Women remain underrepresented in politics

In 1971, Barbara Frum compared female politicians to an endangered species saying, "There are 56 whooping cranes in Canada, and one female federal politician."

In the years and decades that preceded Ms. Frum's comment, a great number of trailblazers fought terribly hard for even one woman to be elected and since that time many more have fought to continue to increase the representation and role of women in the politics of the country and province. Incidentally, 30 plus years after Ms. Frum's observation, the participation rate of women in Canadian politics hovers around the 18 to 21 percentage mark. I am happy to report that even the whopping cranes have also seen some modest improvements.

Despite the advancements women have made (and the many more that we will hopefully soon achieve) in the home, on the job and in terms of our social standing, we continue to face unique barriers to seeking political office. Responsibilities in the home, financial resources required to seek nomination and the generally bloodthirsty nature of politics may cause many women to see running for office as unrealistic, undesirable or down right impossible.

These are real barriers but do they alone explain women's unequal representation in our decision-making institutions?

Recently, two accomplished women, both active in their communities within the riding, stood for the Sask Party nomination in Weyburn Big-Muddy and lost to a young male political staffer from Regina. Although this is an overly simplistic description of the nomination, the outcome still raises questions. For example, is it that women are not prepared to make the sacrifices required to serve or is that that citizens continue to be uncertain about where women belong in the political arena?

These are not easy questions. As a party that continues to be devoted to the greater inclusion of diversity at all decision-making levels, we need to be cognizant of these questions and we need to work towards solutions. It is our party that will continue to be an innovator in creating real opportunities for women in the political process.

We must continue to find ways to build the political capacity of women in our communities. We must challenge stereotypes and expectations which damage and degrade the important contributions that women have and must continue to make to Canadian politics.

Finally, we must continue to identify and encourage strong, passionate and talented women candidates to seek political office and get involved in the nomination process. The upcoming nomination process before the next provincial election must be seen as part of our continued commitment to increasing the representation of women in the Saskatchewan legislature.

Leah Sharpe is President of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Women (SNDW)