“We have an interest in getting to know each other better because, without a doubt, we can all be enriched through contact with one another.” This idea was enthusiastically expressed by Nicole O’Bomsawin, guest speaker at an open meeting organized by the Quebec SNJM Justice and Peace Committee. A multidisciplinary artist (dance, storytelling, music) with training in anthropology and museology, Ms. O’Bomsawin is recognized for her activism in favor of protecting and raising awareness of traditional Abenaki culture.

The words of this notable representative of the Abenaki nation support the focus we, Quebec Sisters and Affiliates of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, have chosen as our theme for this year, A Mission of Encounter. Throughout her presentation, Ms. O’Bomsawin subtly highlighted the importance of raising awareness of the history and current realities of Aboriginal peoples.

Countering impacts from the cultural divide

Highlighting the current dispute over Bill C-92 which gives Aboriginal peoples responsibility for the youth protection dossier, the speaker spoke of the experience of the Attikameks who have assumed this responsibility. She also highlighted the difficulties faced by Aboriginals who often find themselves caught between two entities (the federal and provincial governments) when trying to resolve deeply humanitarian situations.

The example of a foster family asked to offer a single room to an indigenous child who, due to the lack of space in indigenous homes, is used to sleeping with several people in the same room illustrated the cultural divide. In this particularly sensitive issue, indigenous peoples wish to obtain the right to take charge of their own children with all the appropriate support.

A situation of genocide

In her overview of the results and follow-up to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG), Ms. O’Bomsawin pointed out the difficulty of achieving consensus regarding the desire to find the guilty parties on the one hand and, on the other hand, the desire to understand what led to the disappearance and the assassination of 1, 200 Aboriginal women. Through the sometimes disturbing and often surprising witness reports, there emerged a conclusion which was a bombshell in Canadian news: Aboriginal women are victims of genocide.

Stressing the need to offer financial and psychological support to families living with the disappearances, the Abenaki speaker said people were told: “If you cannot find the body, you cannot receive financial assistance.” Mourning is thus made much more difficult.

In the wake of the 92 recommendations of the Viens Commission (Quebec), which ended in September 2019, and the hundreds of other recommendations of the federal commission, presented in June 2019, Nicole O’Bomsawin testified to the positive impacts of these broad consultations.

Positive spinoffs

In addition to increasing awareness of the issue of Aboriginal women, Ms. O’Bomsawin sees greater collaboration between the police and the Association of Aboriginal Women. A police officer now acts as a liaison between Aboriginal women and the police force. Training regarding indigenous culture has been incorporated into the training of police cadets at the Nicolet Police Institute. Police act much more quickly in cases of disappearance.

According to the speaker, the awareness-raising approach should extend to the world of general education. “School books should be rewritten to make the history of the First Nations better known and teachers should be better educated regarding the current reality of Aboriginal peoples.”

While deploring the lack of schools and hospitals for indigenous people, Nicole O’Bomsawin talked of a great victory in the defeat of the Jordan Principle. “Jordan was a child who died without ever having received the necessary care, because of a disagreement about who had to pay for the care. Today, we treat and offer adequate services first and then settle the question of costs later.”

The speaker offered us the possibility of coming into contact with the reality of indigenous peoples and of discovering another story of Creation. . . . She ended her presentation by playing a drum and performing a song that calls all to courage.

The next meeting of the Quebec SNJM Justice and Peace Committee will focus on the 2020 World March of Women. The meeting will take place in Longueuil on March 2, at 4:30 p.m.  

Some links to find out more:

• Report of the MMIWG inquiry and additional reports (Quebec and that relating to the genocide); podcasts, video testimonials
• Quebec Native Women Inc.

Preparations for the World March of Women (MMF) in the fall of 2020 were at the heart of the meeting of the Association of Women Religious for Women’s Rights (ARDF), held in Montreal on November 30. The thirty people present appreciated the two presentations by the speaker, Marie-France Benoît, who is an active participant in the International Coordination of the World March of Women.

“I would not have wanted to miss the testimony of this woman who has been involved since the very beginning of the World March of Women (MMF) in 1998,” said Sr Claudette Bastien, SNJM. “She was eloquent in her articulation of what is problematic in the lives of women: poverty, violence, food insecurity, an environment destroyed by climate change, discrimination against immigrant women, etc. “, she added.

Ms. Benoît was a union advisor in the Labor Relations Service for the Status of Women at the CSN before becoming an activist for the World March of Women in 1998. Since then, she has been an active participant in the International Coordination of the World March of Women. Her role in this collective has led her to meet women activists from all over the world.

From Bilbao to Montreal, women are preparing for the March

During these dynamic and very energizing meetings which assemble 130 people each representing their respective country, Ms. Benoît has had the opportunity to take the pulse of the international situation with its rise of the right, populism, wars, the environment and violence done to women. She also underlined how the “Me Too” movement is being experienced in several regions of the world while freeing the voices of women to name the violence they fall prey to.

Main lines of action for the 2020 MMF were adopted following the Coordination meeting, held in Bilbao, in the Basque country of Spain. The speaker thus confirmed the launch of the activities of this new edition on March 8 with an expected conclusion on October 17, 2020. The theme of the new edition of the MMF has not yet been officially confirmed. It would read: “We resist in order to live … we walk in order to transform.”

The 5 Goals for Quebec

Ms. Benoît’s second presentation focused more on the work of the Quebec Coordinating Team for the World March of Women (CQMMF), made up of 38 national and regional women’s groups. She spoke of the consultation process and especially of the claims and statements which are not yet final, but which set the tone for each of the goals selected:

1. Poverty Alleviation: raising the minimum wage to $ 15 an hour or obtaining a living wage.
2. Ending Sexual Violence: awareness campaign against domestic violence and sexual violence.
3. Climate Change: acquiring food security by promoting local agriculture, popular education and the social economy.
4. Migrant and Immigrant Women: fight systemic discrimination and improve French-language integration.
5. A fifth goal will specifically be formulated for indigenous women. They are currently preparing a claim based on the changes they would like.

This was followed by workshop exercises where participants shared on “how to get involved personally and in the community to support the proposed claims.” Even if this second part was too short for their taste, it was fruitful in suggesting a diversity of courses of action, including the following:                                                                                                                                                              

• Work on raising awareness with organizations in our neighborhoods.
• Work with FADOQ and the grandmothers, with a view to raising awareness of March 8 and the MMF.
• Participate in activities that raise awareness about all forms of violence.
• Provide financial support, particularly by the CRC Donation Committee, to the Women’s Tables so that they can participate more widely in the March.

Stimulating Remarks

 “Ms. Benoît’s presentations really prepared us to reflect on the various areas of demands of the World March of Women,” said Sr. Constance Létourneau, SNJM. “This ARDF training day was very enriching and stimulating. Ms. Benoît inspired me to persevere and to continue my involvement with the group. “

The presentation of a short quiz on the World March of Women perfectly completed the program for this day. It brought back many memories for those who participated in one or other of the various marches including that of Bread and Roses in 1995, which was the source of inspiration for this World March of Women. “It was so good to answer this quiz… The memories were delightful! Stimulating! Motivating! ” exclaimed Sr. Lise Gagnon, SNJM.

Inspiration to Persevere

Sr. Lise Gagnon also appreciated getting acquainted with the details from the discussions held as part of the preparatory meetings for the World Marches held in Brazil, Peru, the Philippines, New Delhi, Rwanda, Mozambique, Congo and Spain (Bilbao). “I enjoyed discovering the evolution of groups of women in facing the importance of respecting cultures, interculturality, sensitive situations like excision and homosexuality lived with a lot of diversity according to cultures…  learning how to respond with respect, reflection and solidarity among women? “

In light of the successive events of violence experienced in Quebec in recent months with the deaths of several mothers and the moratorium imposed by Development and Peace for aid provided to several organizations including Fanm Deside (“Resolute Women” in Creole) in Haiti, those present at the ARDF meeting were more motivated than ever to continue. “… Because the road to women’s liberation is still long! “

“A mission of encounter” expresses the 2019-2020 theme of the Quebec Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary (SNJM) and it offers us a way of following up on the 2016 General Chapter Acts and the invitations of Pope Francis.

Quebec Sisters and Affiliates are called to explore the depth of meaning in the term      “a mission of encounter” and to live that mission in their everyday experiences.

Hopefully the theme will be very meaningful to us as an expression of our SNJM mission: a mission of listening, welcoming, presence, accompaniment, service and education in multiple forms. In short, it is an invitation for us to live our mission according to the particular circumstances of each one’s life.

This newsletter is in tune with the theme as it presents the testimonies of several Sisters expressing their way of “being on mission” today.

• Meeting Young Adults, a Mission of Accompaniment
• Meeting Prisoners, a Mission of Transformation
• Meeting Older Sisters, What a Wonderful Mission!
• Meeting Sisters and Brothers from Elsewhere, a Rewarding Mission

May these examples stimulate our creativity and the quality of our presence in our particular commitments!

Members of the Provincial Leadership Team,

Denise Riel, Claudette Bastien, Beverley Wattling, snjm