GRSJ224feminismincanada
Feminism in Canada
The idea of feminism has been around for ages, it has been a challenging and lengthy process in order for women to gain equal rights as men. Women has always had less rights than men in many different areas of life, depending on the situation, country and culture the severity may vary. Although perfect equality between women and men has not been achieved yet, it is getting closer and society is moving in the right direction.
Feminism
By definition, feminism is the range of movements that achieve equal rights for women as men in areas such as political, economic, personal and social situations. The word “féminisme” was first devised in 1937 by an utopian socialist and French philosopher, Charles Fourier, the word later appeared in the United States/North America in 1910. [1] Although feminists from around the world have different goals depending on their history and culture, the majority of Western feminists focus their movements on obtaining equal women’s rights.
History of Feminism in Canada
In the history of Canada, feminists have had a struggle obtaining equal rights for females. Like other Western feminism, history of Canadian feminism is divided into three main waves.
First Wave
The first wave of feminism occurred in the 19th and early 20th centuries focusing on legal equalities; the goal of this movement was to increase women’s role in the public life including women’s suffrage, human rights, education, property rights. [2] In this feminism movement, the idea is based largely on maternal feminism where women are thought as natural caregivers, and should participate in public life because it will result in better care of society. [3]
Second Wave
The second wave of feminism which occurred in the middle/later 20th century brought awareness to cultural inequality, gender norms, and the norm of women in society. This was mainly the result of the Depression and World War II where women were actively engaged in the workforce, which brought about the idea of women and their place in the public life, deserving statuses of women in society. [4]
One main concern of the feminists during the second wave was the access to abortion. Abortion was illegal in Canada and women were risking their lives to procure abortions outside of the law. It wasn’t until 1969 that abortion was made legal because of the amount of women dying from attempted abortion.[5] In 1970, women from across Canada organized an abortion caravan that travelled from Vancouver to Ottawa to increase awareness for reproductive freedom, using methods such as abortion and birth control.[6] As the first wave feminists focused on women’s legal rights, the second wave focused more on cultural equality issues.
Third Wave
Lastly, the third wave of feminism happened in the late 20th century (1990-2000) and focused on the diverse and increased feminism activity. It has close ties with the notions of anti-colonialism and anti-racism. Unlike the second wave, the third wave wanted to decentralize and were against the notion of women being able to discriminate against one another. [7]
Gender Equality
Throughout the Canadian history, women’s rights have never been equal to those of the men’s. Women did not have the same opportunities, they were not allowed to vote, they don’t earn fair/equal wages (Canadian women on average earn $0.82 to every $1 earned by men) [8] , and they suffered gender discrimination on many aspects of life such as holding public offices, working rights, owning properties, receiving educations, and there were often not enough protection protecting women and girls from sexual harassment, rape, and domestic violence. [9] Although there has been many movements and campaigns from feminists, it wasn’t until later 2015 when Justin Trudeau broke history and started raising awareness spreading the idea about feminism when he was elected the Prime Minister that caught global attention.
Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, on Feminism
The Canadian cabinet has been dominated by men throughout the whole Canadian history, any women presented were seen as an “unique” sight. It wasn’t until Justin Trudeau was crowned the Prime Minister of Canada in 2015 that it was the first time in the Canadian history that the cabinet was formed on a gender-balanced basis, forming of 16 men and 15 females. [10] Justin Trudeau brought a huge awareness to the issues of gender equality, as presented in interviews with Prime Minister Trudeau, when being asked by a reporter why he has and wanted a gender-balanced cabinet, he simply replied, “because it’s 2015”, and gender parity was especially important. Trudeau wants his gender parity and diversity of his cabinet to be the norms in politics. [11] During a recent interview, Trudeau identified himself as a feminist and wanted to spread the importance of recognizing the problem first before doing any work. He mentioned that although it is important to raise girls with the idea that they are equal to boys, it is just as important to raise the boys with the same attitude and embrace feminist values. “Feminism is about equal rights and opportunities for men and women… Equality is not a threat, it is an opportunity”. [12]
References
- ↑ Shrage, Laurie. "The Grounding of Modern Feminism Nancy F. Cott." Ethics 100.1 (1989): 189-90. Web.
- ↑ Prentice, Alison L. Canadian Women: A History. Toronto: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988. Print.
- ↑ Newman, Jacquetta A., and Linda A. White. Women, Politics, and Public Policy: The Political Struggles of Canadian Women. Toronto: Oxford UP, 2006. Print.
- ↑ Aikau, Hokulani K., Karla A. Erickson, and Jennifer L. Pierce. Feminist Waves, Feminist Generations: Life Stories from the Academy. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota, 2007. Print.
- ↑ "A Legal History Of Abortion In Canada." THE PRO-CHOICE ACTION NETWORK. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Apr. 2016.
- ↑ (Hamilton, Roberta (1996). Gendering the Vertical Mosaic: Feminist Perspectives on Canadian Society. Copp Clark.)
- ↑ Angelique, Holly. "Riding the Waves of Feminism, Classism and Sexism." PsycEXTRA Dataset. Web.
- ↑ "The Gender Pay Gap In Canada Is Twice The Global Average." The Huffington Post. The Huffington Post Canada, 06 May 2015. Web. 23 Feb. 2016.
- ↑ "Daring to Be Bad: Radical Feminism in America, 1967-1975." Choice Reviews Online 27.11 (1990). Web.
- ↑ Ditchburn, Jennifer. "'Because It's 2015': Trudeau Forms Canada's 1st Gender-balanced Cabinet." CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, 04 Nov. 2015. Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
- ↑ Ditchburn, Jennifer. "'Because It's 2015': Trudeau Forms Canada's 1st Gender-balanced Cabinet." CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, 04 Nov. 2015. Web. 07 Mar. 2016.
- ↑ "Gender Equality Is an Opportunity, Not a Threat." The Globe and Mail. 08 Mar. 2016. Web. 12 Mar. 2016.