The Business Women of Moose Jaw celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) on March 8 with a luncheon featuring a local leader discussing how the group can “inspire inclusion” in society.
“International Women’s Day is very, very important for us at the (Moose Jaw) Transition House. This is an important day (and) this means a lot to us to celebrate this,” said Jenn Angus, executive director of the non-profit group.
Society officially recognized IWD in 1911, which featured more than one million women across the world attending rallies to support each other, she explained. These rallies focused on the right to work, to vote, to be educated and to hold public office.
The United Nations began celebrating this day in 1975, but it was only in 1996 that a theme was attached, with the first being “Celebrating the past, planning for the future.”
This year’s theme was “Inspire inclusion,” which Angus focused on during her presentation.
Inspire
Angus asked the businesswomen what inspired them, who has inspired them or continues to — mother, friend, mentor or business mentor — or what they aspired to be growing up.
“I find inspiration from women all the time because when I think of inspire, I think of who can make me a better version of myself,” she said, noting she wants to be like other women who display positive traits, characteristics, habits and behaviours.
Angus singled out community leader Christine Boyczuk as a mentor and role model because the former educator makes people feel like they are the most important person in the room.
Furthermore, the executive director praised the 20 women who work at Transition House, while she also commended the agency’s clients for being inspirational.
Angus recalled how one group of women came to the shelter with “hard stories” of abuse and how they “had been through hell.” However, one time, when she went to the kitchen, the group was baking cookies and laughing and joking.
“I said my goodbyes, I left, I got in my car and I sobbed. I just sobbed at the resilience that these women demonstrated … ,” she added.
Inclusion
Angus then asked how society could better include women, especially at work, at home, in politics, in government, in music, in sports and entertainment.
As “a pretty big nerd,” she appreciates how Hollywood’s Marvel Studios has been making more movies featuring women in prominent roles. She noted that she had only Disney princesses to see growing up in the 1980s.
Inclusion — particularly in government and employment — can mean different things to people because of where they are in life, Angus said. While women entering a shelter likely aren’t considering political office, the businesswomen were community pillars who could make a difference.
“We’ve made great strides since all those millions of women marched in 1911,” she stated, noting women are now considered persons, can compete in the Olympics, can vote, run for office and acquire a divorce like men.
Angus pointed to the Global Gender Gap Index, which rates 146 countries on the freedoms women have in economic participation, education, health and politics. While Canada ranked 30th, she said there is still inequality in leadership roles in business and government.
Statistics she presented show that women:
- Hold 36 per cent of management positions and 31 per cent of senior positions
- Hold 18 per cent of board member roles in corporations
- Hold four per cent of CEO positions in the largest traded companies
- Earn 89 cents for every $1 men make
Furthermore, the data show that 79 per cent of part-time workers are women, with most saying they work such jobs because they have children. In comparison, only three per cent of men working part-time say the same thing.
Barriers and biases
Also, women comprise 29 per cent of the House of Commons, 15 per cent of provincial premiers, 18 per cent of mayors and 28 per cent of municipal councillors.
“Maybe they don’t want to be in those leadership positions, right? That’s a thought. Maybe women just don’t want to be in those positions because it doesn’t interest them,” said Angus.
However, 86 per cent of women say they would become more involved politically if they saw another woman in such positions, she continued. Therefore, it’s easier to aspire to something if you can see others performing that role.
There are barriers and biases when women enter politics because they are treated differently than men, Angus said. She pointed to the 2016 U.S. presidential election, where the media judged male candidates on their policies and the female candidate on the clothing — pantsuits — she wore.
“That should never be a headline in a newspaper for a woman running to be president,” she remarked, noting she has also read degrading comments online about female political candidates in Moose Jaw.
Women make up more than half of the world’s population, so it’s neither just nor practical for their voices to go unheard at the highest decision-making levels, Angus said.
Abuse of women
Including women and offering them equity are important components toward ending gender-based violence, considering data shows women’s spouses murder them every six days in Canada, Angus said. In 2018, 44 per cent of women reported experiencing violence from their partners/spouses.
Moreover, on any given night, over 3,000 women and more than 2,700 children stay in shelters because home isn’t safe.
Saskatchewan holds “the unfortunate distinction” of having the highest rates of police-reported domestic abuse in Canada, at nearly double the national average, Angus said. Ninety per cent of victims are women who are prone to severe violence like choking and assault with a weapon.
“Inspiration and inclusion are belonging and empowerment … at our most basic level as individuals … ,” she continued.
With emotion in her voice, Angus read a thank-you card that a client sent after a stay at the shelter with her four kids. The woman — who is now in a healthy relationship — closed her card by saying, “Transition House saved my life and the lives of my babies, and for that, I will be forever grateful.”
Angus added that all women can make a difference and be mentors and role models in others’ lives without needing to be the mayor or president.
The next Business Women of Moose Jaw event is on Tuesday, April 16.
