REAL Women of Canada () is a

socially conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institu ...

advocacy group Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an impor ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The organization was founded in 1983. REAL stands for "Realistic, Equal, Active, for Life". The group believes that the

nuclear family A nuclear family (also known as an elementary family, atomic family, or conjugal family) is a term for a family group consisting of parents and their children (one or more), typically living in one home residence. It is in contrast to a single ...

is the most important unit in Canadian

society A society () is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. ...

, and that the fragmentation of the Canadian family is a primary cause of social disorder. It lobbies the

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

in favour of legislation to promote what it believes to be the Judeo-Christian-Islamic model of family life, and to support

homemaking Homemaking is mainly an American English, American and Canadian English, Canadian term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping, housewifery or household management. It is the act of overseeing the organizational ...

. REAL is also opposed to

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

and

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...

(and

same-sex marriage in Canada Same-sex marriage was progressively introduced in several provinces and territories of Canada by court decisions beginning in 2003 before being legally recognized nationwide with the enactment of the ''Civil Marriage Act'' on July 20, 2005. On ...

as well).

Interventions

The group has intervened in

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; , ) is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants eac ...

cases including '' R. v. Morgentaler (1993)'' and ''

M. v. H. ''M. v. H.'' 9992 S.C.R. 3, is a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of Canada on the rights of cohabiting same-sex couples to equal treatment under the law. The court found that the definition of spouse in section 29 of Ontario's '' Family ...

'' (1999). In '' R. v. Sullivan'' (1991) it argued that a

fetus A fetus or foetus (; : fetuses, foetuses, rarely feti or foeti) is the unborn offspring of a viviparous animal that develops from an embryo. Following the embryonic development, embryonic stage, the fetal stage of development takes place. Pren ...

is a

person A person (: people or persons, depending on context) is a being who has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations suc ...

and the only thing different between a fetus and a baby is a short amount of time.

Objectives

According to its website, its aims are to emphasize the importance of the family and legally promote what it refers to as a "Judeo-Christian" understanding of marriage and a nuclear family, to promote

, and to oppose abortion and assisted suicide. Part of their economic policies to help meet their objectives are increased tax relief for single-income families, families with children, and individuals with children. REAL Women is similar in political and social outlook to Phyllis Schlafly's Eagle Forum and to Concerned Women for America in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The organization has also criticized individuals who have spoken out against Uganda's criminalization of homosexual relations. On August 7, 2013, the group issued a statement criticizing Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird for speaking out on LGBT human rights issues in both Uganda and

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

as part of Canada's foreign policy.

History

In January 1983, Judy Erola, the federal cabinet minister for the status of women, proposed scrapping the tax exemption for dependent spouses, including mothers at home raising young children. Seeing this change as anti-family, persons active in the

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its Abortion by country, legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in r ...

campaign began to speak out in opposition.Erwin, Lorna. "R.E.A.L. Women, Anti-feminism and the Welfare State." Resources for Feminist Research 17 (1988): 147-49. Print. On September 3, 1983, a group of Ontario women formed what would become known as REAL Women: Realistic, Equal, and Active for Life.Pal, Leslie A. Interests of the State. Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen's University, 1993. Print. p144 REAL Women was dissatisfied with how feminist organizations addressed women's issues, and said that many housewives felt disparaged and attacked by these organizations. REAL Women was formed as an anti-feminist counterweight to the National Action Committee on the Status of Women.MacIvor, Heather. Women and Politics in Canada. Broadview, 2001. Print. p145 A press conference was held in 1984 officially announcing their formation. The group claimed initially to have 10,000 members, however this was later discredited. The year following their formation, the group held its first national conference, claiming to have 20,000 members, though this could not be verified. REAL Women said it represented a silent majority of women within Canada. They promoted male-led, single-breadwinner families, and believed that women should be homemakers, mothers and wives. Their views and beliefs greatly differed from the stance taken by the National Action Committee on the Status of Women and its umbrella organizations, and the group argued against the equality guarantees already enacted in the ''

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms The ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' (), often simply referred to as the ''Charter'' in Canada, is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada, forming the first part of the '' Constitution Act, 1982''. The ''Char ...

'':Vickers, Jill, Pauline Rankin, and Christine Appelle. Politics as If Women Mattered: a Political p240 they denounce the equal rights clause in the ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' and feminist movements and organizations, and they argue that government spending and funding of these feminist organizations is undermining traditional gender and family relations. 1987 its president Lynne Scime stated that "REAL women want to look at issues such as how a woman can pick a husband to fulfill her needs". They believed that women are naturally nurturing, emotional and dependent beings, suited to motherhood. They use the slogan "equal but different" while pushing for increased tax credits for stay-at-home mothers, . and have made suggestions on how to augment the options and resources available to families. REAL is directly opposed to issues that organizations such as the National Action Committee advocatet. One is abortion, which REAL opposes, claiming it is murder. In addition, the group opposes the idea of the universal childcare model, as they believe that governmental childcare represents a loss of parental control and increases the influence of the state on the family. They argue that the funding would be better spent on things such as courses on parenting skills. REAL also oppose laws guaranteeing

equal pay for women Equal pay for equal work is the concept of labour rights that individuals in the same workplace be given equal pay. It is most commonly used in the context of sexual discrimination, in relation to the gender pay gap. Equal pay relates to the full ...

, believing that this would reduce the income disparity between genders, draw women into the paid labour force, and incentivize the economic position of female-led households. They believe this represents a major threat to family values, demeans women and breaks down the traditional family. They also believe that women taking men's jobs will destroy the

free market economy A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production, and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand. The major characteristic of a market ...

. Other viewpoints they oppose include programs to reduce family violence, which they claim encourage hatred toward men;

no-fault divorce No-fault divorce is the dissolution of a marriage that does not require a showing of wrongdoing by either party. Laws providing for no-fault divorce allow a family court to grant a divorce in response to a petition by either party of the marria ...

; and human rights protections for gays and lesbians. The overarching goal of REAL Women is to support the way of life traditionally associated with the 1950s nuclear family and arch-conservative values. Their belief is that their activism contributes to women's equality and will improve their lives. Their monthly newsletter, ''Real''ity, mirrors the American conservative movement. It regularly attacks feminists such as Flora MacDonald as well as feminist campaigns. REAL Women of Canada endorsed Derek Sloan as candidate in the 2020 Conservative leadership election.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Anti-abortion organizations in Canada Christian political organizations Conservatism in Canada Organizations that oppose LGBTQ rights in Canada Political advocacy groups in Canada Religious organizations based in Canada Right-wing politics in Canada Women's organizations based in Canada 1983 establishments in Ontario Christian women's organizations Organizations established in 1983 Female critics of feminism

Interventions

Objectives

History

Archives

References

External links