Algonquin Anishinaabeg Territory/Ottawa, ON
The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) and Luke’s Place announce the launch of The Chanterelle Alliance for Feminist Law Reform.
The Chanterelle Alliance will create the opportunity to foster greater coordination among feminist and equality-seeking organizations in advocating for systemic changes to laws, programs and systems that impact women at all levels of government. The work of The Chanterelle Alliance will be framed by intersectional feminist principles, with an emphasis on anti-racism, anti-oppression and a sincere commitment to reconciliation.
Both NAWL and Luke’s Place have long histories of working for women’s equality and an end to violence against women through law reform advocacy. The creation of The Chanterelle Alliance, supported by funding from Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE), will broaden and deepen this work by bringing together feminist organizations from across the country to advance a proactive feminist law reform agenda in Canada. The Alliance will provide opportunities for organizations of all shapes and sizes to connect, collaborate, create and plan in organic ways with the added benefit of expertise and knowledge from a national advisory group already engaged in feminist law reform work.
“Over the past three years, we have seen a rise in gender-based violence and serious losses in women’s equality in Canada and around the world. We have also seen a heightened interest in the issue of gender-based violence and femicide. The recent announcement of a National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence makes us hopeful that, with ongoing feminist advocacy, we can make important steps towards women’s equality and an end to gender-based violence,” says Luke’s Place Advocacy Director Pamela Cross.
“There’s a global rise in well-funded right-wing extremism. Now more than ever, feminist groups and advocates need to work together to counter the ongoing and emerging threats to gains made over decades of feminist activism” says NAWL’s Executive Director Tiffany Butler.
The work of the Alliance is guided by a National Advisory Group, made up of about a dozen national feminist organizations with law reform and policy advocacy experience, including the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies, the Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund, Le Regroupement des maisons pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale, the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women, The Enchanté Network, Women of the Métis Nation, the Canadian Council of Muslim Women, and DAWN Canada.
About NAWL: The National Association of Women and the Law is a national feminist non-profit organization that was founded in 1974. NAWL works to achieve substantive equality and the realization of human rights for all women in Canada through legal education, research, strategic intervention, coalition work and feminist law reform advocacy, particularly at the federal level.
About Luke’s Place: Luke’s Place is an award-winning non-profit organization solely devoted to improving the safety and experience of women and their children as they proceed through the family law process after fleeing an abusive relationship.
For more information: NAWL: media@nawl.ca or 613 241-7570 | Luke’s Place: michaelar@lukesplace.ca or 905-728-0978 (ext. 240)