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A national tempest about a report from Status of Women Canada

Sisyphe | 21.06.2003 00:44 | Gender | World

Some English-Canadian newspapers are claiming that a report published by Status of Women Canada, « School Success by Gender : A Catalyst for Masculinist Discourse », sets up a "black-list" of men's organizations. The study's Project Director responds to critics.

"Feminists, masculinists, blacklists", reads a front-page "National Post" story on June 5, 2003, with the claim made in the very first line of the article that the report's authors have produced "an enemies list". The "Ottawa Citizen" of June 2, 2003 had started the ball rolling with the ominous warning that "Censoring men won't make women equal", and the June 9, 2003 edition of the "Vancouver Sun" went on to claim that "Feminists use tax dollars to assault 'masculinist'". In the "Fox News" edition of June 6, 2003, Wendy McElroy wrote an article entitled "Gender Issues Impacted by Masculinists". Not hesitating to pick up on these critics' distortions and questionable amalgams, Canadian Alliance MP Betty Hinton echoed their words in Parliament, on June 5, deploring that public funds had been wasted on "a project that is a poorly-disguised attack on men and the family unit."

The report that produced this national tempest, « School Success by Gender : A Catalyst for Masculinist Discourse», reflects an extensive research project conducted by three Laval University scholars, Pierrette Bouchard, Isabelle Boily and Marie-Claude Proulx. Their study investigates the advocacy discourse focussing on boys and men during the decade between 1990 and 2000, as reported in the Canadian and the international press. The heart of this research therefore lies in the treatment of school achievement gaps between boys and girls by the national and international press. Canadian magazines and the daily newspapers published in Canada, France, the U.S.A., Australia and Great Britain provided the basic study material. Exacting content analysis by the researchers reveals an ideology that aims to challenge the gains made by women and to discredit feminism. The three authors propose to deconstruct social perceptions according to which only boys experience problems at school.

A critique targeting amalgams and generalizations, not journalists

One can only wonder whether media pundits and the Official Opposition have read the work they are lambasting or whether they have simply allowed themselves to surf on the antifeminist backlash much in evidence these last few months in Quebec and Canada media circles.

In an interview given to Sisyphe in mid-June, the study's Project Director, Pierrette Bouchard, who also holds the Claire-Bonenfant Chair for Research on the Status of Women at Laval University (Quebec, Canada), called these criticisms unjustified.

« A report from Status of Women Canada about the discursive denial of gender inequalities ». Pierrette Bouchard, the study's Project Director, responds to critics. Interview on Sisyphe. 

Full story.

French version.


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responce on SOW

24.01.2004 01:01

According to the Status of Women Canada, they say it is committed to ensuring that all research produced through the Policy Research Fund meets the highest methodological, ethical and professional standards. Each paper is anonymously reviewed by specialists in the field and comments are solicited on the: accuracy, completeness and timeliness of the information presented; extent to which the analysis and recommendations are supported by the methodology used and the data collected; and original contributions the report would make to existing work on this subject and its usefulness to equality-seeking organizations, advocacy communities, government policy makers, researchers and other target audiences.
Status of Women Canada thanks those who contribute to this peer review process. Hog wash..

The Status of Women and the angry feminist authors of the report, with the hit list are being sued for slander in the Supreme Court of B.C. Canada. One should note also that the Federal Liberal government had removed it's hit list off the Status of women's website. as well as other pages they did have listed. Why because the government knew it made a big mistake in slandering good men, fathers and falsely calling them, using the radical feminist lies such as extreme right, pedophiles, pornographers, which I know for fact, is nothing but an out right lie, that the court will deal with in correcting very fast, and that will cost them big time in the courts for their hate in this trashy report called School Success by Gender: A Catalyst for the Masculinist Discourse Which is nothing but a Slanderous and pure Hate report that is directed at the Male gender -

This garbage that is coming out of Laval University in Quebec, is Quebec's tragedy , and by its angry authors, "Pierrette Bouchard, Isabelle Boily and Marie-Claude Proulx", only proves the kind of hate these people promote in this Laval University that does nothing for women at all. I am one person who is not or will not let these people abuse my children. "There is no question now, after reading this hate report, that I have very little patience for radical, angry man hating feminists, especially the radical variety of feminism here in Canada,". "But I have a wife, I have daughter and sons, that I raise. This notion that because fathers are opposed to the feminists' political agenda, that somehow equates to a dislike of women, is just propaganda and a smear campaign." "All I've ever done, is advocate for equal parenting. The overzealous portrayal of women and children as victims and males as perpetrators has served a political agenda for women's groups, demonizing fathers while obtaining insatiable amounts of government and public funding, which in turn is used for the purpose of manipulating politicians and financing political parties, delivering very little in terms of service and support to victims.

The recognition of this and the destructive end result of anti-family and anti-male sentiments clearly evident in the actions of the women's organizations finds those with social insight and valid concerns labeled as misogynists in yet another emotionally manipulative attempt to use the "victim" sympathy tool to prevent their anti-social activities from being publicly exposed. It is nothing but male bashing.

Mark G. Hansel
mail e-mail: mhansel@fathers.ca
- Homepage: http://www.fathers.ca


A Responce to the SOW report

24.01.2004 01:14

According to the Status of Women Canada, they say it is committed to ensuring that all research produced through the Policy Research Fund meets the highest methodological, ethical and professional standards. Each paper is anonymously reviewed by specialists in the field and comments are solicited on the: accuracy, completeness and timeliness of the information presented; extent to which the analysis and recommendations are supported by the methodology used and the data collected; and original contributions the report would make to existing work on this subject and its usefulness to equality-seeking organizations, advocacy communities, government policy makers, researchers and other target audiences.
Status of Women Canada thanks those who contribute to this peer review process. Hog wash..

The Status of Women and the angry feminist authors of the report, with the hit list are being sued for slander in the Supreme Court of B.C. Canada. One should note also that the Federal Liberal government had removed it's hit list off the Status of women's website. as well as other pages they did have listed. Why because the government knew it made a big mistake in slandering good men, fathers and falsely calling them, using the radical feminist lies such as extreme right, pedophiles, pornographers, which I know for fact, is nothing but an out right lie, that the court will deal with in correcting very fast, and that will cost them big time in the courts for their hate in this trashy report called School Success by Gender: A Catalyst for the Masculinist Discourse Which is nothing but a Slanderous and pure Hate report that is directed at the Male gender -

This garbage that is coming out of Laval University in Quebec, is Quebec's tragedy , and by its angry authors, "Pierrette Bouchard, Isabelle Boily and Marie-Claude Proulx", only proves the kind of hate these people promote in this Laval University that does nothing for women at all. I am one person who is not or will not let these people abuse my children. "There is no question now, after reading this hate report, that I have very little patience for radical, angry man hating feminists, especially the radical variety of feminism here in Canada,". "But I have a wife, I have daughter and sons, that I raise. This notion that because fathers are opposed to the feminists' political agenda, that somehow equates to a dislike of women, is just propaganda and a smear campaign." "All I've ever done, is advocate for equal parenting. The overzealous portrayal of women and children as victims and males as perpetrators has served a political agenda for women's groups, demonizing fathers while obtaining insatiable amounts of government and public funding, which in turn is used for the purpose of manipulating politicians and financing political parties, delivering very little in terms of service and support to victims.

The recognition of this and the destructive end result of anti-family and anti-male sentiments clearly evident in the actions of the women's organizations finds those with social insight and valid concerns labeled as misogynists in yet another emotionally manipulative attempt to use the "victim" sympathy tool to prevent their anti-social activities from being publicly exposed. It is nothing but male bashing.

Mark G. Hansel
mail e-mail: mhansel@fathers.ca
- Homepage: http://www.fathers.ca