The 2019 Canadian federal election is coming up, and as always, we’re putting the women we serve at the centre.

According to the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability, in 2018, 148 women were killed in Canada. That is a woman killed every 2.5 days. Violence against women is a public health crisis. However, it is not the cause of women’s inequity, it is a symptom.

We hope that the next government will invest in a national strategy that addresses the root causes of discrimination and violence against women and girls. Such a strategy would:

Address the root causes of discrimination and violence against women

• Invest in education. Celebrate and acknowledge the diversity of race, sex, sexual orientation, and gender expressions in the mosaic that makes up Canada. Educate children, youth, and the community at large to eliminate misogynistic and patriarchal practices that lead to gender-based violence and violence against women. Sexual and domestic violence against women and girls are the results of a misogynistic culture that normalizes male entitlement to women and girls’ bodies.
• Address sex-based crimes by collecting accurate statistical information and by holding perpetrators of violence against women accountable.
• Address discrimination and violence against gender non-conforming individuals without erasure of women from language, data collection, policies, and laws.
• Adequately fund women’s shelters and women’s rape crisis centres to provide quality services for women and children fleeing violence. This will also enable women’s organizations to strategize and respond to the local needs of our communities effectively and work towards breaking the cycle of violence.

Childcare

• Create a universal childcare system: Access to childcare enables women to go to school, work, and gain financial independence. Women working contributes to the growth of the economy.

Housing

• Maintain a national housing strategy: Women can only leave domestic violence situations if they have access to safe, secure, and affordable housing.

Address poverty and reducing barriers

• Establish a universal Guaranteed Livable Income (GLI) program to replace the current variety of income supports. Those earning above a certain total income would pay the GLI back in taxes. This program would eliminate women’s economic dependence on abusers and drastically reduce the exploitation of women and girls.

In this upcoming Canadian federal election, you can decide if our next government takes action to end violence against women and girls. We hope you’ll keep these issues in mind as you prepare to make your way to the ballot box this week.