occupy the bottom rung. Actually it comes as no surprise to anyone that the labour force is segregated, one only wonders at the 0 consistency with which segregation If one has a has been maintained. feminist ideal that men and women should work side by side in all fields then one is shocked at how pervasive the sexual division on jobs still But it is not immediately apparis. THE WORK ISSUE IN THE EARLY WOMEN'S ent that these things are the result LIBERATION MOVEMENT of oppression, discrimination, polIf the liberals are at least paritics and power. We saw how separtially responsible for the lack of ated men and women were in the labprogress of women in the labour force our force and now jobs remain divmarket it is interesting to recall ided by sex into "men's" and "women's" that from the start of the movement with women's being synonomous with the job issue was their special prolow pay, low status, low importance, vince. At various times there have etc. My initial attraction to the movebeen laws and written company rules ment had little to do with the questClearly enforcing this pattern. ion of job discrimination. My initia] However, when the pattern persists was toward the radicals who were during times without such laws, concentrating on general feminist three possible explanations are left. political theory, "raising consciousEither the continuing segregation This just seemed more importness". patterns, the relentlessly continant and a matter of top priority uing segregation patterns, are atHOW SEGREGATION WORKS AGAINST WOMEN the first step toward further changes. tributed to nature, a natural diviThere Ages a general wariness in the The first thing we see is a dual sion of labour based on abilities beginning of the Movement toward labour force. Men and women might and inclinations, as the conservative getting too caught up in single issue work in the same labour force but anti-feminists would say; or to tradiquestions before the basic groundthey are separated for all practical tion and education as the liberals work had been laid, and I think that purposes1by the work they do. For say; the tradition in society wherestrategy proved to be correct. instance, women make up the majority by both men and women each learn and There were differences in interest of clerical workers while men make play their different, respective regarding the job arena. The left up the majority of craftsmen and fore- "sex roles", or to the fact that said socialism first and all else men. Women make up the majority of women are being kept out of men's will folloW. The liberals said jobs household workers while men make up jobs by discrimination and exploit,The first, and all else will follow. the majority of managers and admination, by force without laws, for questions of housework, child care, istrators. And the division becomes the benefit of some against the would all be altered once sex, etc. even more sharply delineated when we interests of others. But radical good jobs came through. look within job categories. That division of labour is based feminists looked at countries where In the professional field: Women are on natural abilities, is disproved women were making more progress in nurses and teachers, men are doctors, by history as well as a review of jobs than the U.S. and countries lawyers, scientists,draftsmen. The division of other cultures. which had socialism, and all else In the service occupations: Women labour has changed. When babies They looked at wasn't following. are cooks, nurses' aides and waitresses were born at home, without instruthemselves, some of whom had good men are bartenders, guards, firemens. ments and all the formalities now jobs, and all else wasn't following. policemen and detectives.... attendant on it, delivering babies Among managers and proprietors: Women was natural for a woman; she was Radical feminists knew there were other basic and important things to operate small retail establishments, called a midwife. Then the Chamberbe done to win women's liberation in men manage manufacturing plants and lain family invented forceps, sold addition to fighting for socialism wholesale outlets. the idea to the Medical College of The first and immediaEE and jobs now. Even in the same occupation men Amsterdam to which only men were need 'was to raise feminist conscious- and women are in different positions. admitted, and it suddenly became nesssorganize a power base,and deal In teaching, women are concentrated natural for men to deliver babies. with women's oppression within the in the elementary levels while men Canning and preserving food used to family (Housework, sex, child care) monopolize the college and university be very much a woman's job before and the so-called body issues (abort- faculties. the invention of canning machinery ion, false beauty standards and cloth.Well, so what? Men and women work which made food preparation a paying ing requirements). at different types of jobs. The sigMen took it over then, business. Neither the liberal feminists nor nificant factor is not that the jobs although they still employed women the left were working on these very are- different, out what that differin their factories. basic feminist issues and many actamounts to. In each and every jab They seemed to ually opposed them. category listed above the compare be taking care of other issues howable "woman's job" commands-less pay than the male version, is generally less prestigious, opens up fewer opportunities for advancement and is generally not the kind of work thought highly of by society's O CAN'T IN NEXT ISSUE 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �-fitintse These were long days, the days I learned to live with silence. I was not used to this ticking of the clock Outside the winin such a vacuum. only the dow it was still dark; stars remained cold and unwinking before the dawn. My young husband had left for the bush; he will be the sleigh there till nightfall; tracks he left behind him are like The pencil-shadings in the snow. The pot-bellied stove house is warm. sends out comforting waves of heat. The kerosene lamp sits among the There was remains of breakfast. a hearty good breakfast for my provider this morning, I gathered four eggs from the six hens yesterday. I Do they know how grateful I am? may get none today, though I will probably visit the nests a halfdozen times before the day is over. This is my first winter away from Funny, I never thought about home. It just came - such a food there. It was such quantity of everything. a chore gathering eggs and cleaning How I them to sell at the market. hated washing the cream separator, with its fifty-two discs - Ugh! But the cream, thick and yellow - how we lavished it on everything! Will I ever again make a proper tea biscuit? I shake the nostalgia out of my mind and set about the chores of the She The cow has to be milked. day. is almost dry, heavy with calf, but still she shares - patiently chewing her cud while I burrow my head in her There is a small piglet in flank. the straw, squealing for his breakI never use soap in my dish fast. water and I keep up a running conversation, reminding him it's coming with chop in it too. Now some grain for the chickens and I'm back in the house and it's daylight. day I bring the water up to a decent level to sustain the laundry and bathing needs. One never knows when a blizzard will make every movement outside the door a hazard. To have wood in the shed and water in the barrel is of prime importance. I sing a great deal these days, sing and whistle through my teeth and learn to carry on long and animated In short conversations with myself. I became good friends with myself and have enormous confidence in my ability to hold up half of the sky, as they But each time my husband say now. leaves, I know that moment of being abandoned, isolated, set adrift in silence with only my own resources to I must sternly remind sustain me. myself that money pays the taxes and we need another cow. As the day passes I want everything done that would deThis is my first house; I came prive me of his company, hay in the here in July. The first night I It spent here was my wedding night. barn for the horses, the cow milked, We moved the bed the animals fed and his supper ready rained all night. four times and finally slept under for the table. I glow and sparkle as the staircase. How fortunate we were if every moment of the day has been I want to be praised to have been part of the make"do gen- high adventure. and appreciated and marvelled at, but eration, a board here and there a bit of roofing off an old shed, a lot I soon learn I've done nothing specof laughing, a lot of loving and very tacular. I just pulled my weight as little of anything else! As evidence indeed he has done. The business of of our maturity, we had planted some survival is a serious one. Any spirit garden in the spring and now if the of adventure is my own fantasy and not potatoes don't freeze and the hens The period of foolishness shared. keep laying, we have high hopes for is behind us and I am expected to The white pine floor the future. share a common anxiety, a general I scrub it is unfinished but white. pessimism for the future. What a when I am bored, when I am mad and thorn in the side, in the midst of It is also an era that seemes to hold so little when I have excess energy. as bare as the house itself. An old promise - to be saddled with one who cast iron cookstove that leaks ashes persists in thinking that in spite of The all obstacles we are even now living in the oven, shines with pplish. homemade table has bright oilcloth. in paradise! The chairs are benches and the cupboards are orange crates, but the A story from the Herstory committee curtains on the windows have hours of cross-stitching on their sugar bag hems. With the dishes washed and the bed neat, I begin the daily chore of melting snow in the barrel behind the kitchen stove. Heating water and piling the snow in the barrel, each I herstory is not the ascent of women up the I i token poles of this society ; the crucial women ! are the millions who never become famous INN/ Alm, Mom' I/ gcrt is' a 01 ...mit 4, ...NV I 4,411, ( Sstift-tLtituct,t±y its' 65rers; l i I 31.)110 Soos geor .0a geom. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CONFERENCE is difficult to believe that CONTINUEDthisIt Working Women's Conference was The excitement and enthusiasm which we all felt as we joined in the Conference on Working Women was a heartening indication that large numbers of women in Thunder Bay are ready to take on new responsibilities. I joined in a workshop about women and unions and heard nurses, factory workers, seamstresses and postal workers discuss their common problems and decide on how they could pool efforts to overcome them. I am leaving this conference with a renewed faith in the capabilities It has been a delight to of women. be invited to participate in the work that the women (and men) of this community are doin to change the circumstances of their lives. The sucess of the conference is a tribute to the organizers, a sign that the time is ripe for change and a source of hope for women throughout Ontario. With thanks, Evelyn Gigantes RESOLUTIONS d) enough guaranteed annual income for homemakers to allow them security and dig- and carried at f the Working nity. Labour Relations g arbitration negotiations nion security first contract. ployment Standards ers to show ssal and to emnstate employees 5. Recommended that women work towards elimination of wage controls; and that this conference endorse the C.L.C. 10 point program which together comprise a positive programme to fight i nflation and relieve the related soci al problems: - A major program of subsidized lowrental housing for low-income fam- tract workers be on to make it ized to take benefits now employees. - Effective rent controls covering not only existing house structures but also new rental accommodations to curb gouging of tenants. - An active program to curb land speculation and to establish land ilies. Pension Plan now discrimin- P. available to uting homemakers amount of spouses ilable to the wed women eligible pecurity at 60 e under the same as married women . banks. - Subsidized mortgage rates for lo4er income families to enable them to purchase homes. - Regulation of oil and gas prices which has seriously fuelled inflation. - a negative income tax, or some form of tax credits, to protect those who have little or no bargaining power and who fall into lower income brackets. - An increase in old age pensions the first one that most of the committee members had organized. They did a superb job of coordinating The speakers, the the arrangements. workshops, the accomodation and food were exactly what was needed to inThe sure a really good conference. delegates knew this from the first moment of Evelyn Gigantes' key-note The same enthusiasm and address. active participation marked the workshops and the rest of the weekend's Many women met others with program. similar interests, made contacts for further action and learned new skills I expect there will be continued action to help women in the Thunder Bay area. I made some wonderful new friends and met some of my favourite old ones Thank you for inviting me and giving me such a wonderful welcome. I think there will be some very effective lobbyists from this area - and some good role players and actors too! Kay Macpherson Vice-President, National Action Committee on Status of Women - A definite guarantee that any tax concession made to corporations will be used for investment purposes to create jobs and not end up in higher payments of dividends. - Full employment policies to abolish the high rate of jobless in this country. - A stable monetary policy in line with potential economic growth and the total eradication of wasteful government expenditures which benefit only a privileged group at the expense of the ordinary taxpayers. 6. A chapter of Organized Working Women be established locally - committed to educate women more effectively to move their unions to address themselves to women's issues (day care, equal pay) and to recognize their responsibilty to organize the unorganized women. 7. The practise of excluding Native people from English as a Second Language courses now taught is discriminatory and should be changed. 8. The teaching of Labour History in Canadian Studies should be promoted in the high schools - with assistance from Thunder Bay Labour Council by way of books and speakers. 16 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Canada pr...a. Poet I 1°` Bulk En nombre third troisieme claw dense 220 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 BAY ST. THUNDER BAY P, ONT. Return Postage Guaranteed Editorial Letters Poetry Equal Credit Opportunity Plea to Ombudsman Working Women's Conference New Ways of Keeping Women out of Paid Labour - Part 11 Decade Council Report Crisis Homes A Glimpse of the Past 2 I 3 5 6 7 8 10 11 12 15 People who did this issue: Thyra, Gert, Eve, Pat, Noreen, Lynn, Marg, Florence Want to get involved? PLEASE LET US KNOW. Call 345-5841 weekdays HAVE YOU MOVED? (We must pay return postage to keep Free to single-parent families up our mailing list) Free to senior citizens 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 3 No 4 Description An account of the resource Vol. 3, No. 4 (1977) Title: The Northern Woman Journal Topics include: Working Women’s Conference Equal credit opportunities Women’s Credit Union Letters to the editor Woman of the Year Maria (Kenora Business & Professional Women) Lorraine Smith (Ear Falls) elected for Ontario Status of Women Council Class-action lawsuit against NYPD by abused wives to whom they refused assistance Poetry Metro Toronto Women’s Credit Union Women & the law/Sexism in law Family property law Returning to work after raising children Housewive’s Workshop @ Working Women’s Conference Women as “cheap labour” in the formal market Housewives not receiving pension Keeping women out of paid labour Systemic underpayment of women Lack of protection for low-paying jobs Job discrimination as a political problem Women’s Decade Council Atikokan Division of Matrimonial Property (Bill 140 - Family Assets System) Greater need for crisis homes Women’s welfare Women’s economic dependence on men Housing for Indigenous women & their children Rape testimonal Rape & sexual assault centre Mental & physical cruelty/abuse Authors/Contributors: Elizabeth Janeway Nora Rodd (Toronto, letter to the editor) Ruby Roulston (Abbotsford, BC., letter to the editor) Chris Torre (Webequie, ON, letter to the editor) Judi Gough (Sault Ste. Marie, ON, letter to the editor) Rosemary Shuhlawry (Thunder Bay, ON, letter to the editor) Jane S. (letter to the editor) Kate (Thunder Bay, ON, letter to the editor) Eve Merriam J. Pierre Colleen Aube Gert Beadle Marge Piercy Deirdre Hamill Sheila DesChenes Janet Craig-James Lillian E. Turner Florence Richard Colleen Price Lucy Rissanen Julie Stojko 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 1977 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/16/2748/1977_Vol_3_No_5.pdf d66035f469f5e5b30b9cadc6f670d40c PDF Text Text 1\110,r1Rern Votnan 7 v01,11110 c0 CUM 3 4010 T/ 7 7 - PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �to high school women This issue was planned for high school women. We sent a letter to local high school guidance counsellors asking that they let women in their schools know that the Northern Woman's Journal wanted creative writing from high school women to publish in the paper. We received about 15 responses, most of it was poetry or short stories. One woman wrote an article describing her feelings of isolation and boredom. We would like to hear more from high school women about their everyday lives. We know that, according to "creative writing" standards, everyday life is not considered to be The exciting material on which you base a short story. "What I did on my summer vacaclassic essay assignment, tion", usually results in stories of moonlight canoe rides, trips to exotic countries, or everyday experiences embelNo one wants to admit lished to the point of fantasy. painful, boring, lonely, that many life experiences are scary or confusing. On looking back, we feel that asking each other the following questions, and talking with women friends about the conclusions, might have helped dispel some of the confusing, lonely feelings and led to changes that would This process is called make for a more fulfulling life. "consciousness-raising" and is a method that has been developed by women in their struggle for liberation. What position does lack of money put me in? Why can I not be financially independent? What kind of jobs are available to me? What kind of jobs are available to boys? How many women are in machine shop classes? How many boys take home economics? What are the differences between arts, technical and commercial courses? Why do these differences exist? Do guidance counsellors encourage women to break from traditional roles, and take courses that will lead to decent paying jobs? Who controls the school? Who is the principal? the vice principal? Who's on the school board? Are they men or women? How much money do they make? How much money is available for physical education? How much of it goes to men's sports, how much to women's sports? Why is there "men's" and "women's" sports? Is self defense available for women? How many books on women's liberation are available in the school library? What do I learn about women who have fought for their rights in the past? How many books, or paragraphs in books, describe women's role in history? Are there dress codes at school? Are they imposed by the school or self-imposed? What kind of pressure results from following these standards? Does anyone question the status quo, the way things by other are? How are they treated - by me? Do I get the feeling it's students? by teachers? not o.k. to ask questions or challenge the status quo? What do I do so that boys will like me? What do I want from relationships with boys? What do I get? If there's a difference in what I want and what I get, why does it happen this way? What happens to women who get pregnant? What do I know about my own sexuality? Where did I Is information freely available at school? learn it? Is masturbation, intercourse, orgasm, birth control, lesbianism or abortion discussed in sex education class? Who decides some women are sluts while others are good girls - the kind a man would like to marry? Why are there these kinds of differences between women? How do I get along with women friends? Do I get support from women? Do I see other women as a threat? Is my best friend a woman? Will I drop her for a boyfriend? Has this happened to me? Are there any women I look to as an example? are they? What do they do? Who What is the attitude to women's liberation? What father? mother? teachers? principal? do boys say? other women? TOWARDS CHANGE Talk with other women. Discuss problems. and trust each other. Build solidarity. Learn to like Begin challenging Learn and understand who holds power. them if what's happening is not in your interest as women. Do it together! cti4; Read about Women's Read about women's history. Read the Northern Woman's Journal. Liberation. Study. Talk with women who have some experience fighting for their rights. Ask your mother, your grandmother, your women teachers. Come to Woman's Place, 316 Bay Street and talk with women there. Find out what resources are available to you - through the library, local women's centre, community college, university, local Y - use them! Get in shape. yourself. Build your strength and learn to defend readings in women's liberation The following books may be available at the local libraries Confederation College (if not, see Lynne in the Women's Studies Dept.) or the University library. They can be bought from, or ordered through, Co-op Bookstore, 182 Algoma St. S. voi,ceon,, from W°111 Li,bera"° n THE SECOND SEX by Simone de Beauvoir THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE by Betty Friedan THE DIALECTIC OF SEX by Shulamith Firestone SEXUAL POLITICS by Kate Millet VOICES FROM WOMEN'S LIBERATION, edited by Leslie B. Tanner SISTERHOOD IS POWERFUL, edited by Robin Morgan RADICAL FEMINISM, edited by Koedt, Levine & Rapone FEMINIST REVOLUTION, Redstockings, P.O. Box 413, New Paltz New York, 12561 WOMEN'S ESTATE by Juliet Mitchell AGAINST OUR WILL by Susan Brownmiller WOMAN'S CONSCIOUSNESS, MAN'S WORLD by Sheila Rowbotham 2 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �From High School Women.... ONE WOMAN'S STRUGGLE So why not take some courses at different grade levels? I tried that, but they couldn't work it out with my timetable - I wanted too much, or something... Then there's the teachers. In high school, there are two types of teachers - the wimps and the bullies. This year I was blessed with exactly four of each. Needless to say, they aren't helping me grow or develop as a person at all, and plaCe all sorts of unnecessary restrictions and punishments on those who try to be individuals. Finally I come to the students, who comprise the bulk of the population at the massive institution where six hours of my life are wasI could, at ted five days a week. this point, viciously flay my peers, describe in graphic detail how they've mocked and ridiculed me, how they've considered me a radical because I'm a feminist, how they hurl insults and torment me. But I'm not It would be futile, going to do that. seeing as how they're so puerile, immature and so sadly unaware. Most of them reached their peak at about age eleven anyway. But anyone who doesn't succumb to the whole teen culture bit - swooning over the likes ol,Peter Frampton and Kiss - has to be prepared for a backYou pay the price for individlash. uality. Their rejection doesn't matter, since my peers are not my friends. I'm just ten steps ahead of them, in terms of values, perceptions, "Ah, to be young again!" That's almost become a cliche among those in the over-forty age bracket- even those in their mid-thirties utter it I listen to wistfully on occasion. them and wonder "Don't they remember?" and think that they must have either become senile or mellow with astonishing speed. I noticed a book recently which reminded me of the above exclamation. The book was called Why Am I So Miserable If These Are The Best Years Of My Life? and the morose-looking young woman on the cover, not to mention the title - caught my eye. I picked up the book, flipped through it, and put it down again. I'm sure that it will help many young women make decisions regarding their lives, but it doesn't have the answers that I'm searching for. You see, it's rather difficult to School is a major reason explain. for many of my frustrations and (until I'm a high now) hidden resentments. school student, approaching sixteen (anxiously) and, to put it bluntly, fed up with school. If I were a typical student Why? I'm not I suppose I wouldn't be. a troublemaker and my assignments are handed in and returned with ASo what's the pluses attached. problem? Well, there are a number I've learned I'm bored. of things. more on my own through the wonderful world of books than from school, so most of my classroom time is spent daydreaming and/or gazing out the window. poet, cir% goals and even the books that I read. Education should be a very individual thing, and right now, the system is just too judgemental to let that be so. Now you may shake your head, saying that I've grown up too fast (which people have told me countless times) and I can see that, in a way, that's true. But I can't go back - and I certainly don't want to. I know that there are going to be days filled with loneliness and depression (which I feel is inevitable no matter who you are) but I've already experienced that, both in and out of school, and know how to cope with it. I thought long and hard about this situation for some time, and eventually decided that I don't like the way the teachers and students are reacting towards me, and that I have to find an alternative method of education. They think that I'm weird ...or at least very, very strange. I don't need that attitude perpetually surrounding and stifling me. I just don't need that. So, until June, my time in the classroom will continue to be spent gazing longingly out the window. And I know that the best years of 17.-i Life are still to come and they will, they will. Eventually. by Athena Caine Thunder Bay 14111SLI1Do1 wowlest5c wevAtAkts Sittdies MISTER ON THE RADIO I No vwe,,,,,.. o n worrier $ ,eC..teVi role_ Ccursts3 Hey misteA, on the Judi°, I want you to know, Someone'.6 very sad today. Why don't you gay tisykk.ryvecN Hor"e, Ec..0 »OP% KS 4 IP'"5 600et?""1. a coupee o6 sad songs? Not too 4hott on tong. Because I'm so biue I'm 2.eaving it to you To bting back my smiZe to my 6ace Hots I Zort it some pace. Whete? I don't know, But some time ago. When I to paying the nadio Yes miztet, the good ofd tadio. wean, misteA, you'te doing neat 6ine I got to say you're zo kind. I tea-C.4 got to hand it to you, You sune hap someone btue. Oh, a-4ot o6 aU, Thanks iot taking my cat, And bon "Someone, save my Zi6e. tonight." Thanks again and good night. Cotteen Aube Thundetc. Bay PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �H.S. Women CONT D Memories The ad woman sat on the dboutep, Hen head hanging timpty on het bxeazt, The cased, cobweb Lace disclosed nothing 06 the memonies nevotving in het mind. . Although the memory o6 you OL aitmoon walks in the pa/Lk With het Latest beau, Mama and Papa waked sedately behind Supposedly unsuspecting 06 the glances oL Love. stia tingeAs on my mind, The teradAops and the rainbows the past ate Zeit behind. o On that golden stain way you bxought me to the top... I didn't seem to xeaLize OWL Love must someday stop. Now there is another who has captuxed at your heart.. The coniusion and the tutmoit is teating me apart. I nemembet being with you; at the good times that we had, Now you're with the other and that can only make me sad. My ieetings now ate &Leaky, my tears axe bleak as /Lain. Happiness i4 Zike the sunshine ib we chance to Love again. Yes, it's been a white but my yearning just won't end, I've suxtendeted to you everything, my /oven and my ixiend. Tomovcow ..4 anothet day, When the anticipated day had attived at -east, Papa was nervous, and Mama anxious, The sun shone btittiantty above A4 she waked down the gowet-4ttewn aisle. When the ioteseeabZe notice was anzwexed And the unitioAm adjusted to 6it, Fined_ goodbyes were said Amid tears o L parting and dxead. Lists oL suxvivoits were tead out In 6/tont oL the old count house. "Where ms his name? Why doesn't he read out his name?" "Hey Lady, you aLL tight?" The voice jetked het back to teatity, Her wainkeed hand brushed away a Lew stray teats As she nodded and tutned to go into the empty house. Cathy Metcatlie Long Bow Lake I'LL try, my best to cope I'm always Looking, always Aeraching, Fox where there's Love there's Hope. Lori Christensen Geitaidton Highschoot. A NIGHT WALK The waves were &Upping upon the skate The tomist Lay on the sand A swat bxeeze blew about the txees A4 to ove,tcoti,e the -Cond. And the chiLdten oL the woAid shalt. Live; The sun went down to We .its el 6 When the moon They stand iion innocence and putity. - beautiut tays o6 moontight Their hands and minds have not yet touched Which glow and glow and glow. Upon the neaeity and ways oi the world. Let them gtow and undeAstanding witt goutish Jackie Duxochet Grade 9 Let them Live and there witZ be LOVE. Gexadton Highschoot Lori ChAistensen GuLaZdtn Highschoot Spring The smelt oL the eatth, /tanning water, GIANT STEPS Canada has always been my home, and I am very fond of it, but it is not where I would choose to live. These may sound like traitor's words, but they are not. I am not a true "woman's libber". I am more old fashioned. I do believe in careers for women, but for me they are secondary matters. I like to be treated as a woman. I have travelled widely over our beautiful country, but nowhere have I found a place to fulfil'. my needs. Canada does not satisfy me. I believe I have found a place that does. I am not totally informed on European life, and I have not spent a great deal of time there -- only one week in southern Spain, but of all the places I have been, it satisfies me the most. I love their way of living, their style and warmth, and I suit their environment. So, when I am capable of doing so, I plan to move lock, stock and barrel to Costa de la Sol. I also have plans of becoming a Writing is my pet and journalist. I enjoy taking proper care of it. Essays in school do not "turn me off" as they do others; I enjoy them. Joining journalism and Spain together would be the culmination of all my I intend to do everything dreams. possible to make this happen. I also realize the problems involved in "creating happiness" but am preparCourses in French and ing for them. Spanish are on the agenda, and obtaining a post as journalist to establish myself. These may be exaggerated dreams for such a young person, but I feel the time to start is when you are young, not wait until it is too late. I do not feel that mine is an impossible case, The power of prayer and faith goes a long way in solving impossible I shall leave things in the cases. hands of God and trust. 6xogs singing in the swamp, pussy witioaz, tetatning bitds, bikes, and ditty chitdten, art herald the end oi wintet and tebitth. Nancy Fume. ton Dryden Highschoot Linda Longe Lakewood Highschool Kenora, Ontario PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �H.S. Women PERHAPS LESSONS.... My mind's eye vieta Deeds oi past days CONTD When tiSe seemed zimptu And summers .longer: Last yeat - the yeah, A wanted wonthtezz white Hampeted by 6eetingz 06 dreams and naivete; Yeatning Son the unknown Putzating with every breath And misguided step, Emotion's tapping out To communicate with others Please undetztand me, Can't you zenze my Longing? Supply me with anzweAz Fon ate oS my queztionz Yet I don't neatly want to know. Come closet - back away Love me - hate me ON AN AUTUMN EVENING A POEM WITH NO TITLE The tat pines yietding to the wind. Dancing, nodding, There within my mind tiez a connen all my own to gaze at pazzetz-by but steel be ate atone. and taking IS my conzciouz mind could .S eel in gtoupz. Sithouetted againzt an evening sky. I'm certain it would say Leave me here atone, pteaze go away. IS my ti6e depended on a ptiend one succeeding aitet the °ther they would being me to the end. Those who have 6ot4aken me ptuz those who didn't cake never 6ett my ptezence Nancy Fumenton Dryden High4choot Hetp me - hinder me Do you neatly know me? They say they do But they don't. theit act auz a metre eat. So -in. _my etdetty catiow zubconzciouz Let me 6ind my peace and mark upon the milestones one eternal ttuce. 16 my mind should drive me ctazy I wish Got you to know I don't want you to know. Like an .iceberg You zee only pant: What tiez beneath Is oS more signiiicance And -is Son you to uncover. BcUtoetent rebel with Give Give just Show Swelling anger and Sean, Yet 40 unawate oS The would and tit's wotkingz. We weren't then We won't be tomontow We ate NOW! My mind's eye cOpq0AtiS My tezttezz 4out Projecting images Show me Lill e and the rhapsody of Living in zotitoquy. Qui, va t2t. dams ma pied-a-tette? 14 it the atien who means nothing, N' eat paz? On a Hank, barren screen I catt my memory; Recalling my past, Sutviving today, Fotzeeina mu 4utunp. But de I neatly Sonzee? Oun time will come To set out sights on Ctaiming OWL tivez InheAiting out wottd 6tom Dead worn out once-upon-a-timed. My mind's eye evaluates today: Cynicat, zatcaztic neatity - me quiet. me tight enough to zutvive. me grace. i4eLizs A meanAngLeas t.h.t.c. yak:de._ waLL staking my brain zertAch.Eng ion. a hat. Let hir sea.Lch. Let him taboux in vain. Let him tart shoat Sot he ishatt bind no heft within the ckevicez oS my being. Simp4 unaduttetated peace. Connie Johnson Age 16 Hammanzjkotd Highzchoot but -c4 A.t neat? Harrah gtazz and zteet city, Ptecizion kni6e-edged sophisticate. 14 it worthy? Is it teat?. SttuggLing to ii-td outzetvez Shuiiting thnough a deck oS Experienced Eztabtizhment Vatuez now outdated Where ate we? Ate we any ctosen on iutthek to out goat? What goat? madness? Waz there a teazon behind thLs /Lace My mind's eye views Deeds o6 past days The present iz piing mane btickz When tip. seemed zimptet And zummetz tonget: to the 9/teat bat/Lien And now have we impnoved? that zepatatez Were not the pat days oS childhood better? now £A0171 then. On did we not know bettet? Too great Lon any human to zcate Ake we expected to gnace6utty use it mockz mortal me Out adotezcent days to zuddenty evolve az I gtimpze the past From optimztic caneSnee childhood minnoned in old peoples' eyes adulthood? To wovUzoMe burdened hypoctiticat and azk in iutite eatnutnezz Was thus- to be done eazity? "can I get thete Snom here ?" Out values exptoited Mona t4 chattenged Vintuez deiied iStumbting in the dark We beet confused; What vatuez? What monate What viAtues? Did we even have any at att.? Perhaps teszonz zhoutd be given Suzan Reid Age 16 Hammaltajad High4choot But then a pebble oL childhood .lath Satz 0.0m the watt stonily teminding me: Mice never did go back dawn the kabbit hate. Atma Byzewski Font FAancez High4choot 6.0m TUESDAY NIGHT 5 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �The Sexual Revolution This antiete on the Sexuat Revotution was done by Eve Pyketman and campaign. CerFiona KaAtztad. but lost the larger tainly, they had the vote, but those who the had fought for our civil rights sible woman could only realize will be examinremained very conservative on questIn this paper, we and privileges a penis could bring in attitudes and Freud ions obof female sexuality. Women's ing certain changes by deduction desire one. sexual relationwith- consciousness became political roles in terms of served psychological structures by asking: What anesthetized by the "myth of emanciships and will begin out ever questioning their social in the sex pation" for the next fifty years. is the role of a woman context, but given his cultural entitled to an act? and Is the woman Ifexpecwomen were still unhappy with the prejudices we can hardly have and joy in this problem. After al equal mutual interest ted him to make such an examination. Perhaps, at Simple questions? they had gotten what they wanted, act? But Freud was only one of a large throughout history What more could they first glance, but cast of 19th century male experts on the feelings Emancipation became a wherever we can trace conask for? female sexuality, all of whom and the reand ideas on this matter to responsibility: salvation wa private cluded that women are very close find discord, personal, not political. With the sultant conduct, we being asexual. Dr. William Acton, conflict and anguish. thirties, came the Depression. In the Victorian English sexologist, Throughout Notate every act o6 the forties,there was another world decided that pneceded by a zexuat union a and to think about. Women had subThe best mothers, wives war There a stantial jobs for the first time in pxocezz of courtship. manageAz a househotds know tittte physiotogicat teason decades - they were genuinely needed a sound on nothing .06 zexuat indagencez. ion ,.in the bon this couAtzhip, by society. And, if women were sexLove o6 home, children and domestic bang wooed, act o6 wooing and they frustrated, they had Kinsey to dutLez are the onty pazzionz ually gnadHe laid to rest the belief the psychic excitement look to. beet. 5 watty genetated in the btains that women got no pleasure at all while Dr. Isaac Brown was performing 0,6 the two pantneAz ac tz as a from sex. The marriage manual craze women numerous clitoridectomies on that stimulant to amuse into &at followed him assumed that a to prevent the sexual excitement activity the mechanism (fhich lifetime of psychological destructio caused which, he was convinced, union... enzuAez sexual could, with the aid of a book, be "insanities", "hysteria" and other remediedlthus ensuring the right of The evolution of society, however, Monogamy and home diseases. 6 a woman to her sexual birthright to tended to overlay and sometimes even existed for the benefit and protection orgasm - provided it was vaginae and suppress these natural tendencies. But while women were abof women. so long as their orgasms were zimaIt a conceivable that the Oncesolutely confined to the home, men (Contrary to the most eletaneouz. 6u2 zuppAezzion of women's inwere free to exercise their erotic mentary common sense, which shows ondinate zexuat demands was a The activities outside the home. the clitoris as the source of orgasir pnekequizite to the dawn of every had sexual order thus establishedmen had invented that a woman's orga modern civitZzation and almost repressive influan unnatural and must be transferred from the clitori every tiving eatune-Not untit women's ence on the erotic aspect of to the vagina. Nobody would ever these dAivez were gtaduatty have thought of asking men to transf brought under conttot by Aigidty their orgasm from the penis to the enOtced sociat codes coutd... But the effect of these scrotum.) modern civitized man emerge... the manuals ran counter to their purpose 4ttength oi the drive deteAminea Sex was made so mechanized, detached the 6otce tequited to zuppnezz it. and intellectual that it was robbed On the basis of social, economic Man became a spectt of sensuality. and legal developments which were experience. ator of his own sexual established as the conditions of a There was a swing from repression developing civilization, new moral, :':o preoccupation with the orgasm spiritual and religious forces were resulting in new pressures on the generated, based on rules of exter'men to perform; witness the menior order, giving men power over ials' endorsement of the desireabilwomen's souls as well as their bodies. oity of vaginal orgasm. All through history legislators, With the fifties came the first # priests, philosophers, writers and long stretch of peace and affluence, scientists have striven to show that As anthropologists have shown, women the subordinate position of woman is sexual response is culturally conwilled in heaven and advantageous on ditioned and the political conserearth. vation of the fifties was echoed in The Opiate a a 6ema2.e by viAtue a social conservatism which stresse oi a centan 41ack o6 quatitiez; a Victorian ideal of the woman's we should regard the iamate natune a full womb and selfless life: as aWi ct od with a natutat de:'octdevotion to husband and family. Wit 4 the end of the war the average age ivenezz. at marriage declined, the average .St. Thomas for his part pronounced size of families went up and the woman to be an "imperfect" man, an suburhan migration began in earnest "incidental" being; while the first In her book, The Feminine Mystique, sexual life. among the blessings which Plato always been Freidan documents the stifling he had there have thanked the gods for was that Although creative motherhood cycle and its female rebels in history, conditions enslaved, the been born free, not devastating effect on women and the The before existed to enable women second, a man, not a woman. never families.7 Young girls of all ages effectively and collectively overresult was that directly andtoindirIt was dreamed of escaping the dull homes throw their oppressive roles. erotic ectly the legal, economic and of their mothers through Teenage until the Industrial Revolution nonrights of women were all butnot leave the home and Romance. We saw adolescent boys when women began to existent. force that things growing up begging for sexual cruml enter the labour the "envy of Freud has described But from from girls frightened for their began to change slowly. the penis" as an essential component "reputations". The parked car, Freud's very beginning, their simple of the feminine psychology. the and finally the perhaps the one prop that best cha: demands for justice view of women was that they are not being acterized the passions of this vote were met with violence, whole human beings, but mutilated decade, became an urgent necessity viewed for as a serious threat to the males who long all their lives After a But girls were taught that since t established (male) order. a penis and must struggle to reconneeded sex less, it was their resprolonged and frequently bitter To be cile themselves to its lack. struggle, women did win the battle sure)in the Victorian Age when everything was permitted to man and everything was forbidden to women, a sen- 4 6 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Cont'd ptom page 6 ponsibility to impose sexual restraints and they were so busy setting limits and holding off that they never got a chance to explore their own. They were continually selecting actions and repressing erotic impulses in order to conform to what was acceptable. As this bleak decade came to an end, social developments emerged which were to make a rebirth of the women's struggle inevitable; the large influx of women into the labour market, suburban life and marriage was turning sour, and a growing civil rights movement was sweeping the continent. Traditional political ideologies and cultural myths, sexual mores and roles with them, began to disintegrate in an explosion of protest. The sixties is remembered as a decade of liberation. Masters and Johnson published Human isexuat Reoponise, a massive clinical study Briefly of the physiology of sex. and simply, their conclusions about the female orgasm are: (1) anatomically all orgasms are centred in the clitoris (2) women are naturally multiorgasmic (3) women's orgasms vary in intensity and (4) there is an infinite variety in female sexual response in terms of intensity They wrote and duration of orgasms. "With orgasmic physiology established the human female now has an undeniable opportunity to develop realistically her own sexual responses." With the advent of the Pill and other birth control methods, women were also no longer at the continual mercy of biology. They could enter into sexual relations without the accompanying fear of pregnancy. What else was needed to make their sexual liberation a reality? Men travelled to Europe, joined political movements, went to University. We witnessed the growth of the "love generation". Liberated men with a new lifestyle who needed women who could keep up. But there was no place for women there either. Although sexual mores may have appeared to have changed, it amounted to no more than lip service. If a woman asked for some commitment in return, she was labelled as "uptight" and told she should strive to be more "independent". Women couldn't register fast enough for all kinds of courses - ceramics, weaving, psych. and lit. courses - anything to get off his back. Women were still reluctant to organize around their own issue and thus they fell once again into the trap of the "private" solution, which as often as it was art or academia was the "bag" of radical politics. Radical politics gave every woman the chance to do her own thing, but the sexual class system existed everywhere and the old double-standards were expressed just as succinctly there. Stokely Carmichael once said, "The only position for women in revolution is prone."9 This left women in a bewildering dilemma: were they to remain in a movement which allowed them only to exist as silently submissive bedmates or would they refuse to accept a subordinate status. It became clear that if women were to establish the right to self-deter- mination it would not/could not be within that framework. As Robin Morgan said, "Goodbye to Hip Culture and the so-called Sexual Revolution which has functioned towards women's freedom as did the Reconstruction towards former slaves - reinstated oppresSion by another name."10 The result has been the growth of a new women's movement and the creation of a variety of organizations which have facilliated the critical examination of the institutions controlling their lives. Ranging in politics from reform to revolution, the movement has produced critiques of almost every segment of North American society, and constructed an ideology that rejects every hallowed cultural assumption about the nature and role of women. However, the sexual problems of our society will never be dealt with effectively until there is real and unfeigned equality between men and women. This equality does not imply that women adopt certain male characteristics. There must be a'conscious effort made by all men and women to examine the quality of their life, for sexu4lity today, if it is to be fully enjoyed by both, is the one drive that demands recognition of its values: cooperation, spontaneity, openness, sharing, sensitivity, trust and freedom. If prolonged pleasures and meaning are to be drawn from sexuality these values must accompany the lover who seeks them. When that understanding and recognition become apparent, then we will know that the Sexual Revolution has indeed come to pass. RejvLedcea avaLeabi.e upon uquat at the NoAthenn Woman JouAnat 066ice. further reading on sexuality OUR BODIES OURSELVES by the Boston Women's Health Book Collective, $5.95 at Co-op Bookstore. THE HITE REPORT by Shere Hite, $2.75 at most grocery and MUST reading! book stores. Send $4.00 to Betty LIBERATING MASTURBATION by Betty Dodson. Dodson, P.O. Box 1933, New York, N.Y. 10001. FOR YOURSELF: THE FULFILLMENT OF FEMALE SEXUALITY by Lonnie Garfield Barbach. $3.95. Order through Co-op Bookstore. TEENAGE WO When I was in high school, I had no doubts about my future. I would marry a kind and handsome man - he didn't have to be rich because I knew love was most important, not money. My husband and I would have beautiful, clever children. I woul be a young, attractive, fun-loving mother to these children. The picture of my future family was a conglomerate of all the ads I see dail which depict clean, healthy, happy families. And, oh yes, a career. This career would enable me to support myself until I married, and would be one to which I could retur when my children no longer needed me at home. Now for the realities. I did become one of the 8 in 10 women who PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �HU- DEFENSE Attacks on women, especially rape, are continuing to increase. Any woman is a potential victim. How we look or dress, our age, our occupation or economic condition does not protect us. As rapists continue to escape legal sanction for their crimes the threat to all women grows. Self-defense training for women is growing in popularity and availability for this reason. Some common reactions about selfdefense: 1. It takes long and strenuous training. 2. It may make a woman overestimate her physical capabilities. 3. Resisting an attack may only enrage an assailant and cause more serious injury. I'd like to comment first on the body awareness women have been conditioned to have and then look specifically at each point above. Most women have never had access to activities that test their physical abilities and develop realistic physical integrity. Traditionally girls and women have not been encouraged (or allowed) to participate in body contact sports or playful roughhousing. We have had little or no emphasis placed on developing activities that keep us physically fit. We've learned that men ( our brothers friends, spouses) are supposed to protect us. Agression is punished in girls and we are shamed for being unfeminine. We've been told to "help" never to "hurt" others. This type of conditioning has announced us to the workd as "easy victims". It has denied women the opportunity to develop the confidence in their bodies essential for physical and psychological well-being and personal safty. 2. Self-defense training can provide the means for developing a more realistic estimate of physical capPractice, not lack of it, acity. develops both competence and evaluation. 3. Self-defence techniques aim at giving you the chance to get away. There is never a guarantee that submission will prevent injury. However, in any situation the woman facing attack is the best judge of whether resisting will increase or decrease her chance of escape. Only you can decide that if you are attacked. Self-defense training develops quick responses which give you the advantage of surprise in an attack and let you get away. When there appears to be no opportunity to run or if an assaillant is armed you have to rely on your own judgement. But self-defense training does increase the alternative available to someone who is being assaulted. Consider these facts: 1. A rapist doesn't expect a woman to resist; he especially doesn't expect her to resist effectively. He wouldn't risk the attack if he He relies on the "fact" that did. women are physically inferior. 2. In countering an attack, surprise and speed are the best weapons. Since the rapist doesn't expect resistance the woman has the advantage in using these weapons. 3. Most men rely on pure strength or the threat of it to overpower a woman, not on skilled fighting techniques. This all means that it is our lack of training and confidence, not any physical inferiority, that is our biggest disadvantage in an attack. It is this increased confidence in nur bodies (coupled with some basic techniques) which is the main benefit of self-defence training. A woman whose demeanor indicates physical competence is less likely to be chosen as a target than the woman who looks weak and passive. When confronted'with an assault, the woman whose first actions indicate confidence and effectiveness is more likely to make an assaillant consider finding an easier target. Most rapists want to prove their "power" not risk losing ft. LEARNING SELF-DEFENSE -Photo "Pess Srni*K Regarding the three points above: 1. Self-defense training need not be long or strenuous. Self-defense is not the same as competence in a martial art (karate, judo, etc.) Selfdefense does not aim at making someone a-skilled fighter. Its aim Is to teach a few basic defense techniques which can help you counter an attack long enough to run."Distance is the great equalizer" in any confrontation. An additional benefit can be an increased awareness of general fitness which can be the incentive for a regular exercise program. The best way to learn is to enroll in a self-defense course. These are available locally through Parks and Recreation YM-YWCA Confederation College Courses normally run one night a week for 6 - 8 weeks. An excellent book is Self-Defense for Women by Jerrold Offstein (available at the Mary Black Library or order through a local bookstore) SOME BASICS IF YOU ARE ATTACKED 1. If there is any chance that people might hear you, yell "FIRE". This is more effective than "Help". 2. A sharp clear yell (eg. HUT!) coming right from the diaphram can startle an assaillant. Practice this! fn addition to attracting attention and distracting the assailant , a yell is a physical energizer for you. The oxygen breathed in after a loud lung-clearing yell helps you utilize the adrenelin that the body produces when faced with a threatening situaThe yell takes practice. If tion. you can't bring yourself to practice in you home or yard (due to reactions from others) practice it while riding It's not as good because in a car. you should be standing up, but it's better than no practice. 3. If you decide to carry a weapon, (and opinion on this is quite divided) a. it must be immediately available, not in a purse or clothing pockets covered up by a coat. b. it should not be something easily taken away and used against you. c. know how to use it. 4. Some common objects (keys, umbrellE books) can be used as weapons. Use keys to scrape across an attacker's face or jab them in his taceL Don't swing with a book or unbrella - get a firm hold on it with both hands and jab it at the assaillant's face (jab with the corner of a book). A lighted cigarette can be smashed in the attacker's face. D. Women typically are much stronger in the legs than in the-arms. KICK! If someone grabs you from behind, come down hard with Y our heel on his instep. YELL as you do it. RUN! If attacked from the front,kick to the shin or knee hard. Men tend to naturally protect the groin so a kick to the leg may be more effective and isn't as likely to throw Kick fast and don't you off balance. leave your leg out where he can grab it. 6. 7. Jab up under his nose with the heel of your hand. 8. Don't flail your arms around. They can be grabbed. Make fists and keep them close to your body unless you are punching with them. 9. Maintain eye contact with the This lets you know what assailant. he is doing and can, in itself, indicate confidence. These are only a very limited number of suggestions and are no substitute for a good course in self-defense. The threat of rape has been used throughout history to control women and restrict their freedom, even within their own communities. What are our options? We can retreat into our own homes (though many rApes occur in the vicim's home) OR we can educate ourselves and our friends (male and female) and the public in general about rape; we can support local rape centres; we can do everything possible to demand law reform and the demythologizing of rape. Rape and Sexual Assault Collective 8 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 AN EXPLANATION OF FEMINISM I 1111=11111 INIIIMII II �KEEPING WOMEN OUT OF PAID LABOURPART 3 fitting, they say. Women might think History attests to the real basis for the division of labour in the work force, and it has little to do with natural abilities or inclinatTracing women's work history ions. we see that "women's jobs" became defined as either jobs men didn't want to work at, finding them boring and drudgeful and lacking advancement or jobs which opened up to women because men were scarce, especially during war times, and which they managed to keep a foothold on. In the 1880's telephone operators They were soon replaced were men. by women,supposedly because men didn't do well. Actually, there were many better work opportunities for men around. They didn't need to put up with confined, disciplined Telephone compersonal service. pany jobs were among the few around for women and they took them, and did well, and for less pay than men. The same thing happened in the clerical field. When the typewriter was first invented, men alone operated it; it was then said to be too complicated for women to handle. But as soon as men were able to move up and out of the clerical field and it became available to women, women easily "caught on" to this complicated machine (did they ever!) During the Civil War when men were away, women entered the teaching field in large numbers. They continued to increase their numbers in this field chiefly because of the dual pay scale which made it cheaper to hire women teachers. Women also became sales clerks during this time Storekeepers hired women due to the It is not natural shortage of men. ability that's the reason for the existence of segregation into "men's jobs" and "women's jobs" and the lower pay and status accorded to "women's jobs". Yet everywhere it would seem that natural ability is used as the explanation. The liberals do not claim the continuing segregation patterns are due to nature; they say they're due to tradition and education. But what does tradition mean, except "things have always been that way". We're "programmed from birth into employment patterns" is the way they put it, and proceed through life learning our appropriate "sex roles" dictated by society through training or "conditioning". Women, for example, become nurses, secretaries, teachers, because they learn that is what they're supposed to be, that is what they see other women working at, that's how women are pictured in the books and in the media; and men become doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc. for the same reasons. Traditional work patterns just perpetuate themselves. But nurses, secretaries and teachers make less money than doctors, lawyers and engineers.So the "roles" women "learn" obviously don't benefit them in the same way as "roles' that men "learn". "Sex roles are oppressive" the liberals say, and their future elaboration, that they are equally oppressive both to men and women, obliterates the idea that one group is benefitting and the other is not. Neither is bene- they have it tough being continually on the bottom, but men supposedly have it just as tough being continually on the top. The fact that women have been restricted from men's jobs, yet men have never been restricted from women's jobalfurther challenges the liberal theory that "sex roles" are equally oppressive. Why were restrictions imposed on men's jobs in the first place, if this orderly division of labour were absorbed so obediently through our training? Are women after all so stupid that they'll keep proliferating in fieltis that are lower-paying and less important just because society says it's their place, their role, it's what they've always done, it's traditional and they think they should keep on doing it? The third possible explanation, and the truest one, for continuing sex segregation of the labour force, is Discrimi nation in discrimination. the form of overt or covert restrictions of women from men's jobs, is one way of keeping women out of men's but for segregation to be jobs; truly effective it is necessary for the power structure not only to keep women out of men's jobs but to make sure women's jobs remain defined as the low-paying, low status, relativeFor example, if ly powerless ones. women were suddenly to get equal access into medical schools and women doctors became commonplace, we might then see a situation similar to what happened in the Soviet Union, where a majority; of women are-doctors and so being a doctor is neither prestigious nor high-paying. If women are going to move into high-paying, high status fields, then either their numbers have to be kept to token levels so as not to disrupt the basic imbalance of power, or if large numbers of women "move in" the field must then subsequently become lowpaying and low status. This is the whole point of segregation. Women are discriminated against, which means that although they are qualified'for certain jobs, they have a hard time getting those jobs. Women's unemployment rate is always a good deal higher than men's and would probably double if you were to count all the women who are housewives but would want to work if they could find a good job. This sets up a vicious cycle for women, of either not being hired because they're women, or being hired because they If are women and can be paid less. women_move into a field, they're going to be paid less than male If their numbers are kept workers. to a minimum the overall pay scale of that occupation will not be affected. If, however, large numbers come into the field, then naturally since their salaries are lower, the field will become low-paying. Men leave both because they have more opportunities elsewhere and because the general salary range is driven down as well as the prestige of the work. Such is what happened in the case of telephone operators, bank clerks, teachers, and with the doctors in the Soviet Union. Such are the cyclic manipulations of women workers which dictate the types of job we hold and enforce segregation. LIBERAL FALLACIES Liberals recognize that job restrictions both overt and covert exist, they talk about quotas at length and the discrimination which abounds, but they also suggest it is women themselves who are the major obstacles to getting into men's jobs. Women accept limited and damaging selfconcepts, accompanied by low aspirations and lack of self-identity and women have difficulty throwing off their "sex roles" they say; women aren't interested in moving into men's fields. Your general view of women's adequacy or inadequacy is essential to how you see the discrimination issue. Because if you look at women as being equal right now to men, just as adequate and just as qualified, then you know the full significance of discrimination. Granted it is an overwhelming outrageous experience to "look at" the discrimination against women in the labour force, to "see" and understand that the great majority of women are qualified, capable workers who are being kept out of better jobs, kept down in mediocre jobs, shuffled around into dead end jobs, and all for the benefit of the few in whose interests it is to keep women powerSo outrageous is it in fact less. that many people will not see it. The effect of the liberal theory that women have been "socialized", "conditioned" and "brainwashed" is to soften this view, to dissipate the injustices of discrimination by suggesting that all that much isn't going on, part of it is women's fault for not being qualified. WOMEN ARE TRYING Liberals say that women are not But before trying to get better jobs. we even consider the validity of such propositions, let me ask "Is trying for a woman the same as trying for a man?" In order to qualify for a doctoral program a woman student much try for an A average. a man must try for a C. Women college students on the average get less financial aid than men, and since many families won't support women going to college, with some even still objecting, more of a try is required from a woman. Once in a male dominated field it seems it's even harder to survive. A woman scientist working in the lab said "I was told not to expect favours just because I was a woman in a male dominated field. And yet every male I worked with expected favours of me because I was a woman in a male dominated field. This ranged from expecting me to clean up after them, to keep smiling as it kept the atmosphere of the lab jovial, to sex... The drain of energy needed constantly to fight these pressures make a woman lose interest, and confidence in her ability to work." Cont'd page 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Con-t'd inom page 10 If you're going to get into judging whether women try hard enough to advance or not, then what you must first prove is that what you're asking women to try is equal to what you're asking men to try. It it's not equal and you're asking for a more enormous try from women, then you're discriminating. Nowhere in all this talk of trying is there the recognition that women are up against a lot more than men, that women are in fact facing discrimination. Not only must we be excellent at our work but we must also constantly be battling the forces of discrimination which try to keep us down. To suggest that when we don't make this enormous try we are damaged, or that our position in the labour force is then our fault, is both illogical and Trying for women is anti-feminist. battling discrimination; trying for men is just trying. But despite this, women tried anyway. They triad and they battled discrimination. All the jobs we see around and don't see any women in, women have tried for...have even at one time or another filled and filled well, but they have been pushed out. If women are not represented in these fields at this particular time in history, it's because strong efforts are being made to keep us out. And we're always trying to get back in. In 1918 women became street car conductors and ticket agents. Railway companies allowed women to work at these kinds of jobs because they could not secure a sufficient numIt was a real opportunber of men. ity for women since the pay was good; they were being paid the same But we were kicked out! as men. Come World War 11, women tried During the war, necessity, again. plus the fact that women were proving to be as capable as men in many industries, eventually opened all inTheir numbers dustries to women. increased from 13 million in 1940 to over 19 million at the peak of lower rates of pay than they had been jobs earning. And so if women had of the war, they at all at the end were not essentially different from the types of jobs they had before the war. But this is past history, right? In 1974, a survey of 84 Wrong. the war. Women worked as mechanics, in the aircraft engine plants assembling airplanes, in the munitions factories, in the trucking industry, on the assembly line in automobile plants; suddenly they were perfectly qualified and competent. A government survey in fact showed that women could perform four-fifths of the almost 3,000 occupations studied. Women were working at good jobs at But higher wages than ever before. we were kicked out! Within one month after the war ended, over 600,000 women lost their jobs outright, and without much explanation. Although unions recalled "that women had done men's jobs during the war with 100% efficiency" such jobs were now re-designated as men's jobs and not suitable to women ...the very same work which weeks earlier women had done adequately. Certain female classifications were changed to male classifications in order to exclude women. Protective legislation, which was suspended during the war to permit women in men's jobs temporarily, was reinstated. Women who weren't pushed out or laid off were reshuffled into women's jobs. Women who tried to resist this reshuffling were denied unemployment compensation if they refused jobs at industries showed that 50 of them employed no women in starting bluecollar work. The employers said are you ready - "Women aren't trying for this kind of work ". Meanwhile a women's group reported it had to stage a long, cold, overnight vigil just to get 22 women as applicants for an apprenticeship program in blue-collar jobs. Before 1973, the first year the Police Dept., at the instigation of women, began hiring women in any number, women police officers were barely visible. Yet when the barriers were lifted, the quotas and other discriminatory criteria, women swarmed into police work, quickly raising the number in New York from the quota level of 350 THE SELECT FEW Qualifications are what is being talked about and not the more obvious issue of discrimination because in effect liberals in the Women's Movement don't believe women on the whole are qualified any more than the male power structure does. We've seen the contradictory position they take on the discriminatory issue, stating that it is indeed the problem then undercutting it by focusing on women's "socialized", "conditioned" behaviour, which then turns out to be Behind this contradicthe problem. tory stance lies, I think, the liberal position on discrimination and explains why they've fought discrimination at all. What the liberal position amounts to is that some women, a small select few, are qualified, but most women are not. to 618. It seems if you fight every obstaclE placed in your way and manage to make it in some sense, like the tokens, that's the test that you!re qualified. All the rest of us, however, who can't surmount the incredible odds, who cannot get around the barriers, prove we were never qualified to begin with and hence discrimination does not apply to us. Some women, the small select few, have apparently overcome their conditioning, and because they're so qualified they are the ones the discrimination issue must apply to. But who are these small select few? They are token women. We have performed in every area. We are, in fact, sick to death of having to prove our qualifications. Our history, past and present, attests to them and to our ever-present discrimination, the real culprit behind such accusations. UNDERSUPPLY OF QUALITY? In line with this view that there are large numbers of unqualified women milling about in the labour force and "I want a votuntany ovettire agtement, too." WOMEN ARE ALREADY QUALIFIED. Let's just look at some facts about women workers. A woman college graduate working in the labour force is making less money than men highschool drop-outs....are you going to accuse her of being unqualified? Not only are women PhD's available and not being utilized, ie. not only is there an adequate pool, but looking at the facts, it seems like it's a very selective, highly qualified Just consider for a second pool. 44% of women entering freshman year across the country had B+ or better average compared with 38% of the men. Add to that the fact that only 54% of women enter college as compared to 67% of the men and only 29% of those in college go on to graduate school compared to 44% of the men this tougher selection process, points out that by the time a woman finishes her PhD, she is probably better qualified than a man, since she had to hurdle more barriers. If this is so, then why isn't every woman PhD not only employed, but employed at a salary and status position commensurate with such training and perseverance? Qualified women are available; businesses and government, like the colleges and universities have only to hire them. women, liberals can't fathom why society would be discriminatory against a select few. This has to do with their basic assumption that society is as it's presently constituted benefit of all, being run for the for the common good; that the smart are on the top, and the stupid are on the bottom; that the present system needs and wants quality and They see no problem excellence. here of vested interests contending with the common good and have no recognition (analysis) that vested interests exist. Not to understand the basic structure of society is not to understand in oppression. Women are oppressed because men can't this society not understand our capablities or see what we have to offer, but because they they have the power to see what what they want want to see, to use to use, to makethings as advantageous What for themselves as possible. class you came from decides your excellence; what sex you are decides what will be recognized. You don't and educate away vested interests receive by exthe privileges men They'll get their plOiting women. token women, but tokens can be replaced whenever it's thought expedient. Cont'd on page 12 11 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �WAITRESSES' ACTION COMMITTEE Cont'd Thom page 14 mother somehow more noble than the unwilling perpetrating our function as merely carriers of the royal seed. The rising role of women who see themselves as more,comes under a tremendous pressure to return to the birthing stool. The old saying "Keep her barefoot and pregnant" still holds true, and what better way to preserve that status than having other women in whatever guise to reinforce it. Abortion is only one of the sad realities of our life and times. Battered children, children dying of neglect and hunger, rape, incest, a growing obscenity, rising suicide rates among the young, drugs, delinquency, promiscuity ( a search for love) all point to the ridiculous statement "There is no such thing as an unwanted child". The Alliance for Life have a point and cannot be faulted for making it, but the maternal instinct cannot be legislated and an early termination in a pregnancy that is unwanted, unsought and emotionally revolting is a humane response to the That women are reality that exists. sufficiently responsible to make that decision has now been recognized in the very bastion of oppressive thought is a signal that the time is past when we can decide a question of individual conscience. Gert Beadle Pro-choice is NOT Pro-Abortion Consider how you did, would or might feel if you were pregnant. Is it from birth control or sterilization failure? Is it from a lack of knowledge of effective contraceptives? Whatever the reason, as a woman you have the right to decide to bear and rear the child, give this child up for adoption or approach a therapeutic abortion committee if one exists in your locality. ARP IP 1100 vfoRt_. . H.S. Woman o 11 pro- choice The following letter was sent to It was Donna Shaw and Julie Fels. written by a highschool student from a local high school. I want to thank you very much for your presentation at our school. I, and a majority of the class found your talk very enlightening. The following day the "Right to Life" Organization gave their presentation and it was found by many in the class including myself, to be sensationalistic and in poor taste. I was antiabortion but now I am pro-choice. I believe this is the only humane way to deal with the issue of abortion. Thank you for helping me see it in another light. (Name withheld) The tourist industry has been complaining recently about its falling profits, which it attributes in part to the "exorbitant" wages of individual workers. The Ontario government, ever sympathetic to industries' crises, is said to be considering raising the differential between the standard minimum wage and the minimum wage for workers earning tips in hotels and restaurants from the present 15c to 50c an hour! The majority of minimum wage workers and workers in the tourist inOnce again, women dustry are women. are being asked to bear the cost of industry's crisis. But just as when the federal government froze the Family Allowance last year, and the local governments tried to shut down Nellie's Women's Hostel in the autumn, women are refusing to make any further sacrifice to "help out the government". Waitresses from the Wages for along with Housework Campaign other waitresses, have formed the Waitresses' Action Committee, and with many supporters, are demanding an end to all minimum wage differentials and wages for all the hidden work that waitresses now do for free (setting-up time, cleaning uniforms, etc.). We are sending a brief to the Ministries of Labour and Industry and Tourism to protest the government and tourist industry's plans to take money out of our pockets and put more work on our backs. For more information, contact: , Ellen Agger Waitresses' Action Committee 112 Spruce St. Toronto, Ontario TO THE NORTHERN WOMAN REGIONAL JOURNAL RE: PLEA TO OMBUDSMAN I thought you might find it interesting to know about replies I received after writing to the people I had I enclose copies about my situation. of all letters I received in reply not much to encourage anyone, and very little help anywhere! I do have a copy of the book mentioned - Law Reform Commission Report - and I imagine one could be obtained for anyone requesting it. Fortunately, since I wrote the article you printed, I have obtained a job I had hoped for and am now working full However, as far as a proper time. settlement, I have received none a very discoluraging situation, and no forseeable one to come! Yours very truly, Lillian Turner Lillian Turner received replies from The Law Reform Commission in Ottawa, The Law Reform Commission of British Columbia, The Ontario Ombudsman, and Each in his the Law Society of B.C. own way told her 1) she must look elsewhere for help 2) it was not within their jurisdiction 3) they were aware of the injustice 4) they Well, we're sorry too, were sorry. Lillian, sorry that the poor old wheel of justice is such a sorry Thank you for sharing your thing. experience with us and congratulations on finding work. MA LE R.EAC Ti N One of the evaluation reports el erging from the Working Women's Conference contained a personal ri Alt] action from a male educator. he found himself outnumbered and overwhelmed, his comments hold a grain of encouragment that we as His frank admi women appreciate. sion that he was not always aware what his wife was saying to him a then to find himself among 200 wo who sounded exactly like her, mus have been a terrifying experience "As that great gap between the ma and female experience" came home him and in his own words the enor of the job we have before us was revealed, he felt depressed. That depression is a hopeful sign. We however, cannot afford to be depr The gap between the thinkin sed. of the sexes has always been appa We have struggled singly collectively to be understood, to play our full part in equal parti The days of the stoic re pation. itory of male thinking is coming This calls for celebrati, an end. not depression. to us. Cont'd pLom page 11 Liberals are in error about the structure of this society as they are about the amount of qualified, adequate women that are being disIt is the ess criminated against. of discrimination that female exce lence is not wanted, is not seen, found threatening; not that it is The huge number of discrim there. ination cases being brought by wom before the courts challenges this view of the select fewias any peru of the facts about women workers challenges the fact that we don't have the qualifications. Liberals see a society where qua is scarce and urge women to get qu Yet qualifications abound, ified. Caroline Bird pointed out in an ar Th idle entitled "The Job Market: Class of '73 Need Not Apply" that there was a surplus of college gra uates for the present job market, tremendous in fact that the Carne Commission on Higher Education war that during the 1970's there will about 3 million more graduates tha there will be jobs traditionally Then requiring a college degree. is always a need for certain basil skills, but beyond that level, sil '.:hat level is adequately being me it is not a question of qualifica it is a question of or quality. goals. And if your goal is keepi: position, rather than opening (7111r eyes to excellei then logically the "out" group ca never qualify. Women are one of "out" groups. The fact is that tl is an over-supply of power to use people's abilities, all people's abilities, for a better society a The problem is not exploit them. organizing society to utilize all the quality and still get the har work done. Male supremacy and ca italism prevent this from happeni THE END 12 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �THE NORTHERN WOMEN'S CENTRE, for reasonable rates, will produce copies of notices, announcements, etc. We retain the right to' refuse work from groups affiliated with The women presently working on a political party. the paper - Thyra Digby, Noreen Lavoie, Sharron Lund, Eve Pykerman, Donna Shaw, Peggy Smith and Lynne Thornburg - would like to build a stronger collective and.a better We are going to begin newspaper. discussions to re-evaluate the goals of the paper and find better ways of working together. The following questions will give you an idea of the direction our discussions will be taking. 0041,.**Aftsk COMING CHANGES COMMUNITY LAW PROGRAM, The Community Law Program, as a special project, is planning a public legal education Caravan which will visit various communities in Northern Ontario this summer. The Caravan project is designed to accomplish its aim of public legal education through 1) the presentation of forums, public meetings,and seminars on a variety of legal topics 2)the distribution of copies of legal publications directed to the layperson; and 3) the screening of videotapes and films on various legal subjects. The Community Law Program Caravan will be in Thunder Bay tentatively on June 12 - 15th. Watch for further announcements in the local media. THUNDER -t 7 CLAP What is a collective? What is feminism? What does each individual want the paper to be? How can we reach more women? Is government funding hampering or helping us? What problems have women working on the paper experienced? Fed up with little squealers? High What criticisms do School readers have? Women's Liberation is a pam- Fight Male Chauvinist Piglets! phlet with 20 articles by and for young We invite our readers towhich sendwillinhelp raise your women ICS only $1.25 from criticism and feedbackconciousness. about the 2007 Washtenaw Liberation, Youth paper, and constructive sugges.tions Ave., Dept. W, Ann Arbor, Mi. 48104. for change. Any woman who is interested in working on the paper and would like to be part of the discussions defining our future direction should call the office at 345-5841 for further information. 4004100.00.0.0 THE CO-OP NORTHERN WOMEN'S CREDIT UNION BOOKSHOP The Credit Union has now moved into AND RECORD 4omen's Place at 316 Bay St. Our office is bright and attractive and you are welcome to share our pleaIt will be open officsure in it. ially on Tuesdays and Fridays from phone number 10 AM from to7 5- PM 9 PM. and onOur Thursday nights is CENTRE 345-7802.. IA ;t. s" ett, Margie h and Cheryl April as the enter and win on First Aid stry of ey did it with n who came The lties. e Thunder Bay o brought a e-month to y at the As of May 9th, we have 87 members and deposits of over $8.000. Loans are available and application may be made at our office at 316 Bay St. A general membership meeting is planned for June 6 at 8 pm. Members and those who are interested are invited to attend. We are looking for an assistant anyone with bookkeeping treasurer; experience or an interest in learning please contact us. USEFUL NUMBERS AL ANON ARTISTS CO-OP ANTI-POVERTY NORTHERN WOMEN'S CENTRE WOMEN IN NEIGHBOURHOODS NORTHERN WOMAN JOURNAL SOCIAL SERVICES CRISIS INTERVENTION FAMILY COUNSELLING LEGAL AID TELECARE SMITH CLINIC CRISIS HOUSING HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS MUNICIPAL DAY CARE' FREE CLINIC 345-2711 622-9577 622-1538 345-7802 623-8411 345-5841 623-2711 344-3571 623-9596 345-1972 344-1192 344-2471 623-2711 475-1693 475-1691 344-3922 344-0727 182 S. Algoma Str. Phone: 345-8912 Open: 10 A.M.-5 P.M. Monday to Saturday A POEM The Piano it playa come hawi-tLng notez and tettz me not to tatia and when £ Zook £ zee wan eyez etazed and £ am tined oi thiz canztant aching in come the viotinz and £ begin to cry the guitan £ a baztand who dnivez me night and day he tettz me when to make Love and who with he beat6 me come to me in the ho4pitat Let me go back there don't come to me zometime £ need you tomomow bland CUAt4 PLOM the pzychiatnic wand zcneamz in the manning the 21 day zatute take me in the piano zoundz 40 4ad the only d4um beat tb a cymbal Deindte Mamite Thunder Bay PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �QUOTATIONS FROM THE BADGLEY REPORT AN ILLUSION "the procedure provided in the Criminal Code for obtaining therapeutic abortion is in practice illusory for many Canadian women." p. 141 SOCIAL COSTS AND DISCRIMINATION "a substantial number of single mothers who had unwanted pregnancies had low incomes and many lived in Because they were less poverty. well educated and less familiar with the workings of health services a number of these women would have preferred to have had an abortion, if they had known how to proceed." p. 175 EXCLUSION OF SMALL HOSPITALS "Hospitals whose medical staff consists of three of fewer physicans are in practice ineligible to establish therapeutic abortion commitp. 86 tees." ACCESS IN SMALL CENTRES "In this small community of less than 25,000 people, the Right to It inLife group is very vocal. timidates local physicians with phone calls in the middle of the night. Hence, few physicians are willing to perform the operation, so that patients are referred to larger metropolitan centres." DELAY AND COMPLICATIONS "The major factor contributing to the delay by most women obtaining abortions in Canadian hospitals occurred after an initial consultation had been made with a physiciar. An average interval of eight weeks between the initial medical consultation and the performance of the abortion procedure not only extended considerably the length of gestation, but increased the risk of associated health complications." p. 19 BIRTH CONTROL FAILURE "47.3% of the women who had had abortions in the national patient survey "reported they were using birth control at the time of conception of the present pregnancy." They "can be considered to be seeking an abortion as a result of a p. 352 contraceptive failure." ILLEGAL ABORTION "It is estimated that 46,096 Canadian women between the ages of 15 to 49 years have had illegal abortion. This estimate excludes women who have attempted self-induction or had abortions in the United States." p. 71 For more information about Freedom of Choice contact CARAL at Box 527 Stn. Z, Toronto, Ontario M5N 2Z6 every child a want ed child, mother a willing mother. ever y EXCERPTS FROM THE C.A.R.A.L. CRITIQUE ON THE BAGLEY REPORT The Committee on the Operation of the Abortion Law Report abounds with evidence that the law is not In 1976 there were 1,348 working. civilian hospitals in operation; 789 of these were excluded from eligibility to establish abortion committees, either by the Provincial Government, because of their religious affiliation, or because they did not have a large enough medical staff to conform to the requirements of the law itself. Of the remaining 559 eligible hospitals only 271 of them (48.5%) had established therapeutic aborIn 1974 the tion committees. figure was 265 hospitals with abortions committees; and 46 of those reported doing no abortions. There were "sharp regional disparities in the accessibility of the abortions procedure". In British Columbia there was one abortion committee for every 10,000 women; in Quebec there was one committee In 1976 for every 96,000 women. two out of five Canadians did not live in communities served by hospitals eligible to establish therapeutic abortions committees. After the initial visit with a physician, Canadian women were faced with "an average interval of 8.0 weeks until the induced abortion operation was done." In 1975, 9,627 Canadian women were forced,to go, to the United States to obtain an abortion; seven out of eight of them indicated they would have preferred to have an abortion in Canada had it been available to them. Since the C.O.A.L. Report has been tabled, Mr. Basford, the present Minister of Justice has announced, with considerable relief, that the Federal Government was going to begin discussions with the Provinces to find ways of bringing about a more equitable interpretation of the law. In his initial response to the C.O.A.L. Report,.the present Federal Minister of Justice does not appear to be as dogmatically opposed to freedom of choice as was his predecessor Otto Indeed, in his promise to conLang. sult with the Provinces about making abortion services more equitable under the existing law, he might even be called sympathetic to the plight of unwillingly pregnant women. But the record of the Federal Government's treatment of Henry Morgentaler is still fresh in the minds of physicians and hospital administrators for them to be persuaded to interpret this law more liberally. The government is obviously fearful of the political power of those opposed to freedom of choice in abortion, and appears to be prepared to go to any lengths to avoid a parliamentary debate; hence the "don't do as I do, do as I say" approach to the Provinces. But if Canadians are expected to get behind Federal Government in its attempts to keep this country together, are we not entitled to a higher calibre of leadership than it is presently showing in the abortion issue? abortion: a woman's right to choose! From time to time in the last year we have found it necessary to reaffirm our position as supporters of free choice in matters that concern the individual as against legislated In view of impendforced pregnancy. ing debate in our parliament and the blanket coverage afforded to the forces that see this question as a test of their own superior morality, we have a duty to speak on behalf of all those women who see another view to this very important and sadly inThe last freeflammatory subject. dom granted is that which removes us from the perimeters of someone else's reasoned judgement. All the high-sounding phrases, all the cold statistics to support that judgement will not remove from it the arrogance of the Ego that demands subjugation to a minority view that is based on unrealistic interpretations of the times and mores of our society. Abortion is not the kind of thing that anyone approaches lightly. The inference that either a doctor or a patient approaches it in the spirit of a romp for simple gain or offhand convenience is a myth. There is no question that more emphasis on family planning, better methods of birth control and better counselling for the young would manifest These itself in lower incidence. are the things that need all our attention. To think we can simply legislate a reality out of existence shows only our head in the sand, our "stop the clock" mentality. A willing mother is a loving mother. She contributes healthy, loving children to this society. Abortion will play no part in her life style. An unwilling mother, cemented into playing a role she has no talent for, provides us with the product of her discontent or in desperation aborts herself or puts herself into the hands of incompetent people. Here is the traffic and the first thing we have to face up to is abortion is with us; it always has been. The old weapons of shame and guilt and retribution from the almighty are obsolete, We have seen power and wealth send millions to their death, and flourish in the exercise; it just won't wash anymore. We have made the willing cont'd pg 12 14 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �Decade Council in Fort Frances The Decade Council had a long, but very rewarding trip to Fort Nine of the Council Frances. members travelled there on May 7 to meet with women of Fort Frances and the surrounding area who had recently formed their own council to work on issues of concern to them. Joan Packota gave a brief history of the Decade Council, and then sub-committee representatives reported on the activities of their respective groups. Highlights of some of the reports appear on this page. REPORT - FAMILY PROPERTY LAW Joan Packota brought everyone upto-date on Family Property Law Reform. With the election approaching, these bills have all died on the order papers. However, Joan reviewed some of the highlights of the last bill presented to the legislature (Bill 6). REPORT - HOMEMAKERS' ACTION COMMITTEE Florence Richard reported that they have had a founding meeting, 1) preand have set certain goals: paring a brief on Old Age Security benefits to widows (at present a widow can receive the benefits at age 60 if her husband received OAS, but this is stopped if he dies before she turns 65); 2) researching the issue of Canada Pension Plan for non-wage earning spouses; and 3) researching the question of a -guaranteed income for all people. REPORT - EQUAL PAY COMMITTEE Mickey Murray and Thyra Digby spoke on how successful the Working Women's Conference had been. The Committee is presently working on a booklet summarizing how the conference was organized, what happened in the workshops, excerpts of keynote speeches, and the resolutions which were passed. Julie Fels served as a resource person on the Day Care issue. Fort Frances women are particularly concerned about establishing Day Care. Several years ago the Business and Professional Women's Club presented a brief to the local Council but nothing hapSeveral groups wanted to try pened. Julie informed them of the again. Regional Conference on Day Care scheduled for June 10 - 12 and suggested they attend. Fort Frances women were also greatly concerned about teenagers there who have no planned activities. There is a bylaw against teens gathering in groups (loitering). It was reported that four local teenagers were trying to get something started and they had held a coffee house recently. It was suggested that the women's group support the activities developed and provide help if needed. The women continued their conversations over coffee and a snack. The meeting adjourned with an invitation from the Fort Frances women to participate in a social later that evening. Billets were provided for those women who needed them, and the Council women began the return trip to Thunder Bay the following morning. NATIONAL ACTION COMMITTEE Joan Farrow, a delegate from the Decade Council to the National Actio Committee annual conference and lobb held March 18-21 in Ottawa sends this report. Over 200 women met in the Skyline Hotel to attend the NAC conference From the Maritimes to and lobby. B.C. and Alaska, the delegates represented over a million members of this energetic women's action group. Judge Nancy Morrisson was one of the key speakers. Humourous and intelligent, she made a point to reach every woman there and left us with many helpful suggestions. Kay Macpherson, now president of NAC, when asked by the media when we were going to take a stand on abortion said "1972 - Am I making myself clear?" She stated while many members were not entirely in agreement on the abortion issue, the majority favour the "Free Choice" We must let Marc Lalonde option. know how we feel about the Bagely The effort is small when Report. we consider its importance to ourselves, our friends and our daughter The lobby on Monday was well organized and stimulating and left me in awe of the collective determination. "I waiLhed you they iLeaity don't Like being dogged and conked on the head. GIRLS WILL BE WOMEN SEX EDUCATION GREAT IN THEORY The following is a letter to the editor of the Globe and Mail, Feb.'77 I am a Grade 13 high school student and so was interested to learn that we have reached an era of enlightenment and freedom in the teaching of sex education. According to Bob Gladish, health and physical education director for Toronto Board of Education, "through role playing, discussion and film, students are now taught about things like personal identification in the belief that if people are sure of themselves they don't need to be promiscuous." I'm delighted to learn this, but I'd like to know exactly where all these "sophisticated family planning" Certainly courses are being offered. not at my school, where the only course that vaguely resembles the one you describe is a Physical Ed ucation option which in practice is -1,1e to a limited number only av Nor are these students. of sea-, confit, "sure of themselves" students present in great droves, Most of my peers are conei:Lier. fused about, and pressured into, sexual activity, in spite of the advice of such competent teachers as the one who urged all voting women to remain virgins until marriage, but did not give the same advice to young men. Book Review from StatuE of Women News. BUT WHERE IS IT? Then in Dick Beddoes' column, I read that school trustee Dan Leckie tells us it is immigrant parents who are largely to blame for the poor school reception of Birth Control Try explaining that to my Week. principal, who through dealing with a predominantly WASP community, is persuaded he will be charged with encouraging promiscuity if he allows an informational display in the school. Surely uptight Anglo-Saxon Canadians can bear the responsibility...significantly ones such as Messrs. Leckie and Gladish who insist on diffusing the issue. It makes me darn mad to read about all the great things that are hap- pening in high school when they don't seem to be happening at my school, or at any of the schools my friends Fatuous comments such as attend. those made by Mr. Leckie and Mr. Gladish misinform parents, many of whom have handed over the responsibility of sex education to the schoclg. Toronto Board of Education policy looks great on paper. When will it be implemented in the schools? Susan Wright Toronto In their growing awareness of themselves, today's girls appear to have attained the objectives of many femIn their own words young inists. Canadian women declare their liberation and their willingness to assum( the responsibilities of free and They are remarkactive citizens. ably non-belligerent, and admirably self-assured. In sensitive, articulate poetry and prose these 6 - 18 year -olds set They especially forth their views. recognize the importance of caring about human beings - old and young, rich and poor, male and female. These poems and essays by and abou young women cover the wide range of joys and concerns which are part of growing up in today's world. The serious responsibility of becoming a woman is contrasted with its bitte sweet counterpoint of loving, losing They write of the are and learning. old search for the meaning of life well as their perceptions of cont 1,porary problems that beg for persona and global understanding. Readers of GIRLS WILL BE WOMEN wil be left with thP feeling that their world may well be a more humane plat if these concerned young women are free to make their fullest contribution. Edited by Betty Nickerson Available from ALL ABOUT US Box 1985, Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5Rf 1! PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �CARE NEWS DRY The 3rd Annual Regional Day Care Conference is being held in Dryden on June 10, 11 & 12, under the sponsorship of the Lakehead Social Planning Council, AECEO - Thunder Bay Branch, Confederation College and Dryden Day Care Centre, with funding assistance from Secretary of State, Thunder Bay. All those interested in the care and education of young children are invited to attend. Please contact LSPC at 623-7071 or Dryden Day Care Centre at 223-5724 for further information. my dog is a plumber by Dan Gxeenbutg My dog is a plumber, he must be a boy. Although I must tell you his favourite toy Is a little play stove with pans and with pots Which he really must like, 'cause he plays with it lots. So perhaps he's a girl, which kind of makes sense, Since he can't throw a ball and he can't climb a fence. But neither can Dad, and I know he's a man, And Mom is a woman, and she drives a van. Maybe the problem is in trying to tell Just what someone is by what they do well. VEOM FREE TO BE... YOU AND ME Published by McGraw-Hill Book Company JOY Joy Joy Joy Joy Joy is is is is is on Wimen's Day today a beautiful thing just like a wonderful perfume on every face Here are some more titles of books (They you might wish to order. are available from Toronto Women's Bookstore, 85 Harbord St, Toronto) Children - Ages 3 to 8 Mandy and the Flying Map -Beverley Allinson Girls will be Women Fresh Fish and Chips - Jan Andrews Mumbles and Snits - Beverley Allinson Grunk - Doug Jamieson Myra Builds a House Older Children - Ages 8 to 12 Heroine of Long Point -Leslie Benham Cockoo Tree - Joan Aiken Charlotte's Web - E.B. White Blue Castle - Montgomery It's not Always a Game. Judy's Journey - Lois Lenske by Tania Shaw Age 8 1110 man's Pia (P WOMEN SHARE Housed in a spacious building five groups of women share resources, equipment, skills, and a common concern for the needs of women. WOMEN'S HEALTH COLLECTIVE -otganization in pnogAess To help facilitate this harmonious working and socializing relationship, delegates from each group regularily participate on the management committee, ,(photo). Also pictured is part of the working area. To the right is a comfortable living room and a saparate credit union office. Of course there is a kitchen, very large. A warm invitation is extended to all women to drop in to see our new Women's Place. NORTHERN WOMEN'S CREDIT UNION 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues. 6 F/Li. Ph. 345-7802 7-9 p.m. ThaAs. NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO WOMEN'S CENTRE 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Thu/Ls. evng - coLg. in ptogtess Ph. 345-7802 Mon.-FA i. NORTHERN WOMAN REGIONAL JOURNAL 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-FAi. Ph. 345-5841 THUNDER BAY RAPE & SEXUAL ASSAULT CENTRE McKatan Hosp., Box 47 Ph. 623-3220 (answeAing seAvice) CITIZEN'S COMMITTEE ON CRISIS HOUSING FOR WOMEN -oAganizat,Lon in pugtess 16 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor �t C. Ads .431. o.d Peva* Ca Woe Ennombm third VISIWIrm dim dome 220 RETURN TO: THE NORTHERN WOMAN 316 BAY ST. THUNDER BAY P, ONT. Return Postage Guaranteed TABLE OF CONTENTS pg. 2 Editorial - to High School Women 3-5 From High School Women 6 The Sexual Revolution 8 Self-Defense 9 Explanation of Feminism Keeping Women out of Paid Labour 111 10 14 Quotations from Badglet Report 15 Decade Council Report 16 Day Care News People Who Did This Issue:Thyra, Eve, Gert, Pat, Noreen, Lynn, Donna, Peggy, Sharon, MargGraphic on Cover done by Sue Reid of Hammarskjold Want to get involved? 345-5841 weekdays PLEASE LET US KNOW. Call HAVE YOU MOVED? postage to keep (We must pay return Free to single-parent families up our mailing list) Free to senior citizens 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 The Northern Woman, Vol 3 No 5 Description An account of the resource Vol. 3, No. 5 (1977) Title: Northern Woman Journal Topics include: The everyday lives of high school women Solidarity building & open communication between women Reading list for women’s liberation Limitations of high school - restrictions/punishments for individuality Loneliness & depression as a feminist high school student Poetry Comics The sexual revolution The role of the woman in sex Reading list for sexuality Teenage women: expectations vs. reality Self-defence for women An explanation of feminism Sexism in rock music High school women on pro-choice Community law program caravan for public legal education CARAL critique of the Badgley Report Abortion: a woman’s right to choose Fort Frances Women’s Decade Council Equal Pay Committee Fort Frances National Action Committee Women’s Decade Council conference Book review Sex education Day Care News Day Care Conference Dryden (June 10-12 1977) Women’s Collective Thunder Bay (Northern Woman Journal, Northwestern Women’s Centre, Northern Women’s Credit Union, Thunder Bay Rape & Sexual Assault Centre, Citizen’s Committee on Crisis Housing for Women) Authors/Contributors: Athena Caine Colleen Aube Lori Christensen Cathy Metcalfe Jackie Durocher Nancy Fumerton Linda Longe Connie Johnson Susan Reid Alma Byzewski Eve Pykerman Fiona Karlstad Peggy Smith Rap & Sexual Assault Collective Leslie Campbell Deirdre Hamill Thyra Digby Noreen Lavoie Sharron Lund Donna Shaw Peggy Smith Lynn Thornburg Susan Wright (Toronto) Betty Nickerson Dan Greenburg Tania Shaw 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 1977 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/7e15efe0f92ea627feb93eb5d43624cd.pdf 0eacfa8910e6538fde8110dc414c3b46 PDF Text Text ������������ 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 Thunder Bay Finnish Canadian Historical Society Collection Subject The topic of the resource Finnish-Canadians Life in Thunder Bay Description An account of the resource Photographs collected by the Thunder Bay Finnish Canadian Historical Society from a wide range of collectors, documenting Finnish immigration to and life in Thunder Bay. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Thunder Bay Finnish Canadian Historical Society Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Lakehead University Library 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 The Origins of the Canadian Finnish Labor Movement Subject The topic of the resource Politics Description An account of the resource The Origins of the Canadian Finnish Labor Movement Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ahti Ilmari Tolvanen Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Bay Street Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Workers Publishing Company Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1970-09 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource English (Translated from Finnish) Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context (MG8, A, I, 2, 10, I1) GFI-0016 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Canada https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/8105d88cecc44d2f56fd042bbbafd598.jpg f2de7be6e5c54f3ca8d46a24976e1e1d 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 Lakehead University Collection Description An account of the resource Photographs from Lakehead University's history: people, events, and campus. 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 The Paterson Bursary Subject The topic of the resource University Life People Description An account of the resource The Paterson Bursary Recipients: (left to right) Keith Muncaster, Timothy Carroll. Catherine Aller, Missing: Chukwudi Onwumere Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Lakehead University Awards Type The nature or genre of the resource Still Image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context UG6-B-II-62 Awards Keith Muncaster People Portrait The Paterson Bursary Timothy Carroll. Catherine Aller Unidentified Person https://digitalcollections.lakeheadu.ca/files/original/73b886243d1708cf3fc7023336292c67.jpg d03ba8d74b3d221af690c60dcf6e84f4 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 General Archives Description An account of the resource Archival records that don't belong to another listed collection. 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 The Queens Hotel Subject The topic of the resource Architecture Description An account of the resource Black and white photograph of the Queens Hotel, the first large scale hotel built in Port Arthur. Destroyed by fire in 1879, it was succeeded by the Northern Hotel in 1885, and eventually the Mariaggi Hotel. The hotel itself can be seen in the background surrounded by a crowd of people. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1879 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Type The nature or genre of the resource Still image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context General Archives - 83a Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Canada - Ontario - Port Arthur Canada - Ontario - Thunder Bay Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public domain