Dissertation on Feminism

Feminist thought and action has evolved quite dramatically over the past century. What was once a struggle to achieve equal political rights, such as voting rights for women, has become a more wide-ranging set of goals to achieve equality between men and women in all realms. Over the past four decades, feminist thought has diversified into three rather distinct groups: liberal feminism, Marxist feminism and radical feminism. Each espouses equality for women, although each sees the roots of gender inequality and the necessary remedies differently. There have been many landmark victories in the struggle of feminism, but the battle is far from over. Even in the major political parties in Canada today, roadblocks still exist. When employing a liberal feminist perspective, it is clear that many of the Canadian Alliance's social and economic policies are contradictory to the aims of feminism. A major problem with the party's policies is its support for the "traditional family", which has historically contributed to the gender gap. Also, the absence of gender equity policies limits the degree to which woman are able to achieve equality. Finally, the Canadian Alliance's strong opposition to publicly funded programs such as national daycare may decrease the chances for women to break free of a male-dominated society.

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Liberal feminism is perhaps the least ambitious of the branches of feminism. As Dickerson and Flanagan state, the liberal branch of feminist thought focuses on equality of rights, or the extension of men's rights to women. [1] Unlike other branches of feminism, liberal feminism focuses mainly on achieving equality through legislation and political action, and it does not include many of the biological arguments presented in other strains of thought such as radical feminism. The liberal feminist approach focuses on re-working legislation and bringing about innovation in policies in order to change societal institutions such that women can play an equal role alongside men. [2] Given this brief description of the main aspects of liberal feminism, it is possible now to discuss the ways in which the policies of the Canadian Alliance Party of Canada run contrary to feminist goals.

One of the themes running through Canadian Alliance policy documents is the importance of the family to society. This may be true, but the Alliance makes it evident that what is meant by family is the "traditional" family. Historically, the traditional family has been understood as one in which the male of the household is the dominant figure, while the mother is a nurturer, looking after the non-economic needs of the household and children. The Canadian Alliances constitution states:

We believe that the family is the essential building block of a healthy society, and the primary mechanism by which Canadians pass on their values and beliefs to the next generation; and that because of this unique importance, the family must be strengthened and protected from unnecessary intrusions by government. [3]

Although this statement does not directly refer to maintaining the traditional role of a female within the family, it is implied. Due to the fact that Alliance policies are rooted in the notion of a traditional family, the option of creating a more equal system is overlooked.

The Alliance's policy of maintaining the family as an integral part of their platform suggests their desire to maintain the patriarchal relationship that has existed in families for many years. In a male-dominated, patriarchal system, as is the traditional family, women lose many of the privileges accorded to equal individuals. Because of this inherent loss of equality, party policies that foster this idea of the family only serve to maintain the disadvantageous position of women in society. Feminist writers Susan Alice Watkins and Marisa Rueda write, "if you grew up with hopes of equality and a career, it can be traumatic to find yourself stuck at home with a baby." [4] Instead of maintaining this major disadvantage to women, policies could be reworked to take the equality of women into consideration. Charlotte Bunch has said,

Power is based on gender differences" men's illegitimate power over women taints all aspects of society... we now face the arduous task of systematically working through these idea, fleshing them out and discovering new ones. [5]

Bunch believes that the entire system must be reviewed and changes made where needed to ensure the equality of women is guaranteed. One way in which the traditional role of women in the family can be changed is through public policy innovations that encourage true equality between men and women in the economic realm. [6]

Nowhere in the Canadian Alliance's policies is there a plan to implement new public policies, or even to consider them. One common belief of feminists is the notion that economic freedom is necessary to achieving real equality for men and women. Betty Friedan, a feminist and American journalist, believes,

There is only one way for women to reach full human potential by participating in the mainstream of society, by exercising their own voice in all the decisions shaping that society. For women to have full identity and freedom, they must have economic independence. [7]

Yet because of the continuation of the traditional family, economic freedom is difficult to achieve as it would necessarily involve changes in gender roles within the family. Such changes would mean that both men and women would work outside the home while sharing the tasks of housework and childcare. [8] Beyond just a change in gender roles, government also can implement policies which help to make this possible. For example, government can provide free childcare facilities, child benefits and maternity benefits. The Canadian Alliance's policies and platform offer none of these, however. One example of the Canadian Alliance's unwillingness to provide programs that would ease the burdens of the working female is their fight to prevent the establishment of a national, affordable and reliable daycare system.

In 1999, the issue of implementing a national daycare program came onto the agenda of the House of Commons with the support of the Liberal government. This policy was to be a joint venture with the provinces to provide a national daycare system that would ensure childcare for children nation-wide and relieve pressures on working mothers. The Canadian Alliance strongly denounced this proposal, however. Eric Lowther, the children and family policy critic for the Alliance stated in a press release,

Recent reports indicate that the federal government [Liberal] wants to spend hundreds of millions of dollars [2.2 billion over three years] on a national day-care program. This is the wrong approach. It says Ottawa will make choices for parents rather than giving them freedom for a wide range of child care choices. [9]

This policy of the Canadian Alliance, to reject child caring programs as well as other publicly funded programs, implies that it remains the role of women in the family to care for children and no assistance will be given to change this situation. Without offering policies that enable women to gain economic independence, however, women will be unable to achieve their full potential.

Another problem in the Canadian Alliance's policies is their plan to eliminate equal opportunity employment programs. The Alliance does not offer any gender equity programs that would help to ensure and promote the hiring and better payment of women. The policies of the Canadian Alliance state that there should be no regulations on access to the labor force, such as equal opportunity employment, affirmative action or gender equity practices. The Alliance's polices state,

We will encourage the entrepreneurial sector by eliminating unnecessary regulations and minimizing government interference in the labor market, including the elimination of discriminatory hiring and promotion policies for federally regulated employees. Every job shall go to the most qualified applicant without use of affirmative action or any other type of discriminatory quota system. [10]

Such regulations and government "interferences" the Canadian Alliance deems unnecessary, but they are in fact crucial to ensuring that women are guaranteed an opportunity to work, however how minimal that guarantee might be. Government intervention and regulation is the only way to force employers to accept women as equal counterparts to men in the workplace. [11] The Canadian Alliance fails to recognize that women are treated unequally in the hiring process and that safeguards must be put in place to prevent this.

Since the creation of the Canadian Alliance in 2000, the party's policies have been the topic of much controversy. From a liberal feminist perspective, the policies of the Canadian Alliance run counter to the principles of feminism. The Alliance focuses a large portion of their policies on the preservation of the "traditional family," though it has been the traditional family that has held women back for years. The Canadian Alliance also fails to address the fact that there is a need for assisting families in caring for children through publicly supported programs. An example of the Alliance's neglect of this need is their failure to support a national daycare program. Moreover, the Canadian Alliance's policies pose a threat to many of the government supported protections that ensure equal opportunity employment and gender equity practices. Today more than ever, women have gained a stronger foothold in their struggle to overcome a male-dominated society, yet the Canadian Alliance retains many of the policies and beliefs that woman have struggled to overcome. One of the Canadian Alliance's major themes is the modernization of society, yet many of their social policies show little to no evolution from those of fifty years ago.

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