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January 3, 2001
The Honourable Anne McLellan
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Room 707, Confederation Building
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A OA6
Dear Ms. McLellan:
I am writing to you today to urge the Government of Canada to adopt the
recommendation of the Canadian Human Rights Review Panel (CHRRP), in its
report, Promoting Equality: A New Vision (Department of Justice, June
2000), to add social condition to the prohibited grounds for discrimination
listed in the Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA). Our organization believes
strongly that this issue should be a priority for the new Government.
As the report concludes, prejudice against the poor is widespread and
systemic, based on characteristics related to social condition, such as
poverty, low education, homelessness and illiteracy. Examples of prejudice
are widespread in the media, and extend to questioning the moral worth
of welfare recipients, the motivation of parents to look after their children
and even their love for their children.
One of the most blatant and best known examples came when Premier Mike
Harris of Ontario cut a welfare supplement for pregnant beneficiaries,
saying ".. we're making sure those dollars don't go to the beer ..";
although he later apologized, the cuts were not reinstated. More recently,
his Government is proposing legislation to have social assistance granted
- conditional on recipients being declared drug free on mandatory tests.
This must be seen as an infringement of human rights by any reasonable
standards; yet the Premier apparently believes his legislation will not
contravene the CHRA. Action is urgently needed to ensure that such legislation
cannot be passed in Canada.
It is not only the provincial jurisdictions that are suspect. The CHRRP
report also found widespread discrimination in services provided at the
federal level, such as banking and telephone services or housing on Indian
Reserves.
This widespread discrimination occurs in Canada, judged by the United
Nations, in may respects, to be the best country in the world to live
in. Moreover, the government of Canada is a signator of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, which states: Everyone has a right to a standard
of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family,
including food, clothing, housing and medical care and social services
and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability,
widowhood, old age and other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond
his control.
Indeed, discrimination on the basis of social condition makes no economic
sense. It prevents people from participating in the economic and social
lives of their communities and contributing to their own rehabilitation.
For example, cutting off a welfare supplement from pregnant beneficiaries
increases the likelihood of low birth weight babies, which have many health
problems and difficulties in development, and are a real burden on the
health care system and social services.
The National Council of Women of Canada (NCWC) is very concerned about
the discrimination that is being practiced in Canada today, and urges
your government to amend the CHRA without delay to make social condition
a prohibited ground for discrimination.
NCWC was founded in 1893. It is a non-profit organization of women's groups
representing a large number of citizens of diverse occupation, language,
origin and culture, reflecting a cross-section of public opinion. NCWC
is composed of 20 local councils, five provincial councils, one study
group and 26 nationally organized societies.
NCWC policy is formulated by means of local council initiative. Policy
additions and changes are proposed, circulated and voted upon by the general
membership. Council members may speak only on existing policy when contacting
the government, the media and the public. Thus, this view is the united
voice of the federated membership of the National Council of Women of
Canada, which represents many thousands of women.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Hutchinson
President
National Council of Women of Canada
Cc: The Right Honourable Jean Chretien, Prime Minister;
The Honourable Allan Rock, Minister of Health;
The Honourable Jane Stewart, Minister of Human Resources;
The Honourable Alfonso Gagliano, Minister of Public Works and Government
Services;
The Honourable Hedy Fry, Secretary of State, Status of Women
Maria Neil, NCWC Convener Economics, President OCLCW
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