Committees
Our on-going Committees reflect years of collaboration.
Working with the RCMP
The work of the following Committees date back to the Coalition's formation in 2011 and the need for a feminist lens in the area of policing and emergency response services for women – read more here.
2 positive changes that came out of the early work of these committees:
- Relationship repair and building between RCMP and women's organisations.
- Use of more accurate, neutralizing, language that doesn't blame the victim.
- Community members feeling safer calling the RCMP and less intimidated than previously.
Together for Justice – Watson Lake
At a time of heightened tension between RCMP and Yukon women (see herstory), the Executive Director of Liard Aboriginal Women's Society, Ann Maje-Raider, reached out to create dialogue between RCMP and Kaska women, Yukon Women's Coalition delegates, representatives from Government and community organisations.
A series of workshops took place from February 2011 to March 2013. Sessions carefully focused on the justice system, policing, culture, historical colonialism and residential schools to explore and understand how society responds to women who experience violence.
The culmination of these workshops was the signing of "Together for Justice" on International Women's Day 2013. Together for Justice is a protocol for building community safety.
Presently, Together for Justice is not active – something Liard Aboriginal Women's Society and the Coalition hope to revitalize.
Learn more on the LAWS website. Read the original Protocol and press release.
Together for Safety – Whitehorse
Fueled by the example of Together for Justice spearheaded by Liard Aboriginal Women's Society, Coalition members organized similar sessions with the Whitehorse RCMP and signed Together for Safety on March 5th, 2013
Original signatories were: Yukon Women's Transition Home Society, Les EssentiElles, Public Service Alliance Canada – Regional Women's Committee/Aboriginal People's Committee, Victoria Faulkner Women's Centre, Whitehorse Aboriginal Women's Circle, and Yukon Status of Women Council
Together for Safety meets 3 times a year. They created a series of videos to help women know which options are available during a time of crisis, so they can make informed decisions.
More recently, the committee updated the Protocol and renewed commitment between the signatories and the RCMP to:
- Communicate – with each other and the community.
- Collaborate – on issues of mutual interest and concern.
- Educate – through training, orientation and briefing of issues.
Learn more: Read the original Protocol and view the videos aimed at victims of domestic and sexualized assault.
