Aboriginal Women

Assignment #1
GWST 2510B 9.0
Introduction to Gender and Women’s Studies

Isabella Desmarais-212061727
Leyna Lowe, Tutorial 3
October 23rd, 2013

Chosen Subtopic: Violence against Aboriginal women in Canada.

Justification of Database Search: For this assignment I choose to search all databases in which were provided to me by the York Universities library link through the Women’s Studies tab. I found both of my scholarly journals on the ‘Women’s International’ database and I chose to use the ‘Canadian Newsstand’ to find both of my media articles. I noted that both databases were very reliable since they were suggested to me by the librarian which we had a tutorial with, in addition to both of them being posted on Yorks website. I also found that using the “Women’s International’ database was not only reliable but also relevant since the primary subject of this assignment are women themselves. This database offered me several options of relevant scholarly articles thus I was able to find both of my articles very easily with the assistance of their archives. In addition to being an easy database to search, ‘Women’s International’ offered me a wide range of options in order to narrow my search down to only articles pertaining to my specific subtopic, which is ‘Violence Against Aboriginal Women In Canada.’ I also chose to use this database because several of the articles in which I looked at were accessible to find at York. Nonetheless, using Newsstand database to find my media articles was also very convenient and reliable. The majority of articles in which I came by, on this database were from very popular sources and known newspapers, magazines etc. The Newsstand database also provided me with several articles on my specific topic, which helped me in the search process.
Baron, E. (2011, May 18). Violence Against Canadian Women Persists; Aboriginal Females Suffer More. The Province, p. 1. Retrieved from the Canadian Newsstand Major Dailies database.

This article brings forth the point that aboriginal women are more prone to sexual, verbal or even physical violence compared to non-aboriginal women. One of the interviewee’s states that they believe poverty, lack of assistance as well as lack of attention could contribute towards violence against aboriginal women. The idea that Canadians are uninformed about the violence and inequality towards aboriginal women was also proposed in this article as a potential cause for its continuation.

Brownridge, D. A. (2008). Understanding The Elevated Risk Of Partner Violence Against Aboriginal Women: A Comparison Of Two Nationally Representative Surveys Of Canada. Journal of Family Violence, 23(5), 353-367.

Douglas Brownridge analyzed and compared two surveys in this article, one completed in 1999 and the other in 2004. Brownridge set out to research the differences and effects of partner violence amongst aboriginals compared to non-aboriginals. Brownridge noted that aboriginal women in both surveys were more likely to have been experiencing partner violence than non-aboriginals. This led Brownridge to draw the conclusion that this may be due to the prevailing frustration that aboriginal men may still be facing from the effects of colonization.

Dylan, A., Regehr, C., & Alaggia, R. (2008). And Justice For All?: Aboriginal Victims Of Sexual Violence. Violence Against Women, 14(6), 678-696.

The authors that penned this article chose to survey eleven aboriginal women who had been affected by sexual violence and have thus become involved in the Canadian criminal justice system. The authors of this journal noted that the criminal justice system has implemented changes in order to better serve victims of violence however, they survey these eleven aboriginal women to conclude that aboriginal women are specifically more prone to violence then any other race in Canada. They continue to state that they feel the affects of discrimination within the Canadian criminal justice system.

Kielburger, C., & Kielburger, M. (2012, November 19). Violence Against Aboriginal Women is Canada's Top Human Rights Issue. The Vancouver Sun, pp. 1-2. Retrieved from the Canadian Newsstand Major Dailies database.

The hundreds of aboriginal women currently missing and suspected dead throughout this country, aboriginal groups are looking to find answers. These groups feel that the cases of missing aboriginal women aren’t being taken as seriously by the powers that be. This article notes that the United Nations human rights council has announced that the severity of violence against aboriginal women has made it a top human rights issue in our nation. With this in mind, the article also mentions ways in which we can get involved to support and make people aware of this violent issue.

Comparison of scholarly articles and popular sources:
The media articles and the scholarly journals, which I chose for this assignment, all shared common ground surrounding the issue of violence against aboriginal women, though they varied in perspective and ideal, they all identified this issue as a prevailing and misunderstood aspect of our nation. It is easy to see the difference between the presentation of these ideas between media and the scholar, the media focuses on the incident, followed by a brief background of the issue. They do this through the use of the voices surrounding the story, whether it is a witness, an expert or a family member, all while following the impartial line between right and wrong. In both of the media articles, no point was being proven or argued, they were simply writing and stating facts in reference to an event that has happened concerning violence against aboriginal women.
However, in my scholarly articles, not only is the vocabulary more advanced but the authors are arguing, researching or analyzing the topic of violence against aboriginal women to develop a conclusion that supports their thesis. Both scholarly articles are also very lengthy in comparison to the media articles, including in depth and tabulated supporting data. For example, in the scholarly journal ‘Understanding the Elevated Risk of Partner Violence Against Aboriginal Women: A Comparison of Two Nationally Representative Surveys of Canada’ the author compares two surveys in which were completed at different times to analyze the affects and gravity of violence against aboriginal women compared to non-aboriginal women. However, in the popular source ‘Violence Against Canadian Women Persists; Aboriginal Females Suffer More’ the point of aboriginal women being affected by violence in comparison to non aboriginal women is brought forth by the author by the simple mention by the author and not by tabulated research conducted by the author. However, in the media article ‘ Violence Against Aboriginal Women is Canada’s Top Human Rights Issue’, the author brings forth the point that the justice system and the Canadian government are not taking the cases of violence against aboriginal women as seriously as non-aboriginals, creating a bias by only quoting aboriginals who have been affected by cases that have not been yet resolved. In the scholarly article ‘ Understanding the Elevated Risk of Partner Violence Against Aboriginal Women: A Comparison of Two Nationally Representative Surveys of Canada’, both aboriginals and non-aboriginals are surveyed which eliminates the possibility for any bias by validating the reliability of the findings in the authors conclusion. Therefore, though all four articles pertain to the same subject, you will find that the media articles are more of a casual read, while scholarly journals are a more formal, informative read for those looking for an in depth and fleshed out look into the subject in question.

Paraphrase of scholarly article: In the article ‘Understanding the Elevated Risk of Partner Violence Against Aboriginal Women: A Comparison of Two Nationally Representative Surveys of Canada,’ the author Douglas Brownridge chooses to compare two surveys which relate to partner violence involving both aboriginal and non-aboriginal women. Brownridge, analyses the surveys which were conducted in 1999 and in 2004 in order to not only compare the differences between aboriginal and non-aboriginal women and partner violence but to also discover if the violence has increased over a five year span (Brownridge, 2008,p.353). Through his research, Brownridge states that Aboriginal women are more prone to partner violence in the majority of scenarios compared to non-aboriginal women. He then concludes that this may be due to the historical effects of colonization, with violence stemming from the frustration felt as a result of lost cultural freedom. (Brownridge, 2008,p.356). Brownridge brings forth several factors, which could cause the high rates of partner violence against aboriginal women. These factors include their social and situational backgrounds (Brownridge, 2008,p.356). Comparing identical surveys with the 5-year time span gave Brownridge the opportunity to conclude that even though aboriginal women comprise of a very minimal percentage of the Canadian population, they are still at higher risk of partner violence over non-aboriginal women which significantly out number them in terms of population percentage. This data did not changed over the five year time span of the survey. Brownridge also noted a discrepancy in the two surveys and suggests that if they were to redo both surveys, they should take into account the race of the women’s partner since it is possible that not all aboriginal women’s husbands were in fact aboriginal which could cause a bias the results and the scope of the survey.