OTTAWA – “We have come a long way in the 50 years since the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada released its trailblazing report, but there is still much work to be done,” said Green Party Leader Annamie Paul.
“As we have witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic, women are still disproportionately affected in crisis situations. In addition to record job losses amongst women, there has been a major uptick in domestic violence. In Canada we must strengthen our commitment to ending domestic abuse and gender-based violence and to fighting misogyny in all its forms. We must also meet the calls for justice from the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMWIG) inquiry and implement the MMWIG National Plan without further delay.
“There is no question that the Status of Women report’s 167 recommendations to the federal government resulted in significant changes for women. More women are participating at all levels of government, and every province and territory has a minister responsible for the status of women.
“However, we must continue to foster and facilitate pathways that will allow more women, racialized women and women of colour, Indigenous women, immigrant women, people of all gender identities and expressions to participate equally in the workforce.”As the federal government rolls out its pandemic recovery plan, the Green Party is calling for significant funding directed towards marginalized women including trans women, girls, femme-identified and non-binary people, racialized women and women of colour, Indigenous women and immigrant women.
“It is worth noting that I am the only woman to currently lead a federal political party in Canada, and while there are a few women who have done so before me, it is definitely time we see more do so in the future”
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