[news] Multiple funding cuts to Women's Centres pile up

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From: latinsol <latinsol at shaw.ca>
To: apc-discuss at lists.resist.ca
Subject: [APC-Discuss] Multiple funding cuts to Women's Centres pile up
Date: 22 Apr 2003 22:26:30 -0700

Multiple funding cuts to Women's Centres pile up

Media Release: multiple funding cuts to Women's Centres pile up
BC Coalition of Women's Centres . British Columbia, Canada
http://www.bcwomen.cjb.net  .  bcwomen at telus.net

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100 Mile House . Campbell River . Chetwynd . Comox Valley .
Cranbrook . Fernie . Fort Nelson . Fort St. John . Golden . Grand
Forks . Howe Sound . Kamloops . Kelowna . Kitimat . Nanaimo
. North Shore . Penticton . Port Alberni . Port Coquitlam . Queen
Charlotte Islands . Quesnel . Richmond . Ridge Meadows . Sunshine
Coast . South Surrey/White Rock . Surrey . Terrace . Vancouver .
Vernon . Victoria . Westcoast . West Kootenay . Williams Lake
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For immediate release
January 17, 2003

"BLACK THURSDAY"-  Not the Only Bad News For BC Women

BC - The news delivered to women's services and many other groups January
17, 2002 was only the tip of the iceberg.  The three year plan announced
last year included cutting 100% Ministry of Community, Aboriginal and
Women' s Services to women's centres March 2004.

For many we thought we had two years before the cuts began - we were
wrong.

In the last 12 months Women's Centres have had a range of provincial
funding contracts cancelled and/or not renewed from a host of Ministries-
the latest blow has been the Direct Access Gaming funding.

Women's Centres have either not received Gaming funding or received less
than half, 4 months late.

For the majority of Centres this current slash in funding means that
Centres have already cut staff, services and programs and some are in
jeopardy of closing altogether.

A plea for help made by the BC Coalition of Women's Centres to Minister
Lynn Stephens months ago has been ignored.  Once again Minister Stephens
committed to "look into" the Gaming funding crisis and after doing so
referred us to the Minister responsible for gaming who is yet to respond.

Minister Lynn Stephens made it clear to the Coalition and its members that
a crisis in Women's Centres is not a priority for her.

Every women's centre in BC has reported to Minister Stephens an increase
in service requests. Women's Centres are busier than ever as a direct
result of cuts to income assistance, legal aid, disability benefits,
employment standards, human rights, health, education and jobs. Women's
centres are overwhelmed by the fall out of the provincial cuts.

The BC Liberals have been swift and effective in launching an attack on
women and women's services across the province- women in communities are
going without food and shelter, women are being trapped into violent
relationships, women are giving up their children because they can't feed
them, women are turning to survival sex, women are at extreme risk and the
BC Liberals don't care.

On the anniversary of Black Thursday, the BC Coalition of Women's Centres
once again calls on Minister Lynn Stephens to resign.

This year has clearly demonstrated that Minister Stephens not only refuses
to stand up for women, she has in fact actively and silently betrayed
women across this province.  Minister Stephens performance in the last
twelve months has been shameful.

BC women cannot trust or count on Minister Stephens to be effective in
protecting women's services or advance women's equality in any way.

-30-

Media Committee
Debra Critchley  250-542-7531
Benita Bunjun  604-255-6554
Dodie Goldney  250-376-3009