FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 21, 2007  

In honour of Pride Week women from across the province have a message for the Premier of Ontario and for all political Parties for the upcoming election: the right of all women to live free from violence is a human right. 

The theme of Pride Week this year is “Unstoppable.” In that spirit we put the Parties on notice that we intend to honour this theme and be the change we want to see in the work—and we want them to do the same.

Social economic and political equality is the only thing that will provide freedom from violence, poverty, homelessness and oppression. Women from the Step It Up! Campaign want to see that change in Party platforms for the upcoming October election.

The Step It Up! Campaign is a coalition of provincial women’s advocacy networks, rape crisis centres, shelters and second stage housing programs, women’s centres, labour and community groups.  The Campaign calls on all political Parties in Ontario to adopt 10 Steps to End Violence Against Women in their platforms for the October 10 election.

“All women live with violence, but many groups of women face multiple levels of violence and discrimination because of heterosexism and homophobia, racism, ableism and other forms of discrimination and oppression,” said Margaret Alexander of the Step it Up! Campaign.

Amnesty International in their 2001 report documented the following:

“Women's sexual autonomy cannot be separated from the material conditions of their lives. Violence and harassment are often targeted toward women because of their sexuality, particularly in terms of their physical attributions (for instance, looking "too masculine"), or affirmative claims of lesbian identity. Women also suffer adverse discrimination because they challenge gender norms or male dominance within their societies…

 

Women who are "unprotected" by a marriage to a man are often marginalized in their community and are consequently the targets of violence and rape. Lack of choice with regard to lifestyle (or sexual identity in particular) is closely linked to women's lack of economic autonomy…

 

The discrimination lesbians face and the human rights violations they experience - as well as their inability to seek protection and redress - is integrally connected not only to the fact of their being female, but also to their race, ethnicity, cultural and national origin, class, etc. Work on violence against women as a human rights violation has revealed the deep extent to which women's sexualized bodies so often become the target of human rights abuses.”

Women face multiple barriers to addressing violence in their lives. Until such time as all women are able to find safety and justice we will not rest,” said Alexander.

This Pride Week we want to acknowledge the struggles for queer rights. We acknowledge and celebrate the diversity of the LGBTQI community and we honour resistance and the fight for dignity, respect and equality.

Step it Up! wants all Parties to understand and act on violence against women as an equality rights issue and to make a commitment to ending inequality and injustice in our communities thereby creating a world free from violence for all women.

The Step it Up! Campaign is currently endorsed by 100 groups across the province. For more about the Step it Up! Campaign and a list of our endorsers, visit our website at: www.stepitupontario.ca   

Media contact:   Margaret Alexander                                   416-968-3422

Attachments: E-card to the Parties , Backgrounder on Pride Week