Audrey McLaughlin 'S Member of Parliament

by L& McKee was a nice ambition but they didn't are most of the ones who are active in hold out much hope for her in "tough the community in many aspects, not Cetarti~~dCcoubditnecnftmavec guy country." No one thought just in terms of politics. They are AUdr~McLaughlin~ du Yu- Yukoners would ever elect a woman. involved in the business community, et ex-~kfdu Nouveau parti Audrey points out, however, that thevictoria Faulkner Women's Cen- dhnocratiqw. the second woman ever to sit in the tre, the Opti~st(alocalferninistnews- HowofCommons-Martha Louise paper). Black-came from theYukon. There Audrey has a reputation for being a have been women mayors, a woman steady and committed worker on commissioner, and women in all lev- behalf of Yukon people. Her friend- els of politics over the generations. ships span cultural boundaries. She The problem is, women have gener- tells the storyofhow shemet Margaret ally been written out of history. Commodore, a respected territorial "People forgot the Martha Louise politician. Blacks of this world," says Audrey. "In the early 80s there was a va- Drawing on her own resourcehl- cancy in one of the territorial riding5 ness, Audrey didn't overlook the ex- and I thought I might run in that ample ofother women before her and election. Then someone who at the she began her own fight against the time I hadn't known well, Margaret general perception that women Commodore, also thought of run- couldn't win in politics, regardless of ning there. It was obviously a good their qualifications. seat for her because the riding in- Audrey also had a number offriends cluded a 1argeAboriginalpopulation. and acquaintances who stood firm in I stepped back and said, 'o.k, if you their desire to have a woman MP. run, I'll work on your campaign.'" This, in the first instance, is why She did. She won and she's been an Audrey decided to run. A number of MU now for at least a decade. women came to her and said they "She in turn, has been one of my Photo: Steve Zaleschuk would support her. That was in 1987 strongest workers in my campaigns when Audrey had just returned from to be MP and was a strong lobbyist on a six month stint with Crossroads my behalf when I became leader. International. "We did a little two for one there!" Audrey McLaughlin was well known Those same women were organiz- Audrey has seen changes in wom- in the Yukon long before she became ers and fundraisers in subsequent elec- en's lives in the Yukon over the past known throughout Canada as the tions and for her leadership bid for 15 years. The first rural transition leader of the the federal NDP. home was opened, the gay and les- (NDP), the first woman to head a "That's not to say there weren't bian community is much more vis- federal political party in this country. men involved. But I think it's fair to ible and more accepted than it was, When Audrey first came to the say that women really were the driv- the Opti~stcontinues to be a viable Yukon in 1979, she was impressed ing force. We had certain ideas of newspaper with a lot of volunteer with the spirit ofwomen here and the what we wanted to see accomplished help, child care openings have in- diversity of their work and ambi- in politics and I've tried to carry out creased. tions. "I'm not sure that in theYukon those ideas. I feel a great commit- "But I think that sometimes we there are any non-traditional jobs," ment to the people who have been take two steps forward and one step she says. "I know women who have supportive of me." back," she says. "Women are not part been truck drivers, miners, diamond Although some ofthe women who of the focus of history and so many drillers, doctors, lawyers, housewives, helped get Audrey's political life on women I know are saying we have to and politicians as well. They're all the rails have left the Yukon, many write our own history. I think we are traditional jobs!" remain and she continues to look to going to see a phase of that-where When Audrey decided to run for them for support. people are going to tell our story, in politics, many people told her that These same women, says Audrey, our terms." l

CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIESILES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME Audrey's world is politics and peo- College, Audrey says it should be part Freedom is really about having ple. She doesn't distinguish much of the core curriculum. It's not there freedom from the stress of not between her personal and working yet, but she gives women in the com- having a health care system or the time. Meeting people is the enrich- munity the credit for getting the pro- stress of poverty, or not having a ing and rewarding part of politics. gram started. job." This summer, for example, she was a Audrey takes the Yukon distances Audrey is as much 'at home' caddie in the Peter Gzowsky golf in stride. She tries to get to all Yukon jigging in Old Crow, the most tournament in Dawson City to raise communities at least twice a year, in northern community in the Yu- hnds for literacy. the summer and in the school year kon and the home of the Vuntat She also had a night "off at Dia- period. She likes to visit schools and Gwichin First Nation, as she is mondTooth Gerties while she was in talk about the Canadian Parliamen- attending the Commissioner's Dawson-but she worked too. When tary system with students. Levee in . She is a peo- she was in the gambling hall, she met She gets home from Ottawa as ple'spolitician who does her home- a government official who was there much as she can. After a 12 hour work and serves her constituents. with a group of Russian geologists so flight, she doesn't just drop in for the She is admired and respected by she talked with them. In the same weekend very often, but she has done Yukoners of all kinds. Audrey evening, she also met several direc- even that. She also uses the telephone McLaughlin will not be written tors of a gold mining company that's to keep in touch with constituents. out of Yukon history. opening in the Dawson area. They Her philosophy is that politics is about were all from and wanted to problem solving and building bridges l Refer to Our Land Too-Women talk to Audrey about their mining between peoplesomething that is of Can.& andthe Northwest 1860- company and the issues they were getting more difficult to do in a soci- 1914, (Yukon GovernmentWom- dealingwith. It's these kinds ofevents ety that is becoming in some ways en's Directorate, 1992). that blur the line between public and more individualistic and "American." private life, but for Audrey, it's part "It's really important to have peo- Lie McKee is a plain language con- of the life she has chosen. ple in politics who really believe that sultant and editor with RumKee Commenting on the relatively new by doing things together, we can ac- Productions in Whitehorsc-her Women's Studies program at Yukon complish a great deal for everyone. own company.

RURAL AFRICA THE OPT* A VOICE FOR YUKON WOMEN a special issue SAGE: A Scholarly Journal on Black Women A quarferly newspaper by women, Funded by the USA for Africa Foundation for women, about women.

This issue includes photographic Celebrating our 20th anniversary in 1994! essay profile of Kenyan artist interviews with professional women Recent themes include: listing of research centers on women women's politics poverty essays on rural development disabilities censorship pioneering women health

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VOLUME 14, NUMBER 4 91