Philippine Showbiz Today
December 8 - 21, 2018
Jan. 22-Feb.7, 2015
5
Supporting visible minority newcomer women
New pilot to address multiple barriers to success for women in Canada’s job market
Toronto, ON—Visible minor-
ity newcomer women integrating
into Canadian society can face
many barriers to employment. To
address these challenges, today
the Honourable Ahmed Hussen,
Minister of Immigration, Refugees
and Citizenship, announced the
launch of a 3-year Visible Minority
Newcomer Women Pilot.
The goal of the pilot is to im-
prove the employment and career
advancement of visible minority
newcomer women in Canada by
addressing the barriers they may
face – gender- and race-based
discrimination, precarious or low-
income employment, lack of af-
fordable childcare and weak so-
cial supports.
As part of the pilot, IRCC is
launching an expression of inter-
est process today for new service
providers that are not currently
funded by the department. IRCC
will provide funding of up to $7
million for new, innovative pro-
grams and services to support
visible minority women in access-
ing the labour market and to build
capacity in smaller organizations
that serve or are led by visible mi-
nority women.
IRCC will also amend existing
contribution agreements of se-
lect service provider organizations
(SPOs) across Canada with fund-
ing of up to $5 million. This addi-
tional funding will increase SPOs’
capacity and expand their existing
employment services to address
the needs of visible minority new-
comer women.
Finally, IRCC will work with
the Social Research and Demon-
stration Corporation to develop
a program design and measure-
ment framework to quantify the
effectiveness of specific employ-
ment interventions and program
designs, learning what methods
work best to support visible mi-
nority newcomer women.
Quotes
“Employment is key to the
successful integration of newcom-
ers. Having a job isn’t just about
making an economic contribution
to Canada, it’s also about provid-
ing a sense of dignity and belong-
ing. Newcomers—especially vis-
ible minority women—often face
multiple barriers to employment
including discrimination and lack
of affordable childcare. I’m proud
that my Department has devel-
oped this exciting pilot that will of-
fer direct support and services to these newcomer women as they
get ready for the Canadian work-
force, look for jobs and develop
their careers.”
– The Honourable Ahmed
Hussen, Minister of Immigration,
Refugees and Citizenship
“When Canada’s women
succeed, Canada succeeds. This
investment will support racialized
newcomer women to participate in our economy and grow our
middle class. We are counting
on these women to share their
talents and help fill critical labour
shortages from coast to coast to
coast.”
– The Honourable Maryam
Monsef, Minister of Status of
Women
Cleveland, Ohio, radio sta-
tion WDOK took the song out
of its list of holiday music due to
objections from listeners, Desiray
McCray, an on-air radio host, told
local media late last week.
“When the song was written
in 1944, it was a different time,
but now while reading it, it seems
very manipulative and wrong,”
wrote Glenn Anderson, another
on-air host, on the station’s web-
site.
“The world we live in is extra
sensitive now, and people get eas-
ily offended, but in a world where
#MeToo has finally given women
the voice they deserve, the song
has no place.” The #MeToo movement ex-
ploded on social media last year
after accusations of sexual abuse
were made public against Holly-
wood mogul Harvey Weinstein
Untold numbers of women
have spoken up around the world
about sexual harassment and mis-
treatment, accusing top names in
entertainment, government and
business and altering attitudes
and the treatment of women.
The Midwestern US radio
station’s decision drew a barrage
of comments on social media,
where many people wrote that it
was taking #MeToo too far and
that the lyrics were playful and
harmless Urban Dictionary, an online
site that defines slang and street
euphemisms, has described the
song as a “Christmas date rape
song.”
Some artists such as Lady
Gaga have recorded the song but
removed lyrics such as “what’s in
this drink.”
The song was written by
Frank Loesser, who also wrote
the Broadway musical “Guys and
Dolls.”
The radio station’s manage-
ment did not return calls seeking
further detail and comment.●
(IRCC.COMMMediaRelations-Rela-
[email protected])
Baby, It’s Cold Outside, Christmas song, banned
New York - A US radio station
is giving the cold shoulder to the
classic “Baby It’s Cold Outside,”
removing the song from its lineup
of holiday music because its lyrics
are inappropriate toward women,
staff members say.
The decades-old catchy
song, recorded by such big names
as Dean Martin, Ray Charles and
Dolly Parton, recounts efforts of
a man coaxing a woman to stay
with him and overriding her ob-
jections.
The woman’s lines say “I re-
ally can’t stay” and “Say, what’s in
this drink,” and his lines include
“Beautiful what’s your hurry” and
“Baby don’t hold out.”
- Ellen Wulfhorst, Reuters / Malaya