Canadian Woman Studies / les cahiers de la femme (E-Journal, York University)

Wager, Samuel

VOLUME 32, NUMBERS 1,2 139
remains the most stigmatised method 
of generating an income, with sex 
workers attempting to hide the source 
of their income from their family 
and friends. 
Overall, Gringo Gulch is an engag-
ing and insightful read, and I would 
recommend it to anyone seeking to 
understand or challenge assumptions 
of sex tourists and sex workers. The 
book is also hugely beneficial in the 
understandings of social mobility 
and the role that the state plays in 
its ‘permissive ambivalence’ towards 
sex work.
Clare Anstock is an undergraduate 
student of social anthropology at the 
University of Edinburgh in Scotland. 
She has completed a study abroad option 
at Carleton University, Ottawa, with 
a focus on courses within the women’s 
and gender studies department. 
GODDESS AND GOD 
IN THE WORLD: 
CONVERSATIONS IN 
EMBODIED THEOLOGY
Carol Christ and Judith Plaskow 
Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2016
reviewed by samuel 
wagar
This is such a fascinating and ex-
ceptional book in each of its several 
facets: It’s a paired theological auto-
biography, a condensed intellectual 
history of feminist theology by two 
of the most prominent feminist 
women theologians, exceptionally 
erudite and fascinating, and a dia-
logue between two people who have 
been close friends and collaborators 
for forty years around theological 
issues they have been talking about 
over a lifetime. It is structured with 
alternating chapters by each author 
followed by joint summary chapters 
in each section, so the distinct voices 
of the two are clear throughout.
Christ is a leading Goddess move-
ment theologian, Plaskow is a Jew. 
They model embodied theology by 
talking in detail about their personal 
encounters with significant theolog-
ical writing, with their engagement 
in different communities of faith, 
with experiences of the divine, and 
with their personal lives. Rich au-
tobiographies emerge of these two 
women in two bodies engaged in the 
world, changing and being changed 
by the ideas they encountered. The 
autobiographies are integrally tied 
into the history and development of 
feminist theology over the past forty 
years or more, and so the founding 
of the first feminist theology study 
groups (often by one or the other of 
them), key lectures and books (some 
written by the two of them, some 
not), encounters with significant 
figures in the development of the 
theology, all are involved here in and 
through their lives.
The discussion of why Plaskow 
remained a Jew and continues to 
struggle inside that religion with male 
gendered language and problematic 
symbolism, while Christ moved from 
Catholicism through liberal Prot-
estant Christianity to the Goddess 
movement, is used as an examination 
of the different feminist theologies 
and approaches to tradition, images, 
and experiences of the divine and of 
community. It is not as simple as an 
intellectual choice, nor does it come 
down to any single personal factor 
—for example Plaskow is a lesbian 
and Christ is heterosexual, Christ 
is Goddess-centred, Plaskow is not.
Condensing fifty years of scholar-
ship from each of them, the rich and 
deep engagement which they each 
have with their theological sources 
and with the development of their 
personal theologies, the continued 
engagement with current thinking 
around gender, intersectionality, and 
queer theory, this book is a marvel-
ous opening up of a whole field of 
intellectual work.
They both model, as well as sim-
ple brilliance and deep engagement 
and understanding, a respectful and 
kind exploration of their agreements 
and disagreements. Not only the 
obvious – that Plaskow continues in 
her tradition of birth and Christ has 
moved away from hers – but deep 
disagreements around the nature 
of the divine, with Christ opting 
for a personal Goddess of love and 
good and Plaskow a God seen as the 
non-personal ‘ground of all being’ 
which includes good and evil in the 
creative process. Theology needs 
consistency, coherence, comprehen-
siveness, and clarity, all of which they 
provide — this is a deep but very clear 
work, with great care taken to build 
solid arguments and return to first 
principles where necessary.
Plaskow’s arguments were stronger 
for me, although I am theologically 
closer to Christ. Christ seemed to 
use special pleading in developing 
her model of the Goddess as personal 
love, and relied for evidence in her 
social justice case on the discredited 
Ancient Matriarchy theories of Mar-
ija Gimbutas. Christ defines one of 
their commonalities as “inclusive 
monotheism” which “affirms an intu-
ition of the unity of being combined 
with the recognition of the necessity 
of a plurality of images to reflect all 
the diversity and difference in the 
world.” This is close to the common 
theological position in Wicca, my 
religion, and I have pulled a great deal 
from the work of both these women.
One problem with reading this 
splendid book is that I feel com-
pelled to follow up on some of the 
references they cite. Which is going 
to substantially increase my home 
library’s holdings in feminist the-
ology, and drain my bank account. 
Christ’s blending of Whitehead and 
Hartshorne’s process theologies seems 
CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME140
to be very fruitful so I’m going to be 
following up with her Rebirth of the 
Goddess and She Who Changes. Process 
theologies are panentheist and very 
relational, which is very much suited 
to Wicca and intuitively satisfies me.
Samuel Wagar is the Wiccan chaplain to 
the University of Alberta and a Doctor 
of Ministry student at St. Stephen’s 
College in Edmonton. 
ANCIENT SPIRIT 
RISING: RECLAIMING 
YOUR ROOTS & 
RESTORING EARTH 
COMMUNITY
Pegi Eyers
Kewadin, MI: Stone Circle Press, 
2016
reviewed by sharon g. 
mijares
Ancient Spirit Rising is the recipient 
of a 2017 Next Generation Indie 
Book Award in the Current Events/
Social Change category.
Ancient Spirit Rising: Reclaiming Your 
Roots & Restoring Earth Community is 
a very significant book for our time. 
It challenges current trends toward 
borrowing and using indigenous 
knowledge and related practices, and 
points out that this tendency further 
precipitates colonial thinking and in-
trusion upon the ways of indigenous 
people. Eyers lays out her case against 
these ongoing colonial-thinking 
practices, describing the many ways 
that white Europeans have intruded 
into indigenous societies, particularly 
those of North America. She chal-
lenges the booming trend “to bor-
row identities from other cultures.” 
Given the number of white women 
re-creating sweat lodges, presenting 
ceremonies (where permitted by 
indigenous peoples) and so forth, 
Eyers challenges these behaviors and 
asks why people are not, instead, 
cultivating their own indigenous 
roots. For example, why not learn 
more about the indigenous European 
Indigenous Knowledge traditions of 
Nordic and Celtic Paganism as well 
as a host of other EIK traditions from 
the UK, Baltic, Russian or Siberian 
lands? In short, Eyers discusses the 
current quest toward ancient ways of 
reverencing with ancestral practices 
and re-connecting to the earth and its 
spirits, but also asks readers to replace 
what she illustrates as an intrusive 
continuance of colonial thinking 
with practices related to one’s own 
genetic history. One excellent quote 
supporting this theme notes that,
Our post-modern culture finds 
itself in a desperate need for Ancestors 
right now. The greatest threat today 
is the unraveling of the Web, which 
connects us to one another. Tracing 
the stories of our ancestors allows us to 
reach beyond our cultural borders to 
worlds not our own. The future may 
try to monopolize our attention, but 
some of our most fruitful lessons may 
come from connecting to our past. 
May your journey to the Ancestors 
yield both wisdom & compassion, 
which are their truest gifts to us. 
Ancient Spirit Rising is filled with 
excellent, supportive quotes that 
add a lot to the author’s points. It is 
also filled with terms and acronyms, 
noting the differences between IK 
(Indigenous Knowledge) and EIK 
(European Indigenous Knowledge), 
settler re-indigeneity and indigenous 
mind, as well as the ravages of Em-
pire, patriarchy, hierarchy, ethnocide, 
capitalism, ecocide, racism, and white 
privilege, to name a few. Then each 
of the topics is addressed in depth 
with significant scholarly support, 
causing the readers to examine their 
practices and beliefs. Do we support 
true unity, or do we contribute to 
ongoing intrusion into indigenous 
people’s communities and lives?
This is a timely book in that 
humanity is in the midst of a mass 
migration, as well as the exposure to 
other cultures supported by modern 
technologies of the internet as well as 
travel. It is an unsettling time, and 
this has probably initiated the wide-
spread urge to connect with nature 
traditions using ritual practices more 
connected to spiritual ancestry. The 
world religions no longer have the 
appeal of the past. 
There are differing beliefs and 
responses within indigenous com-
munities to this movement. Some 
are capitalizing on it by earning an 
income, for example, an indigenous 
person teaching students how to build 
and conduct a sweat lodge as well as 
other native practices for a fee. There 
are those who prefer to protect their 
tribal ways and not allow further 
appropriation or intrusion by settlers 
who, without thoughtfulness, bring 
the crimes of the past into the present. 
Then there are also other tribal peo-
ples who go beyond ideas of further 
segregation and are, instead, joining 
with all races, nationalities, spiritual 
backgrounds, and so forth: increasing 
numbers of people are recognizing the 
important role of indigenous people 
in teaching us how to protect the 
well-being of all life and the future 
of the planet. Ancient Spirit Rising: 
Reclaiming Your Roots & Restoring 
Earth Community brings up many 
controversial and important issues, 
and stimulates significant thought. To 
what extent are we as human beings 
all connected?
The book also brings up the 
question of whether we are more 
influenced by our genes or the land 
to which we are born. Although this is 
discussed in her book, Eyers does not 
fully answer the question — primarily 
because it is an unknown factor. The 
author directs our intention to know-
ing our individual ancestral roots, and 


Goddess and God in the World: Conversations in Embodied Theology. Carol Christ and Judith Plaskow. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2016.

Cet article traite de deux aidants discriminés qui travaillent ou ont déjà travaillé dans un centre de prévention de violence sexuelle à la demande d’un campus universitaire. Que veut dire cacher ses sentiments afin d’aider les survivants? Quel est l’Impact de ce travail affectif sur le travailleur social

Benn-John, Jacqueline

De Mello, Tanya (Toni)

Understanding Interactive Effects of Emotional Labour on Racialized Support Workers in Post-Secondary Institutions

Hardill, Kathy

Poverty and the Social Context of Health

Panofsky, Ruth

les fillettes n'apprendraient pas encore,
en regardant leur mere, a mal preparer
leur autonomie financiere de femme adulte
? « La petite collective» n'etablit pas ce
lien, qui, pourtant me semble fondamental.
Dans la lutte pour une plus grande
autonomie financiere des femmes, le tra-
vail de prevention et d'education est pri-
mordial. Prevention est d'ailleurs un des
mots d'ordre de la plupart des repondantes.
Cette recherche-action structure les
idees floues et clarifie les certitudes et les
inquietudes. Elle montre aussi que, pour
les groupes de femmes, la reflexion
feministe emerge dans l'action. Les
femmes engagees ont peu le temps de
theoriser, pressees par les exigences de
leur quotidien et par les gestes aaccomplir
au sein du groupe. Neanmoins, la reflexion
feministe se manifeste atous les niveaux
et il suffitsouvent d'un temps d'arret, afin
de repondre a un questionnaire par
exemple, pour que les femmes cernent
mieux, pour elles-memes, leur propre
cheminement d'action et de reflexion
feministes. Ce livre permet au lectorat de
comparer, de reflechir, de redefinir les
enjeux du feminisme a l'aube de l'an
2000, de continuer malgre le constat que
les acquis sont fragiles, que former une
releve, poursuivre la sensibilisationet creer
une meilleure solidarite sont encore a
l'ordre du jour.
Par ailleurs, le spirituel, la creation, les
changements technologiques, le
lesbianisme et l'interculturalisme sont
autant de themes dont « La petite collec-
tive » note l'absence. La vocation
specifique des repondantes explique en
partie ce silence, mais egalement la non-
participation des groupes concernes par
ces questions. Il faudrait s'interroger plus
afond sur ce dernier aspect, car parfois un
malaise reel empeche un groupe de
participer. Le conflit autour de la
celebration du 50e anniversaire du droit
de vote des femmes du Quebec en
temoigne. L'evenement a permis de
ceIebrer une certaine sororite, mais il en a
laisse aussi voir la fragilite. Des femmes
se sont retirees de la fete, d'autres se sont
senties exclues ; les femmes minoritaires,
les immigrantes surtout, n'ont pas eu le
creur ala fete. Le debat sur l'inclusion/
l'exclusion a fait mal, mais il a permis, je
crois, aplusieurs de prendre conscience
de I'importance de la presence des femmes
minoritaires lorsqu'on parle des FEMMES.
VOLUME 12, NUMBER 4
De travail et d'espoir est un livre utile
qui raconte un feminisme dynamique.
Cette mise en lumiere permet aussi de
mesurer l'impact reel des groupes de
femmes dont l'objectif commun, meme
des groupes absents, est de mettre fin ala
« femme-escargot, emprisonnee dans le
cercle vicieux du temps, avan<;ant apetit
pas, ecrasee par son propre poids, celui de
la maison et des choses achanger ». Ce
feminisme raconte est une histoire sans
fin acontinuer, acompleteretarelancer...
WOMEN'S ARCHIVES
GUIDE: MANUSCRIPT
SOURCES FOR THE
HISTORY OF WOMEN
GUIDE DES ARCHIVES SUR
LES FEMMES: SOURCES
MANUSCRITES SUR
L'HISTOIRE DES FEMMES
Joanna Dean and David Fraser. Ottawa:
National Archives of Canada, 1991.
By Ruth Panofsky
As one of our institutional and cultural
treasures, the National Archives ofCanada
(NAC) receives too little of the praise it
rightly deserves. With increasing regular-
ity it publishes important and informative
guides to its numerous archival holdings,
making accessible to researchers material
that would otherwise languish in the count-
less files and boxes stored in its Ottawa
and off-site locations. The appearance of
Women's Archives Guide/Guide des ar-
chives sur les femmes marks another such
publication that brings together in one
volume a representative record of the
NAC's collections pertaining to women
in fields such as the arts, journalism, the
labour movement, medicine, and wom-
en's ethnic and sports organizations.
The format and organization of the vol-
ume will be familiar to those who have
consulted other NAC guides. This is a
bilingual publication: English and French
texts appear on inverted pages at opposite
ends of the book. Neither text obtrudes on
the other, making this a user friendly
means of accommodating the two na-
tional languages. Entries appear alpha-
betically under the collection title; the call
number and vital dates are provided for
each collection.
In their brief Introduction, Dean and
Fraser do not give an overview of the
book's contents, a task which they and
their readers understand to be futile. Since
this is not a guide to a single collection,
but to many and diverse collections, it is
impossible to discover a thread common
to them all-with the exception, ofcourse,
that each takes women as one of its sub-
jects. Instead, part one of the Introduction
describes the NAC's Women's Archives
project, initiated in the early 1970s, which
"is directly responsible for acquiring over
100 manuscript collections, both the
records of organizations and the papers of
individuals, which occupy over 300 me-
tres ofshelf space." Many of these collec-
tions are described in the Guide.
Part two of the Introduction is entitled
"How to Use the Guide" and includes four
brief sections: (i) Scope; (ii) The Entries;
(iii) Index; and (iv) Consulting the Col-
lections. As the authors state, the scope of
the project is not definitive. The Guide
describes neither official records of the
federal government nor non-manuscript
media. Its listing of pre-Confederation
collections is not comprehensive and the
post-Confederation collections cited are a
"select and largely representative sam-
pling." Since the rationale for these edito-
rial decisions is not made explicit, a read-
er's confidence in the Guide is under-
mined. One wonders about the basis for
selection and what prohibited the produc-
tion of a comprehensive work. Was it a
simple matter oflack offunding, time and
staff?
Each entry includes an annotation that
consists of the following: biographical or
historical information on the creator of
the papers; a description of the collection
itself (originals, photocopies, microfilm,
etc.); outside dates; extent; a finding aid
number, where one is available); and a
note on the contents of the collection. The
Index lists personal names, organizations,
places and subjects and includes cross-
references. The researcher is thereby en-
sured full access to the broad range of
materials scattered throughout the NAC's
rich holdings.
Readers are advised on how to consult
the collections in the Guide. The authors
105
have indicated that some collections may
be restricted while others may contain
material that is yet to be processed, since
additions to collections are acquired regu-
larly through individuals and donor or-
ganizations. The suggestion to write prior
to visiting Ottawa is good counsel and
will save researchers time and effort upon
arrival at the NAC. Material available on
microfiche or microfilm may be borrowed
through the Interlibrary Department of
university libraries.
A Bibliography included at the end of
the Guide is particularly helpful to schol-
ars who are pursuing work on women in
Canada and who may be unaware of the
breadth of the NAC's holdings. I would
like to single outfor special mention Jeanne
L'Esperance's The Widening Sphere:
Women in Canada, 1870-1940, a cata-
logue of an exhibit mounted in 1982 by
the NAC. The catalogue charts the lives of
Canadian women during this period in our
national history and its materials are drawn
from the NAC's collections. Such publi-
cations ensure that further work in the
largely unexplored field ofCanadianwom-
en's studies will continue to be under-
taken by researchers and scholars at all
levels. The NAC is to be commended on
its publicationofWomen'sArchivesGuide
and for its ongoing commitment to ad-
vancing the study of women in this coun-
try.
AMERICAN APHRODITE:
BECOMING FEMALE IN
GREEK AMERICA
Constance Callinicos. New York: Pella
Publishing Company, 1990.
By Evangelia Tastsoglou
AmericanAphrodite:BecomingFemale
in GreekAmerica is an important, candid
book of Greek American women's voices
as they struggle with Greek patriarchal
legacies and the contemporary realities of
their lives. The "Greek experience in
America" has been one mostly written by
men and about men's experiences. It is
time therefore that we tune in to the Greek-
American woman's voice, as she tries to
make sense of her own experience grow-
ing up as a female, caught between two
cultures. It is especially time that we hear
thatvoice coupled with an explicitly femi-
nist analysis.
American Aphrodite is a book of oral
histories, interspersed with the writer's
autobiographical memories and experi-
ence. As well as feminist analysis, there
are popular poetry and songs from differ-
ent regions of Greece illustrating folk
beliefs about women, and beautiful old
wedding and family photographs.
In "Search for Beginnings" Callinicos
traces the origins ofa problematic in child-
hood memories of her grandmother and
mother. Through their stories as well as
those of others, four types of female reac-
tion to the "Greek village mentality" of
immigrants clearly emerge. First, there is
the frustrated, bitter matriarch, very de-
manding of her children and at the same
time terrified of being abandoned. Then,
there is the woman who unquestioningly
accepts her 'fate' and passes on the 'Greek
heritage' to her daughters. These daugh-
ters end up living an almost schizophrenic
existence, with several personalities, de-
pending upon the sex, age and ethnic
identity of the people they happen to be
with at a given time. Finally, there is a
defiant, angry and proud woman, who
rejects the stereotypical role she is as-
signed by her culture and strives to create
a place for herself in the world. One won-
ders here whether the last two 'types' are
more frequently to be found among
younger generation, American-born
women.
In "Mama Transplanted: Our Role
Model for Learned Helplessness,"
Callinicos describes thevoyage toAmerica
and the social world of the Greek immi-
grant woman. Being given in marriage by
her father to a stranger who crossed the
Atlantic to fetch a Greek wife, she goes
through the traumas of separation from
her family and her tightly-knit village
community, and of isolation in strange,
new surroundings. The boundaries of her
social world in America are defined by
her family and church. She possesses a
great deal of power within the domestic
sphere, "lobbying in the bedroom." How-
ever, she is not allowed to make contacts
and friendships with outsiders lest her
morals be endangered. Her behaviour is
closely monitored by the Greek commu-
nity, effectively curtailed and controlled
through gossip.
In "The Teenage Years: Becoming Fe-
male in Greek America," women recount
their memories ofgrowing up: the obliga-
tory, parallel education in the Greek lan-
guage and culture, embarassment at the
rude behaviour of parents toward their
'foreigner' classmates, training in serving
the males of the family, prohibitions
against dating, restrictions on free
movment lest the young woman lose the
appearance of purity and become less
marriageable. With menstruation, she is
set permanently apart in the ghetto of the
"filthy," the "weak," and the evil power-
possessing (because of an ancient fear of
the powerful Vagina, symbol of Death).
She is trained to feel contempt towards
what is most 'womanly' about her; she
becomes acceptable only by adopting a
'virginal'demeanor.
There is of course a double standard in
the upbringing of boys and girls. While
the woman should not even come into
contact withAmerican women, the man is
given unlimited freedom to date as many
as possible, in order to prove his 'man-
hood.' Education, one of the most re-
spected values in the Greek culture, is
reserved for sons. It is unthinkable for
young women to leave home to pursue
higher education. Parents and family start
making sure very early that their girls will
never develop serious intellectual inter-
ests.
"An Arranged Wedding Day: Greece
1977" relates the stories of young women
shipped to Greece to meet their prospec-
tive husbands, chosen by their fathers in
advance. There is tragedy in the simplic-
ity, impersonality, and repetition of the
basic plot. Women stoically accept their
'fate.' When life turns sour, they have
already internalized so much blame and
guilt that they see suicide as the only way
out. The shame of the 'used' woman after
divorce is a control mechanism sufficient
to keep some of the most compromising
marriages intact.
A growth-limiting relationship for the
Greek-American girl, according to
Callinicos, is that with her mother. This
tends to be a relationship of cultivated
dependency, a culturally conditionted in-
ability to live without Mama and outside
of the family. The daughter is notencour-
aged to grow, but simply to move from
106 CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME


Women's Archives Guide: Manuscript Sources for the History of Women

Roccatoni, Laura

The National Film Board of Canada's Feminization of Poverty Series: For Richer, For Poorer; No Way! Not Me; Playing For Keeps

Shah, Nandita

Gandhi, Nandita

The Protest and the Po~er
Reserved Electoral Seats for Women
By Nandita Shah & Nandita Gandhi
Lesgroupes defemmes devraient-elles appuyer l'idee de reserver
des sieges aux ferrunes dans les organes des gouvernements
locaux? En tant que membres de tels organes,lesfemmes seront-
elles en mesure d' aider le mouvement? L' articlefait une analyse
minutieuse de la question, documente certains des arguments
pour et contre et suggere un plan strategique.
The women's movement in Maharashtra was quite taken aback
when the Chief Minister suddenly announced 30 per cent reser-
vation of electoral seats in all local self governmental bodies in
March 1990. It meant that some 3000 women would be repre-
sented in these decision-making organizations. A variety of
reactions surfaced and with it the old debate-should the wom-
en's movementdemand/acceptreservations in the electoralproc-
ess? This debate needs to be documented as it has relevance
beyondtheboundariesofMaharashtra. Otherstates like Kamataka
VOLUME 13, NUMBER 1
and Kerala have already introduced it and West Bengal is
seriously considering it.
The need for reservations
Women of the Left have expressed concern at the declining
numbers of women candidates. Only a handful of women from
the generation offreedom fighters are still active in politics. This
trend is confirmed by electoral statistics. Women politicians put
the blame for this on their parties who had promised to field 30
per cent women as their candidates, but did not fulfill their
promises.
Why are parties reluctant to put forward women candidates?
They claim that few women have the time and capacity to be
seriously interested in politics, and they do not question the
notion of women's primary role and duty as a wife and mother.
97
Raising some questions
W~Ai 1)0 you ~II.'(,
5HOULp WE LOOK.
IN Ir::' MOUT"+i 7/ .
Women are seen to be inexperienced and resourceless, needing
the support of a "godfather" or family clout. They may be given
difficult constituencies where there is little chance ofwinning or
asked to step down during electoral adjustments.
Character assassination is used todestroy a woman politician's
progress. Women have to keep disproving rumours of affairs,
secret marriages or relationships. Political parties are not so
squeamish in fielding men who are wife beaters, rapists or
molesters as their candidates. These moral double standards
hamper women in yet another way. Unlike men, they have to be
more careful in taking on confrontational struggles as a way to get
political prominence. For men, courting arrest, stints in jail and
fights with authorities are 'sacrifices' which lead to greater
political prominence.
Men from a lower class and caste background, with little
education, havebeen able to move upwards from local bodies and
organizations to occupy high national level positions of leader-
ship. It is nearly impossible for a woman with a similar back-
ground to do so.
It is argued that if
women enter the corri-
dors of power they
would be able to deal
with women's issues
within State structures
and also effect changes
in the party and local
bodies. They would
have access to State re-
sources which can sup-
port women's groups
and provide services to
them. Their positions
and actions would le-
gitimize the women's
cause in the eyes of the
people and political
parties.
Just a political
gimmick
On the other side are the opposition parties which are against
reservations, butnoton the grounds ofprinciple orequality. They
have raised issues such as the fact that they, unlike the ruling
(Congress) party, do not have many women members to field for
elections. They also suggest that male leaders will put up female
relatives for one term only and regain the seat later.
Many of the newer women's groups, including some Marxist
Leninist affiliated groups, are wary of the electoral process and
the State, as well as the motivations of the political parties. The
Statecontinues to play an important role in the perpetuationofthe
unequal relations between men and women through its develop-
ment policies, half-hearted legislation, and its appropriation of
the language and demands of militant movements.
Voices ofopposition in the Committeefor the Status ofWomen
Report put forward another reason. Reservations, even as a
transitory measure, will only help a few women from the upper
98
class and caste who are already in a privileged position. Instead,
women should be made conscious oftheir rights. They should be
educated to take responsibilities and generate public opinion in
favour of their increased political participation.
Women's interests, though different in some ways from men's,
cannot be isolated from the economic, social, and political
interests of the rest of society. Furthermore, there is a danger of
portraying women only as women's leaders and ghettoizing
women's issues.
The concept ofreservations implies that women will automati-
cally be interested in raising women's issues. In the context of
rising fundamentalism and right wing conservatism, there is a
greater likelihood that the women of these parties will win.
Perhaps, some women argue, it might be better to have sympa-
thetic socialist-minded men in power than right wing women.
The question which concerns women's organizations is: can
we gauge the efficacy and strengths which the movement might
derive from women seizing positions ofpower? Should women's
organizations actively encourage women to enter the formal
political process?
By entering the elec-
toral process, women
accept the already set
hierarchical pattern be-
tween the electors and
the elected with little
hope of being able to
change it. They will
have to cater to the
wider mass of the elec-
torate; bear the burden
ofcouncil mattersat the
expense of other pro-
grams; and be ex-
tremely careful in rais-
ing controversial is-
sues. Mostwomen poli-
ticians will become
trapped between party
requirements and the
marginalization of women's issues, women's groups and the
objectives of the movement.
We, as members of social organizations and women's groups,
need to reflect on the ideological base from which we draw our
arguments and our strategy for the women's movement The
declining number of women politicians can only be part of the
reason for extending support to 30 per cent reservations. No
doubt, more women in the party and state bodies will mean the
entry of women into a primarily male dominated field. It will
begin processes ofchange in language and decorum and will give
confidence to the candidates and women in general. It would be
easier for women to join hands across party lines in case of
extreme atrocities and to demand basic services for women.
However, the main reason for encouraging women to enter the
political world is not so they can advocate services for women or
CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME
that they will 'humanize' or 'clean up' politics. Their presence
will herald the erosion ofone area ofthe sexual division oflabour
between men and women in society-between men in public
world and women in the private world of the home. It will
challenge the cliche that politics is no place for women. And the
acceptance of women as leaders will, in the long run, change to
somedegree theprevalentcondescendingattitude towards women
in general.
30 per cent reservations provides an opportunity to widen the
base of individuals participating in the electoral process. It can
begin a processofdemocratization which will introduce different
women from various socio-economic backgrounds to politics,
instead of the few middle or upper caste women who now hold
positions in elected bodies. Further, these women, together with
the women's movement, can create new relationships ofaccount-
ability and responsibility with the electorate which can be put
forward as an alternative to the existing distanced and once-a-
term contact.
Reservations have been criticized for not having the potential
to effect fundamental changes. Perhaps here we need to reflect on
what we mean by reforms and revolution. We should be aware
that it is impossible to label anyone issue as reformist or
revolutionary. What we have to concern ourselves with is how it
can help in furthering the objectives of the movement. We have
to evaluate each issue in relation to changing societal forces, the
strength of the movement, opposition to it, State intervention and
linkages with other movements. Each issue has the potential to be
part of the broad strategy of the women's movement. 30 per cent
reservations cannot be called a reformist issue because no one
considers it an end in itselfor a panacea for women's oppression.
Neither is it a revolutionary issue because it involves working
from within state bodies.
The demand of 30 per cent reservation will have to be seen in
the contextofour understanding of the goals and strategies of the
women's movement. We in the women's movement are strug-
gling to transform unequal and oppressive relations between
women and men, between castes, classes and races. We want to
work towards a world in which resources are not used for power
and destruction but for growth and nurturing; where women and
men share in the decision-making in a decentralized democracy
and where all forms of poverty, violence, and intolerance are
eliminated.
Though there is no single common strategy adopted by the
diverse women's groups within the movement, they believe that
all structures have to be challenged from both outside and inside,
creating a collective consciousness and strong lobby groups. Our
immediate priority is to ensure that survival needs and basic
amenities are met through access to and control over the means
of production, through the prevention of violence and atrocities
against women, and through a challenge to deep rooted patriar-
chal notions and beliefs.
In the wide range of inter-related long and short-term strate-
gies, reservation ofelectoral seats for women is only one. It is of
importance because it combines possibilities of struggling from
within with the provision of services which will strengthen
women's ability to survive. The women's movement can support
elected candidates in raising issues, exposing manipulation and
creating a new relationship of accountability to the women
VOLUME 13, NUMBER 1
electorate. The creation of such vigilance and genuine responsi-
bility is not an easy task but it could be the beginning of a
democratization of the electoral process. We feel that the wom-
en's movement should accept 30 per cent reservations and work
towards making them effective. We should limit reservations to
local levels and review their efficacy after 15 years. Such a
review should take place in the form of public debate where
women's organizations, academics, and social organizations
take a leading role. It is only after such a review that we should
decide to continue reservations at local level and/or to extend
them to Assembly and Parliament.
What can we do to make reservations work
When local government elections are declared we can:
• Find out which constituencies are reserved for women and
identify the likely women candidates from each party.
• Appeal to all political parties not to put forward dummy
candidates. Gather information about the backgrounds and po-
litical careers of each candidate and make sure that they are
genuine candidates
·Organize public meetings and dialogue with women candi-
dates about their responsibility to the women's movement and
women in the electorate.
·Support independent women who are sympathetic to the
plight of women and who seek to make favorable changes for
poor women. For example, we could campaign for them and
distribute propaganda.
·Conduct a negative propaganda campaign against those can-
didates, women and men, who have taken anti-woman positions
or have been accused of perpetuating crimes against women.
They can be exposed in pamphlets, door to door propaganda or
street theatre.
•Put forward our expectations in the form of demands for
services required by women in distress and for survival needs.
For example, elected women can play a vital role in seeing that
women are given preference in the issuance of hawking licences,
in having special police cells established for women, in creating
shelter homes in each ward, and equipping municipal clinics and
hospitals with female wards.
•Provide a public forum for all women candidates in their
constituency and women voters, party members, activists and the
public to debate issues.
·Demand that the elected women candidates are given posi-
tions ofpower within the local bodies in standing committees or
as deputies.
·Create structures of accountability in each ward by forming
women voters vigilance committees. These could meetevery few
months for debate and reporting.
Nandita Shah and Nandita Gandhi are active in the women's
movement as activists and researchers. They have co-authoreda
book on the contemporary phase of the women's movement in
India.
Excerpted from The Quota Question: Women and Electoral
Seats by Nandita Shah and Nandita Gandhi (Akshara, 1992).
99


English

The Protest and the Power: Reserved Electoral Seats for Women

Murdock, Rebecca

Cross-Border Shopping for Domestic Labour

White, Fran

My
Life
As
a
Cow
By Fran White
Hey diddle diddle
The cat and the fiddle
We jumped over the moon
L 'auteure de cet article, une mere seule,
explique pourquoi elle a choisi de
reprendre ses etudesplutatque d'accepter
du travailmal renumere, etmeten question
le stereotype ridicule de la « surfemme »
-mere, epouse, femme de carriere er de
menage qui voltige d'une tache Cl l'autre
-que nous presentent les medias.
Every time I see that milk commercial,
where the young, attractive, smiling, im-
peccably dressed and coifed, super-ener-
getic, flawlessly air-brushed woman is
depicted actually flying through her child
care, domestic and career duties, I have an
overwhelming desire to moo.
When I was a kid, I used to dream about
being able to fly. I didn't realize then that
our society literally dictates that flying is
essential to being a mother. "Hey out
there," I want to say, "I've given life, and
I am providing the major source of
socialization to this country's future !Wake
up!"
It was a period of extreme stress in my
life when I decided to end my marriage.
His emotional abuse was beginning to
hurt my daughters. It wasn't until we had
been separated for over a year, and I had
started college, that I realized how much
his abuse had affected me.
I received straight A's in my first se-
mester. I really believed it was only be-
cause my teachers felt sorry for this poor
old mother on Family Benefits. I chose to
go back to school, instead of returning to
a back-breaking, low-paying, dead end
VOLUME 12, NUMBER 4
/1
job (or-hooking another man). You got
a problem with that? A lot of people do.
I've lost touch with a number of people I
was once close to, because the girls and I
are on welfare. Lazy? I don't think so.
Perhaps I haven't been able to accomplish
the art offlying, but my children are well-
adjusted, healthy, very bright, athletic,
clean, and possess the greatest gift that
life has to offer: they have self-esteem,
empathy, and sincere caring for other peo-
ple.
I wonder if they would be as "together"
as they are if Mom had gone back towork
without a proper education-back to work
in the female job ghetto. Our income
wouldn't have been much higher than it is
now. We wouldn't have as much time to
spend together. Mom's self-esteem
wouldn't have blossomed like it has the
last two years. Mom wouldn't have had
the time to realize that the problem is not
with Mom. The problem is this corporate
society that discourages workers' kids-
especially female workers' kids-from
seeking a substantial education. The prob-
lem is family courts that set unrealisti-
cally low amounts of child support, child
support that men still aren't really ex-
pected to pay. The problem is the low
amount this country is willing to contrib-
ute to assisting husbandless women and
their children.
ca
eno
()
o
c:
F
I do count my blessings. I have a good
analytical mind, despite the fact that the
first schools I attended viewed me as just
another female to be streamed into the
intellectually unchallenging, training
mode ofworker education. I wanted to be
a writer or an actor when I was young.
There was only one special teacher who
recognized my potential. Most told me I
was being unrealistic, and to stop my
daydreaming. So, in conjunction with sub-
tle conditioning throughout my young life
to become docile, caring, hardworking,
cute, and sweet, I stopped dreaming. Al-
most.
I was pretty enough to have the man I
wanted to support me financially, so that
I could dedicate myself to my primary
responsibilities: child care and domestic
work. And it is work. It's hard work.
Staying up all night with a feverish, vom-
iting child is work. Shopping, cooking,
cleaning (including-yuck-toilets), sew-
ing, laundry, kids (loving kids, worrying
about kids, caring for kids, teaching kids):
all this is work. It's hard work. So how
come this monthly cheque is so low? How
come I had to use foodbanks to feed my
beautiful girls? How come so many peo-
ple turn up their noses and assume I'm
dirty and stupid and lazy? Perhaps be-
cause they're ignorant. Perhaps because
the corporations that control the lives of
43
Welfare Case
FRANWHITE
Fran White is a 42 year-old single mother with two lovely daughters-Kirryn, eleven, and
Tara, five. She is presently attending the Social Service Worker programme at
Centennial College.
the people of this country see women and
children as unprofitable. Blaming the vic-
tim is always easier than change which
requires financial investment.
Oh, still I count my blessings. I have
great housing. Co-operative housing-it's
safe, it's clean, and it's adequate.
I'm 42 years old, and the government is
assisting me to achieve my education-
an education that, oddly enough, with the
proper guidance and support, I should
have received 20 odd years ago. It's going
to be different with my girls. They can be
whatever they want to be. And they real-
ize that if the society in which they live
continues to be patriarchal, they will prob-
ably also be emotionally and financially
responsible for their children. If they
choose to have children. Children are an
enormous responsibility-to women.
Our society dictates the impossible goal
of blissful, subservient perfection for
women. As the milk commerical sug-
gests, women are considered to be domes-
tic work animals. The first step to bring
about change in my life was becoming
acutely aware ofhow and why I was being
socialized, and by whom. Education
opened the doors of personal empower-
ment for me.
Yes, when I was a kid I used to dream
about flying. Maybe I'm not superwoman,
but lately I've begun to soar.
Call for Papers
Please don't hurt my self-esteem
It's such a fragile thing
And though I might look tough
and strong
I'm not what I may seem
I lie awake sometimes at night
And tears come to my eyes
I never asked for such a life
I don't want to beg or fight
You see, I love my children
And do the best I can
The reason for my problem is
I wasn't born a man
There's something very wrong
you see
With this corporate society
Women and children are valued
less
And too often fall prey to bureau
cratic mess
I've heard you call me welfare
case
You thought, behind my back
You patronize and moralize
With your obscene attack
But it was this same society
That trained and educated me
To bring forth life, and to care
But ask for help, how do I dare!
I just can't do it all you see
My back's not quite that strong
Walk a mile in myoId shoes, and
then tell me
If what I say is wrong
IIWriting aMinor literature:
Intersections of Gender and Cultural
Difference in Canadian literaturell
Preparations are underway for a critical
anthology explaring the intersection of
gendered and cultural ("ethnic") difference in
the work of women writers of ethnic
minorities in Canada. We are seeking
contributions of approximately 3000 to 4000
words. These should use the post-19BB MlA
style for documentation. Contributions should
reach the editors by March 31, 1993. They
may be mailed to either Barbara Godard, 350
Stong College, York University, 4700 Keele
St., North York, Ontario, M3J 1P3 Fax (416)
736-5735; or, to Coomi S. Vevoina, 513"0"
Royol Towers, I.e. Colony, Borivali (West),
Bombay, 400103, India.
44
FACTS AT A GLANCE
• The divorce rate in Canada is about 40%. After a divorce, a woman's
income drops by 30% to 40%, while a man's income increases up to
70%.
• Women continue to care for children in about 85% of all divorces. The
number of children living in poverty rose by 23% between 1980 and
1985.
• The lack of child care programs and the high cost of existing programs
keep women from getting ahead financially or even from joining the
work force.
• Enforcement of maintenance payments from ex-husbands is
inadequate: 75% of husbands default.
• Social assistance levels are inadequate to support a single mother with
children.
Reprinted from Women Against Poverty, A Report of the Alberta Status of
Women Action Committee, 1989.
CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME


My Life As A Cow

Grey, Josephine

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THE CHILDREN'S BENEFIT
What does it really mean?
By Josephine Grey
Les pauvres ne souffrent pas seulement d'un manque d'argent. Leur situation empire lorsque les criteres concernant le revenu, les
impots, le logement et lesprogrammes de garde d'enfants sont complexes, mal coordonnes et que les taux ne contribuentpasajustifier
l'assistance. Lesprestationspour enfants du gouvernementfederal n'ontpas ajoute un cent au revenu desfamilies lesplus defavorisees
du Canada, sauf si elles ont trois enfants ou plus. Dans son article, l'auteure souligne que si nous ne luttons pas pour nos enfants
maintenant, l'avenir ne s'annonce pas rose.
Because healthy children make a healthy society, all societies must provide well for all children. All children ultimately depend on
the socio-economic structure and those who control it for survival. Canada has signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights
ofthe Child and therefore made a commitment to this concept. The federal government furthermore promised to eliminate child poverty
by the year 2000. All the wealthy nations of the world except the United States take care of children better than Canada does.
The need to adapt to changing circumstances is primary to all parents. Moving from employment assistance, to training, and back
to employment as so many must, should not deprive low-income people's children of their livelihood or force them out of the family
and into institutional care or onto the street. Umeasonable limits on peoples' freedom to choose, and adjust the balance ofwork versus
child care time, to home care versus family time, interfere with a family's ability to sustain itself.
If parents are to provide for family needs, they must have economic security. A Children's Benefit should begin to provide some
security because it does not depend on the source of income.
Low-income families in Canada do not presently have access to the resources to raise healthy children. The federal Children's Benefit
was supposed to help bridge the gap, but for most, it will accomplish nothing. In fact, the people who stand to gain the most are those
with four or more kids with an income over $60,000 a year!
For poor people, lack of money makes life hard enough. Life becomes even harder when criteria for income, tax, housing and child
care programmes are complex and uncoordinated, and the rates do not add up to the reason for the assistance. The need for assistance
becomes a labyrinth for many and a prison for others. To face barriers like language, racism, lack of formal education, or disability,
condemns people to having to ask for permission to change categories. You cannot choose where, or when, or how you believe you
should work or care for your family. Almost everything you need is at the end of a line-up, where everyone has to stand, and where
VOLUME 12, NUMBER 4 77
you are branded unfit, no matter why
you're there.
It is a lack of coordination between
government policies which creates mind-
numbing catch-22s, and a lack of concern
for the impact of neglect which allows
poverty to continue. It is therefore truly
shocking when a government claims to
care whilst it merely serves its own ends.
The federal Children's Benefit has not
added a dime to the money the poorest
families receive unless they have three or
more children. People on social assist-
ance receive the same amount as before
except for the $75 each extra for three or
more children. Indeed, because the Christ-
mas and Spring child tax credit will be
divided into 12 payments, it will take
away the one chance poor families ever
had to replace furniture, buy Christmas
presents, or pay debts accumulated over
the year.
Worse still, the proposed change could
add to the undue hardship suffered by
families on social assistance if provincial
governments deduct the benefit from the
amount paid for children. Saskatchewan
deducts family allowance from welfare
and other provinces could well be tempted
to follow suit as they try to make up for the
higher debts the federal government has
dumped on them. There must at least be an
agreement to ensure that the combined
amount ofsocial assistance payments and
child benefits is not reduced.
The maximum earned income credit
applies to a tiny portion of the population
and is the only piece that will cost the
government extra. Furthermore, because
all tax credits are only partially indexed,
the Children's Benefit and the earned
income credit (not to mention the Goods
and Services Tax credit) will, in time,
have less value and fewer people will
receive them. In fact, in only two years
people will be losing, compared to what
they will get this year.
The government has taken three billion
dollars from the child tax credit system
over the past three to four years through
de-indexation. The $400 million they've
added will be eroded in no time. After the
cuts to the Canada Assistance Plan (which
was supposed to pay half of social assist-
ance costs), the total amount of money
they have stolen from children is outra-
geous.
This is sneaky, unethical social policy
which tosses a bone to the working poor,
and sends a loud message to people on
social assistance: "We don't care if you
starve, and we're going to punish you for
not working even though there are no
jobs." They will be gouging more from
the pot year after year. Some child pov-
erty strategy! If their goal is to keep peo-
ple trapped on social assistance to ensure
that the poverty industry has clients, then
they have done a good job. But they have
sold a very high per cent of this country's
future citizens down the river. They won't
eliminate poverty, but they may eliminate
some people.
The only silver lining in this gloomy
cloud is that the monthly payment system
will allow the Ontario government to step
in with a child tax benefit of its own,
which would be added to the federal ben-
efit and be given to working families as
well as families on social assistance. Chil-
dren would then be off the welfare system
and people would be able to change from
The Children's Benefit
has not added a dime to
the money the poorest
families receive, unless
they have three or more
children.
assistance to employmentor trainingwith-
out losing their Children's Benefits. This
would help allow for freedom of choice
and simplify the system. As well, the sales
tax credit could be enriched, replacing the
lost Christmas payment for those who
don't have enough money to save.
In these hard times, it may be difficult to
persuade the Ontario government to make
their Children's Benefits high enough,
but if they meant a word they said before
they were elected and if they care about
the future of children they will do some-
thing. The federal Children's Benefit is
still just a proposal. It's up to you and me
to put the pressure on to improve it.
We would not have Medicare or Moth-
er's Allowance or Unemployment Insur-
ance benefits or Workmen's Compensa-
tion Board benefits if people in the past
had not fought hard for social justice. If
we don't fight now for our children, the
future looks grim indeed. After all, even if
one didn't care that many children are
hungry and oppressed, if too many chil-
dren grow up in poverty, who will pay for
the old age pensions of the baby boom
generation? Did the feds ever think about
that?
If the Children's Benefit is not to help
kids, what is it for? For fooling people into
thinking the government cares, so that it
can buy votes. So much for ending child
poverty by the year 2000.
Josephine Grey is a community activist
and single mother offour children. She is
PresidentofLIFT; Co-Chair ofFoodShare,
a community development organisation
focussing on alternatives to food banks;
Vice-President of Project Esperance, a
non-profit housing corporation; and a
member of the Low Income ReliefWork-
ing Group, a sub-committee of the Fair
Tax Commission.
LIFT is an organization run by low income
people for low income people dedicated
to fighting for social justice for women
and children. It is currently involved in
organizing the Ontario portion of a na-
tionalpoorpeople's conference to set the
agenda for the federal election; a public
education project aimed at getting accu-
rate information about everything from
the tax structure to the latest ideas about
employment for people on welfare out to
the low income community in accessible
language; andpushing theNDP to live up
to its commitment to social assistance
reform inOntario. The LIFTResourceEdu-
cation Centre helps people in crisis fight
their way through the system to have their
needs met, offers the use ofoffice equip-
ment to low income people and groups
with similar interests, and collects re-
sources for the community. LIFT needs
volunteers. If you can help, please call
Linda Walsh or SonyaBloisat (4I6) 392-
6651.
78 CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME


The Children's Benefit: What Does It Really Mean?

This study, “Enquête Sexualité, Sécurité et Interactions en Milieu Universitaire,” conducted in 2016 with 9,284 respondents from six francophone Quebec universities, provided a portrait of sexual violence taking place in a university context. This article presents a summary of the results extracted from the research report (Bergeron et al., 2016)

Bergeron, Manon

Hébert, Martine

Ricci, Sandrine

Goyer, Marie-France

Duhamel, Nathalie

Kurtzman, Lyne

Rousseau, Catherine

Auclair, Isabelle

Clennett-Sirois, Laurence

Daigneault, Isabelle

Damant, Dominique

Demers, Stéphanie

Dion, Jacinthe

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Paquette, Geneviève

Parent, Sylvie

Violence sexuelles en milieu universitaire: Synthèse des résultats de l’enquête ESSIMU au Québec

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