Free webinar on legal issues facing older women survivors of violence in British Columbia

Events, The broader context
Roads to Safety partial cover
“Roads to Safety” will launch on May 24th to coincide with Part 1 of the webinar, and all participants will receive the link to download the PDF. It will also be available via Clicklaw.

By West Coast LEAF

Elder abuse and violence against women aren’t separate issues, and we believe that they must not be separate conversations. That’s why West Coast LEAF (Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund) and the Canadian Centre for Elder Law are offering a free webinar for front-line service providers to explore the legal challenges that are most likely to impact older women in BC who have experienced violence.

If you support or advocate for older women in BC, we invite you to join our free two-part webinar on Tuesday May 24th and Tuesday May 31st from noon to 1 pm Pacific Time. We will introduce our new 90-page plain language legal handbook for older women fleeing violence, called Roads to Safety, and offer an overview of some of the legal topics it covers:

TUESDAY MAY 24th – PART 1

• Decision-making rights and capacity, including for women with dementia and mental health diagnoses
• Substitute decision-makers and the abuse of decision-making authority
• Protection orders and peace bonds
• Options to assist older women who are facing abuse and cannot take action to protect themselves

TUESDAY MAY 31st – PART 2

• Public pensions
• Basics of property division after separation or divorce, including pension division
• Steps to protect assets in cases of financial abuse

Each session will be framed by discussion of the insights that 450 older women shared with us in nine different languages as part of the Older Women’s Dialogue Project. Throughout the webinar, we’ll maintain a focus on the gendered dynamics of violence against older adults. We aim to prompt reflection about how legal challenges in the aftermath of abuse can vary based not only on age and gender, but also based on ability, citizenship status, Indigenous identity, language, access to financial resources, and more.

We hope you will come away with greater confidence in talking to older women in BC about their legal rights and options in the context of abuse.

This webinar is part of the Older Women’s Legal Education Project, a collaboration between West Coast LEAF and the Canadian Centre for Elder Law. Funding has been generously provided by the BC Council to Reduce Elder Abuse.
Space in the webinar is limited to 100 people. Please register now at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1678353196952104195

Questions? We would love to hear from you! Please contact Alana Prochuk at education@westcoastleaf.org or 604-684-8772 extension 117.

Stay informed with West Coast LEAF:

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Census 2016 Resources

The broader context

Census2016The following information on the 2016 Census is from the City of Vancouver but includes general helpful info:

Dear Community Partners:

As you are aware, the 2016 Census is officially underway!

In an effort to encourage all Vancouver residents to participate in this year’s Census, we ask you to share the following information with your colleagues and clients.  Among other things, people may not be aware that, in addition to English and French, the questions are available here in 11 ethnic languages and 11 aboriginal languages, as well as in braille, audio and sign language (video). It is important to note that the questions are translated for reference purposes only. The census questionnaire must be completed online or on paper, in either English or French. The census paper questionnaire can be obtained in large print format by calling the Census Help Line at 1-855-700-2016.

Statistics Canada staff will also go out into the community and give presentations on request: please contact Peter Liang at Peter.Liang@canada.ca or 604.366.7597.

Census Questions

Data Collection

  • Mailout of letters to all households in Statistics Canada database about has already taken place (May 2nd).
  • Any household not receiving a letter should call the Census help line at: 1-855-700-2016 or TTY 1-866-753-7083. In particular in Vancouver, many secondary suites may not be known to Statistics Canada, and we’d really like their information to be collected.
  • In-person enumeration and follow up will take place over the next few months.

Making the Census Accessible

  • Census help line: The Census Help Line operates Monday to Friday, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., starting May 2, 2016. The census help line will answer questions in non-official languages as able.
  • Anyone can request a printed copy of the questionnaire if they are unable to complete it online.
  • Accommodation for people with sensory disabilities: http://www.census.gc.ca/ccr16h/ccr16h_001-eng.html
  • Multilingual fact sheets and translations of the questionnaire: http://www.census.gc.ca/ccr16f/ccr16f_000-eng.html

Content of the Questions

  • Completing the census is mandatory.
  • No personal information is published (until 2108, if people give permission to future researchers) and it’s not used for anything but statistical purposes.
  • The census isn’t perfect, and some questions may not include everyone: In particular, persons not identifying as either male or female should leave the sex question blank but must add an explanatory note in the comments section: http://www.census.gc.ca/ccr16c/ccr16c_010-eng.html#a73.
  • There are city resources that can help with some of the long-form questions: In particular, people can use Vanmap to look up the year their dwelling was built and what its assessed value is.

Census Jobs

  • Statistics Canada is still hiring field staff to collect data. People may apply if they are 18 years of age or older and are eligible to work in Canada as a citizen, permanent resident or temporary resident with a work permit.
  • More information about the hiring process is available online: http://www.census.gc.ca/ccr16d/ccr16d_000-eng.html.

Stay Informed:

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