The feminists have been putting forward a no-holds barred campaign in order to induce the politicians into believing that there is no single, more powerful group than women and no issue (not even that of unemployment) more important.
The feminists are attempting to intimidate the politicians into believing that women are powerful, legitimate voting block. This is not so. Feminist policies do not now and never will have the support of the majority of women.
There is no “women’s vote”
Politicians should know that there is no such thing as a women’s vote, any more than there is a men’s vote. Women vote and think according their social and economic backgrounds, not according to their sex. The latest Gallup Polls in Canada confirm that there is no perceptible gender vote (and there never has been historically). The lack of difference in voting patterns between men and women came into sharp focus at the recent Liberal Leadership Convention.
Never before in the history of any Canadian political party have women accounted for such a large share of the vote. More than 1,500 of the 3,500 delegates were women, and a deliberate effort was made to mold these members into an effective voting block – but that effort failed.
Not a factual boast
The leading feminist organization in Canada, the National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC) boasts that some 275 women’s organizations are its affiliates and that it, therefore, speaks for 3,000,000 women across the country.
In addition, the feminists are fielding some of their own candidates. Lucie Pepin, just retired president of the Federal Advisory Council on the Status of Women and former president of Planned Parenthood Quebec, is running for the Liberals in the absolutely secure riding of Outremont – Marc Lalonde’s former riding. June Rowlands is running in Toronto. Iona Campagnolo is running in Vancouver. Margaret Mitchell, is running in Vancouver East.
If these women are elected, the pro-abortionists will have a strong platform from which to promote and influence government policy.
NAC has intimidated the three party leaders to enter into a televised national debate on August 15, 1984.
REAL Women of Canada wrote to the three party leaders, their national campaign managers and directors of policy in their concerns. In our letter, we stated that the policies of NAC are not now – and never have been – the views of the majority of women of Canada.
The letter also stated that, “By entering into a debate with this organization (NAC) on issues determined by NAC, the party leaders will be debating issues with a bias that is not representative of the approach most women take on these issues.”
Not the views
We also rejected NAC’s claim that it speaks for 3,000,000 women which make up the 275 groups that the latter counts as its affiliates. We said that the members of these groups frequently do not accept NAC”s policies, and, in fact, often are not even aware of many of its policies. Such policies as universal day care, unrestricted prostitution and its position on pornography, no-fault divorce, etc., we added, are not the views of the women NAC claims to represent – nor are they the views of the majority of women in Canada.
These politicians must know that the feminists’ agenda does not represent the grassroots of Canada. We do not want our politicians capitulating to the anti-family, anti-life ideology of pro-abortionists. They must know that there is a very strong pro-life voice that will not tolerate this pandering to a handful of extremist feminists.
It would be very much appreciated, therefore, if you could let your candidate know that there is a strong, determined voice for life and family that will not be usurped by a handful of feminists.
In addition, please write to the office of the three political parties listed below:
Liberal Party of Canada
102 Bank St.,
Ottawa, Ont.
K1P 5N4
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada,
161 Laurier Ave. West
Ottawa, Ont.
K1P 5J2
New Democratic Party of Canada,
301 Metcalfe St.,
Ottawa, Ont.
K2P 1R9
Grace Petrasek is president of REAL Women of Canada.