MAKE A CHANGE

What’s common with each of these situations: accusations against Jian Ghomeshi and Bill Cosby, Rehtaeh Pearson’s suicide, and the rape of Jyoti Singh in India?

The answer is victim blaming.

April 3 is the International Day against Victim Blaming, which helps to raise awareness for survivors who are in some way blamed for what happened to them. Blaming victims serves as a barrier for a survivors’ access to safety resources and support. If we continue with this culture, we deter survivors from coming forward and reporting the abuse to authorities or accessing services such as shelters and counsellors. This becomes dangerous because victim blaming reinforces the abuser’s claims against them: that it was the victim’s entire fault. The survivor should never be blamed for anything that happens to them. In fact if society does not change how they view situations it allows for the abuser to continue to abuse, rape and sexually assault other potential victims.

Women and children who are told that the situations they find themselves in are their fault tend not to access shelters, such as Nellie’s Shelter, to find safety. This barrier not only stops at finding safe spaces, but when rape cultures is embedded in society it can be experienced with the police and in the court system.

In a poll, conducted in Ontario, by Interval House one in three men and one in seven women still believe there is a possibility for someone to bring violence upon themselves. The Social Justice committee at Nellie’s Shelter has always taken a stand against victim blaming and actively supports an annual event that speaks out against such behaviour, “SlutWalk”, which was a response to a cop who publicly stated: “women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized”. You can read an interview conducted by Nellie’s Shelter with SlutWalk organizer Colleen Westendorf.

We live in a culture of woman blaming, whether it has to do with the “appropriate” clothing or code of behaviour, etc.

You can show support for the International Day against Victim Blaming on April 3, 2015 by:

– Taking part in Slut Walk to send a message about the harm of rape culture

– Talk about the topic when you have felt blamed by someone or have blamed others

– Tweet about victim blaming with the following hashtags #BeenRapedNeverReported, #Apr3, #IDAVB, #EndVictimBlaming

– Share statistics of sexual assault in your country

– Reach out to a survivor of abuse and let know it was not their fault

– Dissuade friends from using rape jokes

Related articles:

http://stoprelationshipabuse.org/educated/avoiding-victim-blaming/

http://www.feminist.com/resources/ourbodies/viol_blame.html

http://www.canadianwomen.org/blog/stop-victim-blaming

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/2015/03/06/wynnes-welcome-plan-to-challenge-violence-against-women-editorial.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/lisa-yeung/beenrapedneverreported-sexual-assault-rape_b_6128638.html

http://mic.com/articles/32561/5-things-you-can-do-on-the-international-day-against-victim-blaming

https://nelliesshelter.wordpress.com/2012/05/24/interview-with-slutwalk-organizer-colleen-westendorf/

Women are going to form a chain, a greater sisterhood than the world has ever known. (Nellie McClung, 1916)

Nellie Letitia McClung, née Mooney, suffragist, reformer, legislator, author was born at Chatsworth, Ontario, 20 Oct 1873. From 1880 she was raised on a homestead in the Souris Valley, Manitoba, and did not attend school until she was 10. She received a teaching certificate at 16 and then taught school until she married Robert Wesley McClung in 1896. In Manitou, where her husband was a druggist, she became prominent in the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, of which her mother-in-law was provincial president. In 1908 McClung published her first novel, Sowing Seeds in Danny, a witty portrayal of a small western town. It was a national best-seller and was followed by numerous short stories and articles in Canadian and American magazines. ⁽²⁾

The women’s suffrage movement was just getting underway in Manitoba, and Nellie McClung soon found herself in the forefront. Sir Rodmond Roblin was premier at that time, confident and self satisfied, and completely convinced that women should be kept “in their place.” He and Nellie were born adversaries. Nellie and her fellow suffragettes put on a play “The Women’s Parliament;’ and the stage was a replica of the Legislative Assembly made up entirely of women. As the play progressed, a delegation of men arrived, humbly asking to be granted the right to vote. They also asked for joint guardianship of their children, and the right to their own earnings. The play was a huge success and ran for two nights in Winnipeg and one night in Brandon. The proceeds financed the women’s campaign, and was influential in turning the tide of public opinion in favour of the vote for women. ⁽²⁾

A woman as a public figure was something of a novelty in those days, and Nellie was well aware that she was the subject of much criticism and that her family affairs made a popular topic of discussion. Since her critics were not able to find any really juicy gossip about her by way of indiscretions or infidelity, they resorted to accusations that she was neglecting her family by spending so much time in the public interest. She sometimes began her speeches by saying to her audience, “Settle down now, and don’t worry about my children. They are well and happy and clothed and fed.”  ⁽¹⁾

In 1914 the McClungs moved to Calgary, and Nellie was a member of the Alberta Legislature from 1921 to 1926. ⁽¹⁾

She was one of The Famous Five (also called The Valiant Five), with Irene Parlby, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Emily Murphy and Louise McKinney. The five put forward a petition, in 1927, to clarify the term “Persons” in Section 24 of the British North America Act 1867. This section had served to exclude women from political office. The petition was successful, clearing the way for women to enter politics in Canada. ⁽³⁾

Nellie McClung was the first woman to serve on the Board of Governors of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, a position which she held for six years. Always a devoted church member, she was the sole delegate from the Methodist Church of Canada to Ecumenical Conference in London, England, in 1921^{. (1)}

In Alberta she continued the fight for female suffrage and for prohibition, dower rights for women, factory safety legislation and many other reforms. She gained wide prominence from addresses in Britain at the Methodist Ecumenical Conference and elsewhere (1921) and from speaking tours throughout Canada and the US, and was a Liberal MLA for Edmonton, 1921-26.

In 1933 the McClungs moved to Vancouver Island, where Nellie completed the first volume of her autobiography, Clearing in the West: My Own Story (1935, repr 1976), and wrote short stories and a syndicated column. In all, she published 16 books, including In Times Like These (1915, repr 1975). ⁽²⁾

⁽¹⁾ by Betty Burton Manitoba Pageant, Summer 1975, Volume 20, Number 4 http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/pageant/20/mcclung.shtml

⁽²⁾ http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/nellie-letitia-mcclung/

(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nellie_McClung

Nalo Hopkinson, born in Jamaica, has lived in Jamaica, Trinidad and Guyana and for 35 years in Canada. ⁽¹⁾ She was raised in a literary environment; her mother was a library technician and her father a Guyanese poet, playwright and actor who also taught English and Latin. By virtue of this upbringing, Hopkinson had access to writers like Derek Walcott during her formative years, and could read Kurt Vonnegut’s works by age six. Hopkinson’s writing is influenced by the fairy and folk tales she read at a young age, which included Afro-Caribbean stories like Anansi, as well as Western works like Gulliver’s Travels, the Iliad, the Odyssey  ⁽²⁾

As an author, Hopkinson often uses themes of Caribbean folklore, Afro-Caribbean culture, and feminism. She is historically conscious and uses knowledge from growing up in Caribbean communities in her writing, including the use of Creole and character backgrounds from Caribbean countries including Trinidad and Jamaica. In addition, Hopkinson consistently writes about subjects including race, class, and sexuality. Through her work, particularly in Midnight Robber, Hopkinson addresses differences in cultures as well as social issues such as child and sexual abuse.

Hopkinson has stated that she has learning disabilities, but she has a Masters of Arts degree in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University, where she studied with her mentor and instructor, science fiction writer James Morrow. Hopkinson held jobs in libraries, worked as a government culture research officer, and held the position of grants officer at the Toronto Arts Council. She has taught writing at various programs around the world, including stints as writer-in-residence at Clarion East, Clarion West and Clarion South. Publishing and writing was stopped for six years due to a serious illness that prevented her from working. Severe anemia, caused by fibroids as well as a vitamin D deficiency, led to financial difficulties and ultimately homelessness for two years prior to being hired by UC Riverside.

Since 2011, Hopkinson has been an associate professor in creative writing with an emphasis on science fiction, fantasy, and magical realism at University of California, Riverside. ⁽²⁾

She is the author of six novels, a short story collection, and a chapbook. (Novels: Brown Girl in the Ring,Midnight Robber, The Salt Roads, The New Moon’s Arms, The Chaos, Sister Mine. Short story collection: Skin Folk. Chapbook: Report From Planet Midnight). She is the editor of fiction anthologies Whispers From the Cotton Tree Root: Caribbean Fabulist Fiction, and Mojo: Conjure Stories. She is the co-editor of fiction anthologies So Long Been Dreaming: Postcolonial Science Fiction (with Uppinder Mehan) and Tesseracts Nine (with Geoff Ryman). ⁽¹⁾

Hopkinson’s work has received Honourable Mention in Cuba’s “Casa de las Americas” literary prize. She is a recipient of the Warner Aspect First Novel Award, the Ontario Arts Council Foundation Award for emerging writers, the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, the Locus Award for Best New Writer, the World Fantasy Award, the Sunburst Award for Canadian Literature of the Fantastic (twice), the Aurora Award, the Gaylactic Spectrum Award, and the Norton Award. A new short story collection, Falling in Love With Hominids, will be a 2015 release from Tachyon Publications.  ⁽¹⁾

⁽¹⁾ http://www.nalohopkinson.com/press_kit.html

⁽²⁾ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nalo_Hopkinson

Dr. Roberta Bondar was born in Sault Ste. Marie Ontario on December 4, 1945. Dr. Bondar completed both her elementary and secondary schooling in Sault Ste. Marie graduating from Sir James Dunn Collegiate & Vocational School. Her father, Edward Bondar was an office manager at the Sault Ste. Marie Public Utilities Commission and her mother, Mildred, taught business and commerce. Both parents encouraged Roberta and her older sister, Barbara to be goal oriented and the girls were involved in many activities including Girl Guides, the YMCA, Anglican Church groups and many sporting activities. As a young girl Dr. Bondar was fascinated with science and her father built her a laboratory in their basement. In high school, a science project led Dr. Bondar to a summer job studying the spruce budworm at what is today the Great Lakes Forestry Centre.

Dr. Bondar continued her work in the sciences receiving a Bachelor of Science Degree in Zoology and Agriculture from Guelph University in 1968, a Master of Science Degree in Experimental Pathology from the University of Western Ontario in 1971, a Doctrate in Neurobiology from the the University of Toronto in 1974, a Doctor of Medicine Degree from McMaster University in 1977 and she was admitted as a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in neurology in 1981. ⁽¹⁾

Bondar began astronaut training in 1984, and in 1992 was designated Payload Specialist for the first International Microgravity Laboratory Mission (IML-1). Bondar flew on the NASA Space Shuttle Discovery during Mission STS-42, January 22–30, 1992, during which she performed experiments in the Spacelab.

After her astronaut career, Bondar led an international team of researchers at NASA for more than a decade, examining data obtained from astronauts on space missions to better understand the mechanisms underlying the body’s ability to recover from exposure to space.  She also pursued her interests in photography, with emphasis on natural environments. She is the author of four photo essay books featuring her photography of the Earth: Landscape of Dreams, Passionate Vision, The Arid Edge of Earth and Touching the Earth. She is featured in the IMAX movie Destiny in Space, and has also co-anchored the Discovery Channel’s coverage of space shuttle launches. Bondar served two terms as the Chancellor of Trent University, from 2003 to 2009.  In 2009, Bondar registered The Roberta Bondar Foundation as a not-for-profit charity. The foundation centers on environmental awareness.

On June 28, 2011, it was announced that Bondar would receive a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame and would be inducted on October 1 at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto. She was the first astronaut to receive the honour.  In her hometown of Sault Ste. Marie, the Roberta Bondar Park pavilion bears her name, as does the marina beside the park and the Ontario government building at 70 Foster Drive. Bondar has also been honoured with a marker on Sault Ste. Marie’s Walk of Fame.

In 1996, the Dr. Roberta Bondar Public School was opened in Ajax, Ontario and Roberta Bondar Public School was opened in Ottawa. In 2005, another public school named Roberta Bondar Public School opened in Brampton, Ontario. There are also Dr. Roberta Bondar Elementary School in Abbotsford, British Columbia, and Dr. Roberta Bondar Public School in Maple (Vaughan), Ontario. ⁽²⁾

⁽¹⁾ http://www.cityssm.on.ca/library/Bondar_Bio.html

⁽²⁾ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberta_Bondar

Tantoo Cardinal is one of the most renowned Aboriginal actresses in the world. Raised in Anzac, a rural town in northern Alberta, Ms. Cardinal had to move to Edmonton to finish her high school education^.(2)

Raised among the Cree, she turned her political activism into an acting career that has included roles as the knowing wife of the Medicine Man in “Dances With Wolves” (1990), the poignant childless companion of Rip Torn in “Where the Rivers Flow North” (1993) and the mother of Brad Pitt’s wife in “Legends of the Fall” (1994).

Cardinal was a leader of a youth group petitioning to get the Canadian government to build more schools on Indian reservations in the province of Alberta when she was cast in a small role in a 1971 Canadian docudrama on the life of Albert Lacombe, a 19th century Roman Catholic missionary. Though uncomfortable with having to portray Lacombe as a savior, Cardinal made the most of her part and, bitten with the acting bug, began performing in films, TV, on stage, and even in industrial films. By 1986, when she moved to the US to pursue a career in Hollywood, she was nationally known in Canada. Strong parts in feature films followed. Having auditioned for Kevin Costner by translating the dialogue into her native Cree, she landed the role of Black Shawl, the knowing wife of medicine man Kicking Bird in “Dances With Wolves”. In 1991, she was cast by director Bruce Beresford in “Black Robe”, which earned her critical acclaim for her death scene, complete with an arrow in her neck.

Cardinal has also worked extensively on TV, often in PBS dramas or films on historical First American figures and stories. She broke into network TV with “Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge” (CBS, 1987), and followed with the PBS “Wonderworks” special “Places Not Our Own” (billed as Tantoo Martin-Cardinal). Cardinal also appeared in “Tecumseh: The Last Warrior” (TNT, 1995). She made the first of her recurring appearances on the CBS drama series “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” in 1993, cast as Snow Bird, the stalwart Cheyenne friend of frontier physician Jane Seymour. ⁽¹⁾

Probably best known for her role as Blackshawl in Dances With Wolves, Ms. Cardinal has amassed a long list of awards for her work in theatre, television and film. She received best actress awards from the American Indian Film Festival, the Alberta Motion Picture Industry, and from international film festivals in Portugal and Zimbabwe for her role as Roseanne, in Anne Wheeler’s feature film Loyalties. Since then, Ms. Cardinal has received numerous awards for her work in film and theatre. She was also listed on the Maclean’s Magazine Honour Role in 1991, and received an Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from the University of Rochester in 1993.

She infuses her characters with warmth and honesty, and has had directors re-write roles if she felt they were a dishonest portrayal of Aboriginal people. Her strength stems from her upbringing in her Métis culture.. Her ability to overcome racist taunts and other hardships in the unfamiliar city became the basis of the confidence and charm that she now exudes on stage and screen. ⁽²⁾

⁽¹⁾  http://www.worldwisdom.com/public/authors/Tantoo-Cardinal.aspx

⁽²⁾ https://indspire.ca/laureate/tantoo-cardinal/