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Kinesis
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*f Subscribers please see page 7 J July/August 1987 KINESIS ^^News About Women That's Not In The Dallies i_ SUBMISSIONS: All s missions are welcome. | reserve the right to edit i and submission does not guarantee publication. All submissions should be typed double spaced and must be signed and Include an address and phone number. Please note that Kinesis does~not accept po- | etry or fiction contrlbu- j tlons. For material to be re- I turned, a SASE must be Included. Editorial guidelines are available on request. ADVERTISING: For lnfor- | matlon about display ad- ' vertlslng rates, please con- | tact Kinesis For Information about classifieds, please see the classified page In this Issue. DEADLINE: For features and reviews the 10th of the month preceding publication; news copy, 15th; letters and Bulletin Board listings, 18th. Display advertising: camera ready, 18th; design required, 12th. Kinesis Is published 10 times a year by the Vancouver Status of Women. sexism, rac- jphobla and imperialism. Views expressed in Kinesis are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect VSW policy. All unsigned material Is the responsibility of the Kinesis Editorial Board. Eva Kupczynski (fibre) artist 21 INSIDE 0& fomen's program Review supports equality goals 3 Customs seizes feminist books 4 Prochoice victories in hospital elections 5 Saskatchewan: Conservative government slashes services . 6 Philippines: forced female boxing protested 8 erence a first for Latin American lesbians 9 by Kim Irving Women and community economic development 12 by Deborah Prieu'r Legal victory: lesbians together "in sickness and in health" 13 by Barbara Findlay Reproductive technology: Will the real mother please stand up 14 by Pat Feindel Women's studies: the challenge continues 16 by Margo Dunn First Peoples Conference 17 by Ezzell rolk festival preview 19 by Karen Shave Eva Kupczynski: (fibre) artist 21 by Jill Pollack Women and Jazz: The joint is jumping 22 by Carolyn Bell Press Gang: Live at the American Booksellers Association . 23 by Delia McCreary 'ĢfiBffflrifif Movement Matters 2 In Other Worlds 20 Letters 24 Bulletin Board 25 by Jody McMurray CORRESPONDENCE^^ Kinesis, Vancouver Status of Women, 4.00A West 5th Ave., Vancouver, B.C. V5Y 1J8. Kinesis Is a member of the Canadian Periodicals Publishers Association. ^TVDeseulna^and^camera work by Baseline Type and Graphics Cooperative and Marlon and Sarah. Laser printing by Vancouver Desktop Publishing Printing oy Webb Press Graphics. Second class mall #6426 mm j Jul/Aug '87 1 Movement Matters LIL needs volunteers LIL The Lesbian Information Line (LEL) is in a desperate situation. The LIL collective is down to three women who are responsible for answering the LIL phone lines two nights a week as well as all the other important work that goes with running a volunteer organization. LIL, an institution in the Vancouver lesbian community, has been working since the mid 70's assisting women in coming out as lesbians, in dealing with family, friends, lovers and children. LIL is a resource that provides anonymity to isolated women who have no one to turn to. Whether a caller lives in Vancouver or Nelson, LIL has helped hundreds of women. LIL is appealing to the lesbian community for caring, collective minded feminist lesbians to come and volunteer with LIL. Volunteers with some experience with counselling and referral work are requested but training will be provided for all. A commitment of a one year term is also preferred. If you are interested please call Kate at 732-0786 or write LIL, 400 A West 5th, Vancouver, B.C. V5Y 1J8. Labour posters Labour history The Vancouver Centennial Labour Committee has produced a series of six art posters which explore labour issues and are intended as a visually powerful reminder of issues such as Immigrant Workers' Rights, Technological Change, The Right to Organize, Equal Pay and others. Poster artists included Billie Carroll, Craig Condy-Berggold, Ken Hughes, Carol Moi- seiwitsch, Fred Peter and Susan Stewart. Funds from the posters will be reinvested in further art projects oriented to working people and in labour history research and writing. The poster series was financed by federal and municipal governments and the B.C. Government Employees' Union. Artists' fees were paid by individual unions. Posters are available in sets or individually. Sets cost $25 unemployed, $40 employed, $75 for institutions plus a $5 handling charge. Individual posters are $8. To order, write The Vancouver and District Labour Council, Suite 300, 33 East 8th Avenue, Vancouver, B.C. V5T 1R6. For further information call Sara Diamond, 254- 5210 or Bill Darnell, 437- 0678. Successful conference The most successful B.C. Regional Lesbian/Gay Conference ever, number four was held at the University of British Columbia in May. The Conference Organizing Committee focused on issues surrounding accessibility to in a change from past conferences which primarily focused on the concerns of white, middle-class men. Realizing that financial constraints had often prevented people from attending the conference a sliding scale was introduced for registration. An opening political issues panel featuring Kevin Brown (PWA), Bet Cecill (VLC), Sara Diamond (CRTV) and Svend Robinson (NDP-MP). The issues were: concerns of Persons With AIDS; combatting R.E.A.L. Women; Censorship Legislation; and Sexual Orientation Legislation. Registration alone met the expenses and sor the money raised from the dance enabled the conference to make a large dona tion to the Persons With AIDS Coalition, Lesbians of Colour and the Gay/Lesbian Food Bank. While the sliding scale was taken advantage of by the majority of the conference participants, the conference was accessible in ways other than financial, including a signer f:>r the hearing impaired and cliild- care for all events. Tangible outcomes of the conference were: an ongoing group for political action fronted by F.A.G.S., $200 dollars and increased awareness for the Gail Bezaire Legal Defence Fund and telegrams concerning sexual orientation legislation and censorship legislation sent to Brian Mulroney and various Members of Parliament. The conference lacked representation by self-identifying men of colour and the disabled. A more concerted effort must be made in the future to include the disabled and people of colour from the planning stagej onward. Also, there was very little representation from groups outside of the lower mainland. More active liaison with groups throughout the province is needed in the future. Disabled awareness Disabled Cities and towns across British Columbia are being asked to declare September 12, Disabled Awareness Day by the British Columbia coalition of the Disabled (BCCD). The BCCD is promoting the day of recognition on behalf of its Moving into the Marketplace: Disabled Consumers campaign. BCCD wants local municipalities to plan special projects to mark their commitment to improving conditions for disabled people. Suggestions include anything from implementing an affirmative action policy for employing disabled workers to conducting educational programs to making a local recreation centre 100 percent accessible. Local areas are also urged to hold a special event on Disabled Awareness Day to raise funds for a local self help or advocacy group for disabled people. The Moving into the Marketplace campaign commenced last March and focuses on transportation, accessibility to the marketplace and recreational facilities and highlights the potential of disabled and elderly people as consumers. If you want to support the BCCD and contribute to better employment and living conditions for disabled people write your local mayor and alderpeople urging their support for the BCCD campaign. For more information about the awareness campaign contact Geoff McMurchy or Shirley Masuda at 875-0188 during regular office hours or write the BCCD at 203A-456 West Broadway, Vancouver, B.C. V5Y 1R3. Legal resources on video Resources A new ninety-six page booklet on Women and the Law has been produced by the The video is produced on high quality one half inch betacam and is available in VHS, Beta or three quarter cassette. Purchase price is $85 for VHS and Beta tapes and $110 for three quarter inch. The VHS and the three quarter inch versions are also available on a loan basis. To order either booklets or tapes or for more information contact the Public Legal Information Society, 900 Howe St., Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 2M4 or call 688-2565. Vancouver Public Legal Education Society. The booklet provides a range of up to date information on topics such as equal- ity rights, employment laws, marriage laws, wills, welfare rights, and many, many others. Single copies of the booklet are available for $1., three to five copies cost $2 and larger orders are welcome. Also available from the Society is a twenty-five minute video Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms which examines some, not all, of the provisions contained in the Charter and attempts to contrast the situation of Canadians to that of people in other countries. Information on human and legal rights in Chile, Iran, and Argentina is provided. Lesbian and gay rights Human Rights Equality for Gays and Lesbians Everywhere (EGALE) has launched a letter writing campaign to members of parliament seeking their support for the inclusion of sexual orientation in the Canadian Human Rights Act. In March 1986, the federal government tabled Towards Equality, a parliamentary report which called for major changes in the Human Rights Act. Among them it called for "measures to ensure that sexual orientation is a prohibited ground of discrimination in relation to all areas of federal jurisdiction." Draft legislation for changes to the Human Rights Act are now before Cabinet and there are many rumors and leaks swirling around Ottawa as to whether sexual orientation will be included in the legislation. Of course there are many representations from right wing groups against the inclusion of a sexual orientation clause. EGALE, an Ottawa based gay and lesbian group, has been monitoring the situation and lobbying members of parliament and Cabinet Ministers. They need your support as fears are growing that the Conservative government, wishing to avoid taking a stand on the issue, will delay introduction of the new legislation until it is too late to go forward in this session of parliament. You are urged to write your member of parliament, Justice Minister Ramon Hnatyshyn and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney demanding that the government take action on the amendments to the Canadian Human Rights Code. Please write c/o House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario KlA OA6 (no postage required). EGALE is also seeking donations to enable them to carry on their work. If you would like to make a contribution or receive more information about the organization and its campaign please write EGALE, P.O. Box 2891, Station D, Ottawa, Ontario KIP 5W9. CN offers scholarships Scholarships Canadian National (CN) is offering sixty- eight CN scholarships for women, worth $600 each, across Canada for the 1987 fall semester. The scholarships are to encourage women to seek careers in non-traditional fields and increase the number of women available in such fields. CN defines a non-traditional field for women as a "technical and/or skilled trade field in which the participation of women has been limited or non-existent." The scholarships are awarded regardless of any other financial assistance obtained by applicants and may be used by recipients in any way they choose. Any woman, whether continuing her studies or re-entering the school system as a mature student, may qualify for the scholarships if she has been accepted for the fall 1987 semester in a specified program of study at specific educational institutions. A list of the acceptable institutions is available from CN. Scholarship applications are available from the appropriate institutions. Application deadline is July 31, 1987 and applications received after the deadline will not be accepted. Applicants will be judged solely on the basis of their demonstrated interest in a blue collar career and selection will be made by the school independently. For information on which educational institutions can accept applicants contact CN Employee Relations, Box 8100, Montreal, Quebec, H3C 3N4 or Vancouver Vocational Institute (WI) 250 West Pender, Vancouver, B.C. (telephone 681-8111). Meeting in Toronto Lesbians and gays of colour conference Lesbians and Gays of Colour of Toronto is planning Canada's first international conference for gays and lesbians of colour, for 1988. This will be the fourth conference of its kind following up on three previous conferences held in New York, Chicago and, most recently, Los Angeles. The conferences are great opportunities for individuals and groups to meet and find out what we are doing in our various communities. More than two hundred lesbians and gays of native, black, latino, Asian, Indian and other backgrounds attended the Los Angeles conference. That conference included entertainment, informal discussions, workshops on inter-racial hostility, fundraising and organizing and gave lesbians and gays from England, Canada and the United States a chance to meet and create links. Grassroots is the theme for the 1988 Toronto conference and organizers are planning a series of workshops, films, speakers and lots of time for informal meetings and The conference is planned for July 29- August 1, 1988. As part of the conference planning, Grassroots needs to hear from you. Organizers need to know how many people will be coming and are asking people to write and confirm their interest. For more information write to Lesbians and Gays of Colour Conference, P.O. Box 6597, Stn A, Toronto, Ontario M5N 1X4. COPE meeting A Committee for Progressive Electors (COPE) Women's Conference will be held on September 27, 9:30 to 4 pm at the Trout Lake Community Centre. Cost $5 for employed, $2 unemployed. Lunch and childcare provided. For further information write COPE Women's Conference, c/o 1503 Graveley St., Vancouver, B.C. V5L 3A5. Movement matters listings information Movement Matters is designed to be a network of news, updates and information of special interest to the women's movement. Submissions to Movement Matters should be no more than 500 words, typed, double-spaced on eight and a half by eleven paper. Submissions may be edited for length. Deadline is the 18th of the month preceding publication. Apologies In the map of Africa published in Kinesis'* June issue, Mozambique was incorrectly labelled Zimbabwe, and Zimbabwe was unlabelled. KINESIS Jul/Aug '87 ////////////////m^^^ ////////////////////^^^^^ NEWS Lesbian mother convicted of abducting her own children by Emma Kivisild There was good news and bad news for Canadian mothers last month when the trial of Ontario lesbian mother Gayle Bezaire wrapped up in Toronto. Gayle will not be going to jail for abducting her children. But she was found guilty on four charges of abduction and one count of harboring. It is expected the sentence and conviction will set precedents for future cases. Gayle took her two children from their father's home in 1980 when she discovered her daughter Lisa was being sexually abused. She was subsequently charged with two counts of abduction and one count of harboring her son. When Canadian law changed in 1983, another two counts of abduction were added to the original charges. Gayle and her son Sean surrendered to the police in 1985 after Lisa voluntarily returned to her father. Gayle's abduction of the children came after protracted divorce proceedings. Upon the Bezaires' initial separation, Gayle won interim custody. When she came out as a lesbian and divorce proceedings began, she was again awarded custody, but this time on the condition she not get involved in a lesbian relationship. When Gayle became involved with another woman, her husband George was awarded custody. Gayle says George denied her her legal access to the children, and when she finally saw them there was evidence of abuse. According to Gayle, the children's father had physically, sexually, and emotionally abused both Gayle and the children while they lived with him. Gayle's trial began at the end of May. As well as giving testimony herself, she brought forward a series of 'expert witnesses'. They testified about battering and child abuse in general, and her case in particular. Among these witnesses were Phyllis Chesler, a well known feminist author; Kathleen Lahey, a lawyer from the University of Windsor; and a psychiatrist who did a study of the Bezaire family when Gayle and George first began their battle around custody. According to the psychiatrist, if Lisa and Sean Bezaire had not been sexually abused "it would have been a case for medical journals.'' She also noted that at that time she had found George a violent man, and recommended that the children be returned to their mother. A Toronto psychologist with a background in issues of family violence described the behav ioral patterns of children who have been abused. "Without having met Lisa, she described her to a T," says Gayle. In his time on the stand George admitted that he had assaulted Gayle during their marriage, but insisted he had "just" slapped her across the mouth. George was twice convicted of aggravated assault against Gayle while they were married. He was fined $50 each time. The key legal issues in the case ended up being whether the court believed there really had been abuse in George Bezaire's home, and whether the jury felt that Gayle had abducted her children Con't on page 7 In late May workers at three Vancouver hotels were locked out hours before the beginning of negotiations for a new contract. The workers, members of the Canadian Hotel and Allied Workers of CAIMAW. had offered a three year collective agreement with wage increases below the projected costs of living as an alternative to the B.C. Hotel's Association's concession demands. The lockout was lifted after almost four weeks and the workers will go back to work under the old collective agreement until a new agreement is negotiated. The 220 workers will go into a bargaining backed by a recent successful strike vote. Vancouver hotels involved in the walk out were the Centennial, the Ming Court and the Pacific Palisades. REAL Women continue to lose out by Noreen Howes The radical feminists all said 'give us more of the same, sir, more more and more.' — Gwen Landolt, R.E.A.L. Women Once again, R.E.A.L. (Realistic, Equal, Active for Life) Women of Canada lose out on federal government funding. According to the recently tabled parliamentary report "Fairness in Funding", criteria for funding under the Secretary of State Women's Program require that groups "work to advance the equality of women" as stated in the Charter of Rights. Although R.E.A.L. was not specifically excluded in this report, the funding criteria which previously denied the anti-feminist group operational funding remain intact. Gwen Landolt, vice president of R.E.A.L. expressed disgust with the report's findings saying that as for the women presenting briefs, "there were only a handful of grassroots women, all the rest were radical feminists hand-picked from NAC" (National Action Committee on the Status of Women). The hearings were "well orchestrated", she said, proving that the government is only interested in feminist groups. "Feminists don't support the reality for women in the 1980's" she said. "Today, unlike in the 60's and 70's, women need more choices." She added that R.E.A.L. promotes women's equality "in every way possible," just not the 'radical' positions of NAC. "We have a more moderate position" she said. Some of the recommended changes in the report are: • the current funding level must at least be maintained and indexed to a cost of living allowance • increased funding to meet the needs of new groups and address emerging priorities • increased public awareness of the activities of women's groups through an insert included in family allowance, unemployment insurance and old age pension cheques • more thorough and critical ongoing evaluation of the funded organizations • that self sufficiency be encouraged and every attempt made to achieve it before further funding is approved It was also recommended that special consideration for funding be given to rural women, visible minority women, immigrant women, elderly women and victims of violence. Lorraine Greaves, vice president of NAC, calls the report "a victory for the women's movement". "Whether or not we get the increase," she said "it's an affirmation of the program". She particularly finds the emphasis on doubly discriminated against women important. However, not everything in the report is positive, Greaves said, and some items could have detrimental affects on women. For instance the report states: "Those whose primary purpose is to promote a view on abortion or sexual orientation" are not eligible for funding. This exclusion, Greaves says, contradicts the 'equality' requirement as it clearly discriminates against lesbians. "Of course we are concerned and should be asking for some interpretation of that ... " The Tory government, she says, has been trying to separate out the most 'contentious' issues (abortion and lesbianism) so that the rest of the Women's Program can carry "Ninety percent of a workshop's funding might be available" she explained "but not the ten percent ... the question is do you take the ninety or risk losing it by fighting over the ten?" The Standing Committee on Secretary of State decided last year to review the Women's Program due to criticism from R.E.A.L., who claimed the Program's refusal to fund them was discriminatory. The Committee was comprised of a majority of Tory members, and one representative from both the Liberal and New Democratic Party respectively. C-OA/IA/IEINITARY Letter carriers' strike has serious implications by Marion Pollack Marion Pollack is the Vice- President of the Vancouver Local of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) and a long-time feminist activist. In the following article she describes why the current strike by the Letter Carriers Union of Canada is of importance to women as workers, trade unionists and consumers. The current strike by the Letter Carriers Union of Canada against Canada Post has serious implications for women. It raises four important issues: the nature of services to the Canadian public, equality for women, the Progressive Conservative government's agenda for labour, and the spectre of privatization. The postal strike is equally about the issue of service to the Canadian public as it is about jobs and job security. The Tories want rollbacks in the Letter Carriers collective agreement that will mean that all delivery routes would not have to be covered if the post office judged the mail was not "important." This is the thin edge of the wedge; if the Tories can dismantle the postal service what will be next? The fight by the postal unions is a struggle to maintain a universally accessible service. The second issue of concern is the two tier wage system. Canada Post wants a collective agreement where new workers will be paid 20 percent less than current workers. This gap would never change. Ken Swan, the Conciliation Commis sioner in the Letter Carriers dispute, has stated that this makes a mockery of the federal government's commitment to equality for women and minorities. A two tier wage system would further expand the wage gap between women and men. The third reason the postal unions' struggle is an important fight for everyone concerns the Conservatives' agenda for labour. The Tories are out to weaken the Canadian union movement as a necessary precondition for a free trade agreement. If the combined forces of the Conservative government and the Canada Post Corporation are successful in undermining the postal unions, all workers in Canada will be at risk. If unions lose their ability to fight for de cent wages and working conditions those with less power (unorganized women) will be forced to accept poorer wages and working conditions. (The postal strike also demonstrates some fairly evident problems with Tory job creation plans. In the past couple of weeks the Tories have created several thousand jobs—for strikebreakers. While these jobs give short term employment a whole new meaning the violence such 'employment' generates is a growing and serious problem.) The last reason women should support postal workers is that the Conservatives want to privatize Canada Post. The government wants to sell off the most profitable parts of the Post Office, marking the start of a dangerous precedent where public services will be sold off to private bidders. Experience has shown that privatized services guarantee neither better access to nor high quality of services. Privatization leads to a decline in wages and a worsening of working conditions. If the strike continues, show your solidarity and show your support for the postal workers. Please write or phone your Member of Parliament and tell her/him that you want improved and expanded postal service not cutbacks. Make it clear that you do not want your tax money going to recruit strikebreakers. A decent contract for workers in the Post Office is a step forward for everyone. KINESIS ACROSS BC. Customs seizes feminist books by M. McPherson In early June, Canada Customs officials seized two books intended for sale at a conference of B.C. and Yukon Women's Centres at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. Caught Looking: Feminism, Pornography and Censorship, a graphic depiction of examples of pornography and Sexworks, an anthology of writings by women working in the sex trade, were "classified as prohibited under the provisions of Customs tariffs." Gloria Greenfield, a worker at the Vancouver Women's Bookstore which ordered the books, said, "We haven't had trouble with Customs for at least 12 or 15 years." After speaking to three different Customs officials, none of whom could tell her the appropriate appeal procedures, the Bookstore was finally sent an appeal form in the mail. The seizure was eventually reviewed by Customs and both books were finally released because of their educational value. According to Customs, the books "would teach people what is pornography and what is not." Before the books were released, Jancis Andrews, a member of the Customs Advisory Committee attempted to question Customs officials on the bookstore's behalf. They refused to give her any information saying they needed proof of who she was before they could discuss the case with her. According to Andrews, the 21-member Customs Advisory Committee advises the Minister of Customs and Excise on public opinion on all imported goods, "from vegetables to computers to pornography." Andrews, who said she "has ^ the ear of the Minister" admitted -Q "there is no point to my being on -g the committee." •§_ John Russell, spokesperson for the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association, called the Customs action "An example of the insidious nature of the power of the state to interfere with the exchange of ideas ..." Russell says that Customs "... Has consistently applied a broader interpretation of the obscenity provisions of the Criminal Code in their decisions to seize material than the courts have upheld." Canada Customs' Regional Director of Public Relations, Claire Martin, was unable to tell Kinesis how the books violated Customs guidelines, but objected to the use of the word seizure to describe the books' detainment. "Seizure," said Martin, "is for narcotics." According to Martin, Customs does have "an eye on the public good" and its services are "dictated by the public as far as the laws are concerned." The Women's Bookstore is the second alternative bookstore in Vancouver which has had books seized by Customs. Little Sisters Bookstore, which caters to gays and lesbians, is currently involved in court proceedings to overturn Customs seizures of their material that have occurred over the last two years. According to co-owner Jim Deva, the bookstore expects to spend up to three years in court and $50,000 in legal costs fighting the case. Deva called the latest Customs action "...an abuse of power." Over 200 women met at Britannia's baseball diamonds for a weekend tournament sponsored by the Lesbian Information Line (LIL). Teams made up from women's organizations and groups in Vancouver and the lower mainland competed. The championship game, played on Sunday, pitted the Steppers against the Slugs. The Steppers were this year's tournament champions posting a 22 to 14 win over the Slugs in a hard fought and exciting game. BC Women 9s Centres meet by Kinesis Staff Writer The weekend of June 21 brought delegates from women's centres throughout British Columbia to the first annual general meeting of the B.C. and Yukon Association of Women's Centres (BCYAWC). Held in Vancouver at Simon Fraser University, the three-day conference tackled the creation of a constitution, by-laws, and policy objectives as well as the election of a regionally-based executive. Delegates from the Caribou region agreed to take on the work of an executive steering committee for the following year and the Lower Mainland region agreed to organize next year's conference. One of the major questions confronting delegates centred on the issue of whether or not BCYAWC should restrict its membership to women's centres. After some debate it was agreed that the focus of the organization would remain on women's centres at this time, although the definition of a women's centre would be sufficiently broad to include any feminist group meeting the Association's objectives and the basic functions of a centre. In addition to business and internal matters, the conference also sponsored four special inter est workshops on such topics as Board and staff relations, homophobia, fundraising, and strategies for dealing with the new Right. Throughout the weekend, delegates shared information and concerns with one another committing themselves to building an organization that would see secure funding for individual centres and political lobbying as major goals for the Association. Despite the frustrations felt by limited time, delegates pronounced BCYAWC's first annual general meeting a success, taking home with them new contacts and information to help their work in the coming year. Second annual La Quena Fiesta is a real community event hi by Tia Benn The Second Annual La Quena Fiesta in Grandview Park will combine seven hours of music, culture, politics and dancing on Sunday, July 26. The Fiesta promises to be an exciting reflection of the Eastside's solidarity with Latin America and our own community. Music from four continents will be featured; fifteen bands in all. The Mexican group Mez-Me; playing a fusion of traditional Mexican and Bolivian music will headline, followed by the great British songwriter/singer Roy Bailey. Playing their blend of rock, jazz, reggae, and rhythm and blues will be Roots Roundup, a local crowd- pleaser. Women's culture, a strong force on the Eastside, will be represented in part by Aya, an all women's a cappella group which combines harmonies with feminist material. Jazz singer Colleen Savage will also appear. The rest of the line-up is equally impressive: Mecca Normal, The Tools, The Industrial Waste Banned, Wyckam & Monty, and Chilean bands Santiago and Ay Muray. For the kids, a program to be remembered: construction of a "peace village", face painters, clowns, puppets, jugglers and a kids' favorite— "pinata" bashing. AYA, one of Vancouver's best known a cappella groups, will be featured at this year's La Quena Fiesta. From right to left Micki McCune. Norma Jean McLaren, Uschi Schnel, Bev Bradshaw and Jane Whelton. Along with the musical program, there will be speakers from El Salvador's FDR/FMLN support team, Karensa Lai Thorn from the African National Congress and Helena Cynamon from the women's section of B.C.'s Nicaragua Solidarity Committee. A volunteer-operated community coffeehouse, La Quena has served as a centre for political and cultural exchange for over four years. This role has been enhanced by the diverse organizations which use La Quena as a place to hold benefits, meetings, and educational and political events. La Quena "is unique in that we let other people make money there," says volunteer Cindy Shore. Organizations and groups can use La Quena's facilities for basically anything as long as the group's goals are compatible with La Quena's statement of principles. Shore, who has worked at La Quena for three and a half years, helps raise funds to enable the coffeehouse to serve the community better. Last year's Fiesta proceeds have gone into building a kitchen. This Fiesta will mark the end of a six-week fund raising drive to keep La Quena in operation. "In some ways it's quite amazing that La Quena is still around," says Shore. "It exists mostly because of political bonding." Women have been a force in the continuing operation of La Quena. Of the present sixty-three volunteers, forty-eight are women. "Men and women have worked hard to make La Quena a non- sexist environment. It's a space women can come to and hold political events and know it's alright to do that," says Shore. People can support the July music festival (Fiesta) by purchasing a button for $3 unemployed, $5 employed, a minimal contribution considering the hours of great entertainment at the Fiesta. Grandview Park is in the 1200 block Commercial Drive. The Fiesta will begin at noon and run until 7:30 pm. The Fiesta promises to be symbolic of what people in the Eastside community are striving for: solidarity, peace, justice, and a strong sense of community. See you on July 26! KINESIS Jul/Aug '87 across B.C. Kamloops, North Van Pro-choice wins hospital elections by Esther Shannon While the province's doctors call on the Social Credit government to reform the hospital board election process, B.C.'s communities have been embroiled in battles over who will control local hospitals. North Vancouver, Kamloops, and Vernon have, over the past month, been the scenes of board elections and controversies which pit pro-choice and anti-abortion forces against one another. B.C. Medical Association president Dr. John O'Brien has implored Health Minister Peter Dueck to establish a study group to determine ways the public should be represented on hospital boards. Warning Dueck that the abortion struggle is "tearing apart communities" O'Brien said that hospitals are too vital to be subjected to "this kind of warfare." He recommended that such a study group would include representatives from the B.C. Health Association, the nurses union and the health ministry. Dueck, while he didn't rule out O'Brien's suggestion completely, said such a proposal was problematic since it might eliminate community involvement in hospitals. O'Brien's plea comes on the heels of hotly contested elections in Kamloops and North Vancouver. In Kamloops a mid-June election saw six pro-choice candidates win positions on the Royal Inland Hospital Board. Abortions at the hospital were halted last April when the predominantly anti-abortion board tightened eligibility rules. The new board, which now has nine pro-choice members to the four positions held by anti-abortionists, is expected to liberalize the hospital abortion criteria as soon as possible. The old board suffered through a motion of non-confidence from the hospital's doctors who demanded that the provincial government remove the board of directors because they were ignoring the advice of medical professionals. A board decision to refuse an abortion to a fourteen year old Dawson Creek girl also generated strong criticism throughout the province. The organizing efforts of Kamloops Citizens for Choice, formed last March after anti-abortionists took over at Royal Inland, sv. J.._d the hospital membership from 1,414 members a year ago to 5,800 prior to the election. At North Vancouver's Lions Gate Hospital the annual board elections have been a source of community division for the past eleven years. This year, for the ninth time, pro-choicers retained their majority. The hospital's membership continues to grow from a 1977 low of 316 to this year's membership of 4,700, up 1,200 from last year alone. Vernon's Royal Jubilee Hospital membership now stands at 3,076, up from 800 a year ago when anti- abortionists gained control of the hospital board. 3) The hospital's sixty-four doctors resigned from all hospital committees to protest the board's stringent new abortion committee guidelines. No abortions have been performed at Royal Jubilee since last November. In response to criticism from the doctors that the board didn't represent the community, the board passed new bylaws to open membership to the public, including waiving the $5 membership fee and expanding the electoral district to include Vernon, Armstrong, Enderby, and Lumby. Appointed trustee positions from the community are eliminated and the new thirteen member board will have nine elected trustees with appointments from the medical staff, the hospital auxiliary, the provincial government and the regional district. Both pro-choice and anti-abortion groups are actively organizing to win control at the next Board election slated for September 29. At Vernon's only pregnancy counselling service, The Problem Pregnancy Centre, the message is explicit—abortion is wrong. The Centre which offered advice to 100 pregnant women last year uses graphic visual material, including slides, to promote its anti- abortion message. The Centre's anti-abortion stand is endorsed and promoted by almost all of Vernon's forty churches which regularly slip anti-abortion pamphlets into church bulletins. According to pro-choice organizer Diane Baldwin the split in Vernon is between "Saved versus secular." A weekend protest gathering against Bills 19 and 20. sponsored by All Women Opposed to (the) Labour Legislation, drew over 200 people to Grandview Park in Vancouver's East End. The rally, which lasted most of the day. featured speakers from labour and poverty groups as well as music and theatre. Fetal apprehension violates rights by Margaret Boyes In late May, an unidentified woman in Grace Hospital had her fetus apprehended by the British Columbia Ministry of Social Services and Housing one hour before birth. She had refused permission for a caesarian section to be performed and the Ministry apprehended the fetus as "parents" and gave permission for the surgery. It was expected that the Ministry would withdraw the order to apprehend the fetus and replace it with an order for apprehension of the child, but this did not happen. Peter Beaudin of the B.C. Human Rights Coalition says, "Action in these circumstances takes place under the jurisdiction of the Family and Child Service Act. The definition of a child under this act is a person under 19 years of age. It is illegal to apprehend a fetus under this act because legally a fetus is not a person. The Supreme Court has ruled continually that a fetus is a non-person. "Pregnancy is conditional to being a woman, and discrimination according to sex is against the law. Medical treatment without informed consent is battery. If a pregnant woman is not capable of giving informed consent, there is sufficient law to cope with the sit uation. The test for competency should be the same test given to all other persons." According to Nonni Graham of the newly formed Ad Hoc Committee for Maternal Autonomy, "Apprehending the fetus renders the mother a fetal container. It robs the mother of her status as a person and the protection afforded her under the Charter." Unconfirmed reports state that there is a high probability that the woman is a native Indian and was undergoing methadone treatment. She was in a prenatal program and there is no evidence she was putting the fetus in any danger. An American study on fetal apprehension, reported in the May 1987 New England Journal of Medicine, shows that in 81 percent of the fetus apprehension cases studied the mothers were black, Hispanic or Asian; 44 percent were unmarried; and 24 percent did not speak English as their primary language. AU were treated in teaching hospitals. (Grace Hospital is a teaching hospital.) The study also reported that out of 15 cases of fetal apprehension, six were found to be unnecessary. Grace Hospital is the tertiary hospital for all of British Colum bia's high risk pregnancies. The Hospital's Ethics Committee has not yet discussed the issue of fetus apprehension. A court hearing regarding the apprehension was held in early June. At the hearing, the Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) applied for intervenor status on the case. LEAF's position is confined to the validity of the apprehension. Because the woman was neither present nor represented, the hearing was adjourned to June 29. Another hearing has been set for July 13 to address the issue of the Ministry seeking custody of the child. If LEAF is granted permission to intervene they will appear at this hearing. With regard to the future status of the child, Beaudin says, "If the mother is not available, this should not be used against her in awarding custody of the child. She has gone underground because of the intervention of the state. Action in a custody hearing should be temporary and reviewable." For information about or support from the Ad Hoc Committee for Maternal Autonomy, write c/o Maternal Health, P.O. Box 4656S, Station G, Vancouver, B.C. V6R 4G8. BC Coalition for Abortion Clincics plans Oct. demonstration by Christine Arrand The British Columbia Coalition for Abortion Clinics decided at its late June general meeting to mount a demonstration for the weekend of October 17 to coincide with demonstrations planned by pro-choice groups across Canada. The sixty members attending the meeting heard reports that indicate the Coalition is making good progress towards its interim goal of establishing an abortion clinic in Vancouver. The long-term goal is to establish women's repro ductive health clinics throughout the province. Broad-based community support will be necessary to reach that goal. Toward that end, the Coalition is encouraging both individual and group membership. A letter and information package has been sent to over 700 groups. An education pamphlet intended for wide public distribution will soon be available. On the political front, in May the Coalition sent a letter to Peter Dueck, Minister of Health, regard ing the report commissioned by his Ministry entitled "Prevention and Handling of Unwanted Pregnancies". The Coalition pointed out the report's deficiencies, and criticized its major stated goal to limit the number of abortions in B.C. The letter also outlined the objectives of the coalition and adamantly took the stand that "It's time that a woman's absolute right to control her own reproduction be recognized." A Coalition sub-committee has drafted an outline of the kind of services the clinic would ideally offer, the staff it would need, the hours of operation and the preferred location. They are now working on finding a suitable site and will be approaching potential medical staff. A representative of the sub-committee will attend the next Physicians for Choice meeting. For information contact the B.C. Coalition for Abortion Clinics, P.O. Box 66171, Star tion F, Vancouver, B.C. V5N 5L4, tel. 87S-5455. KINESIS 87JU./AUA Across Canada Saskatchewan Conservatives slash social services by Nancy Pollak Restraint is alive and well and knocking the stuffing out of Saskatchewan, courtesy of a govern- ment whose politics mirror British Columbia's Social Credit to an uncanny degree. Since re-election in October, 1986, Premier Grant Devine's Progressive Conservatives have applied a keen and broad razor to countless social,, health and education programs. The justification? A resource-based economy (wheat and potash) damaged by falling world prices and the need to tighten belts and reduce deficits. The solution? A strategy for economic rebirth based on privatisation, contracting-out, smashed unions and a hungry work force. Beer and Bingo Women and children will be particularly hard hit by the PC measures. Social assistance and minimum wage rates are frozen (as are government employees' wages), and a whole range of services for poor people have been slashed. These include family workers, the Regina Native Women's Association, counselling services for low-income single mothers, transition houses and home care programs. The Saskatchewan Association on Human Rights lost all core funding, as did Planned Parenthood. A recent study of Regina residents revealed a massive hunger problem, especially among primary school children. Nevertheless, the minister, responsible, Grant Schmidt, has refused to either raise welfare rates or provide additional funds to school hot- meal programs. Schmidt, a newcomer to the cabinet and the first to inhabit the mega-portfolios of Minister of Hu man Resources, Labour and Employment and Minister of Social Services, is a Vander Zahn-type of guy: offend and blame and, for variety, say really dumb things. Schmidt has suggested that welfare recipients overspend on beer and bingo, hence their budgeting; dilemma. He has more than suggested that workfare is preferable to increased assistance: one hundred people are presently cleaning ditches and clearing brush near Prince Albert in a program that offers them $60 a month more than welfare. (In the budget released mid-June, the government declared its intention to expand workfare programs.) Native people face serious losses: the Gabriel Dumont Institute, an. educational facility for Natives, has been axed by twenty percent, all Native court werkers eliminated, and aid to no: t\ern and rural communities decreed on nu- i fronts. Cuts to programs for the elderly and the handicapped, legal aid and health services (Saskatchewm hospitals, like B.C.'s, are chro.iically understaffed) and education at all hours of work) and generally erode labour's ability to bargain collectively. As in B.C., Ball argues that his rulings actually favour the individual worker, implying that the union somehow represents an intrusive—and self-interested— third party in the deal to be struck between employers and their work- Fighting Back For all the similarities with the B.C. scene, there are also important differences. Devine's Conservatives appear to have learned from Socred excesses and, rather than ramming a slew of repressive bills through the legislature, have proceeded by gradual, department-by-department budget cuts. Social service agencies were divided into 'advocacy' or 'service' levels—make Saskatchewan news read like a replay of B.C. Union as Villain The labour front is another blast from the westcoast past—and present. But unlike B.C., where change has largely occurred through legislation, the Conservatives have simply installed an active reactionary in the Labour Relations Board chair. Dennis Ball, a lawyer with no previous labour experience, has overseen LRB decisions that are rapidly reshaping the province's labour terrain. Ball's unorthodox rulings have set precedents which hasten union decertification, enable employers to unilaterally alter contracts (affecting workers' rates of pay and categories, with advocacy groups slated for complete funding loss. Organizations felt compelled to prove how service-oriented they were, becoming reluctant to do just exactly what an advocacy body does: chastise the government for its policies. As one commentator said, "Silence became the dominant self- defence strategy ... (and) we were treated to the spectacle of groups thanking the government for cutting them by only twenty-five percent." But other self-defence strategies have emerged. The Coalition. for Common Sense, rooted at thei University of Regina, is focusing; on educational concerns. In Saskatoon, the Social Justice Network,, composed of welfare, labour and student activists, is calling for' Schmidt's resignation. Public sector unions are banding together, and another coalition of Native and Metis peoples, farmers, trade unionists, transition house workers, feminists and churches is in the formative stages. WHAT' S NEWS? by Patty Gibson Child rape law A federal law that creates three new offenses to deal with child molesters was passed in late June. The law makes it a crime punishable by up to ten years in prison to touch "for a sexual purpose" anyone under the age of 14. The new law comes at a time when there is growing concern about the impact of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms on the prosecution of child sexual assault cases. Recently the trial of a twenty-nine year old Halifax man, accused of the rape of a thirteen year old girl, was cancelled when the Nova Scotia Supreme Court ruled that statutory rape provisions in the Criminal Code violated the accused's right to fundamental justice. The indictment was quashed because the defendant was not permitted the defenses that the girl consented or that he did not know how old she was. Dalhousie University law professor Christine Boyle told the Globe and Mail that Canada ... "has a massive problem of sexual abuse of children. We need to mobilize our resources to do something about that ... but instead we now see some judges saying there is a constitutional right to have sex with a consenting child." AAeech Lake National women's groups who fear the Meech Lake constitutional accord will limit Charter equality rights for women and minorities are stepping up efforts to block the accord's approval by federal and provincial legislators. (The Quebec legislature has already approved the accord.) According to Mary Lou McPhe- dran, a lawyer and LEAF member, the special mention of multiculturalism and aboriginal people and the absence of other groups in the clause setting out Quebec's distinct society could easily "create a context where other groups take second place. The risk is a potential, but it is a risk." Organizing for a delay in the ratification of the accord are the National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC), the Federation deS Femmes du Quebec and the Women's Legal, Education and Action Fund (LEAF). The Federation des Femmes is concerned with the accord's wording on spending powers on national programs that the provinces may be permitted to opt out of. Gradsearn less A recent study of 1985 graduates from 15 Ontario universities and colleges shows that university graduates fared almost as badly as the rest of the labour force in finding jobs. The study also shows that although slightly more women than men graduated, males earned more on an average than women. The starting and current salaries of women graduates was 88 percent of that for men. Men continue to be over-represented in the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics; women still dominate in teaching fields. Abuse of disabled Disabled women are more likely to be victims of violent assault than non-disabled women, according to a recent study by Joanne Doucette of the Disabled Women's Network (DAWN). Funded by the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services, the study's sample population of 30 disabled women and 32 non- disabled women was self-selected from women attending two feminist conferences held in Ontario in late 1986. Almost half of the disabled women reported they had been sexually assaulted as children compared to a third of non-disabled women. Sixty-seven percent had ben battered by other children. Thirty- three percent of the disabled women reported being battered as adults compared to 22 percent of the non-disabled. One in four had been sexually assaulted. The report calls the study a "first step or a sign post pointing at a problem and a challenge." Currently, programs and services for victims of violence are not accessible to or geared to disabled women. (Healthsharing Welfare discrimination An Ontario woman who was denied rental of an apartment because she was receiving public assistance has been awarded $1,274 by a Board of Inquiry. In his February 18 decision, Bernard Adell said the fact of receiving social assistance has been explicitly made a prohibited ground of discrimination, just the same as other awards, but he also said "The fact of being in receipt of public assistance does not go to the core of a person's being in the same way as race, creed, sex, age or most of the other attributes which are prohibited grounds." This is the first ruling made under the Ontario Human Rights Code involving discrimination in rental against persons on'welfare. Canadian Human Rights Advocate DES risks 3rd generation A researcher at Michigan State University has found that a large percentage of the granddaughters of mice injected during pregnancy with the synthetic hormone di- ethylstibestrol (DES) developed tumors in the uterus and ovaries. In addition, as the daughters of the mice injected with DES reached old age, a large number developed tumors, suggesting DES daughters may have a greater risk of developing vaginal or cervical cancer later in life. It is not known whether the mice are an accurate predictor or whether the drug caused a genetic defect. In the meantime, researcher Dr. Bruce Walker is conducting further experiments to determine whether the defects are transmitted genetically. He estimates it will be at least twenty years before it is known whether women will react to DES as the mice have. 6 KINESIS JUI/AUQ'87 Across Canada /#*%<%^#s###^ Federal government slams door shut in refugees' faces by Karen Shave In late June the Vancouver Status of Women and the Vancouver Society on Immigrant Women presented an evening of discussion on Canada's proposed refugee bill. Canada began assessing it's refugee policy with a royal commission in 1985, headed by Rabbi Gunther Plaut. His recommendations were ignored by current Employment and Immigration Minister, Benoit Buchard, in the drafting of the new refugee legislation. Plaut has said, "Ottawa is intentionally fostering dangerous myths about immigrants and refugees to justify turning a cold shoulder to the persecuted." Last November Canada received the Nansen Medal for its generosity towards the World's refugees. In her acceptance speech Governor-General Jeanne Sauve said the medal "will inspire even greater generosity on our part." But this past May the Canadian government slammed the door shut on refugees with the introduction of Bill C-55. The government says the bill is necessary to control "abuse". But the number of refugees taken in by Canada between 1978-86 was only 6,376. Bill C-55 will stop up to eighty percent of refugees at our borders without even granting them a hearing. Camia Weaver, a lawyer who represents refugees, spoke against the changes to Canada's refugee policy at the meeting. Weaver says there is too much discretionary power in Bill C-55 for immigration officers. The speed at which refugee claims will be processed will not allow refugees time to obtain counsel or prepare for an inquiry. Weaver also mentioned the "safe third country lists" called for by the proposed bill. Refugees can be deported to a "safe" country within three to seven days without any opportunity to explain her/his case. The definition of what constitutes a "safe third country" has been left to the government to decide. Weaver says, "The chances are very good that the United States will be considered 'safe', meaning that Central American refugee claimants could be returned to the United States which presently deports about 500 Central Americans a month. The personal evidence of a person claiming refugee status will not be considered. Only the general view of how our government sees the situation in the claimant's country and also the previous cases from that country will be considered. "This basis of credibility is totally inadequate," says Weaver. Nancie Miller from the Inland Refugee Society, who also spoke al the meeting, agreed that the government is proposing an adversarial system. Miller feels that Bill C- 55 will be passed and that amendments to the bill is the best that can be hoped for. Frances MacQueen, a refugee coordinator with Amnesty International, told the meeting that " ... refugee law is a mirror of its society." MacQueen says Canada's refugee claimants are judged on a point system. "The only way for an uneducated refugee to get through is walk across the border at Canada or fly in ... we take the cream." MacQueen spoke of the proposed transit visa, which directly effects Chileans. People arriving by air claiming refugee status upon arrival are now banned. Chileans travelling by air found without a transit visa will be sent to the "third safe country", who may not want to accept the refugees either. MacQueen's powerful talk was more hopeful than Miller's. "Write your Members of Parliament and insist that the legislation be withdrawn. Please write ... they count letters." MacQueen also suggested people sponsor refugees. Maria, a Salvadorean refugee, also addressed the meeting telling people of her own experience as a refugee. She encouraged people to help refugees all over the world. If it is passed refugees everywhere will suffer the effect of Bill C-55. The public outcry must be strong enough to force the government to amend the bill. zzja.v *.* *f.# *ljm* m Vfc. con't from page 3 with the intention of returning them eventually. The viability of the original custody order was also called into question. In her charge to the jury, Judge Sidney Dymond (a woman) told them to bear in mind that if they felt Gayle had intended to return the children, and was removing them to protect them, then they would have to find her not guilty of the two abduction charges that allow for a defense of necessity. The jury (eight women and four men) deliberated for less than three hours before returning guilty verdict on all five charges. A week later, Judge Dymond gave Gayle an unconditional discharge on the harboring count, and a three year suspended sentence on the last four charges. Gayle is to report once a month in that time and do 300 hours of community service. She was also ordered to seek therapy with the feminist therapist who did the presentence assessment. Judge Dymond said the guilty verdict from the jury legally meant that Gayle's allegations of sexual abuse were not true. However, she said that Gayle truly believed the children were in danger from their father. "I think she (Judge Dymond) really believes there was abuse," said Gayle in an interview with Co-op Radio's Lesbian Show last month. Dymond also said she did not believe a jail sentence would deter another parent from doing the same thing. Gayle was understandably relieved by the sentence but says she would have gone to jail to protect her children if necessary. George came out of the courtroom "enraged", according to one observer. "I've had it with these lesbians," he told reporters. "Where is justice?" According to the Globe and Mail, he then hit his mother on the chest with the back of his hand to silence her when she tried to interrupt him. At press time, it was unclear whether the Crown would be appealing the sentence, and Kinesis did not know whether Gayle would be appealing the conviction. Gayle has expressed concern about the fact that the suspended sentence requires that she stay in the court's jurisdiction (the Toronto area) for three years. She is worried about death threats she has already received. The Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF), which had at one point said they would take the case if it went to appeal, has since said they would not do so, because, says Gayle, they do not feel it is an issue of lesbian oppression. They did donate $500 towards the cost of the evidence about battering. "This case is far from over," says Sage de Belle, of the Vancouver Gayle Bezaire Defense Fund. "There are still lots of legal costs, there may be an appeal, and Gayle is still in danger." A publicity campaign for the summer months is underway, and a fundraiser is planned for early September. The Defense Fund hopes to raise $4,000 of the estimated $10,000 Gayle still owes. They have also committed themselves to keeping the community informed about further developments in the case. "This is not just an issue for lesbians," says de Belle. "It could happen to any mother. We're counting on women to understand that and get involved in helping Gayle out." Donations to the Gayle Bezaire Defense Fund should be sent to c/o Vancouver Lesbian Centre, 876 Commercial Drive, Vancouver V5L SW5. The fundraiser, which includes entertainment and speakers, will be held at the VLC on September 6th in the evening. For more information on the Defense Fund, or the case itself, contact VLC at 254-8548. Subscriber info Subscribers, First we'd like to say welcome to the over 175 people who have recently joined Kinesis as subscribers. We hope, and expect, that you will find your first ten issues exciting, informative and, of course, addictive. Now on to the question of where old and new subscribers will find Kinesis during the current postal strike. First of all, we hope that many of you will have received your Kinesis via the mail in a reasonable amount of time. However, if you have no* received Kinesis by July 10th (Lower Mainland subscribers) or July 15th (elsewhere), we clearly have a problem. There are a number of options: If you live in Vancouver, you can drop by the VSW office at 400A W. 5th and pick up a copy. We're open Monday-Thursday, 9:30 to 5:00. If you don't live in Vancouver or if it's inconvenient to drop by, you can pick up the paper at any of our outlets. See this page for a complete list. 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Room of One's Own, Madison, Wi. NEW ZEALAND: KINESIS International Philippines: forced female boxing protested by Marie Arrington Olongapo City is a city of shanties, shacks, hotels and nightclubs; all for the enjoyment of the more than 20,000 United States military personnel at Subic Bay. Once a small fishing village of a thousand inhabitants and now home to 250,000, the port is where all U.S. war ships, from the Enterprise to the Kitty Hawk, to aircraft carriers and supply ships, dock for the crew's rest and recreation (R & R). Since these men, who call themselves and their country "the lone ranger," work so diligently for American interests, they are apparently entitled to anything they desire. Their latest form of entertainment is forced female boxing. The women boxers call it forced because the hotel and club where the boxing takes place insists the women workers box. If they refuse they are fired. The hotel owner, an American and ex-Naval officer, William 'Ben' Hoge, owns both the Casa Blanca del Mar hotel-resort and the Casa BoomBoom club. The hotel is directly off the bridge that exits from the Subic base. April, union organizer Dennis Joaquin was shot and killed while he slept on the picket line. His life had been threatened by the hotel management several times previously. An April issue of the Olongapo Express reported that a Filipino and his two friends were arrested for Joaquin's murder. According to the Express the arrested man stated he was promised 10,000 pesos ($500 U.S.) for the killing, but was only paid 1500 pesos ($75 U.S.). He also said he was hired by a local businessman. While in Olongapo we had the opportunity to visit the picket line and speak with the strikers and some of the women who had been fired. The hotel has twenty-seven women and eight male employees. All the women have to participate in the boxing. The desk clerks, cashiers, laundry women, accounting clerk, waitresses and prostitutes. The hotel's management sets up sparring practices on Saturday mornings and all women have to participate. During these sessions management decides which woman will box, with whom and when. Forced female boxing on the Casa Boom Boom's television screen. Beginning in late 1986, the KMU (The May First Movement) union started organizing at the Casa Blanca del Mar hotel. Last January, after a group of workers pick- etted the hotel, the city of Olongapo banned the boxing. Hoge's lawyer sought a restraining order arguing that Hoge had a permit from the Philippines Amateur Boxing Association. There was a hearing scheduled in Olongapo City at the Regional Court, during our stay there, but it was postponed at the request of the owner's lawyer. Last March union workers set up another picket line over the forced boxing and the hotel's refusal to recognize the union. In The women box in shorts, skimpy t- shirts, sneakers, without head gear or mouth protection, using six ounce boxing gloves. Watching the boxing the first thought that comes to mind is cock fighting. There are three ten minute rounds with no rules. The success of the fight is determined by the amount of betting and cheering by the servicemen and also on how badly the women are bloodied and bruised. If a woman does not fight to management's satisfaction she pays a 250 peso fine ($12.50 U.S.), the second time she does not fight to expectation, she is fired. The winner of the fight may receive 120 pesos ($6 U.S.), the loser does not get paid unless she has put up a valiant effort, or an especially good show, for this she receives 30 pesos ($1.50 U.S.). Women complain of cuts, bruises, black eyes, broken noses, swollen faces, painful breasts, cracked ribs etc. The hotel has a doctor standing by but the women say he 1 sexually harasses them. During the fight we witnessed, one of the i women got punched in the face and refused I to continue. The crowd kept yelling for her ? to come out of her corner. Her female coach, i also in shorts and a halter top, kept urg- | ing her to continue. The woman kept shak- * ing her head and finally her 'coach' threw a white towel into the ring. The male spectators cheered wildly. The music immediately began and out came the dancing girls. Within five minutes it almost seemed as if the fight hadn't taken place. On the picket line women talked about why they did not quit the job. One said she boxed so her sisters could continue with their education and won't have to end up working as she does. Given the poverty most Filipino women endure leaving a job is rarely feasible. The women also talked about the increased roughness and violence of the service men as tricks and customers after they had watched the fights. The demands of the striking workers, which include the hotel's sex trade workers, are: • stop all forced female boxing; • bring to justice the man responsible for the murder of Dennis Joaquin; • recognition of their union by the company; • re-instatement of the five women who had been terminated. The striking workers and the workers who are still boxing want pressure put on the city of Olongapo, the U.S. Navy and government, the Aquino government as well as the police in Olongapo. Letters of protest should be sent to: Franklin Drilon, Department of Labour & Employment, Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. Chief of Police and Office of the Mayor, Olongapo City, Zambales, Philip pines. President Corazon Aquino, Office of the President, Malacanang, Manila. Canadian Embassy, 9th Floor, Allied Bank Centre, 6754 Ayala Ave., Makati, P.O.Box 971, MCPO Makati, Metro Manila, 8117. United States Naval, Base Subic Bay Naval Base, Phillippines. Letters of support and donations to: Alma M. Famanilas, #54 Mang- gahan, Subic, Zambales, Philippines, 2215 and GABRIELA, P.O. Box 4S86, Manila 2800, Philippines. Sanctuary activist serving time in Texas fAirheart Co-operative Travel Centre Deborah Bradley Ellen Frank Frances Wasserlein James Micklewright Judy Brooksbank 2149 Commercial Drive Vancouver, B.C. V5N 4B3 (604)251-2282 CompuServe 71470,3502 Fort Worth, Texas: Stacy Lynn Merkt, a thirty-one year old Sanctuary movement worker, began serving a 179 day prison sentence on January 29, 1987 at the Fort Worth Federal Correctional Institute in Texas. She was convicted of violating U.S. immigration laws by helping Salvadoreans obtain refuge in the U.S. She told the court she acted in the belief that the lives of those she had assisted would be in danger if they were returned to their countries. This is the third time that Stacy, who is now pregnant, has been arrested in connection with her work to protect Central American refugees. Eight other members of the Sanctuary movement were convicted last June on immigration-related offenses involving illegal aliens and were put on probation for five years. Lorry Thomas, another Sanctuary worker arrested in 1985 was released from Alderson Prison, West Virginia in December 1986. These arrests and convictions are part of a broad attack on the growing sanctu- OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, 10am to 7:30pm • KIDS play space • FRESH produce—incl. organic NEW convenient location 10% OFF for seniors, Wed. & Thurs. 1034 COMMERCIAL 254-5044 ary movement, which includes FBI harassment and surveillance, infiltration of church and synagogue congregations, anti-terrorist propaganda, and such classic FBI tactics as trying to create divisions and mistrust by sending phoney letters, slanderous in content and falsely signed, to Sanctuary workers. The Sanctuary movement views this as merely an extension of the U.S. backed war in Central America Their commitment to aiding refugees from El Salvador and Guatemala to come to the States and speak out about the U.S. role in Central America is a growing threat to the American government's goal of a pro-war consensus. Despite the attack, the Sanctuary movement is growing steadily. There are now 380 churches and synagogues in the U.S. that are Sanctuary congregations; twenty- two cities and three states have also declared themselves to be sanctuaries. In February Stacy Merkt was adopted by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience. Sources: Amnesty International, The Insurgent Vol. 2, No. S KINESIS //////////////////////^^^^^ //////////////////////^^^^^ International Conference a first for Latin American lesbians by Kim Irving "It's difficult to organize lesbians in Third World countries", stressed Mexican lesbian activist Lourdis Perez. "Many of the women feel guilty about concentrating on lesbian issues when there are so many other necessities in these countries. So here, in Mexico City, many lesbians working in feminist groups don't directly focus on lesbian issues. Many don't even define themselves as lesbian but as 'being in love with women'. So two problems arise in organizing; the necessities of Third World countries and that many lesbians are still in the closet." Attempting to reverse this silencing of lesbians, P£rez has dedicated herself to working with a recently formed lesbian group, MULA (Mujers Urgidas de un Les- bianismo Autentico —Women in Need of an Authentic Lesbianism). MULA, meaning mule, is a word often used by Mexican men against women and loosely translated means "she's stubborn" of money, more than you would be carrying so you have to call your friends and ask 'Please come forward with some money.' A recent major problem for the community, as with elsewhere in the world, is the AIDS scare. Both Perez and Castelan were visibly upset as they talked about the ADDS related harassment of gays and lesbians in Mexico. They explained that in smaller towns gays and lesbians are being attacked in the street, being fired from jobs and in some places have had their heads shaved. Reactionary groups are holding public demonstrations against 'homosexuals' and forcing many out of the towns. All this is being ignored by the police. Much of the scare has been caused by inaccurate media reports which target homosexuals. The government also contributes to misinformation about AIDS. In a recent public address Mexico's Minister of Health said one could get AIDS from towels, sweat and even tears. Lesbian activists Lourdis Pe>ez and Alida Castela. or "hindered". By reclaiming the word, the group hopes to present a strong lesbian voice, one which is "stubborn and carries a very heavy load." Since 1985 MULA has presented several workshops on lesbian sexuality, identity and a workshop for non-orgasmic women. The groups' objective is to "face and analyze the sexual, political, individual and collective conditions of lesbians in our society." Kinesis interviewed Perez and her partner, Alida Castelan, another MULA member, about lesbian concerns and activities in Mexico. AIDS Scare New Threat Mexican lesbians are much more oppressed by all levels of society than are their North American counterparts. Police harassment is not unusual, as gays and lesbians can be arrested under a "fault and moral" law. Transvestites, butch lesbians and "locas" (crazy girls), what Mexicans call effeminate men, are the main targets. "Police will often demand money," said Perez "and if you don't pay they say they'll call a photographer from one of the (sensational) tabloids, or they might say 'I'll call your parents'. They will usually ask for a lot Even though lesbians are a low risk group, they are being categorized with gays ."because when the media prints 'homosexual' the people read feminine and masculine" explained P6rez. "Now, when homosexual groups print petitions supporting their position we demand that they include a statement saying lesbians are a low risk group. Otherwise, we won't endorse it." MULA is quickly trying to put together information on lesbians and AIDS, information they desperately lack. Their biggest fear is becoming a reality, lesbians are retreating, going back to the closet, afraid to be involved in any public or political work. Conference a First It's an unfortunate time for lesbians to be pulling back as this fall, October 14- 17, Mexico City lesbians will host the first Encuentro (encounter-conference) of Latin American and Caribbean lesbian- feminists. The Encuentro, originally proposed at the Eighth International Lesbian Conference in Geneva last March (see Kinesis July/August, 1986), is meant to bring together Latin American and Caribbean lesbian-feminists "in order to analyze our situation is each of our countries and to work together to find solutions to the problems we face." The Geneva conference also decided that the first Encuentro would be held a week before the already scheduled Fourth Encuentro of Latin American and Caribbean Feminists (Oct. 18-25), also in Mexico City, so women could attend both events. "There has been tension between the two Encuentros," said Pe>ez. "We had to explain to the Feminist Encuentro organizers about the needs of the lesbian community and our right to organize separately. There has always been a lack of space within the hetero-feminist community for lesbians." Although the Encuentro is strictly a Latin American and Caribbean conference, non-Latina lesbians will be allowed to attend. "It had been suggested that white women should not be allowed," said Perez "but it was decided that yes, they can come, otherwise we might lose the goals of the Encuentro. These women must find out what it is like to be a Third World lesbian, plus we'd like to exchange information. So we decided one hundred non-latina women could "But, we are sorry to say," said Castelan, "that we are being very selective of who these one hundred women are. We want women who have written about lesbianism and women who are sensitized to Third World latina problems. This way we don't have to lose time explaining who we are and what we are doing. We also want women who would be interested in filming or videotaping the conference—provided we get a copy." "We are interested in women from the U.S. and Canada, as we import your theories. Whenever there's a political debate in your countries, for example SM we know eventually it'll come to Mexico. So we want ongoing connections and information." P£rez warned that women should not ex- • pect conditions at the Encuentro to be like "the first world". "The Encuentro will be in accordance to the economic ability of our country" said Perez. "Everyone has to do their own cleaning, bring their own sleeping bag, cup and plates. We have to assume collective responsibility." Costs for the Encuentro are as follows: for non-Latinas $150-$250 (American), for Latin Americans and Caribbeans $50 (American), and for Latinas not residing in their country $80-$120 (American). Three hundred spaces are set aside for Latin American and Caribbean lesbians, one hundred for Latinas residing outside. Security precautions for the Encuentro are receiving major attention from organizers. Only three of the organizers will know the location of the Encuentro until the last possible moment. Lesbians attending the Encuentro will be asked to refrain from any public demonstrations. Such events could threaten the lives of lesbians from more re pressed countries, such as Uruguay or Chile, who take great risks in just coming to the conference. Funds Urgently Needed Financing becomes a major headache for any conference organizer, the First Encuentro being no exception. Organizing is more difficult for Mexican lesbians in part because they cannot publicly solicit for funds. They are dependent on raising money through their own community, with parties or cultural events. In one fundraising campaign, they mailed over seventy lesbian telegrams to international groups and individuals, asking for pledges. So far, not one reply has been received. This lack of international support (unless reversed) will eliminate the opportunity for some lesbians to attend. The less money that is raised, the fewer subsidies there are, and the fewer Third World lesbians who will be able to attend. Yet Encuentro organizers are optimistic. They even have a "special offer" ... for a minimum contribution of $20 (American) you will receive a poster "depicting sophisticated pre-hispanic (lesbian) sexual techniques which have been passed down to us by our foremothers and are unknown to the first world". So even if you can't attend the conference, you can still share in a part of it. I asked Perez and Castelan if there was anything they wanted to say to Canadian lesbians and feminists. Both expressed an interest in knowing more about Canadian lesbians and, as well, they wanted Canadian lesbians to know more about them. "It's important for other lesbians to know we have things to share and we have important things to say." Both felt equally concerned about pohtical relations between the 'first world' and the Third World. "Lesbians must not forget that the first world is oppressing the Third World and that your Third World lesbian sisters are having a difficult time. So we ask you to open up your field of thinking, not just on a local basis—but also on an international one." To donate money to Encuentro: bank to bank transfer, Arte y Sociedad, A.C., Cuenta No. 1005016- 2, Banco International, SWC, Soc. 29 Huipulco, Calz. Tlalpan 8604, CP 14870 Mexico DF, Mexico. For international money orders, Arte y Sociedad, AC, Apartado Postal 22884, 1400 Mexico DF, Mexico For the addresses of the conference organization or lesbian groups in Mexico, contact Kinesis. This article has been edited for length. Kim Irving is a member of the Kinesis Editorial Board. She has been travelling and working in Central America for the past ten months. A further article on feminist organizing in Mexico will appear in a later issue. KINESIS '87 Jul/Aug SSSWS&s INTERNATIONAL Chileans give testimony in fabric by Carmen Rodriguez It is the same National Stadium of almost fourteen years ago. The stadium where thousands were kept prisoner for weeks; where women and men of all ages vere seen for the last time before 'disappearing" in the hands of the dictatorship's secret police. The stadium that became a symbol of the repression imposed by the United States-backed Chilean military, after the coup d'etat of September 11, 1973. But today, April 2, 1987, Santiago's National Stadium is filled with thousands of students, workers, office clerks, housewives, unemployed, shanty town dwellers. After fourteen years of silence by decree, the people of Chile have taken advantage of the Pope's visit and have gathered to give public testimony of their hves in today's Chile. Luisa Riveros, a shanty town dweller of "Poblacion Violeta Parra" speaks firmly and clearly to the attentive crowd, in spite of the intimidating microphones and TV "As a christian and as a shanty town dweller I have to tell you about some of our many sorrows and our few joys. We are mothers and wives who only want the well being of our families. But this, which may sound so simple, is very difficult for us. Example of Chilean arpillera art work. Sri Lanka Booming business in babies by Kinesis Staff Writer Sri Lankan babies are being sold throughout Europe, with as many as 20,000 a year sold to West German couples. The baby market has seen some infants sold for up to $8,000, while the mother is paid around $50. Agents involved in the sales make the profits. Argentina marriage law by Kinesis Staff Writer The baby market expanded from the ayah trade, where Sri Lankan women work as housemaids in Arab countries. In the past five years, over 10,000 women have worked as ayahs throughout the Gulf states, including Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Many ayahs return from their jobs pregnant, because few have any access to birth control or even information about pregnancy, hi Sri Lanka, where a woman's virginity is still regarded as a holy attribute, the women have no alter native but to seek out illegal agencies which take them in while they are pregnant. In return the agencies take the babies away as soon as they are born and sell them to European buyers. The booming baby export business may soon be facing harder times as a government sponsored commission is studying Sri Lankan adoption laws and is expected to make recommendations to curb the trade. Spare Rib "Due to unemployment and very low salaries, we hve in anguish because money is never enough and for that reason they cut off our electricity and water. Many times our husbands and children go into alcohol and drugs, and in that way, our homes are destroyed. "We are very worried about our kids' lives. We bring them into this world with much love but today it has become very difficult to bring them up in a good way. Many of our kids are malnourished and when they get sick, we can't find appropriate care because we have to get up at five in the morning to get a number in the public hospital. "Also, everyday it becomes more and more difficult to send them to school and education for us, the poor, has become really bad. It is even worse now, due to the many teachers that have been laid off. "Our houses are extremely bad. They are small and they become ^ even smaller when we have to put g* up our relatives in need and our o kids when they get married ... | "We go to visit the political j- prisoners and those who have been % tortured and all we ask for is jus- S, tice; we ask for the return of the |: exiles. We stand in solidarity with 3 the relatives of the "disappeared" ^ and we want to be listened to and B respected ..." ¬a Disguised Violence The two kinds of violence that Chilean people have been subjected to for the last fourteen years are well illustrated by Luisa Riveros. On the one hand, the overt repression that the world knows about. On the other hand, the disguised violence of a system whose mandate is to ensure that the few rich get richer at whatever cost. In face of this, shanty town women have become both the worst victims of the regime and the motors of new kinds of struggle and organization. Confronted with unemployment and/or low salaries, women have had to go out of the home and work at the most exploitative jobs: doing domestic work for the rich or working for the government itself in the so-called "minimum wage projects." For $25 (U.S.) a month, women "beautify" the rich sectors of the cities, planting flowers, watering- gardens, sweeping and washing the Divorce and remarriage will become legal in Argentina under legislation that was adopted in early May by the Senate. Up to now, Argentina was one of only seven countries in the world that completely prohibited divorce. The new law will allow divorce by mutual consent after a couple has been separated for a year. The new divorce provisions were passed over the overwhelming opposition of the Roman Catholic Church, which still has considerable influence in Argentinean society. Other countries which prohibit any form of divorce include Ireland, Philippines and Paraguay. NZ anti-abortionists fight with fire by Kinesis Staff Writer Abortion access in New Zealand has been threatened recently by a wave of arson attacks by anti- abortion groups. In April, five fires at Auckland's Epsom Day Hospital closed the hospital's operating theatres leaving only one Auckland hospital available for abortion services. The private Auckland Medical Aid Chnic, at times the only abortion clinic in the country, has been set fire to three times and has been forced to move in a bid to find more secure facilities. The Women's National Abortion Action Campaign sees the arson as the latest in a series of attacks on legal and government services and is demanding that the country's police investigate anti- abortion groups. The attack on the Epsom Hospital brought virtually no media comment and no reaction from government. The continuing attacks have worried health workers who believe they may be victims of the next arson attempt. Nursing union members have spoken out against the arson as "emotional blackmail", saying they are powerless to protect union members or women seeking abortion services. While arson attacks are the most dramatic incidents New Zealand women have to contend with, hospital boards are also falling victim to anti-abortionists. Recently the Superintendent of the Wairarapa Hospital refused to allow the hospital to hold a license to perform abortions on the grounds that such a license was inconsistent with his conscience. Broadsheet streets. After having walked two hours to work and two hours back, they clean their own houses (without the help of a vacuum cleaner ... ), wash clothes by hand and struggle with the family budget in order to put a plate of food on the table. In the mid 70's, these hardships led women to look for alternative solutions to their situation. At a time when political parties, unions, associations and community organizations had been smashed to the ground, women began to get together in order to help each other meet the most basic needs of their families; thus, the first soup-kitchens came into existence. And from the soup- kitchens grew the human rights organizations, the food co-ops, the "pobladores" associations and the "talleres artesanaels" (handicrafts workshops). Each poblaci6n (shanty-town) has several workshops. The women meet periodically to discuss the specific tasks and to work out organization matters. All the work is done collectively, from the purchasing of raw materials to the actual making of the handicrafts and on to the marketing of the final products. While the government remains hostile and does not support the talleres in any way, church, nongovernmental and international development agencies are helping the groups with some financing and marketing. Some groups have chosen to spin lamb and angora wool; others crochet or knit sweaters, scarves and dresses. Some women have discovered creative ways of working cotton thread into curtains and tablecloths. A few are weaving wool into bags and belts or making clay artifacts. But the groups that have managed to best represent the hardships and the dreams of Chilean shanty town women in their search for an additional source of income are the "arpil- leristas" (see Kinesis , February, 1987). Vivid Commentary Arpilleras are appliqued wall hangings comprised of colorful recycled cloth scraps. They portray the reality of their makers and as such are the most vivid commentary on the socio-political situation of the Chile of today. The arpilleristas are the many Luisa Riveros of the Chilean barrios who have found a collective voice to communicate with the world. "One day I didn't know what theme to choose for the arpillera, so I said to myself, I am going to do something that is happening to us. My children were hungry and that is how I began to make what was happening to us," an arpillerista says. Empowered by their newly found inner strength and proud of their ability to produce a beautiful and marketable item, Chilean shanty town women have thus become the heart of a people that strive for change and justice. As Luisa Riveros told the Pope and the people of the world: "We want a fife of dignity for everybody, without the dictatorship." 10 KINESIS Jul/Aug '87 //////////'////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////A /////////////////////^^^^^ by Nora Randall I hope you read this column lying on your back in the grass, looking up at a blue sky. Or better yet lying on your back in the grass looking up at the sky and watching your kite as it dips and soars and tugs gently on the spool of string in your hand. Your imagination can go up with the kite and just drift around in the sky, go with whatever little current comes along; while your body, back on the ground, has little important tasks to perform so it isn't left out. It has to hold the string and decide when to let out and when to reel in, but all this can be accomplished in absolute comfort. Flying a kite is the cheapest way to get out of town and it has saved me many times. This has not always been the case. The kites of my childhood were a bane. I can remember trying to fly a kite for several springs when I was around nine years old. There I would be running like a sucker up and down the field near the railroad tracks trying to get my kite to fly. After each unsuccessful attempt I had to pick my way through a jungle of variables— tail too long, tail too short, tail too heavy, tail too light, wind not strong enough (wind was never too strong), running in the wrong direction (suck finger and hold it up in the air—which side dries first? Does that mean I should be running from the tracks to the road or from the landfill to the school yard or vice versa or diagonally?) There was also the question of how much string to give the kite when I ran with it and how fast I should be running, though the answer to that was invariably faster than you can. After enough attempts to become totally confused and frustrated about the mechanics of flight, I would take my kite and go home. Once in awhile an older boy would take pity on me and try to launch my kite, but they didn't always succeed. Even when they did, I was disappointed. I didn't care that they could fly my kite, I wanted to do it myself. Not a promising beginning for a great friendship. It wasn't until I was in my thirties that I was re-introduced to kite flying and I found it magically transformed. A man I knew for about six months solely because we were both totally miserable, took me to Jericho beach and gave me a delta bat kite and a roll of string. I put the crossbar in the kite, held it up and let go and it went straight up. The more string I let out the higher it went. That was it. I was flying a kite. The delta design doesn't need a tail and if you're standing next to the ocean on the edge of a continent, you don't have to run up and down the way you do in a flat river town 2500 miles inland. All I had to do with my bat at Jericho beach was tug on the string if it started to fall and let out more string if it pulled. I was thrilled. I bought my own LIFE STORIES SNV39^ She likes to fly kites to the heights - it feels right ^^^^^^^o^^^^^^^f BEANS iiiiiiiiiiiiiiil w>at kite. It cost a buck. Soon I acquired several bat kites and colorful wooden spools for my kite string. Then I took the plunge and bought a rainbow dragon kite for fourteen dollars. It was beautiful. I flew my kites at Jericho and at the point behind the planetarium. I took them on camping trips and flew them in Oregon and on Vancouver Island. I discovered things and had adventures. The security guards at the planetarium will go up on the roof and retrieve your dollar kite. Once a kite is caught in a tree, it is extremely unlikely that you will free it by yanking on the string, but you can still enjoy seeing it fly. It's just in a tree and not the sky. A plastic kite will still fly after it has fallen into a pond and sunk (provided you can get it out). If kites tear or a stick comes loose they will plunge straight down and you will be faced with piles of string that form into large balls of knots. In fact, forming knots is a favorite pastime of kite string much the same way kite flying is my favorite pastime. As time went on and my kites got older I seemed to be spending more and more time untangling knots and less time flying kites. This was not surprising, but what shocked the pants off me was realizing that I didn't mind. There was something very soothing about untangling knots. It seemed like the right thing for me to be doing. HIHIHIJI I could look down at this large mass of string in my hands and kind of rub it gentry so it would loosen up a little and then tug it apart a bit. Pretty soon a knot would separate itself from the mass and if I played with it loosely for awhile I could often discover just which string to pull to untie it. Sometimes I never did see just which string but the knot came untied anyway. So I spent many hours sitting next to my kite in the sun and rolling a mass of knots around in my hands. I got pretty good at untangling string. This year I bought a new kite, one of those traditional diamond shaped ones that need a tail. I took it to the planetarium, tied the tail on the end of the stick, held it over my head and it went straight up and lazed around with my thoughts for about an hour. Then a stick came loose and it plunged into the pond. I thought I was back in a familiar place but I reeled in the entire line and hauled my kite up from the depths without a single knot. Something's changed, I thought. And I went home happy. I mention this because I was complaining to a friend of mine that I was very busy, sick and that my column was due and I didn't know what to write about. She had just come through a period of activity that had blown her circuits. She said write about women who take on too much, work too hard andjhen burn out and are miserable. SUPPORT WOMEN IN DU 5INE55 Down Home RENOVATORS J RENOVATIONS. NEW CONSTRUCTIONS. DECKS, FENCES. ETC. J 2561 TRINITY STREET 2 VANCOUVER, B.C. V5K1E3 (604) 251-3159 : ;; INFORMATION ::: AUTOMATION ANN DOYLE GRANDVIEW REALTY LTD. MARLENE HOLT 253-4111 RES: 255-5027 1676 Charles Street. Vancouver, B.C. V5L 2T3 n»»m»»»»»»nmmi( i «i»nn»..n».i.«.»H...i' The Alexander Technique Relieves back pain, excessive fatigue, poor posture and physical tension. Learn to move with flexibility and ease in daily activities, work, performing arts, and sport. JULIA BRANDRETH (604)684-2541 KATHY TEMPLETON, m.Sc.,C.f.p. Personal Sc Relationship Counselling Financial Counselling (604) 224-3155 2668 Crown Street Vancouver, B.C. V6R 3W1 iiwwii»»»ffl»i8iijaq ; JANET M. LICHTY, B.A., M.Ed. COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGY gvlACPHEIfSON ^MOTORS 885 E 8th Ave., Van. 876-6038 BYAPPOINTMENT donna Les/. M.T. THE VANCOUVER BLOCK 419-736 GRANVILLE ST. VANCOUVER. B.C. \ cAHcecJWacpherson. licensed mechanic (604) 874-6982 THERAPIST/CONSULTANT SEXUAL ABUSE (604) 254-8107 Economics XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX^ N^^x^^^^^xxxxxx^^^^^^ Community economic development Promising a new future by Deborah Prieur Begin with empowerment. Begin to see the possibilities for women to gain greater economic control over their lives and futures. Economic development has traditionally meant creating or expanding a community, region or country's economy. It usually takes place because a corporation or individual sees development as a way to make profits. The "benefits" to the people lie in the creation of wealth or jobs. In this traditional economic development model, the people whose lives will be directly affected do not have a voice in the development decisions. An alternative to traditional economic development is being discussed and at- £ tempted in communities around the world, c This alternative is CED, community based « economic development. jS The roots of CED are in the co-operative ^ movement and in the economic and social ^ goals of various progressive groups through- ^ out the country. 0 CED differs from conventional economic j* development because it is an integrated approach which takes the social, economic, cultural and environmental well-being of the community into account. In practical terms, this means consideration of the effects of economic decisions on households, communities and, ultimately, our planet. Collective Solutions CED involves looking at the community resources (human, financial and natural), discovering the real needs of the community for goods and services and trying to link the two. It emphasizes stable employment in a context of responsible use of resources, local control over decisions, greater community self-reliance and an appropriate use of technology. CED emphasizes not-for-profit enterprises. The projects need to make a profit to survive but the profit is a means not an end. The goal is to ensure that profits are used in ways that benefit the community, bringing a collective solution, not an individual one, to unemployment and community development. How can CED benefit women? First, let's look at the economic realities Canadian women face. We work long hours for low pay, we are often the last hired, first fired, seldom unionized and given little recognition for our economic contribution. We make up the hidden underemployed and unemployed due to our traditional work responsibilities in the home and the lack of adequate daycare. On average we earn 62 percent of what men earn and therefore when we are unemployed our U.I. benefits are low. In other words, we are marginalized. Melanie Conn has developed a feminist perspective on CED activities based on her work with Community Economic Options, a project of WomenSkills Development Society. Conn's perspective looks at the impact of CED activity on women in comparison to the level of participation women have in the planning of conventional economic development. A typical example would be a plan designed to attract tourism to an area seeking to expand its economic base. Looking at tourism projects with a feminist perspective shows hospitality jobs that pay low wages and offer little training or hope for job advancement. A feminist alternative would be to encourage government-sponsored small business counselling programs for women to learn the skills needed for self employment. Conn describes CED as including as many community members as possible so that different interests contribute to decisions. CED conferences, for instance, are Applying a feminist perspective to CED, Conn sees more women involved as participants and as potential employees in new projects. Secondly, the concern for keeping wealth within the community provides more economic stability which benefits women. Lastly, there is the potential that economic planning and development will become more responsible as more groups with social and economic interests are involved in decisions. Vancouver's recently created Airheart Co-operative Travel Centre is a good example of local control over community economic development. attended by members of government, business, trade unions, colleges and groups representing native people, youth, women, disabled people and the unemployed. Wealth from Within An important CED philosophy is that it is more beneficial for a community to generate wealth from within than to try to attract new wealth from outside. For example, the money you spend on food or entertainment goes into the hands of companies that are rarely locally owned. The profits "leak out" of the community, thus the term leakage to describe this process. Wealth is really a result of money circulation rather than money quantity. For instance, considerable wealth could be sitting in one person's art collection but this does nothing for the local economy. Often a community's savings are deposited in credit unions and banks and are for the most part invested outside the community. The same is often true for the money in union pension funds and church donations. An exception to this is Vancouver's CCEC Credit Union which developed from the need for capital by several community associations and consumer co-ops. People were having trouble raising money to start projects like daycare centers or to make down payments on co-operatively purchased houses. Established lending institutions were reluctant to give these organizations credit because of their small size and unconventional structures. CCEC attempts to be an alternative to the existing financial system and stresses the need for collective solutions to individual problems, featuring low-cost loans for low-income individuals. The concern for feminists in CED activity lies with how community is defined. If it is the existing decision-making bodies with only token representation from women, then women do not have a real voice in decisions. For community control over economic decisions to be meaningful, decisions have to be made by groups which represent the gender, class and race differences of our communities. While community is often assumed to be a geographic region only, it also includes the concept of a community of interest, a group that comes together out of shared goals. For example, a group of women who share common political goals comes together to develop a worker-controlled, profit-sharing business with the dual purpose of creating employment as well as lessening their dependence on government funding. As profits are generated they will be tunneled into political work. If the project succeeds, in time the women will no longer need outside funding. Democratic Control This example brings us to the other end of the CED spectrum, where there is greatest potential for social and economic change. Projects here are usually small- scale. Some are sponsored by non-profit societies, others are autonomous, worker- controlled co-ops like CRS or collectives, like Press Gang. Many Kinesis readers will recall Emma's Jambrosia, a jam factory in the Kootenays and an early CED project. The project grew out of the West Kootenay Women's Association as a solution to chronic unemployment and from a desire to create a non- traditional workplace based on feminist princi ples. The project's intention, once they began to show a profit, was to put a certain percentage of their profits into services for women in the community. Such projects usually emphasize democratic control of the workplace, flexible hours to accommodate family responsibilities, production on a human scale and responsiveness to community needs. A local women's group currently working with CED is the Vancouver Lesbian Centre (VLC) which has received funding to explore the feasibility of forming a women's co-operative business. Two women were hired to do project research and they subsequently developed the idea of a women's building. They surveyed women's political groups, services and businesses to assess interest and are putting together a financial plan which they will discus3 with interested women's groups. The meetings will focus on the structures, processes and operating procedures for the building. A women's building will take the thousands of dollars that goes to landlords and put this money into a building that directly benefits women. Having several women's groups in one space would make it easier for groups to share expertise, expenses, increase informal networking and potentially create a larger lobbying base for political actions. A women's building would also make it easier for women's groups to venture into small scale businesses within the building. VLC is studying an idea for a small restaurant which would provide reliable employment, reasonable wages, flexible hours, childcare, and paid time for political work. Business profits would benefit lesbians directly as workers and indirectly though VLC's services and political work. Balancing Goals What are the obstacles for CED projects? CED is a long-term strategy. It takes time to research ideas, do feasibility studies and gain access to legal, financial and business knowledge required. Balancing social and economic goals is a new path and it takes time to develop the processes and skills needed to manage these dual purposes. Because it requires a long-term strategy, it is important that knowledge, skills and tasks are shared so that as people leave, projects can continue. The greatest difficulty for any CED project is access to capital. This is especially true for women who often do not have a credit rating or assets to secure a bank loan. To assist women, WomenSkills has joined with CCEC to establish a loan guarantee fund to help women set up CED projects. Called WomenFutures, the fund will help women secure the project financing. Projects that WomenFutures could fund include co-operatively owned enterprises that ensure local ownership, control and profit-sharing amongst workers or a nonprofit society, such as a women's centre starting a for-profit business to enlarge its funding base. Although still in the preliminary stages, women's groups and interested individuals are already being approached to support WomenFutures with contributions. The fund will be administered collectively by a committee consisting of WomenSkills representatives, CCEC staff and contributors. An official launching will be held on September 10th to welcome fund contributors and introduce WomenFutures to interested groups and individuals. TAere is a wealth of knowledge, skills and practical information for anyone interested in CED as an alternative means of employment, as a way to expand a group's funding base, or as a way to get informed about economic issues. For more information contact the following—Melanie Conn: 480-0450, Carol Nielsen or Barbara Grantham, SPARC of B.C.: 786-8118; Bet Cecil or Brenda Gold, VLC CED project: 258-6088. 12 I^INESIS Jul/Aug '87 //////Mw//////mm^^^ //////////////////^^^^^ Law Legal victory Together Min sickness and in health" The following is the story of Gail Meredith's attempts to gain control over the legal affairs of her lover, Judy, who was diagnosed last year as having a degenerative brain disease. As with Kinesis' recent coverage of the Karen Thompson-Sharon Kowalski case (Dec/Jan 1986/87) Meredith's struggle raises important concerns for lesbians involved in long term relationships. by Barbara Findlay "It's hard to know what the hardest part was," said Gail Meredith. There were the doctors who refused to recognize me as having any right as Judy's lover to be involved with their decisions about her. There was the shock of how Judy's family reacted, after we'd had a good relationship for ten years. There was the loss of Judy as the woman I knew and loved. There was never knowing what was real, trying to put the world together from scratch on a weekly basis. There was the feeling of utter impotence in the face of the legal system." That is Gail's reaction looking back over the time she has been dealing with the illness of her lover, Judy. Judy has a degenerative brain disease that has caused her to become senile, and she is now in Riverview, a longterm care facility for people with mental disabilities. Gail and Judy were lovers for ten years. Both were committed activists in the women's and trade union movements. Looking back, Gail realizes that the problems with Judy's health began as early as 1983. But they first became obvious in the fall of 1985 when during a trip to England, Judy seemed to be very depressed and unlike herself. It seemed as if there might be problems in their relationship, but Judy kept saying that wasn't so. Gail wondered what she was doing wrong, whether it was her fault as Judy became progressively more agitated and depressed. She couldn't bear to stay in social situations, demanding that Gail take her home, or simply leaving and going for a walk. She couldn't drive, she couldn't sit. Nothing satisfied her. appeared that the problem was not psychiatric but physical. The hospital discharged Judy, and she went home to Gail, on twenty- four hours notice. Suddenly Judy wasn't getting any treatment at all. She had to wait two months for an appointment for more neurological tests, and a further "four to six weeks" for an admission to the University of British Columbia (UBC) Hospital. For Gail the time was terrifying. There was no diagnosis of what was wrong, no indication of whether Judy would get better or worse, no sense of how quickly Judy's condition might change. As well, it quickly became impossible to leave Judy alone in the house. Gail had to make the rounds of social service agencies to organize homemakers to come in while she was at work. Some of the homemakers got along well. Some, though, were unable to deal with Judy and lasted only a day—so Gail was left to cope. Home- maker help was only available during the day which meant that Gail still had all of the responsibility for Judy in the evenings and weekends. At the same time Gail had to deal with Judy's financial affairs. Judy was getting disability benefits from work; she had to apply for CPP disability. There was a car in Judy's name that needed to be dealt with. And there was a settlement of an accident claim for Judy coming through. At that point discussions began among Judy's family and Gail about who should manage Judy's legal affairs—who should be Judy's 'committee' (a committee is a provincial Supreme Court appointed guardian who is empowered to look after a person's affairs if she is mentally incompetent. See Kinesis April, 1987.) Judy's father and brother violently opposed Gail's committeeship. Gail still doesn't understand why that happened since they had always had a close relationship with Judy's family. They had been out as lovers for years, had shared birthdays and Christmases, spent time with Judy's nieces, and gotten along well. At a meeting with Judy's father and brother, they blamed Gail for Judy's illness. If Gail and Judy had been a heterosexual couple, of course, there would have been no legal problems. It is routine for one spouse to take over the management of the affairs of the other in case of illness. By February of 1986, Judy was suspended from work. She got to the point where she never got out of bed. Gail took her to her doctor, who treated her with antidepressants which didn't help. Finally, in April 1986, Judy was hospitalized at Lion's Gate, in the psychiatric ward. Diagnosis: depression. Treatment: more drugs, to the point where Judy couldn't talk well, was staggering, and couldn't relate well to people. The psychiatrist refused to meet with Gail to discuss what was wrong. The nurses told Gail—and the psychiatrist—that Judy .wasn't behaving like a depressed person. Finally, after five weeks, the psychiatrist had a neurological assessment done, and it They called into question Judy and Gail's relationship, saying Gail had always dominated Judy. They accused Gail of withholding information about Judy's illness. Judy was admitted to UBC. Gail was terrified: what if the family tried to prevent her from dealing with the doctors? In fact the staff at UBC cooperated fully with Gail, getting her to attend family meetings whenever they were called. If Gail and Judy had been a heterosexual couple, of course, there would have been no legal problems. It is routine for one spouse to take over management of the affairs of the other in case of illness and for doctors to advise and consult the spouse about treatment. Gail Meredith's lover Judy at a Vancouver demonstration. But for lesbians and gay men none of that can be taken for granted. Even though Gail and Judy had shared bank accounts, owned a house together, and had ten years of combining their incomes, it was not at all clear that Gail would be the one appointed by the court to be Judy's committee. Gail was afraid that if Judy's father was made committee, he might forbid her to see Judy— and Judy would be absolutely lost to Gail. Gail realized she needed a lawyer. Her first choice was a lawyer who dithered ineffectually in an expectation of losing. Gail was getting the message that she should "settle"—let Judy's family take over in exchange for their agreement that she could continue to live in the house, and see Judy. Gail changed lawyers. She told the second lawyer that she wanted exactly what a spouse would get in the same situation. The court process for a committeeship is not a trial. It is done by submitting affidavits. The judge reads the affidavits ahead of time, and then listens while the lawyers argue why their client should win. Gail gathered affidavits that spoke of their relationship, of Gail's character, of Gail's financial responsibility. The affidavits from Judy's family attacked Gail, and her relationship with Judy, from every direction. Gail sat in court and listened to the lawyer's arguments; her life described in paragraphs of legalese. The judge ruled that Gail should be the committee. Gail was profoundly relieved. But she was disappointed that in giving his reasons, the judge said nothing about the fact that Gail and Judy were lesbian lovers, so his decision will be hard to use as a precedent in other cases. When Gail looked back to wonder why she won, she realized her strength was in the fact that she and Judy had not been in the closet. As a result she was able to call upon "pillars of respectability"—her doctor, credit union manager, therapist, and friends—to testify to the solidness of her partnership with Judy. The fact that Gail was named beneficiary in Judy's will helped By the time the court hearing was held, Judy had been moved to Riverview. At Riverview there was none of the cooperation from the psychiatrist that Gail had had from doctors at UBC. The psychiatrist refused to see Gail and said that Judy's illness was God's punishment for being a lesbian. For a time he decreed that no one—not Gail, not Judy's family—could visit Judy for a month leaving her with no visitors and no way to understand what was happening. Gail demanded a meeting with the ward doctor, insisting on her right to be kept informed and see Judy. She couldn't insist that the doctor be changed, but as a result of her demands the ward doctor left the case. Gail says one of the hardest things was to advocate both for Judy and her own interests at the same time. Gail says she had solid and consistent support from her feminist friends throughout the ordeal. People went with her to visit Judy and when Judy was home, they brought meals and spelled Gail off in looking after Judy. Friends went with Gail to meetings with doctors, swore affidavits, spent time with Gail trying to piece the world together and figure out what to do next. In February a tribute to Judy was held at La Quena. One hundred women came, to pay tribute to Judy as they remembered her in the community. Gail said that one of the things she has learned in the ordeal is that feminism works—even in the hard places. Her understanding of feminism, and her friends, enabled her to sort out that the situation was not her fault, that she was not a bad person. It made it possible to stand up to the medical system and the legal system and assert her right to have her relationship with Judy treated with respect. Gail's relationship with Judy's family has significantly improved. They take turns visiting Judy at Riverview. No one is able to predict the course of Judy's disease. She has a different doctor now, one who is cooperative with Gail. But she is about to be moved to a different ward—and the process of establishing their rights will begin again for Gail. KJNESIS '87 JUI/AUQ 13 loeing, the case between Fand Mary Beth Whitehead Fof "Baby M" is closed. New Jersey Supreme Court rectified the lower court's decision JTpIetely strip Whitehead of any 5 to motherhood, essentially the Id is the Sterns. The surrogate pthering contract was upheld as more alid than any traditional notion of rparentage under family law. The case I points to the profound social, legal, and f ethical complexities raised by the new reproductive technologies. Such technologies vary from prenatal procedures such as amniocentesis and ultrasound, to laboratory fertilization oL human eggs and implantation of donoj embryos into the uterus. Feminists are asking who is gaining from these technologies. Why do they n exist? Who is in control of them? Are | women really gaining "freedom of choice"? These are not the questions most bressing to scientists. The science Ipmmunity worries about how to create an "Wironment just like the womb, or how to delect genetic characteristics from embryo L or how to "harvest" more eggs from a woman's ovaries. In her book, The I MotMr Machine, Gena Corea documents \the culling goals and motivations behind ^technology—the desire for male •ntrol o%er women through reproductive %trol, aid the desire to genetically ipulatemhe population to create "superior" nwian beings. She and other feminat researchers have developed a convincWig arg%jent for extreme caution. Artificial Insemination Artificial insemination by donor (l or alternative insemination as critics of medical terminology call it, is the relatively simple procedure of inserting mor's semen into a woman's i to achieve fertilization. It can e done at home, except for screening and testing of donor semen or blood for health and genetic problems. Lesbians and single women have used it to avoid the complications of legal or social fathers. Religious, medical and state authorities initially greeted AID with great concern because of its obvious potential to threaten the patriarchal family. They recognized early the ease which women could can reproductive self-deterHSKkflrathe than as a "treatmentWor nale inf< "Li early cases, coMrts in England] Canada and the United States ruled that AH) childrenMere illegitimate and that the practiceM AID was equivalent to adultery. As jpch, AID provided grounds for dhaf ce and possible criminal prosecution, "^porea) Courts were certainly noJKs prepared to accept the notion of a^urrogate" father as they are now nepared to accept a "surroj mother. Slow, AID has gained accept an< thougnstill with limits. In B.C. a 197jjf|w Reform Commission Repeat tnded the same eligibility ^e apphW for AH) recipients as are applied » adoption proceedings. Thl report indicated single women should | be ruled ol, but that as in adoption, a preferencmor heterosexual married ~|iples woufc likely prevail. jedical pmessionals have tended to fe AH) asm medical "treatment", fclaypeMle of "risks" involved. Physicia^fkovide the procedure to specializecr^reati_ent of semen to select out Y chromoson* sperm (those that produce males) fol fertilization purposes. By 1976, a sperm Bank had opened up in California speci—ly for storing the sperm of Nobel PrSe winners for future reproduction and research. The bank was named after one of me early proponents of eugenics (genetic "enmrieering"), Herman J. Muller. One Germamscientist has dedicated his career towiding a method to detect homosexualityTM the fetus, and possibly "correct" it honfcnally before birth. If it still sounds a long war off, keep in mind the words of Randolph%eed, one of the pioneers in the field of hunmn AID, "The new reproductive technoldfces are all capable of genetic manipulationmBbelieve they will be used for that and I b< is desirable." Surrogacy While most surrogacy agreements now .only employ the simple technology of. " e social relations surrounding them are "v more complex than we are socially equipped to deal with. The arrangement is used TeWlow a male to procreate, if his ^ wife is infer*^_or for some reason unable j^bear a childT^he husband's sperm lates a wom?8|_he "surrogate" (or birthffl||hfir); she con*^_±es her own egg and she carnK^he resultmg^^nyo to birth. When itis%ttcnshe gives^^ghjld over to the wife for acR^tipn, in exc for an agreed sum of mon! Exchanging money for a child is illegal in most Western countries. In" the case of surrogacy, the male "buyer" pays the birth mother, and the male's wife adopts the child. Technically she has not paid for an adoption, and her husband does not need to adopt it since he is already the biological father. women who fall within their guidelines— mostly married women who have their husband's consent. Single women, lesbians, or anyone considered "unstable" (having a psychiatric history) or to be in an "unstable" relationship, are generally seen as inappropriate candidates. Medical justifications usually refer to the physician's responsibility to ensure a nurturing environment for the unborn | child. It is up to physicians to assess the y of applicants. rprisingly, many women! takenjmatters into their o Women's health centrg^mTNorth lerica have^g^PPcTan alternative Rtworkj^pHng assistance to women To undertake the procedure on r own. In 1976, the first lesbians to have AID babies gave birth in Vermont and in California. Several women in Canada have also given birth after using AID on their own or with the help of cooperative doctors. Though AH) holds the greatest potential for being an accessible,, technology for womenj the potential^ ofs< __ wement andjselection. No one balks yet at AH) reciwnts seeking certain physical charadjeristics in their donor— this has been Mtablished as a norm, as AID parents Atially wanted babies to look like the* social fathers to maintain l secrecy. No* screening for hereditary jdiseases orMenetic defects is considered cceptablefco. These "defects" include irome, even though with I people with Down's syndrome o old age. fcory of "defects" lends itself J expanding boundaries. Thei low in the United States whi< |iestionable reliability) the Under famTMt law the woman who giv< birth to a chilctV the mother. Though Mary Beth WhitBtead is referred to as the "surrogate's—he was actually the biological and legU mother of the baby she named Sara^Ls an adoptive "social" mother, Mary wp is the more likely candidate for the tewk "surrogate' mother. The legal confusion arounc arises because two kinds of law into play—family law and contri Neither has been designed to addrel this situation. Family law fails to ad< any kind of unconventional parental designation, while contract law normall; deals with property and services. When Whitehead backed out on the 'surrogate agreement, the court had to decide which area of law would prevail. If it were contract law, Whitehead would lose the child. If it were family law, the case would have to be argued as a custody case with the "best interests of the child" at issue. While the courts pondered the legal i, many pondered the social, d feminist implications of the case. What kind of world are we creating, wondered, if we agree to the right of wealthy married couples to buy babies from poor or working class women? Or the right of women to rent their wombs? ^^^^^—^ ^^B^^ Or the right of baby brokers to profit from the desperation of childless couples on the one hand, and disadvantag" women on the other? Would we want such arrangements toHS possible if money were not involved? If so, under what conditions? The parallels with prostitution are "^»t here we are also fwith a potential new life which "will be born into a complex web of relationships. In the United States, several agencies (sixteen in 1983) now offer the "service" of matching "surrogate" mothers with couples unable to have their own children. These agencies normally operate with a team of physician and lawyer, sometup psychologist as well, who a deal for anywherefrojg00JJOrj to over $20,000. NoeLJJil^he lawyer in thj| Sterj^SjPJPMead case, is considered her of surrogate contracts in thj p.S. (Career building in this field is noB :stricted to scientists.) Although this team acts as a go- bemyeen, its interests lie in creating a ^Tfied customer—the childless couple. rhe¥_rth mother's position is more like uBt of an employee. The contracts arrangBkfor surrogacy reflect these difTjgJ*jBpsitions. Most contracts ITate^iumber of stringent conditions Rat must1»net by the birth mother, ncluding suW^tting to close medical f supervision, airBtoiedical procedures ' and tests requesWLby the father/client, ' jaj supelBkion, restrictions in dietTrestnctiOTlS^^^tivities, and restrictions on sexual Mivity during the ■r I" i iiiiUn).. \ There are usually provision—allowing the father to terminate the agi and pay only a portion of the agt amount should pregnancy not occH a miscarriage occur. There are provfll that if the fetus is defective in any serS way, the father can withdraw from the * agreement, and that if a defective baby is born, he can refuse it and not be responsible for any child support costs. In the case of Whitehead, there was even ' a provision that she should not love the fetus she carried. There are rarely any such protective provisions for the birth mother involved. The only term binding the contracting jher is that he pay medical expenses iupon sum on delivery of a he ' mothers have sou |L advice, they have usually been discouraged from doing so by the agency engaging \em. 'he amount Whitehead was to receive _$10,000—not a huge amount of money whtt averaged out over the 9 to 12 s the whole procedure could involve. Itors of one clinic say they expect \ to "surrogates" to go down as Racy becomes more common. They Expect it to go down as it becomes UCTIVE e Universit^njntis more common for the egg donor to be a different woman from the fetus "carrier". l carriers canfin_ught from more nically disadvantaged groups (for Kpmen of colour^BWwould be r fetuses forlBBtaoney. nologjfcpw exists—embi [yet been wi( uple in Toi tannolffliBMM^fetan to hire ' in the <M| BB&Wry their embi Swogacy is now a business U.Sjfwith clinics that promote th< [think in terms of market expansion, he desperation of childless couples is not likely to subside in such a climate. And the pressure on infertile women to participate in surrogacy arrangements will increase with their increased availability. lube Babies Wiu*^fc_ossibility of taking an egg from a woman^wjkzing it in the laboratory, and placing fln^fciito the womb of that woman or anotherwB^to, we now have what amounts to "test^^Byjabies—in i vitro (in glass) fertilization! The first baby born using this" 3 Louise Brown in 1978 in England 81, the first American birth from IVF c place in Norfolk, Virginia, and in 19^ Canada's first was born in B.C., nine i premature. CaBada has at least ten fertility resea procedMe. The Columb» clinic offers IVF and a proceduAalled GIFT. Ij the simple^ "harvesting^kggs is obviously far more complicated »in "harvesting" sperm. The womarMaust undergo hormone injections for wBWeeks of her reproductive cyc^fc—loverstimulate the ovaries into producrlH^re than the normal one egg. She must undergo regulaTMMjrasound testing to monitor egg growth. Under a general anaesthetic, undergoes surgery to remove eggs, k involving three different insertions " istruments into her abdomen. This blled laparoscopy. jLfter the eggs are removed, doctoi fermize them with sperm in the lab, alknKg them to grow for 48 hours. Th~Wgs are then flushed int woman^bterus by means of a clH inserted tn^—di her cervjj—Th^rwoman undergoes fura^MMjjnone^Rtment to the end of that mom The GUT procedure is ftnilar except that it does not involve laBratory fertilization of the egg, buHbnly mixing egg and sperm in the lab awl immediately placing them into the womM's fallopian tubes during the same lapaAcopy. Doctors use it to allow men^^i a low sperm count to reproduce.J attempt at pregnancy v client must pay appu^nately $U for lab fees and^J^Wfor fertility d recoverable through^ Clinics and the media emphasize the ecstasy experienced by couples successful 'i these infertile couple Medicine performs miracles What we hear less about is the mere ten to twenty percent pregnancy rate using WF. That's two out of ten women. Of those pregnancies that do occur, close to one third will end in miscarriage. Out of thirty women attempting childbirth, four will succeed. rychiatric Bugh not Won^Bfeften go through more than ^one attempwLhopes of success. For _ry attempj^—voman subjects her mone injections, geneTB—nesthesiaj^fclriple ultrasound and ot^fctests, andlTMbat constant medical oBRWation. ThoBjkalso a risk of multiple pMiiancy, sinciPtt^e than one embryo is inserWLinto the woA^ uterus each time. No stUKs have been oBj^of the long-term effeclT babies of these proce^ That is the story fo", accepted to the prograi who never make it that fl the procedure is not coveiB insurance, so only those w >have access. The UBC clirl each woman accepted for 1 she must be married, have] illness, and be under 39- stated, the implkfl|ifrffs she must be ^^j^t/KttKSdslie is more thanj ! white. Such limited accMj^irtually amounts to a fonn^^glN^rvlBkeeding. I procedures a technologies. They are experiments Women who submit to them are experimental subjects. In some cases they are fully informed of that fact, in other cases not. Lesley Brown, mother of the first test-tube baby, did not know that IVF had never before resulted in a successful birth. Her husband stated, "I didn't know we were to be the first test- tube parents. I wish we weren't." (Corea) When Judith Carr, first test-tube mother in North America was told of her status, •eplied, "You're kidding." Informed •nsent has obviously been a secondary concern for doctors "performing" these miracle births. In most cases, women give up a great deal of control over their bodies and pregnancies to doctors: "Right up to the time of undertaking the delivery, which I decided to do by Caesarean section, I can remember my last thoughts being before we started the operation, that we'd don«verything possible that wasj«pwn, butjp was still going to be anu^R^wn Lent at the birth of the IjffF' (Dr- [trick Stenjoe, Brown's dflfer, CBC proram). ' Frozen nbryos In recent jB^rs, scientists have succeeded in freezing embryos for later use by a couple seeking pregnancy. In Australia this has allowed foiuupuch less invasive process to occurjjgpfne woman going through IVF. SJg^iust undergo only one laparoscojjPrather than one each .time a pregnMcy is attempted, and the gbryo can ie transferred according to iral cycle on subsequent tries, x a hormonally induced cycle. WhelHiPJfcMing is used or not, there iPJtt^q^Kjfct^of what happens to leftoveTfllfcMs/nSwMkuomore than 3 to 6 embryosaPj|aB]^rn ^B^fte^time to avoid multiple preg would undoubtedly like to use! study and experimentation. The quest: of how to keep an embryo alive outside the natural womb is a nagging one for them. in JNo shen ^^ronse J^ conce W mirac the real mother please stand up 7 They say it will help provide solutions to infertility and save premature babies. Nevertheless, Australia and England have passed laws that strictly limit (though do not prohibit) the length of dime an embryo can be kept alive outside woman's uterus (14 days, in England), 1 be done with it and with whose lili, erfflHfiiownership is not always eld-. A weaTnBMmerican couple who had ^ed frozen emUMkin Australia were filled in a plane craslSfegtralian courts had to decide who ownedT^«anbryos and whether or not, if carriecr^Bterm in another woman's womb, they woTB legal heirs to the riches of their Amerf genetic parents. ^Freedom or Enslavement? access toinem^Sasuccee pregnancy, perhaps the new technologies are a blessing. For the rest of us, they have serious implications because of their potential negative impact on the rights of women and the direction of reproductive control. As practices develop which dissociate a woman from her own fetus, as laws develop to protect embryo research, as hiring women as breeders gains social acceptability, as science shortens the time a fetus is technically dependent on a woman's uterus—the more the fetus will be regarded as an entity separate from the woman who carries it. A woman's right to make decisions about her own body will be viewed as secondary to the rights of that fetus. There is considerable dispute over this already in relation to abortion. But as the rights of a fetus increase, so the rights of women will decrease. The recent case of a pregnant woman in Vancouver who refused a Caesarian section is a case in point. Doctors sought and obtained a court order to apprehend her fetus before its birth. They performed the Caesarian without her permission. Under most other circumstances this would be considered assault (see Kinesis , page 5). It is ironic that the social relations emerging from futuristic reproductive technologies can so blatantly revert to the regressive thinking of darker times for women. A hundred years ago, men owned women and children. Women were expected to bear and raise children. With surrogate contracts we have the modern version of reproductive slavery. could m doesn't hai child, who is dictate in a contract rrogate" mother must "husband or the state illy jMEsame? If a man t"imperfect" anyolfeias to? What -lildref will happen to i The horror of rep^Bkctive^khnologies is that they propose bilRkical, Mimical and genetic solutions to «mt are^kgely social issues. In the procesMhey r^j[orce traditional social controls baP" patriarchal values. It is a posrl that women have taken some c«trol h alternative insemination and m\ approaches to fertility problems.^^t v/i$\ the more advanced technology, wdT control will undoubtedly have to be the political arena. Further reading: The Mother Machine Reproductive Technologies from Artificial Insemination to Artifici Wombs Gena Corea, Harper & Row, 198A Canadian Journal of Women and Law Women and Reproduction Vol. 1, No. 2, 1986. Test Tube Women What Future for Motherhood^ Ed. by Rita Arditti, Renate Muelli Klein, and Shelley MindenMPandoj^ Press, 1984. Information was obtayMd for thik article from unpublished papersg Claudia Trudeau <md Laura Jmlosset, UBC. -30- KINESIS KJNES1S '87 Jul/Aug 15 Education by MaVgo Dunn For fourteen years, VCC Langara has presented a credit women's studies program. Unique among colleges in British Columbia, the program has not only survived, but also maintained its links with the activist mainstream of the women's movement. This fall at Langara (49th and Main) and at VVI (Pender and Cambie), Women's Studies 116, a course titled "Women View Sanity, Sex and Social Change" will be team-taught by Rosalie Hawrylko and Margo Dunn. ■ Some jobs get easier the longer you work at them. Not teaching women's studies. Each term challenges instructors in an unexpected way. The attitudes of the students now present the greatest variables. Many students of the late eighties focus on "having it all." Some come to the course with a knowledge of social injustice, but little concrete information about women's place in the picture. Some older students take women's studies to understand upheavals in their own lives. Another major change concerns course content. Fourteen years ago, the canon of feminist studies comprised a few articles, some issues of MS, about ten books and the instructors' experience in the women's liberation movement. A sample exam question just ten years old encyclopedically asks: "Are the changes which have occurred in the status of women in the past century substantial or superficial? Discuss in relation to four areas." Now books and periodicals abound; students read about women's issues in People and The Vancouver Sun. Political concerns abo vary. As feminists, we've learned that the changes we want in the world often begin with ourselves. Because of women's stories, and the dynamism of the movement, women's studies teachers now speak in the college classroom of incest, Third World women's economic zones, the reproduction of mothering, deconstruction of language, AIDS, woman-centred birth, etc. What started in 1973 as exploration has become itself a tradition to be critically examined. Maintaining women's studies in the curriculum at Langara has been a struggle. For one year, the courses were cut completely. To promote campus presence, Rosalie Hawrylko, then co-ordinator, struck a committee of sympathetic instructors, counsellors, former students and community activists. Women's studies was reinstated the next year. Lobbying began for a diploma program, now in place. Fourteen years should mean women's studies is entrenched firmly at Langara. "We can never stop being vigilant," says current co-ordinator Cindy Nagel. Whether through discrimination or accident, women's studies often has been omitted from computer course listings on registration day. Horror stories such as a counsellor's comment to a student that "all she'll learn in women's studies b man-hating" still filter back to instructors. The connection to the women's movement remains vital. When current instructor Debra Lewis goes on leave, her replacement must have the credential of experience in the women's movement as well as the master's degree required by the college. Connections with the community are maintained through the advisory committee and through a public lecture series on current bsues. At Langara, the bottom-line in negotiations with the administration has been the continuation of a team-teaching approach. Thb means that Rosalie Hawrylko (social psychology), Debra Lewis (sociology/criminology), Margo Dunn (literature/history) work collectively at 5/16th of one salary for- half the year, with full-time instructor Cindy Nagel (psychology/feminist spirituality) as co-ordinator. The course to be given thb fall, WS 116, "Women View Sanity, Sex and Social Change," emphasbes interdisciplinary connections of material around themes, rather than presentation of information about Women's Studies: always a challenge women derived from a single academic field. The instructors define sanity as the integrity of the self; sex, as an intimate integration with another, social change, as integration with a community of others. We examine the old precept that "the personal is political." Our lives are socially constructed, and the language we use to describe them contains a separate history of meaning. When our thoughts and experiences are disconnected, we may well "lose our minds." While sexuality b almost as intimate as thinking our own thoughts, what we learn about our bodies and sexual practices is publicly defined. How does this historically inaccurate information affect us? Above all, how can we become free, linguistically, sexually, socially, economically? Social change is a skill. Ironically, some of what we teach about strategy has been learned through the struggle for women's studies itself. "When I was first hired," says Rosalie Hawrylko, "I was full of bright hope, having been influenced by Freire, believing that if the structure was not radical, then the content could never be. It was exciting to feel like a revolutionary group in the lion's mouth of a traditional college, teaching with integrity, courage, the juice of life, and the support of students who truly cared about us and about themselves as political beings. "When the cutbacks began, I only knew how to be adamant when I thought I was right. I didn't know about building links, being prepared, long-range strategies. You know, this b what we need an education for ... Now I can take a stand in public ways, for example, in union struggles, and encourage others to do so, in a style which is much more mature ..." Unlike most academic courses, where the personal lives and private opinions of class mates mean little, women's studies puts the personal on the line. Inevitably, bsues rabed in the classroom around the economics of women's work, sexual abuse, psychotropic drugs, and lesbianism meet the student's life. Sometimes class discussion time suffices to integrate a person's experience with current research findings on a given topic. For some the reverberations are profound. Relationships end, careers change, women confront harassers or poor work situations. How do 1987 students view women's studies courses? Rosalind Taylor took women's studies during spring, 1987. She "found a vocabulary to express her feelings of rage and hurt. It's the only class that continues to come out of my mouth. I'm just as angry as I ever was, but now I have words to express it instead of singbg a song by D.O.A." Other students enjoyed specific topics on sexuality from Mariana Valverde's Sex, Power and Pleasure, one of the course textbooks. The down side, issues like genital mutilation, disturbed them deeply. More comments, culled from course evaluations: • "It sounds vague, but aspects really helped me understand things about myself, especially the section on sexuality." • "During the part on organising social change, it made me very enthusiastic when I realised it can be done." • "I feel there b too much emphasb on the depressing aspects of women's issues." • "I have found romance novels were largely concerned with dominance. I have stopped reading them because they give me a fabe perception of reality." • "Years ago I was in a mental hospital and on drugs (prescribed by the doctor) in or der to function in day-to-day living. If I had been aware at that point in my life as I am now, I do not believe I would have suffered like I did." For the first time since introducing the course, the most controversial bsue was lesbianism. Actual presentation of material on lesbians occupies only a small percentage of class time, but some students found thb difficult. More comments: • "When I first chose to enroll in women's studies, lesbianism did not enter my mind." • "I know some women were put off by some of the focus on lesbianism. I was very glad for it." • "At times there was too much emphasis on lesbianism rather than the 'whole picture', i.e. women in general, regardless of their personal private sexual preference." And how do we instructors perceive the term's work? Rosalie Hawrylko: "Sometimes I think the young women think we're a bit much, that they know where it's at, and we're wrong about women's oppression, old, wrong. Why are we still pbsed off? This b the most vbible change in our students: where they were once excited with us, now many of them hold back. Other instructors have talked about 'denial'. The students feel it's all been solved, there aren't any problems any longer for women as women." Margo Dunn: "Sometimes I feel like I've been in the war and nobody wants to hear about it. I fail to see changes in style as fundamental change. Yes, women can get into law school now, and women musicians form a big part of everyone's record collection, and we're supposed to be physically fit ... but we still don't have real power anywhere in Canadian society. "As my interests move outward, internationally ... How far to go! In parts of the world, women's studies is learning how to* get water. A few years ago, everyone enrolled accepted square one: 'women are oppressed.' Now we have to argue that, barrage students with painful information, and then get called negative." Hard times, but exciting times. Two years ago, Langara women students won a small room to use as a centre. In the fall, we hope to co-operate with their collective to provide discussion time and space. Preparing courses means reading incredible new research. As Cindy Nagel comments, "While we do spend time describing basic discrimination and stereotypes, we are understanding the causes in deep, subtle ways, and what to do about them." With the diploma program, women's studies has been integrated into the college, while sustaining an autonomous course and department. A diploma in Arts and Science (Women's Studies) involves taking the two core introductory courses, 116 and 216, as well as several other courses in various disciplines which have been approved by the four women's studies instructors as having more than 30 percent women's studies content. These range through Religious Studies, Economics, Biology, Englbh, History, Political Science, Environmental Chemistry, Philosophy, Psychology. All bear transfer credit to the province's universities. Years ago, a B.C. Women's Studies Association flourished, then died. Now college instructors have begun a B.C. Community College Women's Studies Association, with a founding conference planned at Langara for October 31,1987. Not a bad day to think of saying goodbye to cutbacks, and begin fomenting plans for further growth. For further information on Langara Women's Studies courses, and/or Women's Studies Diploma, call Cindy Nagel at 824-5448. Registration for WS 116, "Women View Sanity, Sex and Social Change," given Monday and Wednesday afternoons at Langara, and Tuesday evenings downtown at VVI begins the first week of September. 16 KINESIS Jul/Aug '87 ////////////////////^^^^^ /////////////////////^^^^ Education by Ezzell FIRST PEOPLES' CONFERENCE "Whatever you have, even if it's a bit, you have to give it to those children, they're the ones that will walk in your footsteps and take over what you leave them ... there's no use in taking it six feet deep. "You've got so much talent, you've got a lot of gifts. You've got so much love. Give it to your children or any child. There's no barrier where children are concerned; they are all our children." Gently commanding, Frances Williams, a Maori elder, held us in the power of her love for all children, as if we all were her children. The 71-year-old matriarch spoke at the closing day ceremonies of the first World Conference on Indigenous People's Education to an audience who murmured agreement and Maori words of "good health to you"—kia ora koe. The gentle strength and love of this woman was spontaneously returned by her people when they rose and sang her a Maori song celebrating to all their unity of spirit. A Momentous Time This atmosphere of warmth and solidarity pervaded the entire week as first peoples from all parts of the earth came together for the first time. The first time and a great, momentous time for themselves and, I believe, for all people. In prophecies and stories handed down from mother to daughter, father to son, it was said that a day would come when aboriginal peoples would be in danger of losing their ways and their languages, and that eventually, they would come together to become as one people. Spoken by an elder chief of the Hopi people, this prophecy offered great hope that, perhaps, this was the time. Thb step in reaching across distance and borders took the form of a week of workshops, forums and celebratory sharing of cultures at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver from June 8-13. The second day was held at Capilano Indian Reserve where stories, traditional dance and theatre, and a feast of salmon were shared. Back at U.B.C, workshops and forums were so numerous it was necessary—and difficult—to choose from the twenty offered in each time period. There were film and video showings throughout the days as well as exhibits by individual artisans, organizations and community groups. While the majority of people attending were of indigenous heritage, there were also many of European descent. All were made to feel welcome and any special needs were provided for. There were interpreters for those having difficulty with English. Respect for elders was demonstrated by the special place set aside for them. Invited with Evelyn Roth and her huge inflatable salmon to be a storyteller among various native storytellers, I was honoured and challenged to be included in the day at Capilano Reserve. The sense of hope and celebration from Tuesday carried through in a steady pulse to a crescendo at the end of the conference. As I approached my choices in workshops and forum discussions, the Attending the conference were: (above) Patricia F. Grace, Maori author; (left) Margaret Campbell-Buck, lecturer at the Sydney College of Advanced Education. Australia; (centre) Ma>et Sa>a, secretary-general of the Nordic Sami Council; Samiland (referred to as Lapland) is colonized by Norway, Sweden, Finland and the USSR; and (right) Judy Ramos, a Tlingit of Yakutat (Alaska); Ramos is a counsellor. Education means more than just teachers \ and schools wide focus for the meaning of education to indigenous peoples became apparent. Respect for the Earth, Respect for Each Other The thread of emphasis that I began to hear was voiced so well by Frances Williams in the opening quote of this article. To "give to those children, all of them ..." the ways, the stories, the dance and the ritual that all might remember, the respect for mother earth and each other that each culture has known. Here, education meant something much wider than teachers and schools. Certainly, the bsues of native schools and culturally relevant materials for native children in the existing schools were major ones, and there were forums and workshops for sharing successes and doing problem- solving. Confronting the bsue of colonization and de-colonization as a necessary step in regaining a sense of self and belief in one's heritage was an bsue dbcussed by writers at the Writers Symposium. Education as "a philosophy of learning" was dealt with from the perspectives of various cultures, and described in terms of furthering community education. Margo Kane gave an example of this in her workshop entitled "Creating Culturally Meaningful Experience in the Role Model Theatre." Travelling to communities and working with young people and adults through improvbation and masks, she helps them give voice to their personal experience and gain the belief that their voice has relevance. Similarly, the effective use of the media as a personal and community education process can promote native people's networking across the globe. Theytus Books, Ltd., a B.C. native publishing company, hosted the writers symposium in which there was much discussion of concrete ways to increase the numbers of native writers getting published. There was a troubleshooting discus sion around the problem of native authors ending up in obscure bookstore categories hke anthropology or folk tales when then- works are fiction or poetry. In this way, in- vbibility continues. Knowledge of Beginnings The necessity of reclaiming indigenous languages as an integral part of remembering the old ways was addressed by many different speakers. Thb, then, involved the elders in the education process, to teach what they have been taught, recapturing through skills, stories and beliefs the unique nature of their culture. A knowledge of the beginnings can smooth the way to contemporary life and expression, a theme exemplified by one New Zealand Maori writer. Patricia Grace opened her workshop with the Maori story of creation; one, she felt, that was similar in many cultures. "Before the time of remembering there was, first of all, the nothing. From the nothing, called 'Tekori', the night was formed, called 'Te Po', and into Te Po, Papatunaki, earth mother was born. "Papatunaki, filled with darkness, mated with the sky, called Rangi. Between them, there were many children. These children lived in darkness. They longed for space and they longed for light in which to move and grow. And so the children set about to separate their parents so that Rangi, the sky father, would dwell above and Papatunaki, the earth mother, would dwell below. "And because of that, light could come onto the earth and space onto the earth. And thb was the way human life came onto the earth." Grace then went on to introduce works of contemporary Maori writers, including some of her own work. A couple of the vomen writers of poetry and short stories are Jackie Sterm and Arapera Blanc. In the 1950's, there were few publbhers who would consider their work, although each woman did appear in collections of New Zealand short stories. Written by Sterm in the 1950's, The House of the Talking Cat was recently published due to the efforts of the Spiral Collective, a women's group. This same collective was responsible for providing funds to publish Keri Hulme's The Bone People which had been rejected by three previous publishers. Later, Spiral Collective approached Grace to write a Maori children's story. Grace had previously written for children and had been told by her publisher to "make sure it's not set in New Zealand" because there was no market. Being unable to imagine writing from any but her own Maori experience and unwilling to create yet another children's book in which there was nothing relevant for Maori children, she abandoned the idea. Now, a publishing company was offering financial backing for her to produce this Maori children's book. Kuia and the Spider was published just before Christmas and sold well in and out of New Zealand. Although initially greeted with resistance by publbhers, a Maori translation quickly sold out. Grace abo has written Potiki and The Dream Sleepers, both available through Penguin Books. Potiki means "one who belonged in both worlds" and "youngest born." She has abo written for film. Challenge the Rules Grace encouraged the writers present to "have courage to push the boundaries" and "challenge the rules". She observed that many young people can read but simply don't because they can find little that b applicable to their experience. Her belief that indigenous peoples have much in common b illustrated by her list of common themes: land and environment (and their loss), people under threat, relationships with ancestors and the land, colonization, loss, pain, joy and survival. On this note—survival—Patricia Grace, a Maori woman possessing a gentle strength of belief, expressed her pride in the nuclear- free status of her country. She noted that "anyone can write" and that "expression of self, honestly, has its effect ... Trees give their best—to hold back b to die." Her words echoed the many other voices speaking out in all their languages for a continued network of thb new family of "one" people. As the woman from Samiland said, "Alone we are only a few, together we are millions." KINESIS '87 Jul/Aug 17 Arts Bulimia: both ends of the spectrum by Maureen McEvoy BULIMIA: A GUIDE TO RECOVERY by Lindsey Hall and Leigh Conn 156 pages, Gurze Books. Most people view eating dborders as a spectrum: at one end are those who don't eat enough and at the other end are those who eat too much. Bulimia, more commonly known as the binge-purge syndrome, represents both ends of the spectrum meeting and tangling up together. The woman (and the vast majority are women) suffering from bulimia consumes vast quantities of food in one sitting and then purges herself of the food either by vomiting or abusing laxatives, diuretics, enemas or exercise. In effect, she's eating too much and starving herself at the same time. Her body, robbed of essential nutrients and unnaturally stressed by excessive vomiting or laxative abuse is at risk for: cardiac arrest, kidney failure, impaired metabolism due to electrolyte imbalance, severe dehydration, and malnutrition. Other physical side effects include: digestive disorders, amenorrhea, anemia, infested glands, blisters in the throat, internal bleeding, hypoglycemia, icy hands and feet, ruptured stomach or esophagus, bowl infections and poor muscle tone in the intestines. Not to mention rotten teeth corroded from excess stomach acid. And then there are the emotional side- effects such as social bolation, fear, anxiety, loneliness and low self-esteem. Who knows how many women have suffered in secret silence as bulimia has only just begun to be addressed. Lindsey Hall, herself a recovered bulimic, provided one of the first resources by pub- lbhing her life story in a small booklet, "Eat Without Fear". Bulimia: A Guide To Recovery contains the booklet plus a section defining bulimia, suggestions from other recovering bulimics, an outline for a support group and a two week, self-help program to stop binging. One of the strengths of the book is that Hall and her husband, Leigh Cohn, conducted a survey of 217 recovered and recovering bulimics. Their comments, liberally sprinkled throughout the book, clearly outline the scope of bulimia and also the many roads to recovery. For instance, according to their survey results, the average bulimic is a white, middle- class, twenty-eight year old woman of normal weight who binges once or twice daily and usually vomits. Just over half of the respondents were also anorexic. Hall describes consuming 5,000 calories during one of her typical binges: a quart of ice cream, a bag of cookies, a couple of batches of brownies, a dozen doughnuts, a few candy bars and then a quart of whole milk to make it easier to bring it all up thirty minutes later. The book is rich in suggestions from recovered and recovering bulimics. Solutions included coping alone, receiving support from family and friends, attending self-help or professionally led support groups and seeing a professional therapist. One whole chapter b devoted to things to do instead of binging. The two week program to stop binging seems to have three objectives: to provide a series of activities to distract from the urge to binge and purge, to develop inner self-awareness and to strengthen communication and assertion skilb. The idea is to take each day as it comes and the activities suggested for each day include exercises in body awareness, journal writing, role-playing and Gestalt here and now awareness. My concern b that thb program seems to assume the woman is not caring for children at home or working outside of the horn*1 Otherwise she would be pressed to complete each day's activities and subject to additional anxiety and guilt. The weakest section of the book, in my opinion, b the "advice to loved ones". Beyond a general exhortation to support the recovering bulimic, few specific suggestions are given to cope with the tangled legacies of bulimia. Hall does not linger long on why women become bulimic, maintaining (quite correctly) that one shouldn't wait to understand the addictive behaviour before beginning to change it. She briefly mentions research that suggests bulimia and serious depression are linked. She cites a complex mixture of childhood factors and cultural pressures as the most commonly given reasons. She relates childhood factors to the decline of the extended family and the baby boom, resulting in fewer adults to help with parenting and more children to compete for their love. The fact that epidemic numbers of women are totally preoccupied with food, eating and weight loss is not surprising given that our culture b obsessed with thinness. However, at some point in the recovery process the woman will need to develop her own answers to the questions of why she became bulimic, especially when she realizes that fears and obsessions about food are only symptoms. Authors such as Kim Chernin, Susie Orback and Geneen Roth may provide more detailed, feminist analysis of etiological factors. The fact that epidemic numbers of women are totally pre-occupied with food, eating and weight loss is not surprising given that our culture is obsessed with thinness. In the heart of the movement by Eunice Brooks SANCTUARY by Judith McDaniel Firebrand Books, New York, 1987, 171 pages, $7.95 Do you want to take a journey into the soul of a superb observer of human nature? Do you wonder what it might be like to oppose a government in power on a matter of foreign affairs? Come with author and ac- tivbt Judith McDaniel into the intimacy of her journals, finely crafted poems and essays. This might be the best read in the decade. McDaniel has chosen to live a life "not cramped by the fear of death" and for her that means walking, actually walking into danger. Her first essay on leaving home flows neatly into the second on walking, and hence into sanctuary. She says: 'I cannot write a book about safe places without experiencing the unsafe." In a few pages we are transported from the little girl who wants to wear stylish shoes to the woman in Nike joggers walking in front of gun carrying contras in Nicaragua, in the mud and roots of the jungle. Her classic understatement: "My body was not entirely under control," shows both understanding and irony. Sanctuary is about many journeys. For example, the trek from innocent brat to political activist, from tomboy to lesbian, from an alcoholic to one in control of her body, from home to a war zone and back, to a place that will never seem quite like home again. There are more. I won't list them all. She telb us: "The Sanctuary Movement has no precbe date of origin and no founders." The movement b in aid of Central Americans who want to live in the United States and Canada. American churches have become safe houses for those in transit, as have private homes. McDaniel first heard of the Sanctuary Movement in 1984, and subsequent contact with refugees convinced her that witnessing was necessary, because so much of what is presented to Americans by their government is disinformation. She was present in Arizona when Sanctuary members were charged and tried by the American government. The opponent in all the mental battles we fight with McDaniel is the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. As one example, she tells us of the hearing that denied Margaret Randall the right to live in the country where she was born, where her mother lives and where her husband lives. That case is now under appeal. One gets the feeling of being in the heart of the movement, as though McDaniel has pulled us from our arm chairs and into the fray. One 'cannot remain remote from her images. They linger in the closed eyes like neon signs. "On September 2 the judge who heard the case ... confirmed that it b a deportable crime to criticize the U.S. government in print, even if history proves the criticism to be well founded." McDaniel tells us of the Randall hearing. McDaniel has written three other books and edited an anthology. By trade she b both writer and teacher. I recommend this book to anyone who is a seeker of well matched words, for it b spare with not a word out of place. I recommend it to those who seek truth, for the journeys described are given in images that only one who has hved them could render. I recommend the book to those who may never venture anywhere more dangerous than the corner store, for Judith Mc- ,Daniel can take you there too, and you will find more than cigarettes and candybars. I will leave the last words to her: And sometimes this helps the words to come again, describing each thing as it is, seeing each detail with her heart 18 1^1 NESIS Jul/Aug '87 ia^Ji,IIJ'mjJHimiimii ■sixty perceilt of A.TM J?" ^"P- Close to I fe^hpl ^} th|gjgjs a, *> pr Diversity b an important part of the Fes- | [rival and thb year's women artists reflect I I this goal. Women are coming from as far as I I England, Germany and New Zealand to join I I the many North American women artists. I I New Zealand will be represented this year I I for the first time. The Topp Twins on their I I first North American tour are bringing their I I cabaret-style music, political theatre and I I comedy to the Festival. "—'^"^ felt I Representmg women in country musicl are several artists of varying age and style. Fifteen-year-old Alison Krauss b a talented vocalist and fiddler from Illinois. Hazel Dickens, from West Virginia writes and' sings songs both traditional and contemporary. Joining them and others is Patsy Montana from Los Angeles, a treasure in country! music and an inspiration to many women ~ | the field. ^^^^^^^^^^m I ^p&oVt^ybwc0rti7 TM^S«i Stand-up social commentator Sheila Go-ff I stick from Toronto b making her rstl Festival appearance this year. Celebra ingjS iwomen's experience with her b Kate C in-K ton from Los Angeles. Kate calb hers f al [fumerist—feminbt and humorbt combi ed.B Singing about being black women in Noval Scotia are Four The Moment. Performin at ■ j their first Festival these women are sur tog draw big crowds. Influenced by Sweet H ney S j in the Rock, this a capella group is challeng- a ing preconceptions of the Nova Scotia b ack H community and black women's experience.! | Their music is both traditional and con em-j^a|i Returning to Vancouver are Lillian Allenl | and The Revolutionary Tea Party Band.1 'Lillian is a dub poet from Toronto's! I Caribbean community and a 1986 J*»no| award winner. Locally, three very different women from! British Columbia will all be returning to thei Festival. Ferron will be back to the stage! after a year-long break from performing. | Connie Kaldor returns for her fifth festival. I Shari Ulrich b back from a stint in Los An-I geles for her first Festiy^aj^earan^smceJ IwW? FifSnVal rePrese*ts strong women! Mel iT^ traditi°nal ro,es TM^ J difference There are many I have not men-1 XVte "tists add *> ^ dive" ;| of the Festival and to Vancouver's conthlF L?1^yrantJofJhis^^ ' K Texas! ■ Cathy Jones transports Wedding »n J Texas and Other Stories to the Van- I couver East Cultural Centre, August 13-30, [Tuesday through Sunday, 8:30 p.m. Rd adventuress,^ ^over, who is about! Tald adventuress Ler best friend and ex-love^w. Itomarrya'sleazebag'vnTexas .wiich b acufS> ^verent^^omtis^' , eF The journey to the wedding is the most! ** tie fi 3nd feroci0llVlS,0,1"~~a viS linventive and demanding part of the play.l M Presents a ?' Par* of 7^d fnmy °nM Critics across the country are applauding its! ■ apea'onCl, oroa ot six h *%» J or, BcomPlexity ^d risk-taking. The drawback! Ixand 0r'ginalSSric and vj actefs- Th Bto attemPtinS tne less than assured path is I M°Uscaria I e audienr ra^e, ch.Vf, 'jBthe risk of drawinS criticism. And some crit- ■ cW_ ' bespectacJPr) * 5e^s A^aSM"* haVe P°inted to a lack °f cohesion m tne I *" " a^^work, fragmentation in the structure and I lthe overuse of special effects. However, the I | overall critical response has been ecstatic. | |Dagmar Krause sings political Brecht | J "You're M,P .,ere"xi8> h"i: J?w^l I Vave Gladney, hostess of the talk show, iFudgeos and Feminism, b a Joan Rivers hy- Ibrid with a Newfoundland lilt and the sure I response of a grounded pragmatbt. A sur- I vivor, she says of her husband: "He believes I sex is like doing the dbhes—if you do it I badly enough you won't get asked again." cept »8 ^for the i***"?,^ W •*** arrne Canaan£££"*** l*Cyter satirical eye ls acute aa Catby^o^^Xco-d^upe, ffi •, i?s^f rtiSS®^-^ tT 1^ "% FrC€ Hug8' Md offera 5> ten lb ilert Crew ot the Toront ^ the future with, no not a goddess tarot deck I * l£Li that, "^^L it can also be but French fries-«all you need is a -31%°ffi^^«t£^4 outrage^ fries, no gravy." M^- riv inventive, ***y » traces 0{ th< ^berbu-lB [cath^ones: Wedding in Texas, Burford 'Love' Murphy closes the first Iict. Pencil thin moustache, greased back hair: Jones cross-dressed as a shallow worn- anizing lounge lizard. I The second part of the show witnesses I Lindianna Jones, outport lesbian and rib-| former, it J*lJj^(__ thl^SrWedding in Texas has toured at the Quin-1 zaine International Theatre Festival in Que-I bee and the World Stage TheatreFestivaJ I^INESIS "87 Jul/Aug 19 ^^^s^^^^^^^^^^ ARTS by Melanie Conn While thb month's books are very different from each other (something you can count on in thb column!), they share a particularly distinctive sense of environment. In a way, that's one of the main features of tee fiction (SF): creating a sense of time and place that draws readers into some very unusual situations and keeps us involved and entertained. Some SF authors concentrate on geography and physical characteristics while others focus more on the social or emotional atmosphere. Pm most impressed when an author approaches her story's environment from several perspectives, but I am always interested in a convincing description, even from a single vantage point. /N^O>Y\££ THE BEST OF LEIGH BRACKETT edited by Edmond Hamilton Nelson Doubleday Hardcover, 363 pages Leigh Brackett has been writing SF for almost fifty years. Some of these stories were first published in 1944; the most recent has a 1956 copyright date. What fascinates me about Brackett b the attention she gives to physical detail in her extraterrestrial stories. The planets she writes about are Venus, Mars and Mercury and she describes them in loving, lyrical detail: dawn on Venus, for example ... It came slowly, sifting down like a rain of jewels through the miles of pearl- gray cloud. Cool and slow at first, then warming and spreading, turning the misty air to drops of rosy fire, opaline, glowing, low to the water, so that the little ship seemed to be drifting through the heart of a fire-opal as vast as the universe. Her Mercury, on the other hand, b a hellish place, with extremes of savage heat and bitter cold where life survives precariously in the Twilight Belt between the poles. Mars b yet another contrast, home of a dying, ancient civilization where cities once flourished without suffering or crime or places of punishment. Its inhabitants have developed the faculty of reason, they explain, as opposed to Earth, where "man has only learned to talk." The stories are not sophisticated, and the science b out of date, but for sheer creativity and vivid description, Brackett's writing b a special kind of treat. WOKLl* ■ WIZARD OF THE PIGEONS' by Megan Lindholm Ace Fantasy Books, 1986, 214 pages $3.75 The flavour of this book b part fairy tale and part real life but for me, the strongest taste is the location, described whimsically in the first paragraph: On the far western shore of a northern continent there was once a harbour city called Seattle ... and the folk who lived there were wont to call it "The Emerald City" for the greenness of its foliage. The wizard of the title b a mysterious, rather mixed-up young man, and the book concerns hb survival in the city, on both the psychological and physical level. As a Vietnam veteran who is struggling to come to terms with that experience, and as a penniless street-person, Wizard roams Seattle, taking in its sights and sounds. He travels by bus and foot and fantasy, often guided by Cassie, a down-to-earth fairy godmother who knows how important a hot bath b after a day out scavenging in a rainy, west-coast winter afternoon. Cassie also knows why downtown Seattle sidewalks are hollow and who built Waterfall Gardens, an oasis of shade trees and flowing water in the middle of the city. Wizard's interior explorations are marked by confusion and occasional insights, mirrored by the ever-present (and familiar) Seattle weather. A sentimental favorite, mainly because of the setting. ■ THE JUDAS ROSE: NATIVE TONGUE II by Suzette Haden Elgin Daw Books, 1987, 363 pages $4.50 Everyone who loved Native Tongue will be as excited as I was to hear that there's a sequel. In her first book, the author described a future society where women are subjugated by men. The focus was on one group of women who are secretly organizing and building a base for change through the creation of a women's language. The atmosphere throughout the first book b brooding and oppressive except when the women are together: their resilience and humour and support of one another radiate warmth and light. The sequel provides the same contrast between the world of men and the real world of the women, but much more of the action in The Judas Rose takes place outside the women's community. In fact, it took me some time to adjust to the rhythm of The Judas Rose; instead of one, more or less chronological story, there are a number of story threads, several concerning men and their negotiations with the alien traders who dominate Earth economics. Instead of picking up where the first book left off, Elgin has broadened the frame through which we observe this future world. The most important thread of her story continues to be the strengthening of Laadan (the women's language), and the women still sparkle, especially in their witty and ironic observations of men. But, we also learn more about the forces interacting with Earth, and the emotional impact of the women's project becomes harder to sustain in the face of such major players. The pace of the book reflects the author's understanding of the process of change. Her wonderful character, Nazareth, a young girl in the first book, and now a woman over ninety, says The unit of time that must be taken into account here is not decades but centuries, and tens of centuries ... Nothing about me was large enough to stretch itself to such a scale. And so, because there was quite literally nothing else to do, I set Time aside ... I began to do whatever I humanly could. Her message is an important one: women have ways of creating real change, because we understand how change occurs and we have the courage and resolve to undertake the process. Something to think about these days as our impatience grows. gait, a regularity to her breathing. As she trudged, she inhaled the rich energy that was the fern's exhalation and gave back to the plant with each of her own out-breathing her tiredness; that tiredness was the stuff of the fern's life. She could actually see the plant soaking up her fatigue, quenching its thirst. Eventually, we learn about other, more specialized skills: the power of the mind to move objects, and the ability to fly ("windride"). Somehow, because not all the women have these skilb, and because there are some comical scenes of women trying to learn, none of it seems out of the ordinary, in the context of the book. In thb series of loosely connected stories, Gearhart explores many aspects of these future women's lives, particularly their use of memory to bind them together. Most of the memories are of past outrages committed against them by the men who still dwell in the City. The men continue to present great danger to the "Gentles" amongst them, as well as to women within and without the City's ■ THE WANDERGROUND by Sally Miller Gearhart The Women's Press, 1985 212 pages $7.95 I think Fve saved the best one for last. The Wanderground opens with a young woman on watch listening telepathically to the sounds around her. Amongst other things, thb book presents the most concrete, and at the same time, the most natural descriptions of telepathy I have ever read. The women of the Wanderground use their skill for conversation, for comfort, for surveillance, for ritual. Quite quickly, the reader becomes used to the many delicate forms of their mind-to-mind communications. The women's mental interaction is reflected in their ability to communicate with the natural world. In one passage, a woman visualises a fern to help her through a long and difficult trek: Ciana established a rhythm to her walls. The scenes of oppression are grim and disturbing, partly because they are so familiar: women hunted down for wearing pants, for attending a political meeting, for talking back to a man in public. For all the pain in the book, though, what has stayed with me is the beauty and the, hope so richly described. 20 I^INESIS Jul/Aug '87 Arts ^^%sssms%<*^m^^ Eva Kupczynski FIBRE ARTIST by Jill Pollack Tapestry has a long hbtory as both functional objects and religious illuminants. Their value as artworks has been confined, until very recently, to museums, where they are considered artifacts; or to specialized galleries or exhibitions, where more often than not they have been segregated from the rest of the collection. Quilts, perhaps because they are more decorative, have fared better than other forms of fibre art, with what has been called, "The Quilt Revival" occurring in the seventies, and due primarily to the efforts of feminists to reclaim "women's work". Yet generally fine art fibre art has not entered into the larger critical discourse, and continues to exist outside the realm of most serious discussions. Fibre art has not yet been allowed to throw off the cloak of obscurity. A few exceptions creep through, notably when made by an artist who has gained a solid reputation in other areas. For example, Sonia Delaunay's retrospective at the Albright Knox Gallery (Buffalo, New York) in 1980 included a large selection of her fabrics, costumes and design work. Not only as a result of the post-war revival of design taking place in France and Germany in the twenties, nor her associations through her husband Robert, but because of her ability to convert modernist ideology into fabric, was her work received so well. It cannot be overlooked, however, that the milieu in France in 1925 was conducive to accepting fabric art. A fusion between industry and art was taking place, and Delaunay's fibre work was in the vanguard. She upheld that "the true beauty of an object b not an effect of taste but b intimately tied to its function." Yet despite the quality of her work and its innovativeness, the economic situation in France in the 1930's caused her to re-assess her priorities and return to painting. In the 1970's she went back to work with fabric, but again, the trend had re-emerged. It b profound that even an artist of Sonia Delaunay's stature saw the inevitable outcome of continuing to work in fibre. She chose to abandon it as, for various economic, ideological and aesthetic reasons, the art world was promoting and completely involved with painting, and only painting. The after-effects of a war and the feminist movement were mitigating factors which enabled Delaunay to work with fabric and be seen as creating art. Yet few others have achieved her level of recognition. Thb b not because no one else has been as technically or aesthetically proficient as she was. In Canada, artists such as Cathie Falk and Joyce Wieland have ventured successfully into fibre art, but only fleetingly and never within the strict confines of tapestry. Their forays bore a close enough relationship to "conventional" fine art that they were able to cross the rigid barriers and still be assessed within current critical terms. That Delaunay, Falk and Wieland are strong, important artbts b undeniable. But their positions make it possible to explore, with success and deserved recognition, the fibre arts. Art criticism in the 1980's continues to be focussed on painting and to a lesser extent, photography and film. The significance of thb cannot be overlooked. An artist like Eva Kupczynski, despite the quality of her work, finds herself involved in a medium which remains on the edge of the Canadian art community. After a flurry of activity in the seventies, where major fibre exhibitions and large commissions were more common, the tide abated. It left a few artbts with solid reputations, but most were simply confused. What had happened? For a while there had been the beginnings of a critical discourse and re-evaluation. And although the impact had left trace elements, by the early 1980's, fibre artists were once again swallowed up and largely ignored. Yet the 'underground' of fibre art production continues. Especially in Vancouver, there are many artbts who refuse to change mediums, despite the fact that they are working in a relative vacuum. These artbts, primarily women, are involved in a number of individual attempts to push the boundaries of fibre art. Not because they are haphazardly concerned with moving away from traditions, but due to their own creative sensibilities, are they doing thb. Perhaps in some way affected by the surge of interest in the seventies, artbts such as Karen Chapnick, Eva Kupczynski and Joanna Stanbzkis remain deeply committed and are important fibre artists, because they choose to be. The exhibition, Cityscapes, depicts an irony that is unmistakable. Eva Kupczynski has produced a series of tapestries based on the downtown core of Vancouver, as seen from her window. Including a grid-like structure into the tapestries allows the imagery to appear from the same perspective as she encountered it—at a distance. Given the context of fibre art in Vancouver, her work speaks not just of itself (which it does very eloquently) but of the state of thb art form in the city. Eva has captured and distilled Vancouver within the confines of the centre of business, backdropped by the mountains and foregrounded by B.C. Place; showing in the middle the arena of power. Abstracted, the downtown core becomes symmetrical, anonymous and unreal. It is a panoramic vbta which can be seen, but not entered. These works offer a vicarious portrait of the urban landscape, at once uninhabitable and tinged with irony. Yet it also appears non-threatening and soft. Eva has taken into account the properties of her chosen medium, and used them to enhance her analysis. In evidence is the combination of a strong technique, a developed awareness of composition and a provocative use of imagery. Eva Kupczynski's tapestries derive some of their power from their ability to be read on many levels. The continuum of art history is marked by a movement from rendering external situations, to revealing unconscious states, to a mingling of the two. Her fibre works exhibit an awareness of thb legacy, and enter into the discourse via their connections to pictorial traditions and the current re-assessment of the urbanscape-as-landscape. Canadian Eva Kupczynski art, with its overt relationship to (and against) the power of the natural environment, b more and more concerned with what has been termed, "The Urban Wilderness". This new body of Kupczynski's can be seen as an offshoot of that trend. Eva has taken care to refer to her previous, abstract work at the same time as she b venturing into the representational. In the past, she created tapestries which alluded to her surroundings, capturing their mood rather than their physical presence. She b now weaving definable scenarios, imbuing them with sensations which acknowledge the impact of industrialization but which also yearn for a return to awareness of place. She equates the gentle slope of the mountains with the curved roof of B.C. Place. She renders each piece in tiers, exposing a slice of the archaeology of the urban setting, with the natural landscape on top, moving downward to the architecture of the city. And she separates herself from her imaginary by not including any animate human presence and by dissecting the images with woven "flaps". These flaps serve as both window frames and as reminders that it is a distant view we are seeing. We are not surrounded by the imagery, rather we observe it through her sensibility and from afar. Thb perceptual technique is enhanced by the fibre itself. Clearly we are faced with a tapestry and clearly it alludes to, but is not, the true city. Instead, the tapestries refer to the actualities of the urban setting by capturing its essence. Another tactic which the artist employs to blur the existing definitions of fibre art b her almost-painterly manner of weaving. Seemingly a contradiction in terms, Eva Kupczynski nevertheless designs her tapestries under the loose umbrella of traditions of pointillism and impressionbm. Although due in part to the grid system imposed by the medium of tapestry, the work premises a similar ideological base: the intention to achieve a vividness or effectiveness more by evoking subjective and sensory impressions than by recreating an objective reality. This further situates her work within the context of art hbtory, and Detail of Cityscape tapestry elucidates many weavers' desire to extend the potential and status of the medium, still within the confines of tapestry but allowing for continual exploration. At the same time, there b a marked awareness of modern art-making practices and theories, transposed and transformed as suited to tapestry. Obviously, on some level the dialogue does include fibre artists, but it b within the private realm, and still confined to one-way communication. Artbts involved in fibre are interested in and concerned with current aesthetic ideologies, and indeed see themselves as constituents of the larger art community. But, as Sonia Delaunay acknowledge fifty years ago, they find the nexus of fibre and other fine arts to be sadly lacking. Eva Kupczynski has devbed her own methods of production and her own venues for public exposure and feedback. While thb adds to her load, it at least ensures that for her, anyway, the cycle of communication has an outlet. She has no choice, for Eva Kupczynski is a (fibre) artist. UPRISING DREADS BAKERY Introduces Ice Cream & frozen desserts non-dairy available too 1697 Venables Street Vancouver 254-5635 A part of CRS Work KINESIS <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ARTS Women are making the joint jump by Carolyn Bell I come to you relatively fresh from a gig (a gig b a job for musicians; I don't think they have to pay you as much for a gig as a job) at the Holiday Inn on West Broadway. I had the privilege of accompanying Colleen Savage, local blues and jazz singer on the hotel's untuned baby Yamaha grand piano. We transcended the upper register, and made a lot of friends and music while we were there. Colleen likes to sing my originals, and since I have learned to play in other than the People's Key of 'C, we have a wonderful working relationship. If I can get just a little Barbara Walters, she b also a quick wit and a wonderful human being. Over the course of the gig, Colleen took a week off and, as we realbed it would be terribly lonesome for me all alone at I the Holiday Inn, we invited some other singers to come down during the time Colleen was away. One guest was local singer-composer-musician Rae Armour who agreed to come and dabble in some jazz and old tunes (Ain't Mbbehavin', Summertime, Sentimental Journey, to name a few). On the evening in question, as she was setting up her recording device, a psychopathic bar fly oozed over to the table where we had our equipment and sat down with hb trusty beer. "We're about to record here," says Rae. "I won't say a word," says the psychopath. (The guy's eyes were glowing, and it wasn't from love of humankind. It looked as though he had borrowed his smile from Jack Nichobon in The Shining. Well, we began. Our audience had been hanging around chomping at the nachos and the bit at the same time. The psychopath was true to his word. He did not speak, he merely began clapping hb hands in the middle of Rae's poignant rendition of Summertime. She and I exchange looks. I nod. "Back in five minutes ..." says Rae to our audience. "Play some Floyd Kramer Fm paying your salary" the guy orders, indicating his beer. The staff swooped down and gently extricated him from the hotel prembes as Millie, the bartender, told him quietly, "You will never get a drink again in this bar for as long as you live." Rae and I resumed. Community of Jazz Lovers It b an unfortunate fact that most musicians make their rent money playing in bars, where the music seems to be secondary to the 'interesting elements' that society offers us. But don't despair. Two alternatives, for those who do not want to have more stress going out to hearhve music than thev have had all week at work, are CFRO Vancouver Co-operative Radio, 102.7 FM and The Classical Joint on Carrall Street in Gas- town. Co-op Radio has many regularly scheduled jazz and blues programs: Jazzblu, A- Trane, Women of Note and The Joint is Jumpin', broadcast live from the Classical Joint every Sunday night. When I first arrived in Vancouver fifteen years ago, a friend took me to the Joint., I was young and green and ate the casual, candlelit ambience with a spoon. Then the music started and I was a hooked fish. At that time, women musicians were scarce in Vancouver—other than vocal musicians, the ones who are too often overlooked and unfortunately, still referred to as chick singers, jazz bitches and canaries. Many local women vocalbts have worked hard to acquire the theory and arranging skills need to write their own charts, enabling them to perform songs as they want them sung. Many of these women perform at the Classical Joint, one of the few clubs in town that is there because of the music and the community, not tourism and booze sales. To mention a few, Kate Hammett- Vaughn, Bonnie Ferguson, Shannon Gunn and Colleen Savage are regulars at the Joint and deliver jazz tunes to an always appreciative audience. The Joint, in fact, b more than a club. It's a community of jazz lovers and everyone, it seems, is welcome. One time, on Tuesday Jam Night, some friends and I wandered in. A woman with a stroller came in, dropped the stroller off at the table in front of us, and made for the other side to get a better look at the band. From the back, we couldn't tell if there was a child there or if she was using it to portage goods of some kind. The woman came back towards us, took a look at the stroller and left to get herself some tea. Still no movement from the stroller. "Maybe it's a saxophone," I said. "Nah, it's too well behaved for a saxophone," replied my friend. It was a child, grinning quietly and listening to be-bop music. On the monthly listing of who's playing, the Joint promo abo states: "The place to listen to Vancouver's finest musicians, mostly jazz groups, occasionally folk or blues and classical music. A place to relax, > meet people, play chess and where single women can feel comfortable." Bass and Piano, Voice and Sax We've briefly touched on some of our local vocalbts. Here are some local women players you can watch for; they are all entertaining and inspiring. Patti Nichobon (Pat Hervey) vocalizes and plays bass with Oliver Gannon. Barbara Fisher, singer, songwriter, piano player. Barbara is off to Europe for awhile but look for her in a month or two around town. Kendra Sprinkling and Meg Walker have a group called, A La Carte, with Barbara. Rae Armour will be taking Barbara's place while she b away. They perform at Hogan's Alley at Puccinni's the first two weekends in July. Monique Nadine is a talented saxophonbt who can be heard with Allen Matheson's Big Band. Kirsten Nash, vocalbt and sax player, b presently on tour with Long John Baldry. duced two successful benefits at the Classical Joint, where many of the aforementioned players performed as well as Alan Mathe- son, Bob Murphy, Craig Scott and many others. Noovo features many women jazz musicians as a matter of course. Colleen and other locals will be showcased at the Vancouver's du Maurier Jazz Festival in July. Grab a program or stay tuned to Co-op Radio for more information. You Can Be Yourself I recently completed an impromptu sur- Twyla Brooks.bass; Sandy Scofield, vocals. Carolyn Bell, piano. Judy Abrams, pianbt. Judy writes her own tunes and plays in a Salsa band, as well as at the Classical Joint from time to time. Glenna Powrie and Renne Rosness are two keyboard players who have received Canada Council grants to study in New York. Catch them at the Classical Joint. Twyla Brooks, bassbt. Twyla has played with Gavin Walker, Kate Hammett-Vaughn, Carolyn Bell and the country swing band, the Hen Pab, which opened for Key Change at the Savoy and the Railway Club in June. (Just an aside—a great night of music at the Savoy. Key Change is fronted by Heidi Archibald and Jane LaRue whose cover version of Grace Jones' "Everybody Hold Still" stopped the show. Both Heidi and Jane deserve induction into the local blues women hall of fame.) Kathy Kidd, pianbt, teacher, composer. Kathy teaches at V.C.C. If anyone out there b thinking of going to school to learn about jazz, go there. Kathy is a very caring, patient teacher with much respect for her students. A final note of wonderful jazz and blues women to add to your list of local people to see: June Katz (working on her second album), Lovie Elie, Tess Mariasine, Amanda Hughes, Jennifer Scott, Lovena Fox, and Sybil Thraser. It's worth mentioning that there b considerable crossover to jazz from musicians who focus largely on other musical styles. It has been my delight to have played jazz and blues backup for three of Vancouver's rock/new wave singers: Vanessa Richards (Bolera Lava), Madeleine Morrb (Family Plot) and Sandy Scofield at Graceland a couple of months ago. All three women love to sing jazz and do a great job of it, although it's not their regular bag. Colleen Savage has been playing regularly around Vancouver for years. Recently she and I, along with some other players and interested parties, came together to form the Noovo Jazz Etc. Society. The Society pro- vey on the topic "So what's the big attraction in jazz." While making a living is secondary, if relevant at all, here are some random comments by randomly questioned mu- "Jazz was instrumental in bringing white and black players together when such a thing was unheard of and dangerous. It's the great communicator. It transcends race and sex." "There are so seldom areas in life where you can be yourself. Jazz demands that you be yourself." Now, singing the blues comes into it. In order to be a good player (we're including singers here, right?), it takes years of study and active performing work. Money b always tight. There are no dental plans for musicians. There is no worker's compensation if you injure a vocal cord trying to be heard over the din of Saturday night life, or if your saxophone gets run over by a cab. But we keep on, keeping the music alive, creating new music, new venues where the emphasis b on the performance and not the bar tab. Your peers and family are always trying to find you part time jobs because with studying, food, and drycleaning bills, you are usually so broke you can't pay attention. But jazz hves and more and more women are breaking traditions and becoming—as Mary-Lou Williams, jazz piano great was called by a band member—'girl-cats', mean- ' ing that anything the men can play, women can play. In Toronto in the early seventies, a young Kathy Kidd went backstage after hearing Mary-Lou play. After graciously listening to Kathy's superlatives, Ms. Williams said, "Oh, that was nothing but a l'il ole boogie woogie." Carolyn Bell is another local jazz legend. A pianist, songwriter and singer, Carolyn often performs at the Classical Joint, but can be seen at other local venues. 22 KINESIS Jul/Aug 87 Arts //////////////////////////^^^^ Press Gang live at the American Booksellers Association by Delia McCreary The taxi was late. It was rush hour in Toronto. I got to the airport with only fifteen minutes until my flight. When I smiled at the customs officer he didn't smile back. "Where are you going?" "Washington, D.C." "What for?" "I work for a small publishing company in Vancouver, Canada and we're exhibiting at a convention being held there this year. The American Booksellers Association convention (ABA)." "How long you staying?" "Six days altogether." "What's in the box?" "Catalogues, a listing of the books we've publbhed." "I want to see." (You're kidding) Fortunately, I had a couple of copies of the catalogue in my hand luggage that he accepted as evidence. The officer then proceeded to not skim but read the Press Gang catalogue from cover to cover. As he made hb way through titles on lesbianism, feminism, women and institutionalized oppression, etc., I watched the time of my flight go on by and wondered what thb man was going to do. There was no drama. In due time and matter-of-factly he said, "One of those feminist publbhers, huh?" "Yes" "Go ahead then." I had missed my flight. Arriving at my hotel in Washington hours late, with my box of catalogues, my backpack of "good" clothes, I was irritable and exhausted—until it dawned on me that I was here. "Do you realize you're really here ... you're sharing a room with the women from Cleb Press ... you just met the women who run Seal Press in the lobby ... tomorrow you're going to meet ..." Despite my excitement, I had a looming feeling that I was out of my league. What was Press Gang, a small Canadian pub- Ibher, doing at the ABA? The ABA was everything I had been told to expect—overwhelming, exciting, a different world from the Canadian equivalent (the Canadian Booksellers Association convention) which is much more low key. Every American and Canadian publisher who can afford (or nearly afford) to attend the ABA does so. It is a place to promote your books and to make sales. The dbplays range from outrageously lavbh to modestly grand. Virtually every new book being or about to be published in the United States and Canada b loudly proclaimed at the convention. Everyone who owns a bookstore who can afford (or nearly afford) to attend the ABA does so. Booksellers roam the aisles with ordering Ibts in their hands, taking information, sometimes asking which of your titles might sell well in a "general" bookstore in Peaprairie, Illinois— "We want to stock a good women's section." As a small feminist publbher on the west coast of Canada it b easy to feel insignificant at times in relation to the larger feminist publishing industry. It was quite an experience to have so many people over the four days of the convention come up to Press Gang's booth and say "Pm so glad you came to the ABA," "I love your book," "What are you doing that's new?" "Such and such b one of our best selling books," etc. I had to quickly adjust my (Press Gang's) self-image. Contrary to being outside a larger feminist publbhing community we are evidently a distinct part of it. The confirmation of this was worth the trip to Washington in and of itself. The North American market for feminist and lesbian material b growing and becoming more demanding, and the feminbt publishing industry and community is growing with it. The evident concern among the smaller feminist publbhers is not whether there are enough people who want to read the work they're doing but more how to survive as a small publbhing business. Nancy Bereano, of Firebrand Books, called a meeting of women-owned, women- run feminbt publishers that was held during the ABA. The intention is that thb was the first of what will become annual meetings of such publbhing houses. At the meeting the discussion kept coming back to the concern that we must be careful not to be drawn into seeing one another as competitors. In spite of the business-minded climate we are presently faced with, we must work to remain allies, work to clarify who and what are the threats to us. A growing threat is from the larger publishers who now see that there is money to be made from a substantial feminist market. Now that writers have been established through the smaller feminbt publbhers, larger houses with more money behind them can offer very appealing advances to authors more or less on spec. Thb b virtually an impossibility for a business with a tight cash flow, especially a feminbt business with the goal of encouraging and publishing women writers who have not been previously published. One always publishes with much hope but not enough certainty of the financial returns to let you throw a hefty advance to your next deserving writer-with- manuscript-in-hand. Feminbt publishers of varying sizes were represented at the meeting, but all are still in the small publisher category. It b in relation to the stature of the mainstream industry that we are defined. We all agreed that we experience or have experienced similar headaches about how to manage to pay ourselves a living wage, how to work efficiently and not abandon goals of working collectively, how to find appropriate material to publish, how to best promote to our markets, what avenues to pursue when aiming to grow, and more. It was suggested that becoming more aware of ourselves as a community and sharing information will be crucial in order to protect and strengthen our integrity and our publbhing potential. At the meeting I recall Barbara Smith of Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press, sitting to the side of the room. It is hard to say but clear to see that feminbt publbhing is more accurately white feminist publishing. The reason, racism, is no more acceptable than the sexbt reasons that explain why mainstream publishing represents the interests of a male-dominated world. The bsue of racism within feminbt publishing was not mentioned at our meeting. Several times I looked over to Barbara Smith, wondering about her lack of voice. I wondered about the other white women in the room who didn't raise the bsue of racbm. Why b it so scary to talk about? I suspect because there b guilt and blame and power at stake—and so much to be done to rectify the state of affairs. I was sorry to come away from the ABA with no sense of the racbm in publbhing dialogue as alive and lively. I was dbcouraged to hear Barbara Smith imply, in conversation, that she is fed up with white feminist publishers. The most encouraging conversation I had about racism on my trip was after the ABA when I met with Rona Moreau from the Women's Press in Toronto. Racbm seems to be hot on their plate these days, and their intention b to learn more about it. They feel lucky to have Sbter Vbion (a relatively new feminbt women of colour press) working in Toronto. We talked about the work that white women must do and the responsibility they must take for learning about and acting on racism, for seeing where we are and where we want to go as feminbts working to publish the voices of all women. The International Feminist Bookfare is being held in Montreal in 1988 and I hope to be part of the Canadian feminist publishing community gaining a greater understanding of itself, part of dialogues unfolding and amplifying. As Canadian publishers, there are ways in which we are distinct from our American counterparts, and for some (perhaps overestimated) reason I feel that we are not as out of our league as I previously thought. A mixed message I got from the American booksellers b that while they're enthusiastic about the "good work" we do (they wbh we'd do more), they can only sell it as long as the bsues are not particularly Canadian or from a Canadian perspective. The affect of thb arrogance goes home with me at the end of my work day these days. I think about Press Gang's membership in the North American feminbt publishing community, and I feel good, with reservations. I think about the inspiring and hardworking women I met. I think about Canadian feminist publishing issues and feel motivated to both learn and unlearn much. For a listing of feminist publishers in Canada and the Untied States see Words to the Wise by Andrea Fleck Clardy. A second updated edition will be available this fall. fmuc Banners MDE TO ORD£r\ OJiu su*-recLSor>oi>te rates* bartf carsiietel- £(«zabetri 73f-f3?5 rSKXWoMAH'S l3l<!Ct*AM£RciAL &R. &54&05& ie> stXrVTiNcr-rb sell ", Clothes foo. large WDMtri ALSD LCTT6 of «UAUft?UL ttfewetufcY Arte i& iNCKgASUfcr TWE frKEETlHCr CMU> 3ELeCTt<»U.f£yOND c^l f! $>" '§2 feminist thee: somen's writing ^ ending abuse f arid books for women ' 2766 west 4th ave. Vancouver, b.c. Canada V6kirl (604)733-3511 Marsha J. Arbour I Signpainting Screenprinting Graphics 6? Design \ 734-9395 PIGEON pr0gram y°ur dearies and saveaeundle. 683-1610 683-2696 1501-925 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6C 1R5 • • THEATRE • * For the best in Foreign Films and Independent Quality Films Non-Sexist, Coffee Bar, Crying Room for parents with small children 16th and ARBUTUS STREET Phone 738-6311 $2.50 on TUesday, $4 students with valid student cards. VANCOUVER WOMEN'S BOOKSTORE Hours: Monday-Saturday ll:00-5:30pm 684-0523 Ask about our new book club. ibie Street Vancouver, B.C. V6B 2N4 KINESIS 87 Jul/Aug Letters Support needed Kinesis Lucy Berrios and Ivonne Melendez, the two women of the Puerto Rican 15, were finally released on hail shortly before the winter holidays. The women had been incarcerated in pre-trial detention for more than fourteen months by Reagan's 1984 Bail Reform Act, through which their motions for bail were denied repeatedly, until the defendants were successful in overturning the constitutional nature of one of its provisions. Arrested in connection with the August 30th FBI assault on the Independence Movement of Puerto Rico, they are charged with violating the RICO Statutes (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) purportedly designed to halt the mafia, but used most notably to date against the New York 8 Plus, a group of Afro-American Anti-Imperialists. The women are clearly independentists, but the U.S. government persists in branding them and their co-defendants as terrorists. The federal government has militarized the courtroom since the beginning of the hearings with excessive security measures, the most recent additions being concrete blocks surrounding the entrance of the Federal Court Building, one would think are more appropriate to U.S. embassies in Beirut than in Hartford, CT. Lucy and Ivonne, along with those of the prisoners who have been released, have found themselves suddenly living in Hartford with requirements to appear in court daily, with a court ordered curfew of ten p.m. and with permits required for travel to other cities. Both women have children (five in total) and must arrange for child care as the judge has ruled that the children are not allowed in the courtroom. Having just spent over a year in prison, the women are under the stress of preparing for their defense which involves listening to hundreds of hours of FBI wiretap tapes, checking their transcriptions and their subsequent translation into English. Their children have undergone a great deal of trauma, and need special attention. Lucy's husband Juan is still incarcerated along with Filib- erto Ojeda, and she is also involved in supporting him while he is inside. Their expenses are tremendous, not even referring to the cost of attorneys and transcriptions, etc. Uprooted from their country, tossed into prison, and now struggling with survival and the U.S. system of justice, these women need our support. Please send any amount of money that you can, with cheques made out to NHACAR (New Haven Action Committee Against Repression), P.O. Box 2072, New Haven, CT 06521. Please annotate Lucy and Ivonne and it will be put into a specific fund for their use. Thank you, Theresa I. Carr Hartford, CT P.S. Letters to the defendants are also welcome. Praise for Vancouver Kinesis Open letter to the women of the Vancouver women's community: I have recently moved to Victoria after being part of the women's community in Vancouver for over thirteen years. On a recent weekend visit back in Vancouver I found myself reminiscing with a dear friend; it was a time of recounting, of taking stock of the past years. In that recounting I began to realize how very blessed I have been over the years to have known so many wonderful, interesting, provocative and loving women, from intimate friends to neighbours to political allies to acquaintances; women with courage and determination, humour and heart. I feel grateful for these women in my life and intend this letter as a letter of appreciation and deep thanks to this entire community of women for being part of my life and including me in theirs. There have been many times when we have had criticisms to make about each other as individuals, collective members, allies and opponents. We can be so very hard on each other sometimes. Our differences contribute to our growth as much as our love and support for each other does. ARIEL BOOKS open Monday to Saturday 10-6 Sunday 1-5 artel books for women 2766 w.4thave. van., b.c 733-}5U Sometimes we belabour the point when we have criticisms to make, forgetting to take equal time to celebrate each other, as individuals and as community. We are such fascinating, earnest, delightful people, each in our own way—let's not take this for granted. Victoria is new to me. The women I have met here thus far are also good women. And it will take time for me to feel as comfortable and supported and accepted as I have been in Vancouver. Right now I miss and appreciate my old community in Vancouver. I want to thank the Vancouver women's community for everything I have learned from them; for the struggles and the joys and the love. Remember to appreciate each other. Love Deb Thiessen God stands by WfM Kinesis Open letter to RE.A.L. Women: I was a born-again twenty years ago. I was a fundamentalist church-attending Christian for as many years as my "Christian" husband would allow me to be. I was married for fifteen years, mainly because I believed that I had no other options. He did not want children, so I chose not to have any. Fortunately, I could choose. I performed my wifely duty every other night for as long as we were together, whether I wanted to or not. I landed in a psychiatric ward after all those years of his tender loving care. He subsequently divorced me for mental cruelty. I turned to women for love. I am now a slightly psychotic lesbian on welfare. Your god and your philosophy condemn me. My God, who has never left me, does not condemn me. When the legs fold in from under you and that man and his church that you lean on finally desert you, will your god still be with you? Irene Neufeld Learn newspaper skills- call 873-5925 i Arms production, South Africa, toxic waste—don't finance what you don't support* CCEC Credit Union Mon. and Wed. 11 am to 5 pm. Friday 1 to 7 pm. 33 East Broadway 876-2123 Your money can be used to help build the kind of society you want to live in. btSflfJT^fcgSv 24 I^INESIS JUI/AUO '87 /////////////////m^^ ////////////////////^^^^^ Bulletin Board Read this All listings must be received no later than .3 the 18th of the month preceding publica- * tion. Listings are limited to 75 words and -a should include a contact name and tele- -2 phone number for any clarification that may ■§_ be required. Listings should be typed or neatly handwritten, double-spaced on 8 h by 11 paper. Listings will not be accepted over the telephone. Groups, organizations and individuals eligible for free space in the Bulletin Board must be, or have, non-profit objectives. Other free notices will be items of general public interest and will appear at the discretion of Kinesis. Classified are $4 for the first 75 words or portion thereof, $1 for each additional 25 words or portion thereof. Deadline for classifieds is the 18th of the month preceding publication. Kinesis will not accept classifieds over the telephone. All classifieds must be prepaid. For Bulletin Board submissions send copy to Kinesis Att'n Bulletin Board, 400 A West 5th, Vancouver, B.C. V5Y 1J8. For more information call 873-5925. EVENTS A SURVIVAL GATHERING Plans are now underway for the 3rd annual North American anarchist gathering in Toronto July 1-4, 1988. Input welcome. Sept. 13 planning mtg. in T.O. More info P.O. Box 435 Stn. P. Toronto M5S 2S9 COFFEE HOUSES Vancouver Lesbian Connection hosts Coffee Houses the 1st and 3rd Friday of every month, 876 Commercial Drive. 7:30-11 pm. It's a good chance to see some of the community's finest entertainers. W.K.W.A. WOMEN'S FESTIVAL Workshops—feminist theory, singing, spirituality, country music, theatre. Open stage Sun. Images Ad Hoc, Women on Cue, Si dance on Sat. nite. Child care available Sat. Boys 10 and under welcome. Camping available. No pets. Potluck dinner Sat. Valican Whole. Aug. 15 & 16. $30. weekend, $5. less for W.K.W.A. members, unemployed & pre- registered. Children under 8 free, half price 8-16 yrs. Send for brochure West Kootenay Women's Assoc. 307 Vernon. Nelson. B.C. V1L 4E3. 352-9916. LESBIAN SHOW Thursdays 8:30-9:30 pm. CFRO 102.7 FM. Co-op Radio. July 2. Lezzie Lit.— books old Si new; July 9, Anne Cameron; July 16 Folk Fest: A Dyke's Preview; July 23, news; July 30, opera. Yes. you heard right; Aug 6, What can we do about the right?; Aug. 13, Lesbian filmmaker, Barbara Hammer; Aug. 20, TBA; Aug. 27. monthly news. BOOKSTORE'S BIRTHDAY Join Vancouver Women's Bookstore, 315 Cambie St. for 14th birthday celebration. 14 % discount off everything! July 25 11-5:30 pm. Refreshments. INT'L LESBIAN WEEK Help organize International Lesbian Week— first week in October. Last yr. during I.L.W. there were several activities. Make this year's larger, lustier, more visible, more fun. First planning mtg. July 14, 7:30 pm. VLC. 876 Commercial Drive. PROUD. STRONG, UNITED 10th Annual Gay Si Lesbian Pride Festival. Vancouver Aug. 1-9. Aug. 1 Van. Vancouver's Women's Bookstore celebrates its fourteenth birthday this July, making it one of the oldest women's bookstores in the country. The bookstore, in it's various locations, provided meeting space and facilities for much of Vancouver's early feminist organizing. Special events and a sale are planned for this year's birthday bash. See Bulletin Board for more information. EVENT SIE VENT SIRESOURCES Men's Choir with Seattle Women's Ensemble, Hotel Vancouver. Pride Festival dance following; Aug. 2 Moonlight boat cruise; Aug. 2-3 Rainbow Park mini festival. West End; Aug. 3 Parade from Ceperly Park in Stanley Park at noon, along Park Dr Si Beach Ave; Aug. 8 PWA Coalition fundraising dance at Commodore Ballroom; Aug. 9 Pride Festival Spiritual Celebration. Other events include art exhibits at Pitt Int'l Gallery, workshops at Van. Gay Si Lesbian Community Centre, films, women's fastball tournament, AA public info mtg, and more. Tix available at VTC/CBO and Little Sisters. More info VLC 254-8458 or VGLCC 688-1044. FABRIC ART WORKS By Sima Elizabeth Shefrin on display at La Quena coffee house, 1111 Commercial Drive. To July 12. CANADIAN WOMEN WRITERS Free readings are part of West Word III. annual summer school/retreat for women writers. Instructors: Betsy War- land Si Myrna Kostash, Aug. 12. Nicole Brossard Si Margaret Hollingsworth, Aug. 16. Jeanette Armstrong, Aug. 13. Sharon Thesen Aug. 18. All readings 7:30 pm. Van. School of Theology. 6050 Chancellor Blvd. UBC. Cross-Genre panel discussion open to public Aug. 15, 1:30 pm. More info Sandra Benson, Women Si Words 872-8014. A FRINGE BENEFIT Theatre Space-Simon Webb Si Pat Armstrong dust off the best of '86 Fringe Festival, with a sneak preview of '87's offerings. Door prizes, musical guests, past Si future highlights. July 11. 8:30 pm. Tix $10. VLC DANCE Capri Hall. 3925 Fraser. Wheelchair accessible. Childcare offsite. Sliding scale $4-$6. July 24. doors open 8 pm. More info 254-8458. WEDDING IN TEXAS AND OTHER STORIES One woman's irreverent insights Si attempts to make sense of an insane world. Cathy Jones' vignettes give rise to hilarity Si outrage. Aug. 13-30 8:30 pm. Tix Tues.-Thurs. $8, Fri.-Sun. $10. Vancouver East Cultural Centre, 1895 Venables. Reservations Si info 254-9578. TAKE BACK THE NIGHT Protest male violence against women. Take Back the Night demonstration, Sept. 18. organized by Rape Relief Si Women's Shelter 872-8212. AUGUST DANCE Fundraiser benefit dance for VLC coffee house. Basin Street, 1138 Granville. Aug. 20. doors open 8 pm. Childcare offsite. Wheelchair accessible. More info 254-8458. FEMINIST ENCUENTRO 4th Encuento of Latin American and Caribbean Feminists, Oct. 18-25, Morelos, Mexico. Buses leave Mexico City Oct. 19 to Hacienda Vista Mermoza. Plenaries focus on where L.A. Si Caribbean feminists are now, the role of feminism Si institutional patriarchy. Workshops, cultural Si social events. Over 1200 women expected. For Canadians, cost for hotel Si food is $120 U.S. More info. Cuatro Creciente, Lie. Verdad 11-8, Centro, C.P. 06060. Mexico Df. Mexico. LESBIAN CENTRE The Vancouver Lesbian Centre is open Mon.-Fri. 11-4 pm. Library, housing info, referral service, women's art exhibits, social event info, pool table and more. 876 Commercial Dr. Drop in. LEGAL ADVICE CLINIC Ruth Lea Taylor offers free legal advice clinic last Sat. of the month. 9 am-12 noon. Open to any woman needing legal advice. 876 Commercial Drive. TYPEWRITER AVAILABLE Any woman requiring the use of a typewriter is invited to Vancouver Lesbian Connection Centre Tuesdays and Thursdays 11-4 pm. The centre at 876 Commercial Drive also boasts access to a high quality photocopier! (10 cents each) WOMEN'S STUDIES 16 Women View: Sex, Sanity and Social Change, an introductory interdisciplinary, team-taught, university transfer course. VVI, 250 W. Pender. Sept. 8-Dec. 15. 6:30-9:30 pm. Also offered at Langara. more info Cindy Nagel 324-5448, local 448. MAIZE A magazine of rural lesbian experience Si strategies in economic survival and community building. Sub $10/4 issues. Word Weavers. Box 8742, Mpls, MN. 55408. HiMIWMflkJ BASKETBALL Attention all women interested in establishing a regular time for drop-in basketball or in forming a bb team for 87/88 season. Plans are to call a mtg, in Aug.. to determine interest. If you played last yr. Si want to play again or if you want to get involved for the 1st time call 254- 9963. CALL FOR PROPOSALS For: No More Secrets: A (National) Conference on Child Abuse, May 24-27,1988. Together we will share feminist theories, current practices and experiences that impact our work. More info Community Resources and Initiatives, 303A Melita Ave. Toronto M6G 3X1. (416) 536-6340. KJNESIS '87 JUI/AUO 25 Bulletin Board SUBMISSIONSIG ROUP S1G ROUPS 1G ROUPS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS For anthology by and about daughters of alcoholics. Writings may cover: recollections, present day issues, such as struggles with personal addictions, relationships and healing. Poetry, interviews, short stories, diary excerpts, etc. Send material to Natalie Zlodre. 303A Melita Ave. Toronto M6G 3X1. EROS IN THE FLESH Call for proposals for an art show of sexual and erotic images of women by women. Photos, films, video, sketches, collage, slides, sculpture, prose, poems, soundscapes. installation ... Due July 15. Finished works Aug. 1. Exhibition Aug. 15. More info M(em) 294-2002, Carolyn 251-6446. BWSS GROUP LEADERS Battered Women Support Services will be holding a fall training of Support Group leaders Sept. 25-Dec. 6. 2 weekend workshops and 8 evening sessions. Call 734-1574 for application forms. Application deadline Aug. 13. ABORTION CLINICS IN B.C. On Jan. 25/87 the B.C. Coalition of Abortion Clinics was established. There are several working committees in need of your active support: fundraising, outreach/education, media, and clinic. Be an active member for a woman's right to choose. More info P.O. Box 66171. Stn. F Vancouver V5N 5L4. 873-5455. VLC PAMPHLETS Hot off the press! NEW Vancouver Lesbian Connection pamphlets, a welcome addition to any organization's brochure rack! If you, or your organization would ramaEHEIBES codco's Cathy Jones August 13-30, Tuesday thru Sunday, 8:30 pm Direct from the Edinburgh Festival DRAMADILLO in OJ-yMty 'Dramadillo evoke the mythical world of monsters, sirens, lotus eaters, witches and the surge of the Aegean.' Vancouver Sun September 2-6, 8 pm /'ñ†y THE VANCOUVER EAST' 1895 Venables at Victoria RESERVATIONS 254-9578 like some, drop in to 876 Commercial Drive or call 254-8458 and we'll send some to you. VIOLENCE IN LESBIAN RELATIONSHIPS A group focusing on discussion, support and peer counselling, meets every second Tuesday at Vancouver Lesbian Connection Centre. 876 Commercial Drive. This is a VLC sponsored program. $2 drop-in fee. More info 254-8458. YOUNG LESBIANS A Young Lesbian Support and Social Group is being held the 2nd and 4th Friday of every month, Vancouver Lesbian Connection Centre. 876 Commercial Drive, 7:30-11 pm. There is a $2 drop-in fee to cover costs. More info 254-8458. WOMEN'S NICARAGUA TOUR Women interested in applying or wanting more info on the 1988 tour write: Women's Sector of B.C. Nic. 1672 E. 10th Ave., Vancouver, V5N 1X5 or call Fran 291-9317. LESBIANS IN RECOVERY A group of women in recovery is in the process of forming a lesbian study group on addiction. We plan to use the anthology. Out from Under: Sober Dykes and Our Friends, as a guide to discussion (avail, at Vancouver Women's Bookstore). More info 254-8458. LESBIAN NETWORK Meets every second Monday of mo. at Vancouver Lesbian Connection Centre, 876 Commercial Drive. 7:30 pm. More info 254-8458. WEST COAST LEAF ASSOC. New office for West Coast Legal Education and Action Fund: 1036- 470 Granville. Van. V6C 1V5. 684-8772. Tues. 9-12 pm Si Wed. 9-5 pm. Seeking test court cases on women's rights with view to developing law in interests of women. Speakers, workshop leaders on women's equality rights available at no charge. VOLUNTEER TRAINING Battered Women's Support Services will be training women in early fall to work in BWSS office doing crisis line counselling and 1-1 peer counselling. Interested please call 734-1574 for more info and application form. REMEMBER LIL The Lesbian Information Line provides answers to calls on Wed. and Sun. from 7-9 pm and 24 hour recorded messages Si current info 7 days a week. LIL offers peer counselling, info Si referral and sponsors workshops, monthly meetings, pot luck dinners and annual softball tournament. LIL needs more volunteer members to maintain vital services. Please leave message at 986-8324. Info line 875- 6963. VIOLENCE IN LESBIAN RELATION SHIPS Discussion, support Si peer counselling. Tuesdays 7:30- 10 pm. $2 drop-in fee. More info VLC 254-8458. LESBIAN MOMS AND TOTS If you want to meet other women with children and need support, VLC encourages you to drop-in Wednesdays 9-11 am. 876 Commercial Drive. DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE Downtown Eastside Women's Centre, 217 Main. 681-8480. Mon.-Fri. 1-9 pm Resources, support, drop-in. coffee, telephone, clothing and more. Ongoing support groups: Alcohol and drug, women on welfare, prostitutes. Carolyn Bell NEED INFORMATION? WANT TO TALK? (604) 875-6963 Weds. & Sun. 7-9p.m. 400A West 5th Ave. Vancouver, B.C. Canada V5Y 1J8 Lesbian information Line 26 I^INESIS Jul/Aug '87 ///////////////////^^^^^ /////////////////////^^^^^ Bulletin Board M I S C . ^CLASSIFIED SCHOLARSHIPS FOR WOMEN CN offering 68 $600 scholarships for 1987 fall semester to encourage women in non-traditional fields. Contact CN Employee Relations for brochure. Application deadline July 31. LESBIAN FOOD BANK VLC, 876 Commercial Drive, in conjunction with the Gay Si Lesbian Food Bank has a depot for lesbians Tuesdays 1-3 CONSIDER ACTING UP Acting Up writes and performs skits and mini plays which reflect anti-capitalist, feminist, anti-imperialist, lesbian-positive view. Acting Up wants to change its all- white perspective and are seeking women of colour interested in doing political theatre. More info Nora 435-5772 or Judy 876-8466. SUPPORT LESBIAN GATHERING The First Gathering of Latin American Si Caribbean lesbian feminists is calling upon women's groups Si independent women for financial support. Third World resources are limited so please send $1 or more to L.A.L.. c/o G.L.L.U., 1213 Highland Ave.. Hollywood. CA. 90038, USA. Donations over $20 will receive a fabulous poster unknown to the first world. SEX DISCRIMINATION RESEARCH Anyone having trouble recently with filing a sexual discrimination complaint to the Human Rights Council of B.C. please contact Kinesis 873-5925 or Linda Riz- zato 738- 8874. A.C.O.A. DOCUMENTARY REACH Community Health Centre is producing video documentary addressing issues facing adult children of alcoholics. People interested in participating as interviewees write: Harris Taylor c/o The Health Education Project. REACH. 1145 Commercial Dr. Vancouver V5L 3X3. More info Harris 251-9994. CLASS FED BED & BREAKFAST FOR WOMEN On Quadra Island. Country quiet, superb scenery, comfort Si privacy. Dig for clams at Rebecca Spit, climb Chinese Mountain, watch eagles or spend time at nearby Cortes Island or Strathcona Park. Large room with view, private bath, good breakfasts. $35 double, $28 single. 10% discount for 3 or more nights. Call Susan or Carolyn 285-3632 or write Box 119, Quathiaski Cove. B.C. VOP 1NO SATURNA ISLAND RETREAT Enjoy the unspoiled quiet of island life in 12 room historic farmhouse nestled in 28 acres with private beach. Reasonable rates. Groups, families and individuals. Breezy Bay Bed and Breakfast, Saturna Island, B.C. VON 2YO (604) 539-2937. SUNNY EAST SIDE Attractive, sunny. East side house. Large private yard. Clean, white basement suite, sharing upstairs kitchen. $250 plus util. Also main floor bedroom available. $250 plus util. Or if someone wants the bsmt. plus share the house, it's $425. plus util. Piano available. Quiet space. I'm 36. Women only please. 876- 0671. NORTH VAN Woman or woman and child wanted to share large communal house in N. Van., with 3 women and 2 children. Large fenced yard, vegetable garden, close to shopping centre, library, schools, easy access to Vancouver. More info Lynn or Eileen 980-7033. CORRESPONDENCE WANTED 25 year old Australian working on the feminist publication, Womanspeak wants to correspond with women interested in social issues concerning women and women's writing. Lee Cottam. 1 Childers Court, North Adelaide, S. Australia, 5006. Australia. FOR RENT 2 rooms, shared, large, pleasant house in Grandview/Woodlands area. Available July 1 Si Aug. 1. Share with 1 child, 1 woman Si 1 man. Nice yard, fireplace, w/d. Close to rapid transit, schools. Commercial Drive shopping. Child welcome. $320. mo. plus util. per bedroom. Debbie or Allan 872-3570 eves. HAPPY 30TH BIRTHDAY To my tough Cookie, alias Mushy Muffin. Thanks for holding one door open while helping me to close another. My admiration Si appreciation are yours. Love you, M. LONELY ROCK VOCALIST Looking for women musicians to work with. Long range plan to perform in Vancouver area. Call Elaine 255-4767 or leave message on machine 254-2693. COMMUNAL SPACE Available now in Community Alternatives Co-op for 1 or 2 persons. Share with 2 women. 1 small child and 1 teenager (part time). Attractive living space, edible landscaping, library, woodworking shop, mtg. room, etc. Open to short term renters or those wishing to pursue membership. $290 rent includes util. More info Maret or Patricia 731-3005 or 732-5153. WOMEN'S COUNSELLING I am counselling full time with women at my downtown office. Specializations include depression, sexuality, sexual and emotional abuse, adult women survivors of childhood sexual abuse, identity issues, self-awareness, relationship issues, decision making, and career exploration. I work using verbal and expressive therapies, gestalt and guided imagery. Sliding fee scale. Janet Lichty. M.Ed., Counselling Psychology. Please call 874-6982. UNADVERTISED VACANCIES At Sitka Housing Co-op for women, when suites become available, there often isn't time to meet advertising deadlines. If you would like to be considered for future vacancies in an apartment or townhouse, or if you would like to meet women who are interested in sharing a suite in the co-op send SASE to Sitka Housing Cooperative, P.O. Box 65684, Stn. F, 2160 Commercial Dr. Van. V5N 5K7. GRAND OPENING This is it! Official opening of Sitka Housing Co-operative. Sept. 26 1-4 pm. We are happy to invite our community to be on hand when CMHC presents plaque. See our co-op, meet our members, view common room with an eye to using it for your next mtg. All welcome. Free food Si refreshments. 1550 Woodland Dr. Rain or shine. Children most welcome. Morion Lydbrooke CLASS IFIEDICLASSIFIED BOOKS BY MAIL Feminist and lesbian books by mail (in English and French). Free new book bulletin published 3 times/year. L'Androgyne Bookstore, 3636 St. Laurent. Montreal H2X2V4. WICCAN SUMMER INTENSIVE An opportunity to study feminist ritual, magic and political change with Starhawk and Reclaiming Collective. Aug. 9-15. Residential program in Lower Mainland at secluded, beautiful campsite. Open to women and men, with women only and men only space planned. Sliding scale $250-350 includes food, lodging and training. For brochure/application, send SASE to P. Hogan. 1932 W. 2nd Ave, Vancouver V6J 1J2. 732-5153. COMMUNAL SPACE Available now in Community Alternatives Co-op for 1 or 2 single adults. Share with 2 women. 1 small child and 1 teenager (part time). Attractive living space, edible landscaping, library, woodworking shop, mtg. room, etc. Open to short term renters or those wishing to pursue membership. $290 rent includes util. More info Maret or Patricia 731-3005 or 732-5153. ENERGY CIRCLES Visualization led by Joan O'Brien. Unload, transform, revitalize women's groups meeting weekly. Sliding scale. 254-2627. 1-1 sessions also available. &«** ^V* pO^ cP -o^ KINESIS We subscribe to Kinesis, and we're glad we do. How about you? Published 10 times a y by Vancouver Status of Women 400A West 5th Ave., Vancouver, BC V5Y 1J8 VSW Membership-$25.50 (or what you can afford)-includes Kinesis subscription □ Kinesis subscription only - $17.50 □ Sustainers - $75 ; Institutions - $45 D New Here's my cheque □ Renewal I Bill rae □ Gift subscription for a friend Now is the time to become part of CELEBRATION W Gay Games III and Cultural Festival Vancouver, Canada August, 1990 Please join us as we prepare for Celebration '90, the name we are giving Gay Games III and Cultural Festival. It's an exciting social experience as women and men work together in equal partnership, free of societal roles. The parity Board of Directors is committed to positive action on women's issues such as equal access, sliding scale and child care. The excitement is growing Ever since Tom Waddell announced that Vancouver, Canada would be the site of the 1990 Gay Games, we have been overwhelmed with the interest and offers of help which have literally come from all over the world. Two things you can do today We really welcome your support - in fact there are two things you could do today for Gay Games III: * Sign up as an official 1990 Celebrant! For $10 a year you add your name to the official mailing list and receive regular newsletters and information updates. * Tell someone about your women's sports experiences! Whether it's one person or your whole community, please make sure you help to carry the message about the great experiences gay athletic events offer. Please duplicate this notice and share it. Get your community invoived now Athletic and community lesbian groups all over North America have offered their support through distributing information and through community based fund raisers in support of the Games themselves. The Games' beginnings The Gay Games were first held in San Francisco in 1982; they drew over 1300 athletes from 179 cities for competitions in 14 sports. The second Games, again in San Francisco, saw 3482 women and men from 259 cities participate in 17 sports. Already, letters requesting information suggest that we might experience a huge growth by 1990. Cultural festival plans Vancouver plans a cultural festival to run parallel to the athletic events. Visual arts, dance, theatre, writing and many forms of music will all be part of the 10 day festival planned for August, 1990. There could be an many cultural participants as athletes as a professional and amateur program develops. A special philosophy The Games are open to everyone who supports their philosophy of inclusiveness rather than exclusiveness. "Participation and doing one's personal best are more important than winning," says founder Waddell. "Our friendly competitions have worked well to remove age, sex,and racial stereotypes." Here's my 1987 membership of $10 for Celebration '90 - Gay Games III and Cultural Festival Name: _City_ Please make cheques payable to Metropolitan Vancouver Athletics and Arts Association 1170 Bute Street, Vancouver Canada V6E 1Z6 Supplement to Kinesis July-August, 1987
Preceding title: Vancouver Status of Women. Newsletter. Date of publication: 1974-2001. Frequency: Monthly. Contains 1 inserted sheet.
Periodicals
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HQ1101.V24 N49
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Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Vancouver : Vancouver Status of Women
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Original Format: University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections. HQ1101.V24 N49
Women--Social and moral questions
Feminism--Periodicals
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