Following a request by two McGill students, consultation regarding the implementation of women’s only gym hours began taking place the students and McGill Athletics. Individuals and groups were being consulted and a dialogue was happening on campus. This dialogue was centered around not just the religious implications of their request, but also issues of accessibility, body image and gender equality. The possibility of implementing women’s hours at a space outside of the main Fitness Centre was also being entertained. Before a resolution was reached, however, the university’s central administration ended all further discussion citing the reason that McGill was a secular and coeducational university and therefore not a place for such accommodations.
The Deputy Provost of Student Life and Learning then contacted the SSMU and PGSS in late April requesting student representatives to sit on a working group tasked with making “Recommendations on how to provide the best, safest and most welcoming environment possible at the gym” – with the caveat that the segregation of services (eg. women’s only hours) would not be considered.
While we applaud the effort of the Deputy Provost for working with students to make the gym more generally accessible, the SSMU and the PGSS feel strongly that this working group, in its current iteration, does not have the capacity to effectively address the needs of students and make recommendations for improvement to the current Athletics model. While both the SSMU and the PGSS have made efforts to include women’s only hours in the committee’s discussion around gym accessibility, these requests have been denied.
This is a complex issue and we are cognizant of the fact that students have varied opinions and needs regarding women’s only gym hours. However, an open dialogue and thorough consultation process regarding women’s only hours, particularly after the polarizing effect this specific issue created on campus this year, is required to ensure the needs of all students are considered.
Since we are concerned that the working group does not have the full mandate to effect meaningful change, or address the current issue, the SSMU and the PGSS have decided not to appoint student representatives to these committee meetings. Should the university decide to re-open the discussion around women’s only gym hours, the SSMU and the PGSS would be prepared to assist in any student consultation required to arrive at a thoughtful decision.
2014-2015 SSMU and PGSS Executives
