Let’s celebrate

Cristina De Miranda
Women’s Supplement Coordinator
I’ve always admired women: women who embody grace and fervor, intelligence and perseverance, empathy and humility.
The women featured in this supplement personify all of these things. They are women who point in directions many haven’t dared to look or, rather, see; they share their struggle with others, and learn that their struggle is worryingly common; and they fight to establish a safe and nourishing place for growth.
These are the women we celebrate on the 100^th anniversary of International Women’s Day.
This compilation of women-centric profiles is not supposed to be boastful – interestingly enough, many of the women shy away from glorification. Instead, they are meant to acknowledge the positive work these women have done and continue to do for their communities.
Some have been recognized for success in their field of study, such as renowned lawyer Marlys Edwardh; others for proactive solutions to pressing social issues, like spoken word artist Lishai Peel, and Osgoode’s Dean for a Day Hannah Askew.
We must be comforted and inspired with the knowledge that action is being taken to eradicate what has become naturalized in our society or successfully ignored, if only by creating
dialogue.
It’s humbling to hear these women speak of their own experiences, including how they’ve used their passions and skills to create a new system by which men and women can measure their worth. For some, there is nothing better than being the ear that listens; for others, the voice that demands to be heard.
With this supplement, I hope to remove women from the role of observer or victim of injustice, and show that women have active minds, finding solutions and contributing to a community’s well-being. Many of the women that are featured are not “high-profile,” but this does not diminish their innovative thinking and compassion toward other women.
These are the stories and initiatives that show women react and do not sit idle when blame has been misplaced, or when the plateau of equality is still beyond reach. Although all the women in this supplement deserve to be featured, the scope of the supplement remains unsatisfying for practical reasons. Nevertheless, this window into today’s influential women fuels the single source of ammunition amidst adversity – empowerment.
As coordinator, I’ve simply served as the medium through which these women and their work can be recognized and supported. The supplement sheds some insight onto the power of action and the possibility of change, and how intricately connected the two must be.
Finally, I’d like to dedicate this to the men and women who incessantly trudge toward the plateau of universal equality.
Let us all be wise. Let us all unite. Let us all celebrate – women.