ARCC Annual General Meeting, November 30, 2010 

  • Agenda
  • Minutes
  • Financial Report (goes to another page)
  • Membership Report
  • Regional Reports: New Brunswick, PEI, Quebec, Ontario, Alberta (Edmonton), Alberta (Calgary)
  • Coordinator’s Report (including Synergy report)
  • Proposed Slate of ARCC-CDAC Board of Directors for 2011-12

Note: Here are the minutes and reports from previous ARCC AGMs: 2008  •  2009 

*UPDATE* – Note: Here are the minutes of our brief 2011 AGM held Jan 20, 2011, and a 12-month financial report for 2010.

Agenda

  • Welcome and Introduction
  • Adopt agenda
  • Approve minutes from 2009 AGM
  • Financial Report
  • Membership Report
  • Reports from the Provinces
    • New Brunswick
    • PEI
    • Quebec
    • Ontario
    • Alberta (Edmonton and Calgary)
    • Synergy
  • Coordinator’s Report
  • New business (if any)
  • Election of Board of Directors
  • Adjourn meeting

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting

Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada / Coalition pour le droit à l’avortement au Canada (ARCC-CDAC)

Tuesday, November 30, 2010. Via teleconference (Skype)

Present:  Joyce Arthur (Coordinator). Board: Carolyn Egan, Jane Cawthorne, Josie Baker, Judy Burwell, Julie Lalonde, Peggy Cooke, Tara Paterson.  Members at large: Lorne Balshine, Cheryl Davies

The third Annual General Meeting of ARCC was conducted via teleconference, over Skype. Unfortunately, we experienced glitches with Skype which kept dropping callers using regular phones, so these participants had to be reconnected several times.  It was decided that as many Board members as possible should obtain Skype for future calls. Joyce will send instructions to the Board for how to download and use this free program.

Call to Order: Carolyn (ARCC’s President) called the meeting to order at about 5:15pm Pacific time.

Motion #1 – Judy moved to adopt the Agenda. Jane seconded. Passed unanimously.

2009 minutes: Carolyn confirmed that everyone had read the 2009 AGM minutes that were distributed to participants prior to the meeting.

Motion #2 – Joyce moved to adopt the 2009 AGM Minutes. Judy seconded. Passed unanimously.

Financial report: Lorne presented the Financial report for September 1, 2009 to November 22, 2010 (almost 15 months). This covers the time period from the last AGM to now. He expressed concern that our expenses exceed our revenue and recommended that ARCC either reduce expenses, or preferably undertake a fundraising campaign, for example, organize a fundraising event or do some advertising. Joyce said that the ARCC Board has just embarked on new fundraising efforts to increase revenue. She said we need about $18-20,000 a year to survive and cover our current expenses, but currently only bring in around $10K a year (However, we collected over $27K in 2008 due to fundraising around Bill C-484). Jane Cawthorne of the Board has drafted a Fund Development Plan for ARCC that will help us prioritize our fundraising needs and initiatives. Our goals include finding new members, encouraging current members and supporters to give more or become monthly donors, and increasing awareness of ARCC through networking, public education, and political lobbying. For example, Board members are currently creating contact lists of 10 prospects they each know including public figures, and we will send a Member Encouragement letter to them explaining why they should become members. Jane and Joyce are currently drafting this letter.

Motion #3 – Lorne moved to adopt the 2010 Financial Statement as presented. Julie seconded. Passed unanimously.

Membership report & fees: Joyce presented the Membership Report, which was prepared by Lesley Hoyles, ARCC’s Membership Coordinator.

Motion #4 – Lorne moved that ARCC raise its Basic membership fee from $20 a year to $25 a year (noting that 1st-year fees may still be reduced or waived for new low-income members upon request). Jane seconded. Passed unanimously.

Motion #5 – Jane moved to adopt the 2010 Membership Report as presented. Judy seconded. Passed unanimously.

Provincial and Coordinator’s Reports:

  • Report from New Brunswick prepared by Judy Burwell was read by Judy.
  • Report from Quebec prepared by Patrick Powers was read by Joyce.
  • Report from Ontario prepared by Carolyn Egan was read by Carolyn.
  • Report from Edmonton Alberta prepared by Lianne McTavish was partially read by Joyce.
  • Report from Calgary Alberta prepared by Jane Cawthorne was not presented.
  • Synergy report from Coordinator Tara Paterson (oral) was not presented.
  • Coordinator’s report from Joyce Arthur was not presented.

Technical problems with Skype prevented completion of the Provincial Reports and Coordinator’s Report. It was agreed that Joyce would email the written reports to the participants immediately after the AGM.

Motion #6 – Joyce moved to adopt the 2010 Regional Board reports and the Coordinator’s report as presented, or as emailed to participants immediately after the AGM. Lorne seconded. Passed unanimously.

AGM dates: Joyce discussed a legal flaw in the federal legislation governing non-profit organizations. It says that “All corporations … must hold at least one annual meeting of members every calendar year and not more than 15 months after its previous annual meeting.” This means that it is impossible to hold a meeting in November 2010 and the next one in January 2012, as this skips a calendar year even though it is within the 15 months criteria.  To simplify financial reporting for our AGMs:

Motion #7– Lorne moved to hold another AGM in January 2011 and every January thereafter for the purposes of aligning AGM dates with our fiscal year end in December. Joyce seconded. Passed unanimously.

ARCC Board: Joyce said that ARCC currently has seven board members. Carolyn Egan is ARCC’s President and Judy Burwell is the Vice-President. Corey Purdy-Smith, Louise Hanvey, and Catherine Megill stepped down just prior to the AGM due to lack of time and other commitments. Two new board members have already been appointed by the Board – Jane Cawthorne of Calgary, and Josie Baker of PEI. In addition, three new women are on the slate for election tonight – Julie Lalonde of Ottawa, Peggy Cooke of Toronto, and Tara Paterson of Victoria. ARCC currently does not have an official Treasurer, but Lorne Balshine is a Signing Authority and has kindly agreed to do some Treasurer duties. (The Treasurer does not need to be on the Board.) Joyce and Lorne take care of the accounting for ARCC, with oversight by ARCC’s Admin Committee, which consists of Judy, Carolyn, Pat and Alison. (see table of Proposed Board members, below.)  Joyce and the Board welcomed the new Board members, and everyone expressed great satisfaction that ARCC has such a strong Board with many dedicated and savvy members.

Motion #8 – Judy moved to elect the entire Proposed Slate of ARCC-CDAC Board of Directors for the 2-year term of 2011 – 2012. Jane seconded.
Passed unanimously.

Lorne said that Joyce was doing a great job as Coordinator, and asked that the minutes state this.

Motion #9 – Judy moved to adjourn the meeting. Jane seconded. Passed unanimously. Meeting ended at about 6:30 pm Pacific time.

Membership Report

Submitted by Lesley Hoyles, Membership Coordinator, and presented by Joyce.

As of November 30, 2010, there are 131 members in good standing (i.e. membership fees are paid up-to-date). Of these, 28 are monthly donors.

Between May 1, 2010 and October 31, 2010, 31 memberships have lapsed (i.e., members were sent a renewal notice but have not renewed).

In addition, 7 supporters have made donations to ARCC since the last AGM in September, 2009.

Report from New Brunswick

by Judy Burwell, Fredericton

It’s been a relatively quiet year in N.B. There has been no movement on Dr. Morgentaler’s lawsuit.  In June, the court advised Dr. Morgentaler that he that he had only a few weeks to prepare for trial or the matter would be finished.  Dr. Morgentaler’s lawyer wrote requesting an extension due to a recent death in the family and other personal matters that prevented him from moving forward immediately.  To date, there has been no response to the extension request.

In the good news department, a complaint made to the Human Rights Commission was found to have merit and the commission has asked that a Board of Inquiry be appointed to hear the case.  The first meeting is November 18th, primarily to determine how to proceed.  It is possible the hearings will be held behind closed doors because of the subject matter.  It should be noted that even if this complaint is successful, the government will appeal.  They may lose but it will still be some time before we can count on justice being served.

The Provincial election held in September returned the Conservatives to power. This does not bode well for abortion services in spite of the fact that three women are now Ministers with a fair amount of influence and power.  Madelaine Dubé is the Minister of Health; Margaret-Ann Blaney is the Minister Responsbile for the Status of Women and Minister of the Environment; Marie-Claude Blais, Q.C. (a newcomer to politics) is Attorney General, Minister of Justice and Consumer Affairs.  We have formed a public relations committee here to develop a strategy to try and keep the abortion issue alive and in the public eye.

The Morgentaler Clinic continues to be the main provider of abortion services.  We have learned that one of the doctors performing abortions at the George Dumont Hospital in Moncton is leaving the province in December and will watch closely to determine if there is any reduction in hospital services.

Report from Prince Edward Island

By Josie Baker, Charlottetown

For the past twenty years, PEI has been the only province in Canada without access to abortion. There is one doctor that will take new patients for the purpose of referring them for provincially funded abortion in Halifax. According to the staff there, she refers half of the women from PEI. She does not know who the other doctors are. The referral and required tests involve a lot of paperwork to various hospitals and government offices which means that the woman’s abortion is not confidential. The government always approves the recommended procedure, but there is a limit of two per woman.

The issue of abortion access is very delicate in PEI, and anti-choice groups hold fundraisers and protests several times a year, and post large billboards in rural areas. Promotional material for anti-choice pregnancy centres are widely distributed.

This week a member of the press recently found out that the number of abortions paid for by the province has jumped from four, five years ago, to 67 this year. They interviewed a staff member of the PEI Women’s Network, but it has not come out in the press as of yet. If it does, we can expect a backlash from the well funded anti-choice networks.

This fall there have been two abortion rights efforts initiated in Charlottetown:

Dr. Colleen MacQuarrie, a tenured psychology professor at UPEI, is trying to initiate a Feminist Action Research project exploring women’s experience of access, or lack of access, to abortion in PEI. In October 2010 formed a project advisory group consisting of older and newer community activists, community stakeholders, and first voice representatives. This project is currently stalled by the UPEI ethics committee who claim that the feminist standpoint is biased and ask that it be removed. Dr. MacQuarrie is optimistic that she will be able to push through and get it approved.

In mid-November a group of women met that are committed to taking action to improve access to abortion for PEI women. This group included abortion rights advocates from the 80’s as well as younger activists. Members of the group included representatives from various organizations affected by this issue. It was decided that the first order of business would by to try to improve access to information about how to access abortion from PEI. This information should be provided by government agencies, websites, and to organizations that work directly with women. Several groups are being contacted to distribute this information, including the The Interministerial Women’s Secretariat, Community Legal Information Association (provided it can be framed as a legal issue), and Health PEI.

Report from Quebec

By Patrick Powers, Montreal

This Québec annual report is merely a spot look at the calendar’s events where our presence as a part of ARCC-CDAC was felt.  Aside from my participation in all of ARCC-CDAC’s teleconference calls, other related responsibilities included:

1.  Le Centre Ferland:  Late last winter, Joyce forwarded to me an inquiry from Karine Anctil, a Counsellor-facilitator at the Centre Ferland, in northeast Montréal.  The Centre is a high-school credit completing institute, where adolescents are given the chance to finish high school, which they had been unable to accomplish in the normal time frame). In her work there, Karine had counselled a number of young women (aged 16-18) who had had abortions.  Specifically, she wanted some help in taking her counselling with them further.  Since she was pro-choice herself, she was suspicious of asking just any group, so she got ahold of us.  We agreed in my first exploratory visit to offer her students a special class focusing on human sexuality and abortions.  We also agreed to have the young men attending the Centre involved.  On May 5th, we held the class, and it was quite well attended and appreciated.

2.  “Lie-in Demonstration”:  (13 June 2010)  A small grouping of pro-choice groups organised a lie-in at Dorchester Square in downtown Montréal.  This was to demonstrate our protest against the Harper government’s refusal to release funding to IPPF (and other similar international groups).  The anti-choice forces in Ottawa (basically, the Conservative Party and a good number of “pro-life” Liberals) appealed to Harper’s own anti-choice sympathies to freeze the funds.  This was basically because many of those clinics offered abortions.  This included countries with serious needs, especially in Africa and Asia.  Harper admitted that he was inspired to take such a measure from the George Bush initiative of a few years ago.  At our demo, people wore black, and laid down for a few minutes of silence to commemorate the women in the developing world most severely effected by the funding cut.  Several hundred demonstrators took part, and much of the pro-choice activist community of Quebec was there. There was coverage in the press the next day, with photos.

3.  Concordia University Conference on the “Politics of Reproduction”:  Catherine Megill and myself (of ARCC-CDAC) and Ainsley Jenicek (of the FQPN) were invited to offer a workshop on the Politics of Abortion Rights in the context of this Concordia event.  After 4 organisational meetings, we presented our three-pronged analysis of the current situation on September 24th, 2010.  We will be forwarding to Joyce (and to therefore to any activists of the organisation who are interested) our summaries of both our own presentations and salient features of the Conference itself at a later date.  It was quite a positive showing for ARCC, and for the organisers of the Conference itself.  Basically, we focussed on the history and issues of abortion access in Québec, Canada, and the U.S., with emphasis on the particular problem areas, all of which we at ARCC-CDAC have been grappling with since our beginning in 2005.  Suffice it to say, that we were well received by a pro-choice crowd of 75-100 people.

Report from Ontario

By Carolyn Egan, Toronto

The Ontario Coalition for Abortion Clinics has had a busy year. We did many presentations in high schools classes giving out ARCC information and newsletters.  OCAC organized escorts at Women’sCare Clinic which was targeted by the anti-choice during the “40 Days for Life” in the spring, and maintained the escorts on Saturdays through the year. It organized a “die in” at MP Bev Oda’s office in Bowmanville, On when the Conservative maternal health policy was first announced with very good media coverage.

During the G8/G20 OCAC organized a public forum on Harper’s reproductive rights policies at home and abroad. It attracted a large audience and had speakers from a range of groups including the Immigrants Women’s Health Centre, Women’s College Hospital, Canadians for Choice, prochoice campus groups etc. We co-sponsored a march and rally for Gender Justice with Oxfam, Canadians for Choice, Planned Parenthood Toronto and others.  We also organized a large contingent for the 40,000 strong march around the G20, and led the march with a banner that said “Maternal Rights Includes Abortion” and a huge coathanger which got media coverage. We are planning more forums and are working with campus groups including the CFS in Toronto.

Reports from Alberta

By Lianne McTavish, Edmonton

In contrast to my years of living in New Brunswick, things seem quite calm on the abortion front here in Alberta, at least in Edmonton. There are few anti-choice letters to the editor published in serious newspapers and such events as ‘life chain’ that was apparently held in October get little press or attention. I have not seen any anti-choice advertising around the city, except for the usual ones in the LRT stations, particularly at the University station. These ads indicate that abortions are done in Edmonton until 20 weeks (thus advertising the clinic and the gestation limit to readers who might be interested) and that about 40% of abortions are done between 9 and 12 weeks (which could also be reassuring to various audiences). Though these ads are somewhat annoying, they are not blatantly false like the previous campaigns.

The local and provincial anti-choice web sites indicate that another ‘end tax-funded abortion’ campaign has begun, but it appears vague and disorganized. Very few other events are scheduled, and the focus here for anti-choice people seems to be on the anti-abortion ‘pregnancy advice centres’ that they fund. I know that ‘Show the Truth’ and GAP have been active in Calgary, in the city and on campus, but there is no sign of them here in Edmonton. In fact, there is no sign of any anti-choice group currently active on campus. In contrast, the pro-choice group at the University of Alberta, called Voices for Choices, is funding more pro-choice posters for the LRT station and I have donated $100 towards that as a supporter of ARCC, but not from the coffers of ARCC.

By Jane Cawthorne, Calgary

There is a notable rise in anti-choice activity in Calgary and Southern Alberta. On any given week we can expect to see at least one, if not several, letters to the editor about abortion in the Calgary Herald. The CCBR is very active here, has regular street protests and drives the truck constantly. They were present at the Stampede this past summer. (Of note, in the photographs of students arrested at Carleton, I noticed they are the same students who picket in Calgary.) Since the protesters are back in class, the off-campus protests seem to happen only on weekends now. In response to this increase in activity, myself and other former members of the Calgary Pro-Choice Coalition, including Celia Posyniak [of the Kensington Clinic], re-formed the Coalition and decided to focus on preparing a counter protest or response to the CCBR. We did this believing it would gain us widespread support and younger activist members. Both beliefs proved true and we worked for several months to put together a comic book to counter their claims, which is now on-line at www.thinkprochoice.com. We have printed a couple of thousand copies which we distribute at the University in response to GAP shows and wherever we think they will be useful. This has been facilitated by a few dedicated donors. We were present at the annual Take Back the Night March and walked behind our banner. This generated some media commentary, which the organizers effectively dealt with, suggesting rightly that denying women reproductive rights is violence against them and fits nicely under the constellation of issues that Take Back the Night addresses. We have a Facebook presence and about 150 dedicated followers. We have made links with the pro-choice students at the University of Calgary and I have also done a few presentations recently at Mount Royal hoping to encourage their dormant women’s group to re-form and participate. The Forty Days of Life protesters targeted the Kensington Clinic again this year. The police were very helpful in enforcing the injunction, once they were reminded of its existence and parameters.

Celia Posyniak reports that there is an increase in interest within the new generation of young medical professionals in performing abortions. Their tours for medical students are full. They have continual interest and requests for training, but there are limited places to perform abortions after training is complete. So there are new doctors available and willing, but not a lot of options for practicing.

ARCC assisted me in preparing a response to the Maternal Health Initiative’s various failures which I used in both the Munk Debates and in an opinion piece in the Globe and Mail. These initiatives were taken as a private citizen, not as a member of ARCC since, in fact, I did not join the Board until after these were complete. However, they serve as an example of how ARCC spreads its message and influence.

Coordinator’s Report

By Joyce Arthur, Vancouver

This report will cover some events and initiatives that ARCC was involved in, other than the ones already discussed.

G8 Maternal Health Initiative: ARCC was very active throughout the G8 controversy. This was reported in the last newsletter, but briefly, we supported MP’s by providing them with information. We published several articles and op-eds, we issued three press releases or joint press releases, and we gave numerous media interviews and several public speeches. We organized a national ad-hoc coalition of pro-choice and women’s groups to work together on the issue. We did an online petition to Harper that collected over 3,500 signatures. We maintained a G8 Action Alert page on our website.

Bill C510, “coerced abortion”: This bill would amend the Criminal Code to prohibit coercing a woman into an abortion, but the bill is unnecessary and anti-abortion. It depicts women as victims of abortion, ignores the problem of coerced childbirth, creates a legal loophole to establish fetal personhood, and fails to recognize the real issue of domestic violence against women. The bill is redundant because threats and illegal acts are already illegal under the Criminal Code. ARCC issued a press release against the bill in April. The bill is up for more debate on Dec 13 in Parliament, and a 2nd Reading vote on Dec 15. The key issue is ensuring enough Liberals will be present to vote against the bill, so ARCC has written to Ignatieff asking him to whip the Liberal vote, and to ensure that if his 17 anti-abortion MPs refuse to vote against the bill, that they should absent themselves or abstain from the vote. ARCC also created a sample letter for people to send to their MPs. Leading up to the December debate and vote, ARCC will be contacting all MPs to urge them to vote against the bill, and continuing to lobby Opposition Leaders to whip their caucuses. ARCC also enlisted the help of the FQPN (Fédération du Québec pour le planning des naissances) to alert Duceppe and the Bloc caucus.

University of Victoria – Over Last winter, ARCC supported the University of Victoria Student Society (UVSS) after it voted to defund the anti-choice club on campus, Youth Protecting Youth (YPY), for violating the society’s Harassment policy. They had put up posters that had previously been prohibited, and hosted an offensive debate featuring GAP organizer Stephanie Gray. In support of the UVSS, I spoke at a UVSS board meeting and participated in a public debate. I also attended a Board meeting of the BC Civil Liberties Association to explain our pro-choice position, as the BCCLA had chosen to support the anti-choice club on free speech grounds. In March however, the UVSS elected a more conservative Board and promptly voted to give back funding and club status to the anti-choice club, which also filed a lawsuit against the UVSS demanding reinstatement of funding and club status, along with demands to prohibit future possible actions against YPY. ARCC issued a press release in May explaining how YPY’s lawsuit had no merit, and the UVSS had done nothing wrong. Unfortunately, the threat of the lawsuit and UVSS’s financial situation led them to cave into YPY’s demands.

Synergy, ARCC’s Student & Youth Network for Reproductive Justice, has hired a new volunteer Coordinator, Tara Paterson, of the University of Victoria. Over this school year, Tara is working to expand and publicize Synergy and connect with students across the country. ARCC also recruited a student from Simon Fraser University (in Burnaby BC), Adrian Bauer, to upgrade and expand the Synergy website, which is now ongoing. The website contains pro-choice resources for students, blog articles by students, info on pro-choice clubs at universities that are Synergy members, news stories, events, links, and more. We also have another application into SFU for a student to research grant opportunities to help Tara expand the network. http://arccsynergy.wordpress.com. Synergy’s first Coordinator, Rebecca Bailin, did a great job at getting Synergy off the ground and designing the initial website, so we owe her a big thank you.

Show the Truth: This summer, the anti-choice “Show the Truth” display toured Ontario, visiting 7 cities to show their offensive signs of alleged aborted fetuses alongside busy streets. Hundreds of people in those communities were very upset. ARCC received several emails from upset citizens, including a parent who was driving by with his two young children who felt that his parental rights were being violated. This fall, ARCC recruited a UBC law student from Pro-Bono Students Canada to research potential legal remedies for banning or limiting these displays on public streets. This project will continue to February, and will likely focus on the possibility of passing municipal bylaws that specifically prohibit the display of aborted fetus pictures.

Bylaw for CPCs: With the help of two SFU students, ARCC prepared and submitted a detailed grant application in September to the Law Foundation of BC, to research and lay the legal groundwork for enacting a city bylaw in Vancouver to compel Crisis Pregnancy Centres (CPCs) to post notices saying they do not refer for abortion or contraception. Two U.S. cities have already passed such bylaws – Austin Texas and Baltimore Maryland. We will hear about the grant by spring. We may also research other ways in which CPCs should be regulated. We already have a lawyer lined up who is interested in leading the research project and writing a proposed bylaw.

Legal Help: In addition, ARCC plans to take on a law student as a full-time intern next summer. This student may work on the CPC bylaw project, as well as other project ideas we are currently developing. For example, we want to explore the possibility of drafting our own private members bills and getting sympathetic MPs to introduce them in Parliament. Another project we plan to apply for a grant for, from the Law Foundation of Ontario, is to research the extent of domestic violence against pregnant women in Canada, because no reliable data currently exists and it would be useful to counter future anti-choice bills like C-484 and C-510.

Protester Activity Survey: Over last fall and spring, ARCC conducted a survey of all abortion clinics in Canada to find out their levels of protest activity, and the remedies used by clinics to protect themselves and their patients. We wanted to know the actual extent and seriousness of protest activity, to see if a bubble zone law might be a useful and viable way to address the problem. We found a UBC law student, Fanda Wu, from Pro-Bono Students Canada, who called all the clinics to administer the survey, compile the results, and prepare a draft report. Fanda did an excellent job. I presented a PowerPoint about the survey at the National Abortion Federation conference in Philadelphia in April, to a Canadian audience. The final report was completed and published in late October. Two versions were produced – a detailed, 69-page confidential report for the clinics and selected pro-choice leaders, and a shorter public report that gives no identifying or confidential information on clinics. We identified the two Morgentaler Clinics in Fredericton and Ottawa as being most in need of a bubble zone, and we hope to pursue a possible bubble zone law in Ontario.

Communications: Since our last AGM, ARCC has been active in disseminating information via its website, published articles, media releases, our Facebook page, and speaking engagements. We have issued six press releases on various issues since Feb 2010. We’ve published at least 10 articles on our website and in newspapers and online news sites. A few months ago, a volunteer from Vancouver, Rachel Malek, designed a new Facebook page for us, as the old one was not the right type for a group. The new page is very successful, it is regularly updated and it has about 400 members. It features more detailed information on ARCC, and a donate button. We also have a Twitter page, although that has been a bit neglected. Myself and other Board members have done at least nine speaking engagements over the last year, including in Halifax, Fredericton, Edmonton, Philadelphia, Vancouver, and Victoria. Topics were on reproductive justice, anti-choice activity on campus and ratification of anti-choice clubs, our protester survey, the G8 maternal health initiative, Emerging Feminism, and Canadian pro-choice activism.

Website / Listservs / Newsletter: There are 149,000 Google listings for “Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada.” (Some go to our website, but most do not) However, there are only 123 Google listings for our French name, “Coalition pour le droit à l’avortement au Canada.” Since July 2008, when we put counters on our website, we’ve had 22,000 visitors to the English side and a little over 7,000 to the French side. ARCC continues to operate its three listservs for members only: Activist, News, and Friends. I moderate the Activist list and Louise Hanvey moderates the News list. However, we need a new moderator for the Friends list. We also continue to publish our newsletter The Activist / L’Activiste. Printing the newsletter was a big expense, so we decided to email the newsletter instead of sending hardcopies via regular mail. This is working well, and we also are moving towards producing shorter, more frequent newsletters.  

Proposed Slate of ARCC-CDAC Board of Directors for 2011-12

All except “New” Board members have been on the Board since the 2008 AGM, and would like to be re-elected to another 2-year term.

NameCityAffiliation (if any)Time on Board
Josie BakerCharlottetown New, appointed Nov 2010
Alison BrownToronto 2007
Judy Burwell *FrederictonMorgentaler ClinicApril 2005
Jane CawthorneCalgaryCalgary Pro-Choice CoalitionNew, appointed June 2010
Peggy CookeTorontoMorgentaler ClinicNew
Carolyn Egan *TorontoOntario Coalition for Abortion ClinicsApril 2005
Julie LalondeOttawa New
Lianne McTavishEdmonton 2008
Tara PatersonVictoriaStudents for Reproductive Justice, U of VictoriaNew
Patrick Powers *Montreal April 2005

* Founding members of ARCC, elected to the Steering Committee at our official launch meeting in Montreal in April 2005. (Other original Steering Committee members: Joyce Arthur, Catherine Megill, Dustin Costescu-Green, Celia Posyniak, Shannon Stettner, Dawn Fowler. Other Past Board members include: Tamara Gorin, Melanie Anderson, Jessica Squires, Robert Smith, Corey Purdy-Smith, Dean Sinnett, Louise Hanvey.)

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