Statements

National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women

December 6th marks the 35th Anniversary of the murder 14 women at the Polytechnique Montréal. Canada has marked this date as a day of remembrance and action on violence against women. While there have been numerous campaigns to address gender-based violence, including the current UN campaign to eliminate violence against women and girls (November 25-December 10), the incidence of gender-based violence remains unchecked, and has worsened since the CoVid-19 pandemic. With the attack in a Gender Studies classroom at the University of Waterloo from June 2023 still fresh in our minds, it is pertinent to remember that gender-based violence affects us all.

To mark the day, you are encouraged to wear a white ribbon and observe a moment of silence at 11am. In addition, please consider attending a ceremony at the University Library, also at 11am this Friday, for the unveiling of a Peace Memorial Garden, an art installation by UofL student, Claire Lahey.

If you, or someone you know, needs help or support, please see the following resources:

Alberta Family Violence Info Line

Alberta One Line for Sexual Assault

YWCA Harbour House Lethbridge

UN Day for Elimination of Violence against Women

The United Nations has designated November 25th as the day to mark the ongoing campaign to eliminate violence against women and girls. The global figures are staggering: in 2023, a woman or a girl was killed, on average, every 10 minutes by a partner or family member, and one in three women is likely to experience gender-based violence in their lifetime. Further, violence against women and girls has only accelerated during and since the Covid 19 pandemic. 2025 will mark the 30th Anniversary of the UN’s Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a blueprint for advancing women’s rights, and this year’s UNITE campaign is intended to draw attention to the extensive work still to be done to address systemic violence against women and girls. The campaign will run until December 10th, International Human Rights Day, and will overlap with Canada’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women (December 6th), marking the day, in 1989, when 14 women were murdered at the Polytechnique Montréal.

More information about the UNITE campaign and the Beijing Declaration can be found here:

If you, or someone you know, needs help or support, please see the following resources:

ULFA Statement for the Transgender Day of Remembrance

November 20th is the Transgender Day of Remembrance, first observed on this day in 1999 to memorialize Rita Hester and Chenelle Pickett, both transgender African American women who were murdered in Boston in the 1990s. Transgender people continue to be subjected to some of the highest rates of sexual harassment and violence in Canada and around the world. This, coupled with the continued growth of hate speech targeting members of 2SLGBTQIA++ communities and often fueled by leaders in public office for political gain, is not only disturbing, but is unacceptable and dangerous. The new anti-2SLGBTQIA++ legislature expected to be tabled by the United Conservative Party of Alberta brings home the urgency of these issues for members of our Faculty Association and the University community as a whole. On this 25th Transgender Day of Remembrance, ULFA stands with and in support of the transgender members of our Faculty Association and University community, recognizing our shared responsibility to struggle to create a safe, inclusive, and equitable campus and society for all.

Resources and Further Information Can be Found Here:

National Center for Transgender Equality

Trans Day of Resilience

Transgender Law Center

Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan

If you or someone you know if looking for help, support is available through the Trans Lifeline(877) 330-6366

ULFA Statement on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day

Dear Colleagues,

Monday September 23 marks the start of Reconciliation Week, leading up to the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and Orange Shirt Day, on September 30th.

This day is both important and difficult, as a time for remembering Indigenous children and families harmed by Canada’s residential school system, for recognizing the continued effects of settler colonialism and intergenerational trauma, and for reacting by taking meaningful action. As recent and on-going work continues to remind us, including the identification by the Stó:lõ Nation of at least 158 children whose deaths are directly linked to their attendance at residential schools in Fraser Valley, this horrific story has been known for generations, and is far from over.

The University of Lethbridge’s activities are paused on Monday 30 September, not as a holiday, but to provide time for collective reflection, learning and healing. ULFA wishes to express its solidarity with all those in our membership and our community who continue to be affected by our colonial past and present.

Here are some ways to get involved:

Supports are available here:

Within Lethbridge and the University of Lethbridge:

  • Take part in the City of Lethbridge activities for Truth and Reconciliation Week
  • Learn about and donate to SAGE Clan
  • The Lethbridge Public Library is hosting an Orange Shirt Awareness Walk on Thursday 29 Sept.
  • Reconciliation Lethbridge’s Facebook page is announcing events around the community, including art exhibitions, lacrosse and the 2nd annual community pow wow.
  • The University of Lethbridge’s Iikaisskini Indigenous Services has a website listing events that will take place during the coming week
  • You can donate here to the Iikaisskini Student Initiatives Fund in support of Indigenous students at the U of L
  • The new language in our Collective Agreement around evaluation of Indigenous Members’ Work (Article 23.03) was crafted in consultation with Indigenous members and follows the spirit of the TRC Calls to Action 62 and 63.

ULFA Statement on the Missing Children of Canada’s Former Indian Residential School System

We would like to express our deepest condolences to all those impacted by the confirmation of 751 unmarked graves on the Cowessess First Nation near the site of the former Marieval Indian Residential School (Saskatechewan). This devastating news, following the discovery of the remains of 215 children near a former residential school in Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc territory (British Columbia), provides further material evidence of what has been known in Indigenous communities for generations. More such discoveries are sure to come, and our thoughts are with those whose missing and stolen children have yet to be reclaimed. The process of finding and bringing these children home to their communities is both important and painful. We recognize that such horrors will impact some of the University community more than others. We hope that for all, it may be a step towards reconciliation and healing.

The Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action explicitly name education as a pillar of reconciliation. ULFA commits to its role in moving the University of Lethbridge along the path of Indigenization and Decolonization. We uphold the stages of Indigenization of the Academy, outlined in a June 2021 report by the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT)’s Aboriginal Post-Secondary Education Working Group (“Indigenization of the Academy: A Checklist”). The University Teaching Centre also provides significant resources on Indigenizing our teaching. We encourage members to educate themselves about the many ways we can all work towards meaningful reconciliation. Words alone are not enough, but they will plant seeds and guide our actions.

If you or someone you know is looking for help, there are supports available to anyone experiencing pain or distress as a result of their residential school experience, including:

Student Evaluations on Teaching

A review of the literature on the use of Student Evaluations of Teaching (SET) reveals that discriminatory attitudes including but not limited to racism, homophobia, classism, ageism, and sexism are endemic to this form of performance review, especially those that are anonymous. It is therefore the Association’s recommendation that SET be used for the purposes of self-evaluation and can not be required for the purposes of external evaluations in Salary, Tenure, and Promotion decisions, unless submitted by the academic staff member themselves.

To begin, please use the following links to access the information.

Should you have any outstanding questions and/or would like an additional source of information please contact the ULFA office at admin@ulfa.ca