“Forty years ago, the women of Iceland went on strike - they refused to work, cook and look after children for a day. It was a moment that changed the way women were seen in the country and helped put Iceland at the forefront of the fight for equality”
“When Ronald Reagan became the US President, one small boy in Iceland was outraged. "He can't be a president - he's a man!" he exclaimed to his mother when he saw the news on the television.”
“It was November 1980, and Vigdis Finnbogadottir, a divorced single mother, had won Iceland's presidency that summer.”
“Many more Icelandic children may well have grown up assuming that being president was a woman's job, as Vigdis went on to hold the position for 16 years - years that set Iceland on course to become known as "the world's most feminist country".”
“But Vigdis insists she would never have been president had it not been for the events of one sunny day - 24 October 1975 - when 90% of women in the country decided to demonstrate their importance by going on strike.”
“Instead of going to the office, doing housework or childcare they took to the streets in their thousands to rally for equal rights with men.”
“"What happened that day was the first step for women's emancipation in Iceland," she says. "It completely paralysed the country and opened the eyes of many men."”
“Banks, factories and some shops had to close, as did schools and nurseries - leaving many fathers with no choice but to take their children to work.”
“"There was a tremendous power in it all and a great feeling of solidarity and strength among all those women standing on the square in the sunshine," Vigdis says.”
“…when the strike was renamed "Women's Day Off" it secured near-universal support, including solid backing from the unions.”
“"The programme of the event itself reflected the emphasis that had been placed on uniting women from all social and political backgrounds," says Ragnheidur.”
“Among the speakers at the Reykjavik rally were a housewife, two MPs, a representative of the women's movement and a woman worker.”
“The final speech was given by Adalheidur Bjarnfredsdottir, head of the union for women cleaning and working in the kitchens and laundries of hospitals and schools.”
“"She was not used to public speaking but made her name with this speech because it was so strong and inspiring," says Audur Styrkarsdottir, director of Iceland's Women's History Archives. "She later went on to become a member of parliament."”
“Five years later, Vigdis beat three male candidates to the presidency. She became so popular that she was re-elected unopposed in two of the three next elections.”
8/2/2022
“Bill 124 targets women workers
While unions have issued a Charter Challenge against the government because #Bill124 represents a direct attack on workers’ bargaining rights…
springmag.ca/fords-bill-124…
“Bill 124 targets women workers
While unions have issued a Charter Challenge against the government because #Bill124 represents a direct attack on workers’ bargaining rights…
springmag.ca/fords-bill-124…
… this bill also needs to be thrown out on the grounds of exacerbating gendered inequities in the labour market.”
“Those workers subject to Bill 124, including educators, hospital workers, PSWs, and Children’s Aid society staff, are more likely to be women because education and care work are female-dominated fields of employment.”
“Many of these women workers care for the public, whether it be providing medical aid to the sick, physical support to the elderly, or education to young people.”
“Although this care work has always been essential, a # of these workers, including PSWs, Early Childhood Educators,& nutritional aids, tend to be viewed as low status and low skill workers who deserve far less compensation than any worker who carries a briefcase on Bay Street.”
“Amongst these care workers, the lowest paid and most precariously employed are disproportionately racialized women.”
“…the pandemic has brutally ripped away the illusion that these jobs are unskilled or not essential. It is clear that our soc can easily fnc w/out marketing consultants, corporate lawyers, & tax specialists, but it will remain in crisis w/out PSWs, ECEs, nurses & educators.”
“After more than 2 years of mishandling this public health crisis, Ford still hasn’t been able to figure out that prioritizing ‘making ON open for bus’ over making hospitals, schools, & long-term care homes safe won’t stymie the transmissibility or lethality of the #C19 virus.”
“Instead, he has decided to place profits above people, retaining his deep disdain for care work and care workers, even while PSWs, educators, and especially nurses retire or change professions en masse to escape their dystopian working conditions.”
“As Ford continues to offer up women care workers as sacrificial lambs to the Omicron virus, he has gone out of his way to protect policing services from the effects of Bill 124, explicitly noting within the bill that they are to be excluded from its provisions.”
“…Ford has not tried to hide his soft spot for the police, which he’s publicly gushed about after announcing that he would be providing an additional $25mil in funding to the OPP, “You know, & everyone knows, I absolutely love our police officers.””
🧵
🧵
https://twitter.com/queensparktoday/status/1588534376845172743?s=21
“But for someone who claims to be so fiscally minded, Ford seems to have forgotten that the province spends nearly $1.2 billion on the OPP with most of this money paying for police salaries, which average $118,000 per officer.”
🧵
🧵
https://twitter.com/RahRahRaina/status/1352258104818339841?s=20&t=tzt8DNGMhZoANviPcoPAxQ
“If Ford thought that he could ‘protect’ the public sector by reducing expenditures on worker salaries, shouldn’t he try to reduce the number of OPP officers sitting on the sunshine list, rather than go after PSWs who make an average of $22.69 an hour?”
🧵
🧵
https://twitter.com/cristina_cp24/status/1588618888073224193?s=21
“Bill 124 must be challenged, and not just in the courts. If it is allowed to stand, Ford will continue to illegally infringe on public sector workers’ rights to collectively bargain, which disproportionately impacts women workers.”
“The effects of Bill 124 will also degrade public sector capacities, further justifying the ongoing privatization of the sector. To prevent this from happening, Bill 124 needs to be repealed, workers must build the power to fight this unjust law in the here and now.”
“Who are the education workers?
CUPE education workers include educational assistants, custodians, school secretaries, designated early childhood educators, professionals, informational technology workers, maintenance workers, library staff and others.”
CUPE education workers include educational assistants, custodians, school secretaries, designated early childhood educators, professionals, informational technology workers, maintenance workers, library staff and others.”
“According to the union, more than 70 per cent of the 55,000 workers are women and more than half work at least one additional job to make ends meet.”
“CUPE has said its workers, who make on average $39k a year, are generally the lowest paid in schools.”
“On Tuesday, CUPE reduced its initial wage demand from about 11% to 6%. The government’s latest offer was a 2.5% increase each year over four years for those earning less than $43k/yr, and 1.5% for those earning more.”
“A partial list of attacks on women’s rights under Doug Ford”
March 7, 2019
rabble.ca/political-acti…
“Since June, Doug Ford’s government has taken steps to systematically undermine women’s rights.”
March 7, 2019
rabble.ca/political-acti…
“Since June, Doug Ford’s government has taken steps to systematically undermine women’s rights.”
“On their own, the funding cuts to the Ontario College of Midwives, clawbacks to raises for early childhood educators, and the reversion to the 1996 sex-ed, would not seem as insidious. But taken together, Ford’s government is demonstrating it has an anti-women agenda.”
“The most obvious attack is the cutting of funding towards the Ontario College of Midwives. On 8/11/2018, the MOHLTC advised the College that the government would no longer provide it with operational grants, which encompass over 1/3 of the College’s budget.”
“The College is instrumental in providing midwives with patient safety training. Midwives are a predominantly women-identifying workforce, compared to other primary healthcare providers who also provide low-risk pregnancy, delivery, and post-birth care to women.”
“In 2018, the Association of Ontario Midwives won a landmark pay equity case, which declared that the government’s failure to monitor and address the extreme gender wage gap for midwives constituted discrimination.”
“Not only is the Ford government now forcing midwives to pay more to the College through budget cuts, but it is also appealing the decision with the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.”
“Doug Ford Keeps Playing Politics With Human Rights
August 6, 2020”
ontarioliberal.ca/doug-ford-keep…
August 6, 2020”
ontarioliberal.ca/doug-ford-keep…
“Doug Ford is continuing his attack on ON’s human rights protections with yet another partisan appt. His latest patronage appointee to lead the HRT, one of ON’s most important human rights protections, is a partisan Con. with little experience in the field of human rights.”
“This is clearly a reward for an all-star Doug Ford fundraiser – who served as a top fundraiser for the Conservative Party in the 2018 provincial election.”
“The partisan appointment is only the latest in a pattern of Doug Ford’s actions undermining Ontario’s human rights system, including:
-Leaving positions at the Human Rights Commission and Tribunal vacant, cut or eliminated…
-Leaving positions at the Human Rights Commission and Tribunal vacant, cut or eliminated…
…
-Tearing up a shortlist of qualified candidates to fill vacant positions put forward by Ontario’s human rights commissioner, and instead appointing commissioners with ties to the Conservative Party…
-Tearing up a shortlist of qualified candidates to fill vacant positions put forward by Ontario’s human rights commissioner, and instead appointing commissioners with ties to the Conservative Party…
…
-Slashing budgets for the Human Rights commission.
-Consulting with Jordan B. Peterson, who has long been a proponent of eliminating the Ontario Human Rights Commission and Tribunal.”
-Slashing budgets for the Human Rights commission.
-Consulting with Jordan B. Peterson, who has long been a proponent of eliminating the Ontario Human Rights Commission and Tribunal.”
“Democracy Watch has already sounded the alarm on Doug Ford playing politics with our human rights, arguing he “violates the constitutional principles of administrative tribunal independence and the rule of law”
“As Ontario, Canada and the world struggles with the impacts of systemic racism, Ontarians deserve a human rights system that is led by qualified people that are free of partisanship.”
🧵
H/T @RevivalCare
🧵
https://twitter.com/ccleighton/status/1588631626719690752?s=20&t=yCx-73w9P4kRkx0HktqG6w
H/T @RevivalCare
“Ford government's changes undermine Ontario human rights tribunal's independence: experts”
cbc.ca/news/canada/to…
“Education Minister Stephen Lecce is ignoring the Ontario Human Rights Commission, and here’s why”
debbielkasman.com/blog/2020/11/2…
H/T @anenigma420
cbc.ca/news/canada/to…
“Education Minister Stephen Lecce is ignoring the Ontario Human Rights Commission, and here’s why”
debbielkasman.com/blog/2020/11/2…
H/T @anenigma420
A partial list of attacks on women’s rights under Doug Ford (cont)
rabble.ca/political-acti…
“In 2016, 96% of early childhood educators (ECEs) & ECE assts in Canada were women. ECEs have specialized training in designing curriculums & assessing children’s developmental needs.”
rabble.ca/political-acti…
“In 2016, 96% of early childhood educators (ECEs) & ECE assts in Canada were women. ECEs have specialized training in designing curriculums & assessing children’s developmental needs.”
“The Ford government, as of January, is planning on clawing back the $2-hour wage enhancement grant for these workers. ECEs currently make only $15-$20/hr”
“Lowering fees for a profession that is overwhelmingly comprised of women is a direct attack on women in the workforce.”
“Lowering fees for a profession that is overwhelmingly comprised of women is a direct attack on women in the workforce.”
“The recently repealed 2015 Sex Ed Curriculum is disastrous for everyone and dangerous for women. Consent is deemed no longer important by the Ford government.”
“In the repealed 2015 Sex Ed Guide, consent was to be discussed from primary school through high school. The Ford government has reverted to a curriculum that doesn’t even touch on consent.”
“Similarly, girls will not be taught about the different kinds of sexual activities, various types of contraception, & remediation techniques for accidental pregnancy.”
“Denying youth access to this information is dooming them to make complicated choices out of misinformation, fear, & lack of knowledge.”
“Rolling back the curriculum also leaves out any info about trans & LGTBQ+ rights. Refusing to normalize non-cis sexual orientations & gender fluidity creates a social environment where these people are more likely to commit suicide, report psychological distress, and self-harm.”
“A sex-ed curriculum that teaches what it means to be gender non-conforming can help to protect young children from guilt, bullying, and suicide.”
🧵H/T @bettylyons of @nbwomenscouncil
https://twitter.com/mamatoronto/status/1519123261556207617?s=21
🧵H/T @AmadorBatten
https://twitter.com/AmadorBatten/status/1588386743556149249?s=20&t=RcOXILa3xAi5RVF3Nk3TdQ
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