Misogyny in politics is not an all or nothing problem: Ioannoni | Canada News Media
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Misogyny in politics is not an all or nothing problem: Ioannoni

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Just because some women feel they haven’t faced misogyny in politics doesn’t mean the problem doesn’t exist, says Niagara Falls city Coun. Carolynn Ioannoni.

The veteran politician said she’s “very glad” four former female councillors who wrote an Oct. 20 letter to council saying they were not treated any different because of their gender by their male counterparts feel that way.

“I am very glad that that was the experiences for these four women. We would never want any other woman to face the issues that many of us in politics feel we’re facing today,” said Ioannoni.

“I don’t have any right to talk about or criticize their opinion or what they believe their lived experiences would be. I thought they would have had the same courtesy for those of us who participated in that article and shown the same kind of respect, maybe a little bit of compassion.”

Former councillors Shirley Fisher, Joyce Morocco, Paisley Janvary-Pool and Selina Volpatti signed a letter sent to Niagara Falls city council about their experiences sitting around the table over the years.

The women said they “did not feel unsafe, disrespected or alienated by gender” by their male counterparts during the several decades they spent in politics.

The letter was in response to recent comments made in a local newspaper by the two current female city councillors in Niagara Falls — Ioannoni and Lori Lococo. The seven other members, including the mayor, are male.

Ioannoni and Lococo were quoted in a Sept. 3 story in Niagara This Week titled “#HerSay: Cracking the ‘old boys club’ at Niagara Falls council.” It was part of a series on gender and politics in Niagara.

 

In the story, Ioannoni commented on her 23 years on council and her numerous run-ins with male councillors and mayors.

“Misogyny is alive and well in Niagara politics,” she is quoted, adding “it’s hard being on an old boys’ club council in Niagara Falls.”

Lococo, elected in 2018, said in the story “some lines have been crossed regarding respect and decorum because I’m a woman.”

At the Oct. 6 meeting, council approved a motion by Coun. Victor Pietrangelo for an “outside opinion” on whether council’s code of conduct was violated.

Ioannoni said the series opened a discussion that was “long overdue,” adding several women were quoted about their experiences in politics.

Ioannoni said she has received “many” letters of support from the community since being quoted in the story, and against council’s decision to look into whether comments broke the code of conduct.

Lococo said it’s important for everyone to “share their experiences and we should value them and learn from them.”

“I think that cultures, timing, situations can change, so I can only comment on my experiences,” she said.

Volpatti said she wrote the letter, adding the initiative was driven by the women, not any outside pressure, with Morocco adding the women felt it was important to share their lived experiences in politics.

“We had a lot of arguments while I was on council … with all of them, but they were never personalized, they were always about the issue,” said Volpatti.

Morocco said accusations about misogyny doesn’t just call into question a councillor’s political integrity, but also their personal and professional standing.

“I know it is in a lot of areas that women are experiencing inappropriate behaviour by men, and I’m not going to discredit that at all. But in this situation, c’mon, let’s look at the writing on the wall,” she said, pointing to Ioannoni’s involvement in seven of nine integrity commissioner investigations since 2015, costing taxpayers $273,741.

 

“Now, all of a sudden after how many years has this seasoned, female councillor been there with those men and now it’s OK to start saying, ‘Oh, I’ve been mistreated horribly?’”

Janvary-Pool said she was asked if she would read and sign the letter, adding “I certainly felt the same way.”

“We all worked together. We worked for the good of the city,” she said of her experience as a councillor.

“If (Ioannoni) is in trouble, it’s her own making. That’s her own interpretation, that’s not the rest of us. We never had any problems.”

Fisher said she received a phone call from Morocco, and also had a discussion about the issue with Janvary-Pool.

“When I was on council, we didn’t have this type of issue that they’re having, so-called, now,” said Fisher.

 

“I had no difficulties with anyone on council — man or woman. The years I was there, there’s always someone you don’t agree with, but that does not mean we get into any kind of a (personal) issue. We just moved on and did our work.”

— With files from John Law

 

Source:- NiagaraFallsReview.ca

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‘Disgraceful:’ N.S. Tory leader slams school’s request that military remove uniform

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.

Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.

A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”

Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.

“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.

In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”

“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”

Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.

Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.

Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.

“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.

“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.

“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”

Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.

“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”

“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Saskatchewan NDP’s Beck holds first caucus meeting after election, outlines plans

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REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.

Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.

She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.

Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.

Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.

The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Nova Scotia election: Liberals say province’s immigration levels are too high

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.

Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.

“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.

“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”

The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.

In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.

“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”

In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.

“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”

Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.

Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.

“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”

In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.

In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.

“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”

Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.

“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”

The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.

“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.

“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

— With files from Keith Doucette in Halifax

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