Submission of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies (CAEFS) to the Canadian Human Rights Commission for the Special Report on the Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, Race and Disability Faced by Federally Sentenced Women

A. Background

On March 8, 2001, International Women’s Day, the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies (CAEFS), in conjunction with the Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC), wrote to the Chief Commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) to urge them to conduct a broad-based systemic review and issue a special report, pursuant to section 61(2) of the Canadian Human Rights Act, regarding the treatment of women serving federal terms of imprisonment.

This complaint is made on the grounds that the manner in which the women prisoners are treated is discriminatory, as it contravenes several of the prohibited grounds articulated in s. 3(1) of the Canadian Human Rights Act. CAEFS is concerned about the discrimination on the basis of sex that is faced by women throughout the system. In addition, we are very concerned about the discrimination on the basis of race that is the particular experience of Aboriginal and other racialized women, as well as discrimination on the basis of disability that is experienced by federally sentenced women with cognitive and mental disabilities.

The basis of the human rights complaint is the fact that federally sentenced women face discrimination throughout the criminal justice system. This is particularly true of Aboriginal and other racialized women, as well as women with mental and cognitive disabilities. Accordingly, we have rooted our claim in the fact that all federally sentenced women are discriminated against on the basis of their sex, and that women who are racialized and women with disabilities are further marginalized and discriminated against in prison.

This complaint builds upon and supports the complaint of our member society, the Elizabeth Fry Society of Saskatchewan. In addition to the material that is already filed with respect to the aforementioned complaint, and previous reports of your commission on the issues of Aboriginal women prisoners in particular, we referred the Commission to a number of additional government documents that chronicle the nature and extent of the discrimination on the basis of sex, race, disability, as well as sexual orientation, experienced by federally sentenced women in Canada.

The complaint launched by CAEFS and other national equality seeking groups, focused upon the systemic discrimination experienced by federally sentenced women. The named party responsible for the discrimination was the Government of Canada, and not merely the Correctional Service of Canada. The facts associated with the sheer numbers of women serving federal sentences, their demographics, particularly those with respect to race and disability; present a prima facie case of discrimination. Accordingly, it is the contention of CAEFS and other organizations that the onus falls on the Government of Canada, including the Correctional Service of Canada, to establish how they will address the discriminatory patterns evidenced by their own data and research.

Submission of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies (CAEFS) to the Canadian Human Rights Commission for the Special Report on the Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, Race and Disability Faced by Federally Sentenced Women