COVID-19 AND GENDER

Private David and Private Hébert talk with a resident from Centre d’hébergement Denis-Benjamin-Viger, during a departure ceremony, as part of Operation LASER in Montreal, Quebec, 12 June 2020. Photo Credit: CAF/DND

Operation LASER, CAF assistance for the COVID-19 pandemic

Photo credit: CAF/DND

  

Esprit de Corps Magazine May 2020 // Volume 27 Issue 4

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 14

 

By Military Woman

Question: 

DOES COVID-19 IMPACT women differently than men?

Answer:

Yes, as per any crisis or emergency situation, women and men will be impacted differently. This is why biological sex and gender-based data collection and analysis are always important, but especially in disaster planning and response. In other words, decision and policy makers always should take into account biological sex, along with such other intersectional factors as age, gender identity, race, financial means, marital status, family status, sexual orientation, and disability status to best address everyone's varied needs.

In 2007, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a guidebook on "Addressing Sex and Gender in Epidemic – Prone Infectious Diseases." It emphasizes the importance of disaggregating all data by biological sex as a potential key to unlocking future disease treatments including vaccines.

With our understanding of how the SARS-CoV-2 virus causes the COVID-19 disease still changing by the hour, it appears that women are less severely affected by the physical illness than men. Experience and evidence suggest that both biological sex and gender identity are important considerations for why this and other differences may exist. Biological sex differences include different immune mounting responses thought to be related to genes located on the X chromosome; something women have two, or double the genes in, compared to men. Gendered differences include such lifestyle issues as smoking and alcohol consumption rates.

Another WHO recommendation highlighted the importance to keep good statistics around pregnancy during pandemics. It remains largely unknown what impact, if any, contracting COVID-19 will have on the health and wellbeing of the mother or on her pregnancy – hence the often conflicting advice on this topic during the current crisis.

Another gendered consideration unique to public health emergencies is the make-up of the emergency responders. Globally, over 90% of nurses, 70% of formal (paid) care providers and 40% of doctors are women, while concurrently holding only 25% of the health leadership positions. In Canada, women have stepped up and largely taken over the public health political and medical spheres. From military Veterans Dr. Bonnie Henry in British Columbia to Dr. Jennifer Russell in New Brunswick many Canadians now look forward to their daily COVID-19 medical updates.

The Canadian Forces Health Services (CFHS) branch includes trades such as medic, pharmacist, physiotherapist, x-ray, nurse, social worker, doctor, lab technician, dentist, dental technician and administrator. Most of these trades enjoy relatively high numbers of women. As such, when the military is called upon to support a pandemic, the soldiers serving on the medical "frontlines" have a good chance of being women. Their "armour" being their personal protective equipment or PPE-face shields, surgical masks, gowns, and gloves. As per all forms of armour, there can occasionally be gendered sizing issues especially for those with smaller head, body, and hand sizes.

There may also be gendered social impacts of COVID-19 on women. Whether it's caring for children no longer spending their days in school, for a sick spouse or for self-isolating elderly parents; women continue to perform the bulk of informal (unpaid) care duties. This "second shift" work expectation often means that our military women are doubly challenged during this type of crisis.

A secondary gendered impact from COVID-19 is the global spike in intimate partner violence (IPV) now being reporting. Any source of increased economic stressors, financial difficulties and alcohol consumption are known triggers for IPV. This pandemic checks off all those boxes and more, with its concurrent demand to not leave your house and if you must leave, to physically distance from others.

Gendered implication on the mental health impacts of quarantine and being cut off from your usual social supports should also be considered and studied.

The COVID-19 crisis offers Canada its first opportunity to apply a sex and gender-based analysis to a pandemic, and no longer treat women's experiences as a side issue to the main event. Ironically, it may only be through focusing on our sex and gendered differences, that pandemic researchers best stand to generate new knowledge and answers for the betterment of us all.

ACVA 101

Image of a wreath with red poppies and a pink banner with the word "Canada" on it. Photo Credit: Parliament of Canada

The acronym “ACVA” combines “Anciens Combattants” with “Veterans Affairs”

Photo Credit: Parliament of Canada

 

Esprit de Corps Magazine April 2020 // Volume 27 Issue 3

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 13

 

by Military Woman

Question:

The Parliamentary Committee on Veterans Affairs  – what’s new for women Veterans? 

Answer:

The 43rd Parliament of Canada’s all-party Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs (ACVA) held its inaugural meeting February 18, 2020. The first order of business was to elect Members of Parliament (MPs) Bryan May, Phil Coleman and Luc Desilets as chair and vice-chairs, respectively. Notices of motions were then given for six topics for the committee to potentially study – Commemoration, Caregivers, “Minority” Veterans, Education Training Benefit, veteran benefit application backlogs and service dogs. You can review (by audio or transcript) this, and all subsequent, ACVA meetings at http://ourcommons.ca/committees.

What’s of interest from this first ACVA meeting from a military woman’s perspective? First, let’s look at the committee itself – 3/12 or 25% committee members are women, and they represent three different parties – Conservative (Cathay Wagantall), Liberal (Marie-France Lalonde), and NDP (Rachel Blaney). Some will think that this is a fair representation level, others will not, but we can all agree that it fell short of seeing any women elected to one of the three committee chair positions. 

Second, let’s look at the proposed topics for study. Darrell Samson, Parliamentary Secretary for the Minister of Veterans Affairs, started the priority list off with “Commemoration.” Always an important veteran topic, making it a “safe” minority government priority to lead with. One hopes, government will include the experience and voice of women veterans within all future veteran commemoration programming and external communication strategies. 

The Parliamentary Secretary then asked for a review of the services and supports for injured veterans and their caregivers. For many, this is the most important of the veteran study topic areas. Caregivers, both formal paid and informal unpaid, are still largely assumed to be women, not men.

One hopes, the study will include both identifying the needs unique to caregiving civilian male spouses, and to injured and ill veterans without spousal caregiving support.

Andy Fillmore MP proposed the third motion, a study on “Women, LGBTQ2+ and Racialized” or “minority” veterans. Although there are clearly unmet needs worthy of more study for all these groups individually and collectively, perhaps it’s time for a new approach. Perhaps these unmet needs would be better served by a study on how to best ensure equitable care, benefits, and end wellbeing outcomes for all veterans. Doubling down on sex and gender-based analysis throughout Veteran Affairs Canada (VAC) being one obvious answer.

MP Lalonde requested a study on the Education Training Benefit. A benefit more single parents would be able to use if it came with subsidization for children’s daycare costs. 

MP Alex Ruff, a highly decorated veteran, proposed a review into the backlog of VAC benefits application. The Veteran's Ombudsman has already confirmed that women wait longer for VAC claim decisions than men do. One hopes that any study on this topic will include the obvious fastest and smartest way to alleviate the backlogs over the long term, which is to put more efforts into prevention. The capture and analysis of VAC claim trends, fed back to CAF as lessons learned, can and would assist in the prevention of unnecessary injuries and illnesses altogether. 

MP Dane Lloyd, an army reservist, rounded up the motions requesting a long overdue and needed service dog efficacy and standards study. 

Interestingly, despite specific mention in the Speech from the Throne, there is no mention today about veteran homelessness, male or female. 

Regardless of which study topics end up being selected (check out the 25 February 2020 ACVA meeting for that answer), hopefully all ACVA committee members have completed their GBA+ training and will “lead by example” to ensure that the needs of all veterans will be forefront in their deliberations. When applied properly sex and gender-based analysis should result in all veterans feeling valued, respected, and fairly treated.

STALKING

Image of a man with binocular dressed in black, as if spying. Photo credit: Shutterstock

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Esprit de Corps Magazine March 2020 // Volume 27 Issue 2

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 12

 

by Military Woman

Question:

I have heard a lot about “sexual misconduct” in the military but not very much about stalking. Is stalking a problem for military women? 

Answer:

First, let’s agree on what stalking is. Stalking is when a person, who has no legal reason to, continues to contact, follow, talk to, or send things to you, or people closely connected to you, despite repeated requests for them to stop.  

Stalking is categorized as a type of "criminal harassment” in the Criminal Code of Canada. Stalking can be linked with other crimes, such as sexual assault, indecent exposure, threats, voyeurism, the sharing of private images without consent and trespassing.

Who stalks? Stalkers can be total strangers or casual acquaintances but are most likely current or past intimate partners.  Women are the stalkers in about 20% of cases, but rarely do these cases end in intimate partner violence (IPV) against men. Unfortunately, the reverse does not hold true. One woman is murdered every six days in Canada by a present or past male partner. Margaret Atwood once observed, “Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them.” Stalking is a very gendered experience and is therefore considered to be a type of gender-based violence (GBV).

How common is stalking? In North America, between 8 and 19% of civilian women and 2 to 6% of civilian men are estimated to be victims of stalking. These rates in the US veteran population are thought to be doubled, or around 35% for women and 15% for men. The Journal of Interpersonal Violence recently reported even higher stalking rates for current US active-duty populations, up to 60% for women and 35% for men. 

In the absence of available statistics on Canadian military and veterans, we don’t know if Canadian rates are higher, lower or the same as US rates. We do know that Canadian military women are more likely to have a past or current intimate partner relationship with another military member than a civilian woman would.  We do know that having a common military workplace may make it easier for would-be stalkers to access personal information about their current and past military intimate partners. Access to information such as a person’s place of work, home address, schedule and work/social contacts helps stalkers to stalk. We also know that military women have higher separation and divorce rates than civilian women or military men. This is of particular concern when you consider that data from the Canadian general population that suggests a woman in Canada has six times the risk of being killed by a past intimate partner than a present partner.

Reporting stalking is also complicated, especially in a military context where the victim may still fear negative consequences to their own career and/or their previous partner’s career. It’s further complicated if there are any ongoing financial reliance relating to child custody or spousal support payments.

How can you help someone who thinks they may be getting stalked? Believe them. Listen non-judgmentally. Encourage all evidence to be saved and documented (a stalking log).  Ask if they know (or suspect) who their stalker is. Review their perceived risk or threat level and brainstorm how to minimize it. Think about ways to block any ongoing access by the stalker to knowledge about the victim and their family and/or schedules.  Develop a safety plan on how to avoid the stalker and how to deal with any unexpected encounters. Research workplace rights and supports including the police, a lawyer, the Sexual Misconduct Response Centre (SMRC), and websites such as YellowManteau.com. Decide when and how to report to authorities.

What to do if you are being stalked now? Step one is to acknowledge the problem. Family, society, and even military workplaces can deny, minimize, normalize, and/or perpetuate inappropriate relational stalking behaviours. Research your options. Ask for help, third party interventions are often required. 

Knowledge and policy gap. Canadian military (and RCMP) women statistics for stalking remains largely unchartered territory. It’s a gap that we look forward to being addressed in this government’s “National Gender-based Violence Plan.”

Update:

A PROMISE FILLED YEAR AHEAD

Anita Vandenbeld, MP Photo Credit: Anita Vandenbeld

Anita Vandenbeld, MP

Photo Credit: Anita Vandenbeld

Esprit de Corp Magazine February 2020 // Volume 27 Issue 1

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 11

 

by Military Woman

Question:

What does the political year ahead hold for military women?

Answer:

The short answer is it looks like a promise-filled year ahead. The federal election resulted in no changes at the Ministerial level for National Defence (MND) or Veteran's Affairs (MVA) but saw two changes at the Parliamentary Secretary level. Anita Vandenbeld Member of Parliament (MP) for Ottawa West-Nepean, home riding for Defence's new Carling Complex, is the new Parliamentary Secretary to MND. She has worked in over 20 countries including Bosnia, Congo, Haiti, and Bangladesh and was awarded a Canadian Peacekeeping Service Medal in 2008 for her work in Kosovo. Darrell Samson MP for Sackville Nova Scotia, a riding well known for its active veteran voice and presence, is the new Parliamentary Secretary to the MVA and Associate MND.

The Speech from the Throne, reconfirmed the Government's "solemn duty to those who choose to serve in the Canadian Armed Forces" and the Government's promise to "improve mental health care" and "ensure that every homeless veteran has a place to call home." The speech also stated the Government will move "forward for all Canadians, including women". Reassuring words that military women specific needs, including for mental health care and homelessness, will be intrinsic to government's future action plans and initiatives.

The Prime Minister's Office 2019 mandate letter to the MND requires him to have one in four uniformed members women by 2026. That's a tall order by anyone's estimation-especially if one considers that the letter also mandates a workplace free of "harassment and discrimination" but does not once mention sexual violence.

This is despite a recent $900 million-dollar military sexual misconduct class action lawsuit. Hopefully, federal workplace sexual violence is addressed within the Government's new National Action Plan on Gender-based Violence.

The mandate letter for Veterans Affairs also has a number of interesting military women-related points; but the devil is always in the details. The MVA is to provide:

  • a new rapid-response service staffed by social workers, case management counsellors and peer support workers; will they all have training in military

  • sexual trauma, and will both male and female staff be available upon client request?

  • an automatic approval processes for the most common disability applications; will they cover the most common disabilities for both men and women, or just men?

  • purpose-built veteran housing: will the plans include options for single parents and for veteran women-only housing requests?

  • support for the Centre of Excellence on Chronic Pain and the Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research; will sex and gender specific considerations for all aspects of their work be pre-requisites for federal funding approval?

  • employment and training support services and job matching; will they include resources for all job types, including the women-heavy administrative and health care trades, alongside the more traditional "hardhat" trades? and

  • a "one veteran, one standard"; will they ensure the standards selected result in equitable outcomes for all veterans, men, and women?

 Other mandate letters have overlapping bright spots of military interest including a call for increased numbers of women in the trades, sciences, women-owned businesses, Canadian owned companies, and in security-related senior decision-making positions along with improved childcare access for all. The future “National Institute of Women's Health Research” will help to identify women's health research gaps.

The Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda will continue to identify systemic barriers to the forward progress of women in uniform domestically and internationally. The Canada Labour Code updates address workplace stress, injury, and toxin exposures. Federal training opportunities will be offered to improve unconscious bias and cultural sensitivity and provide mandatory training on sexual assaults for judges.

Overall, there are many reasons for military women to be optimistic that their issues are being heard and acted on politically. More equitable, inclusive approaches can be expected for all these topic areas in all departments as the quality and scope of GBA+ (Gender-based Analysis Plus) continues to improve. But real progress costs real money, so we will await the federal budget 2020; that's when we will see what really matters the most to this 43rd Canadian parliament.

 

Update:

REMEMBRANCE DAY REFLECTIONS

The Poppy is an enduring symbol and tradition of Remembrance. Photo Credit: CAF/DND

The Poppy is an enduring symbol and tradition of Remembrance.

Photo Credit: CAF/DND

  

Esprit de Corp Magazine December 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 11

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 10

 

by Military Woman

Question:

It’s November – that time of year when we as a nation reflect and remember those who have served and sacrificed for their country. Can I learn more about the sacrifices Canadian military women have made?

Answer:

Over 600,000 Canadians signed up to serve their country in World War I, a million in World War II, and 25,000 for the Korean War. Of these brave men and women, less than 50,000 are still living today. All told over the years, more than two million Canadians have stood up to volunteer for uniformed service to their country, with over 650,000 still living today. Such numbers may seem overwhelming and impersonal, until one puts individual faces and names against each of the conflicts. The Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) Faces of Freedom website helps make these numbers personal, by sharing with us the stories of real women and men who have served throughout this last century.

As we know all too well, not everyone that signs up comes home. Over 61,000 Canadian soldiers in WWI, 42,000 in WWII, 500 in Korea, 158 in Afghanistan, 130 in various peace operations across the world, and many more on domestic operations have paid the ultimate sacrifice.

Reflecting on the sacrifices of military women in particular, many Canadians will remember the face, the name, and the story of Captain Nichola Goddard.

Captain Goddard, 26, died on May 17, 2006, in Afghanistan while working as a forward observation officer. Her death marks the relatively recent addition of women to front line combat roles and positions. What may come as a surprise to some, is that almost 200 military women have died in service to their country.

Stories of women's sacrifices date as far back as 1885, when nursing sisters first stepped up to work in conflict zones alongside Canadian soldiers. However, their deaths were not recorded as military sacrifices until they gained military officer status in WWI. By the end of World War I, over 45 nursing sisters had died from hospital bombings, ship sinkings, and disease. In 1926, a Nursing Sisters' Memorial Marble sculpture was unveiled in the Hall of Honour in Parliament's Centre Block, in remembrance of these brave women's service, sacrifice, and heroism.

Historic records cite Eliza Kennedy as the first "servicewoman" to die for her country. Eliza was a member of the Canadian Merchant Navy on the SS Hesperian when it was sunk by an enemy torpedo on September 4, 1915. Eliza Kennedy, and many other women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice, are commemorated on VAC's webpage titled “Lest We Forget Her".

The last name entered the memorial website is Master Corporal (MCpl) Kristal Giesebrecht. MCpl Giesebrecht, 34, who died alongside fellow medic Private Andrew Miller, 21, on June 26, 2010 when an improvised explosive device, or IED, exploded under their vehicle in Afghanistan.

Service-related deaths come in many forms, and not all are a direct result of enemy action.

Major Michelle Mendes, 30, was an intelligence officer who died by suicide while serving in Afghanistan. Her memorial plaque is undifferentiated, and her sacrifice is acknowledged alongside the other memorial plaques hanging in the Carling Campus Afghanistan Memorial Hall. The military acknowledges and recognizes a death by suicide can still be a service-related death. Hopefully, this institutional level of understanding will soon be commonplace across all workplaces, including the first responder communities.

Service-related deaths can also happen at home as part of a training accident or operational response to domestic emergencies. For example, Captain Juli-Ann "Jules" MacKenzie, 30, and Captain Colin Sonoski, 39, died when their CH-146 Griffin helicopter crashed during a search and rescue mission out of Goose Bay, Labrador on July 18, 2001.

To each and every one of the women and men who have been memorialized here, or otherwise recorded in history or in the hearts and minds of loved ones, rest easy. Army, Navy, Air Force or Medical matters not, you all live on in our memories.

You have not, and you will not, be forgotten. R.I.P.

 

Update:

ADVICE TO FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

General Rick Hillier, C.M.M., M.S.C., C.D., Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) arrives with his wife, Joyce Hillier. Photo Credit: Bruce MacRae

General Rick Hillier, C.M.M., M.S.C., C.D., Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) arrives with his wife, Joyce Hillier.

Photo Credit: Bruce MacRae

Esprit de Corps Magazine November 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 10

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 9

 

by Military Woman

Question:

What advice would you offer the incoming government on how to best support military women?

Answer:

There is no one recognized "voice" for military women in Canada (yet...), so here are three pieces of potential advice offered as conversation starters.

One piece of advice to the new government is to communicate clearly with Canadians about the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). For many, General Hillier, a former Chief of Defence Staff, exemplified a clear communication style in his 2005 explanation to Canadians about what CAF is and does. "We are not the public service of Canada. We are not just another department. We are the Canadian Forces, and our job is to be able to kill people." The Canadian Forces updated its name to the Canadian Armed Forces thereafter.

It's rare to find a politician willing to speak as openly and honestly as General Hillier-which can result in sending mixed messages to Canadians. One example being peacekeeping. Yes, Canadians should be very proud of the significant contributions to peacekeeping that Canada and the CAF (and RCMP/police) have made in the past-but times have changed. What should be the motivation and expectation for a recruit who signs up with CAF today? To be sent overseas as a peacekeeper or more likely as a warfighter, boots on the ground peacemaker?

Or will tomorrow's wars be fought by proxy, projecting Canada's power remotely through drones and cyberwarfare techniques? Or will the next generation of recruits have careers more focused on domestic sovereignty and domestic disaster relief? Each of these quite diverse mission types will attract different segments of the population to the CAF.

What politicians focus on and say shapes the expectations of potential CAF recruits. Recruitment of women (and men) may be improved through enhanced fit attractions if Canadians better understood CAF and its missions. Retention of women (and men) might also be improved if recruits ended up doing the work types, they expected to be doing on signing up – and not feeling disillusioned from erroneous job expectations.

Finally, transition back into civilian society on release or retirement might be easier for women (and men) if the average Canadian really did know and understand what its military did. The fact that Israel has such low military post traumatic stress rates, despite significant operational trauma exposure, is often hypothesized to be related to the strong levels of community understanding and support for their nation's military.

A second piece of advice for the new government is to step-up its Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) resources. GBA+ has proven itself to be a helpful and necessary tool to support workplace inclusivity, diversity, and equity for all, but it needs to go deeper and wider. Everyone, not just designated people, or positions, needs to consider GBA+ for all decisions, policies, programs, and research. GBA+ subject matter experts need further training and a widened mandate to include quality assurance. GBA+ is of extra importance for the military, as it was a workplace initially designed by men, to support men, so quite understandably has legacy systemic biases built into it.

Lest we forget, it's only one generation, or approximately 30 years, since Canadian women were formally allowed into the almost 75% previously male-only military occupations. Burke and Eichler's "Bias Free Framework"  was one of the initial roadmaps on the questions required answered if wanting to be a true employer of choice work environment. What needs to be done to achieve a gender harmonious workspace is largely already long known, the ongoing barrier being the actual implementation of that knowledge.

Now is a good time for leaders of all stripes, military, or parliamentarian, to reflect on how they can deepen GBA+ implementation in their own workspaces.

A third piece of advice is to continue to use a "whole-of-government approach" that actively replaces interdepartmental walls and silos with bridges and more horizontal collaboration. The Australian government has had similar thoughts and recently published, "A Better Way to Support Veterans". The report provides a common-sense holistic approach on how to better ensure soldiers are "fit to fight" but as Veterans are still "fit for life".

What Canadian wouldn't like to see our government exploring any possibility to "do more with less" and improve on the health and wellbeing of our military members, veterans, and their loved ones all while costing the taxpayer less?

 

What advice would you offer the new government?

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT CLASS ACTION

Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa (Image: Dustin Fuhs)

Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa

 Photo Credit: Dustin Fuhs

 

Esprit de Corps Magazine October 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 9

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 8

 

by Military Woman

Question:

Is it true that because of sexual harassment suffered by women in the Canadian Armed Forces there is now a $900 million class action lawsuit? If so, why should taxpayers be stuck paying that bill?

Answer:

Yes, there is a sexual misconduct class action lawsuit presently against the federal government. Just for clarification, this is separate from the "LGBT Purge" class action lawsuit and another potential future class action lawsuit related to race.

You will be considered part of the "sexual misconduct" lawsuit if you "experienced sexual harassment, sexual assault or discrimination based on sex, gender, gender identity or sexual orientation in connection with military service and/or employment with the Department of National Defence (DND) /Staff of the Non-Public Funds (SNPF)." So yes, this lawsuit includes but by no means is limited to sexual harassment and claims can be from civilian or military members, regardless of their sex.

As for the money, yes, the Government of Canada announced on July 18, 2019, that it would be putting aside a total of $900 million; $800 million for current and former Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) claims, and $100 million for DND or SNPF claims.

But don't rush out to spend your cut of it just yet. There is a 200+ page document, referred to as the Final Settlement Agreement or FSA, posted on Deloitte's website (the DND/CAF interim settlement administrator) www.caf-dndsexualmisconductclassaction.ca This negotiated settlement must be approved by a Federal Court judge as being "fair, reasonable and in the best interests of all its class members". That federal court review is scheduled to take place on September 19, 2019, in Ottawa.

Once approved, the FSA calls for a several month-long "opt-out" period for anyone wishing to preserve their individual rights to complain to the Human Rights Commission or to independently sue the Crown for sexual misconduct events. Then the settlement administrator will start to accept claims and continue to do so for 18 months. We can all expect to see more information to start flowing publicly once the FSA is legally approved. In the meantime, if you have any burning questions please seek official sources, such as RavenLaw.com for your answers. So, why should taxpayers be stuck footing this bill?

 No soldier ever wants to take their own government to court. It's only when all else has failed that a lawsuit against the crown will ever be considered. The plaintiffs of this lawsuit wanted to be part of "an effort to change a system that condones sexual misconduct and punishes victims instead of perpetrators". If they had been provided a sexual misconduct free workplace, there would be no lawsuit. However, after they were failed by their chain of commands, they sought support from ombudsman offices and then parliamentarians. As the tolls of their advocacy work rose, negatively impacting their health and careers, then and only then, as a last resort, were lawyers engaged. The result being essentially a $900 million government fine for systemic inaction.

Therein lies the rub, this isn't a one-point fail, this is a multi-point layered fail. There was failure of the current and previous governments to lead by example and ensure that all federal workers, including their own, have a sexual misconduct free workplace. Here lies the taxpayer's shared responsibility point as the Members of Parliament overseeing federal workplace safety issues are elected officials serving as our representatives. It is our responsibility as Canadians to educate ourselves on these types of issues and to vote accordingly. But our duty doesn't end with voting, it is also our responsibility to stay politically involved and keep our elected officials accountable for their promises and stated values throughout their term. When we as the electorate base don't do our jobs to keep politicians accountable, we do share in the responsibility for their mistakes, and we pay for it. Literally.

Update:

HOMELESSNESS

“In Her Boots” Campaign to assist homeless female Veterans

Photo Credit: VETS Canada

 

Esprit de Corps Magazine September 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 8

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 7

 

by Military Woman

Question:

Is homelessness a problem for women Veterans?

Answer:

Thank you for this important question. Little is known about Veteran homelessness overall, and even less is known about women Veterans.

One problem is how homelessness is defined. The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness defines "homeless" to include anyone using 1) "unsheltered" or outside sleeping locations, 2) homeless or family violence "emergency shelters", 3) "provisionally" or precarious transient housing such as couch surfing and/or 4) being "at risk" for home eviction but not everyone uses this definition. Homelessness statistics will therefore vary widely depending on the definitions and data sources used.

A second problem is the fact that women and men experience homelessness differently. In general, homeless women are less likely than men to be found on the street "unsheltered" or in homeless shelters. Homeless women are more likely to be in family violence (previously called battered women) shelters or provisional housing situations.

One reason for this sex difference is that women are more likely than men to have children with them. A study from the U.S. found 30-45 per cent of homeless women veterans are with children compared to 10 per cent of homeless non-veteran women. Making matters worse, children are not allowed in many homeless shelters and mothers may fear forcible removal of their children if found by government agencies to be living on the streets.

Homeless veteran data collection should therefore include counts from family violence shelters and provisional housing situations-keeping in mind that staff in women's shelters may not routinely screen clients for their veteran status. To complicate matters further, U.S. data suggests that up to 20 per cent of homeless women veterans even if directly asked, may choose to not self-identify as a veteran.

A third problem is the lack of applied gender-based analysis  to all government-funded research, programs, and policy. If this was being done, data collection and reporting in a sex-disaggregated manner would be standard. To report combined male and female data together, effectively renders women veterans' experiences invisible.

The last problem, for today, is where does prevention of homelessness fit in this conversation? We can all agree that one homeless veteran is one too many, regardless of their sex. Identification and care of the homeless veteran will always be a moral imperative for Canada and Canadians. Interventions for those already homeless however, is not enough. Homelessness in many situations was preventable if the transitioning and transitioned military members were to receive the services they need when they needed them. This is, arguably, an equal if not higher moral imperative.

The 2015 report "The Extent and Nature of Veteran Homelessness in Canada", called for female specific homeless strategies and programs that provided safe, women specific, temporary shelters and supports. Supports include prevention strategies. One strategy would be screening by health care providers and case managers for the presence of risk factors associated with homelessness. Once identified as at risk, the veteran could qualify for closer support follow-ups and priority access to services.

Homeless Canadian women veterans are more likely than men to have been victims of interpersonal violence (IPV) and abuse, including military sexual trauma. Homelessness in women veterans has also been associated with a history of traumatic head injuries, drug or alcohol addictions and childhood homelessness/ abuse. In recognition of this knowledge, the U.S. has instituted mandatory screening by healthcare service providers for interpersonal/military sexual violence exposures. Canada has not.

Update:

  • 2022. Government of Canada publishes a data snapshot of statistics on homeless Veterans.

  • 2023. McGill University releases a policy recommendation report to answer the question – “What federal policies and programs are needed to ensure meaningful reductions in Veteran homelessness and advance the right to adequate housing for all Veterans in Canada?”

  • 2024. Veteran Homeless Program to improve services, supports and capacity building.

    • Pepper Pod given $949,671.00 to fund a “Connect-hers” program of women Veterans supporting women Veterans.

    • US Veterans Affairs updates it's mandatory screening program for Veterans to include housing, food, and transportation insecurities along with unmet needs for employment, digital technology access, legal and social supports.

BARRIERS TO UN MISSION PARTICIPATION

Canadian military personnel serving Operation PRESENCE (Mali). Photo Credit: Cpl Charest, CAF/DND

Canadian military personnel serving Operation PRESENCE (Mali).

Photo Credit: Cpl Charest, CAF/DND

 

Esprit de Corps Magazine August 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 7

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 6

 

by Military Woman

You asked:

Your article last month about the Elsie Initiative Women Peace Operations Baseline Study gave me some new insights into the challenges facing uniformed women from around the world who want to participate fully on UN missions. Do uniformed Canadian women face any of these same barriers to participating on UN or other missions?

We answered:

Thanks for asking! Happy to inform you that Canada has asked DCAF (Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance) to conduct a baseline study on just that question for uniformed Canadian women. Hopefully by early 2020 a report will be available to answer your question based on current data and experiences.

While we wait for that report, let's do a shallow dive into one of the barriers identified in the DCAF report that will potentially impact all deployed women, Canadians included: "lack of sex specific medical care." The Directorate of Peacekeeping Operations acknowledges this as a systemic barrier and has recommended that every deployed medical unit should have at least one female physician as well as a gynecologist specialist.

Ensuring the presence of appropriate medical care providers is, however, only one step of many to address women's health needs on deployment. Work is still needed to increase the general awareness and knowledge of women's health issues by both the uniformed women themselves and their potential health care providers. Ensuring a female military physician presence is not a guarantee that they are current on operational specific women's health care issues. Likewise, the presence of a female military physician is also not a guarantee that the medical supplies and medications specific to sex specific medical issues is systemically available.

Many UN mission locations are in hotter and more humid environments than most Canadians are used to living in. When that is combined with austere hygiene conditions, an increased rate of female specific medical issues such as rashes, infections and menstrual irregularities is to be expected. Nielsen (2009) reported that 35% of US servicewomen in Iraq had at least one gynecological problem needing treatment during their deployment, with irregular menstrual bleeding being the most common issue.

Most of these types of gynecological conditions are preventable and/or easily treated. In fact, the U.S. military recently introduced a "Women's Health Promotion Program for Austere Environments". This program teaches military women how to best ensure their own health and wellbeing in challenging operational environments. This training is new but has been met with great support and enthusiasm. Helping all servicewomen expand their health literacy and their ability to keep their own bodies healthy and operational just makes sense.

Menstrual regulation is an important gap area in health knowledge for many service members and their care providers. Menstrual control and/or suppression options should be part of standard discussions at every pre-deployment medical review. A U.S. study found that 86% of servicewomen surveyed wanted the ability to suppress menstruation during field training and deployment, but only 7% said they had ever been provided the knowledge or opportunity to do so. Another U.S. study found that 13% of deployed U.S. women had lost operational duty days to address menstrual challenges. This data demonstrates that all primary health care providers, military, or civilian con- tractor, of deployable uniformed women should be as conversant on menstrual control and suppression options as any other operational medical readiness requirement. If they aren't, then lack of sex-specific medical care may well be a barrier to Canadian women's full and equal participation on UN missions. Canada is committed to leading by example with a feminist foreign policy agenda.

The Canadian Forces Health Services (CFHS) can support this policy by engaging dedicated Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) advisors and planners with medical expertise to review the policies and standards of care for women in the military, particularly on deployment, and ensure operational training and currency requirements on women's health for all its health care providers. The DCAF study may identify other barriers to Canadian women's participation in deployments, but CFHS should lead the way in already fully addressing this known barrier now.

Military Woman invites respectful questions and comments on all issues relating to women in the military. Please address comments to: Military Woman, c/o letters@espritdecorps.ca or by mail to #204-1066 Somerset St. W., Ottawa, Ontario K1Y 4T3.

 

Update:

THE ELSIE INITIATIVE

Elsie MacGill, first female aircraft designer in the world. Photo Credit: Canada Aviation and Space Museum

Elsie MacGill, first female aircraft designer in the world 

Photo Credit: Canada Aviation and Space Museum

Esprit de Corps Magazine July 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 6

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 5

by Military Woman

You asked:

I hear a lot about “The Elsie Initiative” in the news. What’s it all about? What problem is it solving? 

We answered:

The Elsie Initiative for Women in Peace Operations is a Canadian funded international project to increase the meaningful participation of women in uniform on UN peace operations. Peace operations themselves being a topic of ongoing debate on how to best define, especially given the increasingly complex levels of today’s world conflicts. If you aren’t already familiar with this gem in Canada’s foreign policy learn more about it at http://bit.ly/ElsieWPS.

Last month’s column highlighted the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, and why the UN is so interested to increase the number of women on its missions. However, despite all the focus on the topic, the statistics have remained stagnant at around 2-4 % of military and 6-10% of police personnel on UN missions being women. This has left some wondering what, if any, systemic barriers may be holding some women back from “being all they can be”? 

Lucky for us, as part of its Elsie Initiative support, Canada commissioned an independent research project to answer just that question once and for all. The Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) based out of Switzerland researched what, if any, UN deployment barriers are still being encountered by uniformed women. DCAF identified 14 barriers to the successful deployment and full integration of uniformed women on UN missions. These barriers were organized into six categories: (1) equal access to opportunities, (2) deployment criteria, (3) the working environment, (4) family constraints,
(5) equal treatment during deployment, and (6) career-advancement opportunities. You can download and/or read the DCAF report at https://www.dcaf.ch/elsie-initiative-women-peace-operations-baseline-study. 

To give an example of the barriers, one was “lack of adequate family-friendly policies”. In many countries there were few national mechanisms offered for child support options should a parent deploy especially for the longer UN tours. DCAF recommendations include consideration of more family UN duty stations and institutional encouragement for men to take parental leave and receive child/elder support considerations where needed to normalize this accommodation for all parents.

Another barrier will be no surprise to readers; “sexual and gender-based harassment”. One of the many DCAF recommendations being to focus on leadership’s roles in addressing workplace culture. When workplace harassment is left unchecked by leadership, the resulting permissive is known to promote, not only more widespread harassment but, the occurrence of more serious events such as sexual assault and sexual coercion to also occur. 

Another barrier that you might not have thought of is “lack of appropriate medical care”. There have been recommendations made to include at least one female physician and one obstetric and gynecological specialist on all UN mission medical teams.

The DCAF report names barriers women are encountering from around the globe. Every UN mission participating county is however unique, so have been encouraged to consider completing its own national baseline barrier assessment study as well. Canada is leading by example on this front and has contracted DCAF to just that. So, stay tuned for that upcoming DCAF report on what, if any, deployment barriers are still being experienced by Canadian military and policing women.

When we know better, we can do better. 

P.S. If you don’t know all about the amazing Canadian icon Elsie MacGill, after whom the Elsie Initiative is named, please Wikipedia her or read about her in one of the many books available on this inspiring Canadian trailblazer!

 

Update:

WOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY AGENDA

Members of Canada's UN Peacekeeping Force in Mali. Photo Credit: Cpl Charest, CAF/DND

Members of Canada's UN Peacekeeping Force in Mali.  

Photo Credit: Cpl Charest, CAF/DND 

Esprit de Corps Magazine June 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 5  

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 4 

 

By Military Woman  

You asked:  

What is the Women, Peace and Security Agenda and why is it important to Canadian military women?   

We answered:  

UN studies demonstrated that state conflict resolution and peace processes are more effective and long-lasting when diverse voices are invited to sit at the table, especially women’s voices. Studies also showed that the design and delivery of foreign aid is more effective when the needs of diverse groups, particularly women, are specifically considered. Directly impacted women are often the best sources to identify their own needs and potential vulnerabilities in conflict or humanitarian situations.   

To act on these findings, the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) was passed in 2000. It was the first resolution to acknowledge and address the disproportionately negative effects of armed conflict on women and girls. Canada was a signatory to it, and the eight subsequent resolutions that together are referred to as the WPS  agenda. It calls on the international community to promote:  

  • women’s meaningful participation in all conflict-prevention and conflict. 

  • resolution mechanisms and mainstreamed gendered pers-pective into all peace and security activities and strategies, including peace operations, stabilization missions, and counterterrorism. 

  • human rights and gender equality of women and girls including protection from sexual and gender-based violence and exploitation, and preservation of their sexual rights and access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services and  

  • more deployed women in uniform (military and policing).  

I hear you say: “I understand a bit more about what WPS is, but what does this all have to do with Canada specifically?”  

Canada committed itself to an ambitious 2017-2022 National Action Plan or “CNAP”. Each impacted department has its own implementation plan on to best support the CNAP. Implementation partners (IPs) continue to grow in numbers, but Global Affairs Canada is the lead along with DND/CAF, RCMP, Public Safety, Immigration, Justice, and Women and Gender Equality, (WAGE was formerly Status of Women, renamed after becoming a government department in December 2018). Progress reports are made by the IPs twice a year to civil society representatives. Many of the representatives coming from the Women Peace and Security Network – Canada, a non-profit collaboration of various non-governmental organizations and individuals all committed to the promoting and monitoring of the WPS agenda.  

Let’s look specifically at the DND/CAF implementation plan and why it’s important to all Canadian military women as well as women abroad.  

It’s one of the UN’s WPS priorities to increase the number of women in all security roles including in the military. In alignment with this priority, the CDS has committed to increasing the number of women in CAF to 25% within the next 10 years, which hopefully will result in more women trained and available for UN deployments.    

Here’s where the rubber meets the road for military women.  

CAF has fully supported the WPS agenda and integrated gendered perspectives on operations. CAF strives for equitable care and support of civilian impacted women when on operations outside of Canada. However, there is a growing realization that leading by example for WPS has to be inclusive of the “domestic” agenda; how CAF is supporting its own women in uniform.  

As discussed in last month’s article, operational effectiveness requires all soldiers, women, or men, to feel respected and included and have any special support needs considered. Although it may be named Women, Peace and Security – its goals and aspirations can’t be achieved without the full support of everyone, men, and women, both at home and when abroad.    

To learn more search “UNSCR 1325”, “Women, Peace and Security”, “Canada’s National Action Plan” or check out WPSN-Canada.org.  

 

Update:  

MST

MST Support

Photo Credit: Government of Canada

Esprit de Corps Magazine May 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 4  

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 3 

by Military Woman  

Thank you for your feedback about the column. We have enough questions coming in from women and men, in uniform and out, that we could be doing a weekly column of "Let's talk"! 

You asked: 

What exactly is "MST"? 

We answered: 

Before you run off scared by the topic, stay with me for a minute. At the very least, let's clear up some myths about Military Sexual Trauma or “MST.”  

MST is not a "women's issue," it's a people issue. Men can and have been sexually assaulted and raped. Women can and have been charged as sexual assault perpetrators. Stats, although rare, suggest a particularly high risk for MST for members of the LGBTQ and Indigenous community regardless of sex or gender. 

MST is not a “diagnosed medical condition,” it's a medical risk factor. Some people experience MST and do not develop subsequent medical conditions and others do. Unfortunately, MST compared to other sources of trauma exposure including combat trauma exposure is often listed as the highest risk trauma exposure to later develop physical and mental conditions such as chronic pain, depression, anxiety, and PTSD. It is these subsequent medical conditions that once diagnosed result in medical employment limitations and/or medical category changes and in some cases release. 

Why is MST different than other sexual assaults? Many MST impacted people describe a second trauma, or what happened to them AFTER the initiating sexual related traumatic event, as being equal if not more traumatizing to endure and counterproductive to healing.  

There are also many civilian stories about negative re-traumatizing secondary experiences with medical, police, and the judicial systemic to sexual assault complaints. However, a military MST impacted person experiences all the above that a civilian would and more due to the military workplace culture and ethos.  

Many with MST identify a whistleblower type of backlash or chilly workplace climate after reporting (or not reporting) a military related sexual incident. The institutional response to the complaint, even when overtly initially supportive, often is still experienced as "death by a thousand paper cuts” from events happening covertly. It’s thought that it is the chronic stress and ongoing sense of "moral injustice" that can be a significant source of what is making people sick after military sexual trauma related events. 

Another potential source of secondary wounding trauma with MST is "sanctuary trauma". Like the assumed safety with a doctor, padre, or family member, military members share a sacred bond of implicit trust with each other and their chain of command.  

MST shatters that bond.  

Many MST victims describe their experience as analogous to incest (Maclean's Magazine 1998). Lawyers from the Department of Veterans Affairs Canada agree that for many MST impacted soldiers its more devastating an experience then if it had happened on civvy street because "the military was their family". 

Given the common society usage of the term "MST" it might surprise you to know there is still controversy in Canada over its official use or definition. The U.S. Veterans Affairs department has no such conflict and defines MST as any "psychological trauma, which in the judgment of a mental health professional, resulted from a physical assault of a sexual nature, battery of a sexual nature, or sexual harassment which occurred while the military member/veteran was serving on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training".  

Operationally effective units must trust each other. Sexual assaults from within the profession of arms are soul crushing.  

MST fractures the trust required in the institution. Simply stated, we all lose. 

In 2016, a Statistics Canada Survey found that almost 1 in 3 women and 1 in 25 men were sexually assaulted during their military service. We can and we have to do better. 

To learn more about MST google "SMRC" (Sexual Misconduct Resource Centre) or "VAC MST" or go to ItsJust700.com. If you have been impacted by MST, please consider calling the SMRC 24/7/365 at 1-844-750-1648 and/or joining the closed Itsjust700.com Facebook support group. 

    

Update: 

  • 2021. ItsJust700.com website cites “since March 2021, It's Just 700© has ceased to exist. The activities, leadership, intent, vision, and information provided by any other groups not called It's Just 700 (or IJ700© for short) should be considered separate from the original version of the group It’s Just 700© (and its Founder).”  

  • 2024. The Canadian definition for MST continues to be discussed... 

EQUALITY

Military members on exercise for Operation REASSURANCE. Photo Credit: Cpl Côté, CAF/DND 

Esprit de Corps Magazine April 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 3 

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 2 

by Military Woman 

In case you missed our inaugural celebrations last month, this is a new opinion column that offers a military women’s perspective. The purpose of the column is not to be right or wrong, but a conversation starter that hopefully helps to build bridges and break barriers.  

You asked:  

Women are legally equal already. Why are we STILL talking about equality in the military? 

We answered: 

Excellent question: I sense some frustration. Let me assure you that most, if not all, military members men and women share in some fatigue on this topic discussion. We hopefully can all agree that we wish we didn’t still need to have these conversations in 2019 and yet here we are. 

The Pareto principle, also known as the “80/20” rule, may be helpful here. Military men and women are agreed to be treated as “equal” about 80% of the time and situations. So, for most of us, most of the time, there is no problem to solve – military men and women are equal. For about 80% of situations there is more variation within the sexes than between the sexes.  

But the devil is always in the detail, and it’s the 20% of remaining times and situations where treating everyone equal i.e., “exactly the same” may not actually be the fair or equitable approach. 

The Federal government has a three-minute video explaining the difference between being treated equally and being treated equitably,  “GBA Equality Equity”. Check it out!  

Let me offer a military-specific example. In male infantry soldier only days, a platoon on a rucksack March would be given timed 2-minute rest periods for rest, blister care, rehydration, snack, and urination. When women were "integrated" the rules and standards were already all set by men, for men in support of men. As a result, women ordered to be treated "equally" were given the exact same 2 minutes to accomplish all the above cited tasks. 

However, for the often-sole female, urination meant breaking away from the file, finding a private location away from curious eyes, unbuckling and dropping your 70-pound rucksack strategically near a strong looking tree trunk, visually clearing the target area for possible poison oak and ivy (very important in Ontario!), undressing, exposing and then relieving yourself.  

After redressing, you return to the rucksack for the "turtle" maneuver in order to replace your backpack solo. (i.e., lie face up on top of your backpack, strap back in, roll over onto your front, push up onto all fours, then "walk" your hands up that strategically selected tree trunk until able to balance and stand upright again). The mad dash is then made to the waiting group who, having spent all this same time resting and relaxing, spontaneously reforms into file to continue Marching as soon as they hear you returning.  

"Equal" treatment is the woman huffing and puffing to re-start the March as the sole platoon member with no rest break, no blister care break, no hydration break, or snack time.  

Is it any wonder why female soldiers are prone to more repetitive strain injuries? Or prone to chronic self-dehydration medical complications in their efforts to avoid entirely the above-described experience? 

So yes, women are already legally equal to men, but equal treatment in the military however doesn't always mean being treated fairly. There are times and places that being gender-blind to bona fide differences like the fact that some soldiers have outdoor plumbing, and some soldiers don't, just isn't helpful.  

Gender equality must include consideration of all the different supports needed for different soldiers to provide them an equal chance to complete the assigned military task. Whether that means physio consults to help women train their muscles for standing urination or standard supply provision of products like 'Shewee' – all soldiers still need a chance for rest, food, and urination.  

As poet Audre Lorde wrote: "It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences." 

 

Update: 

  • 2024. Menopausal specific physical fitness programs are under development. A new “Joint Federal Research Program” funds research specific to improved understanding of pelvic floor injury prevention and care (including for stress incontinence and uterine prolapse).  

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

Military women from HMCS St. John’s visiting in Romania Photo Credit: LS Ogle, CAF/DND

Military women from HMCS St. John’s visiting in Romania 

Photo Credit: LS Ogle, CAF/DND 

Esprit de Corps Magazine March 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 2 

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 1 

by Military Woman 

Welcome to a new guest column!  

With over 15% of the Canadian Armed Forces and 10% of all Veterans Affairs Canada clients now female, we approached Scott Taylor for space to add more of an active female voice to the Magazine, and surprise! he said… “Yes”! 

Having just celebrated its 30th year in print, Esprit de Corps started about the same time the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) started gender integration activities in earnest; moving from most combat related occupations being closed to women in 1989, to having women in all occupations today. Throughout this interesting and challenging journey for both men and women, there wasn’t a regularly featured female military perspective. Who knew that all we had to do was ask! 

So here are the rules of engagement. This is an opinion column. We will respond to questions as factually as possible but, in the end, all opinions expressed here are ours. You, dear readers, are free to agree or disagree with our opinions, although hopefully not with the facts. We look forward to hearing from you. In fact, we’re hoping this column will be a conversation starter – with us, with your family and friends, with colleagues – about questions on women in the military that come up even 30 years on.  

Let’s talk about pregnancy, maternity leave (and parental/paternity leave) and the impact on operations. Let’s talk about women’s recruitment and retention specific issues. Let’s look at the buzzwords of the day, like diversity, intersectionality, gender equality and gender equity, and talk about their relevance (if any) to today’s military.  

What are the women-related questions you have, but are afraid to ask in public? Some we’ve heard range from “Why do we still need Employment Equity?” to “How will we know when Op Honour has been successful?” We’ll do our best to answer them. We’ve been hearing these types of questions and concerns for a while now, sometimes as hallway muttering, so let’s have these conversations, even if they may be sensitive. 

Well, it’s March and there is a “women’s history month” theme to this edition of Esprit de Corps, so let’s start the first “Let’s Talk “with a question we got from a friend. We look forward to your questions. 

You asked:  

March 8th is International Women’s Day (IWD). Seriously. Why do we celebrate it? Aren’t women already equal? And speaking about equality – when’s “International Men’s Day”?  

We answered:      

Excellent questions.  

International Men’s Day is a real thing! It started in 1992 and is celebrated on November 19th in over 80 countries, including Canada (you didn’t know that did you, admit it). The day focuses on men’s health, improving gender relations, gender equality and promoting male role models. The first Canadian celebrations were in Vancouver in 2009, but it has been spreading across Canada since then. International Men’s Day is part of  “Movember” – a worldwide moustache growing charity event held every November to raise funds and awareness for men’s health. The Aussies have put together a great website of information at InternationalMensDay.com. Check it out! 

International Women’s Day is on March 8th. We have Soviet Russia to thank for these celebrations. On March 8, 1917, women gained suffrage in Russia and celebrations were held annually thereafter. This Russian holiday was made an international holiday by the United Nations in 1975. The day is set aside not only to acknowledge women’s achievements but to focus on elimination of all discrimination against women including barriers to women’s full and equal participation in society. Some people encourage wearing of clothing in the colour purple for this day. See InternationalWomensDay.com as one source for more information.   

The CAF has achieved so much in the last 30 years, with full occupational access and equal pay. Yet, there are still positions and ranks that women have not been appointed to. And there are still those who will greet the next breakthrough with the muttered comment, “Well, she only got that job/promotion because she is a woman.” That’s an example of why International Women’s Day is still important to the CAF.  

And did you know that it can still cost a woman more to be in the CAF than it does a man? We kid you not. It costs a woman more to dry-clean a uniform, to get a haircut, and even to shower, shampoo and use antiperspirant, just to name a few items on the “pink tax slip” – but we can talk more about that in a future column.