Moncton, February 25, 2020 – This year, three feminist organizations are joining forces and inviting everyone to mark International Day for Women’s Rights by taking part in a march which will be held March 8 on Main Street in Moncton. A provincial event with the theme Destination: Equity, the march seeks to unite all citizens who believe there is an urgent need to achieve true equality between women and men.
The slogan #MyWagesMyRightsMyAutonomy in fact underscores the close ties between pay equity, the respect of human rights, and achieving true equality.
The Regroupement féministe du Nouveau-Brunswick (RFNB), the New Brunswick Coalition for Pay Equity and the Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne (AFFC) have long asserted that financial independence is the key to true equality for women.
“It is often said that money wins wars. Likewise, money is the crux to achieving true equality for women. The ability to meet one’s needs and to earn fair and equitable wages is a human right recognized by the United Nations. It is about time governments, including New Brunswick’s, recognized this and acted accordingly,” said AFFC’s president, Lily Crist.
For New Brunswick’s Coalition for Pay Equity, pay equity in the private sector has been at a standstill for far too long. “The need for pay equity in the public sector was recognized back in 2009. Why do we still have to fight for the same right in the private sector in 2020? Women who work in the private sector in our province also have the right to earn fair wages. They are not second-class citizens,” said the Coalition’s president, Frances LeBlanc.
The RFNB meanwhile notes that women’s poverty is an important issue for the feminist movement. “Women and gender minorities are disproportionately affected by lack of social infrastructures. We know that racialized women and Aboriginal women have bigger barriers to overcome,” pointed out RFNB’s president, Chantal Boudreau. “Enough is enough. We need universal daycare, a guaranteed right to housing, and a $15 per hour minimum wage”.
Information:
Destination: Equity - International Day for Women’s Rights March
The March starts at 12:30 p.m. at the Avenir Centre in Moncton.
It ends at Moncton City Hall where there will be a Community Organization Fair.
The event ends at 3:30 p.m.
For more information, you can follow the three groups on social networks. Join the conversion by using the hashtag #March8NB