Toward a gender-neutral “O Canada”

imgresA group of prominent Canadian women have launched a campaign to make the English-language lyrics to Canada’s national anthem more gender-neutral, reports the BBC

“The group, which includes author Margaret Atwood and former Prime Minister Kim Campbell, objects to the line “in all thy sons command”.

“The women say a revision to O Canada’s lyrics would “encapsulate the equality of all Canadians”. In 2010, the government rejected a previous effort to change the words. The campaign, also backed by Senator Nancy Ruth and former Senator Vivienne Poy, calls on Canadians to encourage Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government to alter the official English lyrics to O Canada. They would change the line to “in all of us command”.

“The song was first performed in 1880, with several different versions of the lyrics emerging in the coming years, according to Canadian Heritage. The song took its current form in 1927, and was declared the nation’s official national anthem in 1980.

“The women say the English version of the song at one point contained the line “thou dost in us command”, with that line revised in 1913 to “in all thy sons command”. ‘Long overdue’ The proposed new lyrics coincide with the 100th anniversary of the revision and “have the same meaning” as the earlier version, the group, Restore Our Anthem said. “Restoring the anthem to reflect its original version is the simplest way to encapsulate the equality of all Canadians,” the group said on its website. Ms Atwood said the current official lyrics suggested “only male loyalty is being invoked”. “Restoring these lyrics to gender-neutral is not only an easy fix to make our anthem inclusive for all Canadians, but it’s also long overdue,” she told CBC News. The Canadian government, led by the Conservative Party, dismissed a similar request to change the anthem to more gender-neutral language in 2010. Continue reading “Toward a gender-neutral “O Canada””

Men’s underpants create art controversy

In a world where shorts are getting shorter, advertisements are getting racier, and pornography is just a few clicks away, the mere sight of a pair of men’s briefs isn’t usually controversial, reports the Tornoto Star

“A Queen’s University fine arts student found out that men’s underthings are apparently still too titillating to be put on display. At the end of April, David Woodward agreed to show his art at a university donor appreciation event. He said the event’s organizers gave him guidelines on the size of the work and how it was to be presented, but not on what the actual art could or could not consist of.images

“Woodward chose to display his project titled “All I Am is What I’ve Felt,” which consists of 10 pairs of men’s underwear embroidered with images, text or both, that are tacked onto a wall or a white board. The work is an examination of gender, sexuality and intimacy, he says.

“The 22-year-old student, who will graduate with a Bachelor of Fine Arts this month, said he chose to show that project because it was his final thesis work for the program, he believed it would inspire discussion, and because he is proud of it. Continue reading “Men’s underpants create art controversy”

Canada’s gender gap will close … in two centuries

Women in Canada are as healthy and educated as men, but gender equality plummets when it comes to economic and political opportunities, according to a new study, as reports the Tornoto Star.images-1

“Even though six of Canada’s provinces and territories have female premiers, women’s representation in politics and on corporate boards has grown by just 2.3 per cent in the past two decades, says the study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released Tuesday.

“At this rate, Canada will not close its gender gap for another 228 years,” said the report’s author Kate McInturff, “I won’t be alive to see it close and neither will my children or my grandchildren.”The study, based on methodology developed by the World Economic Forum, calculates the Canada’s overall performance in the areas of health, education, economics and politics since 1993.

“Canadian women are living longer and graduating from post-secondary education in greater numbers than men, the report notes. But once they graduate, “it all goes downhill,” McInturff said of women’s political and economic achievements. Continue reading “Canada’s gender gap will close … in two centuries”

Raising drinking costs saves lives

imgres-3Research published in Canada has linked the introduction of minimum pricing with a significant drop in alcohol-related deaths.

The findings, in the journal Addiction, were welcomed by health campaigners but they have been criticised as “misleading and inaccurate” by the drinks industry, which has questioned the statistical basis of the research, reports the BBC today

“The Scottish government’s plans to introduce a minimum unit price are on hold pending a court challenge. The researchers said a rise in alcohol prices of 10% had led to a 32% reduction in alcohol-related deaths. The Canadian study was carried out between 2002 and 2009 in British Columbia, where alcohol could only be sold directly to the public in government-owned stores. It suggests that, when drink prices rose, there were “immediate, substantial and significant reductions” in deaths wholly attributable to alcohol abuse. The authors suggest increasing the price of cheaper drinks reduces the consumption of heavier drinkers who prefer them.

“Dr Tim Stockwell, director of the University of Victoria’s Centre for Addictions Research of British Columbia, said: ‘This study adds to the scientific evidence that, despite popular opinion to the contrary, even the heaviest drinkers reduce their consumption when minimum alcohol prices increase. “It is hard otherwise to explain the significant changes in alcohol-related deaths observed in British Columbia.’ During the period under study, the law changed in Canada, permitting private liquor stores to open. A 10% growth in the number of such outlets was associated with an increase (2%) in all alcohol-related deaths. This is the first study to highlight the effects on mortality of alcohol minimum pricing, although the Scottish government has used previous research from the University of Sheffield to claim consumption of alcohol would be reduced if prices rose.”

 

Full story at BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-21358995