Tonight I attended a panel hosted by the Ottawa chapter of Equal Voice. EV is an amazing organization that looks to get more women elected in all levels of government in Canada. They look to mentor and help women of any party who are looking to get involved. This evening's panel focused on making politics a sustainable endeavor for all those involved, and it discussed a book that was recently published called "Tragedy in the commons: Former members of parliament speak out about Canada's failing democracy." The panel consisted of Alison Loat, one of the authors; Marlene Catterall, one of the former MP's who was interviewed for the book; Jinny Sims, a current NDP MP; and Elizabeth May, a current MP and leader of the Green party.
One of the things that struck me immediately, was how well they had done in getting a diverse group of women together. You might think that all women who were or are MP's would have similar views about parliament and the house of commons, but this was not true at all. Here you had a woman who was an MP in the early 2000's, a woman who was currently an MP for the official opposition, a woman who was the head of a party that had only 2 elected members, and a woman who had interviewed dozens of women who were previous MP's. They all had experienced various things in their time in Government, and often contradicted each other. Some mentioned they had experienced or seen sexism, others had not. Some thought it was doable with young children, others did not. Some viewed their experiences as very positive and fulfilling, others not so much.
To start everything off, MP Lisa Raitt made some interesting observations. She said that people should not assume that all women who are MPs and have children are in the same situation. She pointed out that being an MP and having two toddlers is much different than being an MP and having two teenagers. She also said that it was very important to get women involved in elections at all levels, including in things such as minor hockey councils. It's about getting them to run, build their confidence and get involved.
The last thing I'll mention is the book. The authors said that although they interviewed approximately 80 former MPs, they all painted a very consistent picture of the house of commons. Most indicated that it was a poor work environment, and that they were wholly unprepared. Interestingly, they saved the biggest barbs for their own parties. I put some links below, if you want to check out Equal Voice or the book. Enjoy!
EV: http://www.equalvoice.ca/index.cfm
Tragedy in the Commons: http://www.randomhouse.ca/books/217230/tragedy-in-the-commons-by-alison-loat-and-michael-macmillan
