On October 16 and 17, in Saskatoon a new pro-family women’s organization, Victorious Women of Canada, will have their annual national convention. Guest speakers will be Beverly LaHaye of Concerned Women for America and Dr. Alex Kindy MP for Calgary East.
The convention theme is “Education for Action.” There will be workshops on daycare, sexual orientation legislation, pay equity, parental choice in education, the family versus the state, pornography, and the abortion-feminism connection. Mrs. LaHaye will speak on how homemakers can affect legislation; and Dr. Kindy will discuss tax-funded lobby groups which promote communism at home and abroad.
All the convention activities and workshops will be based on the objectives of the group, which are to promote Judeo-Christian values, uphold the family as the most important institution in society, defend human life from conception to natural death, and to defend Canada as an independent country whose economy is best served by the free-enterprise system.
Organizers say the convention is open to men and women who care about the family and the freedom of Canada. It is designed to make participants more effective leaders in pro-family action.
Victorious Women was formed in Saskatoon in May, and is the second national pro-family women’s group in Canada. Plans are to operate a network of local groups, whose elected presidents will work on provincial executives, and whose provincial presidents will serve on the national executive.
Grass roots
Chairman of the steering committee, Gay Caswell, says the group believes that the most effective lobbying and education is done at the local level where constituents influence their local elected representatives at the civic, provincial and federal levels. Local and provincial groups will set priorities for action consistent with their local situation and the goals of the organization.
Victorious Women will not apply for government funding of the organization. While welcoming (and needing) individual donations to help the group get off the ground, they believe that organizations who accept government funding cease to look for growth and grassroots involvement.
According to Caswel, “You naturally want to please the group that feeds you. If the bureaucracy has certain expectations, an the membership has other expectations, thee is a conflict of interests.
“The feminist women’s movement has become dependent on government money and has very much entrenched itself in the bureaucracy, especially in Ottawa but also in provincial capitals. They have enormous influence in legislation and in departmental policy. Since their agenda is essentially a statist or socialistic agenda, they are one reason why even ‘conservative’ governments tilt to the left once in power,” she say.
“Politicians mistakenly believe that they will lose the women’s vote if they don’t do what the feminists want,” says Caswell, who is a former member of the provincial legislature.
Accountability
“It’s going to be the job of Victorious Women members to remind the politicians they are hired and fired by the folks back home, and, to a great extent, those folks don’t want the feminist goals.”
In Saskatchewan, chapters of Victorious Women have already been formed and are hard at work on various issues. Saskatoon Victorious Women have researched the proposed federal pornography legislation and have reservations about supporting it.
“The exemption for offending material if it has medical, educational or artistic merit is just too broad,” points out Bernadette Mysko, an executive member.
“Also”, she says, “I can’t understand why Justice Minister Ray Hnatyshyn has chosen to legalize abortion and abortifacient advertising, thus adding more controversy to contentious bill and splitting the bill’s allies.”
“Mr. Hnatyshyn made his views on abortion abundantly clear when he voted against Gus Mitges’ pro-life motion. We are having a difficult time believing that the deletion is merely clearing up a redundancy in the Criminal Code, as the Justice department would like us to believe.
All those interested in the goals of Victorious Women are invited to contact the organization for more information. Membership fees are $10. and donations are warmly welcomed.
The October convention will be held at the Ramada Renaissance in Saskatoon, with workshops at the University of Saskatchewan. The convention fee of $50.00, includes membership in the organization and admission to the two banquets scheduled. Banquet admission only is $15.00 per person.
