The efforts of a group called Niagara Women in Politics did make a difference in the 2018 municipal elections, says Shirley Cordiner, who led the grassroots organization.
Cordiner said the group’s seven members spent months leading up to the vote encouraging more women to run for office and supported the women who chose to put their names forward.
But in light of a new study being published next week by the Niagara Community Observatory (NCO) — a Brock University think-tank — Cordiner said the region could have used a few more organizations like hers.
The policy brief — called Gender Representation and Governance in Niagara, by NCO research co-ordinator Carol Phillips and Brock student wellness and accessibility centre director Sarah Pennisi — has again determined women in Niagara are not equitably represented on elected local councils.
The research found only 27 per cent of Niagara’s 126 elected positions were held by women, while women account for 51.6 per cent of Niagara’s population.
Even when the 1,220 advisory committees and local boards in the region are included, researchers found female participation still fell short, with 45.1 per cent representation.
Cordiner said the new study identified many of the same issues that inspired members of her organization to take action two years ago.
“Everyone identifies it, but then it’s, OK, now what are we going to do? That’s what’s difficult. Nothing seems to change,” she said.
Cordiner fears recent reports of misogyny some local female politicians have faced could push even more women away from politics rather than encouraging their participation.
Phillips said the policy brief cites gender-based media scrutiny and social media harassment as one reason women might opt against politics.
“I don’t think you need to be a female politician to understand that there’s harassment on Twitter,” she said.
“But having said that, when I see some of the responses to female politicians on Twitter, I hope they don’t read them. It’s not useful feedback, let’s put it that way.”
Cordiner said problems appear to be getting worse.
She represented Fort Erie on regional council a decade ago, at a time before social media became as prominent as it is today. At that time, she said, phone calls she received were about issues being dealt with — not “about what I looked like, what I did or what I didn’t do.”
“That’s part of the problem, this unknown person posts something on Facebook or whatever,” Cordiner said. “When I was in politics you picked up the phone and I could deal with it.”
Phillips said other pressures that have kept women out of political office are conflicting work schedules, family responsibilities, time and money spent campaigning, and a lack of political confidence.
“So much of it is based on a patriarchal society that we’re still trying to overcome — that women are still predominantly the main caregivers for their children. They’re still, in a dual-income household, the lesser of the two incomes,” she said. “There’s still so much for women to overcome.”
Phillips said addressing the gender disparity in Niagara will take a “really concerted effort” to recruit women.
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“But even women who are recruited, they might say, ‘Thanks, I’m flattered, but I can make this world a better place without getting yelled at,’” she added.
Cordiner said the disparity will require “a whole cultural change” to resolve, “but it needs to happen.”
The policy brief contains several recommendations to address some of the issues women face when considering entering politics, including a review and potential Niagara-wide expansion of the Seat at the Table initiative — a six-month mentorship program that ended in June developed by Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce and City of St. Catharines, to develop a gender-based analysis for all policy recommendations in the region, and focused recruitment efforts to ensure appointed committees and boards have representation from both men and women.
