Statement of Solidarity

STATEMENT OF SOLIDARITY

With Gilary Massa and the #IStandWithGilary campaign

The Toronto Rape Crisis Centre/Multicultural Women Against Rape (TRCCMWAR) stands in solidarity with Gilary Massa in connection to her Ontario Human Rights complaint against Ryerson Student Union and the #IStandWithGilary campaign.

The TRCCMWAR finds it appalling that the Ryerson Student Union would fire a long time, committed worker like Gilary based on the premise of ‘restructuring’. We find it oppressive; racist and sexist that 3 months into Massa’s maternity leave she was terminated. We believe this termination is illegal and unethical and we do not support the guise under which this termination is being framed.

We understand that Ryerson strives to work from an equity model and yet this wrongful termination makes it clear that this is not the case. We are not in support of terminating a new mother, Muslim-identified Black woman without cause or notification of restructuring.

Gilary Massa is a well-know advocate and activist in Toronto. She has supported the work of the TRCCMWAR for years and we consider her a centre member.

The Ryerson Student union has offered the Ryerson Student Centre to act as an event venue for the 36^th Annual Take Back the Night event. The TRCCMWAR and survivors of the Toronto community would benefit from having Ryerson groups such as the Office of Sex Violence Support and Education (OSVSE), Continuing Education Student Association of Ryerson (CESAR), the Centre for Women and Trans People, the Trans Collective, Rye ACCESS and other student groups to be part of the dialogue around survivors of sexual violence.

It is with the support of these groups and Gilary Massa that we proceed with using the co-owned Ryerson Student Centre at 55 Gould Street as the event venue for the 2016 Take Back the Night.

We continue to stand in solidarity with justice and to us this means, meeting the demands of the #IStandWithGilary campaign and reinstating Gilary Massa immediately.