Gender Justice Series
Explore the intersections of gender justice and faith through a variety of programming.
International Women’s Day
Each year for International Women’s Day on March 8, the Multi-Faith Centre hosts an event to explore how gender rights, justice and spirituality are connected. Annual program events reflect themes decided on by a diverse committee of staff, students and faculty.
This year our speakers will speak to the intersections of reproductive rights, gender, faith and community.
All attendees will be provided with dinner and have the opportunity to engage in conversation with one another and our wonderful panelists. Please see Program Registration to register for this event.
Panelists
Danette Jubinville, MSc in Health Sciences and PhD Candidate at Simon Fraser University
Danette Jubinville belongs to the Cyr family from the Pasqua First Nation on her father’s side, and her ancestry is Cree, Saulteaux, Jewish and mixed-European. As a doula and researcher, Danette works towards self-determination in health care for Indigenous people.
“Doulas are birth workers who support pregnant people throughout pregnancy, labour, post-partum and through different outcomes, like abortion, miscarriage or perinatal loss. It’s a role that has existed for a long time amongst Indigenous communities. My work looks at the role’s historical roots, and how it continues today, including its impact on the health and wellbeing of Indigenous people. There’s a lot of fields involved; it bridges Indigenous studies, health sciences and gender studies.”
Amrita Kumar-Ratta
Amrita Kumar-Ratta (she/her) is a researcher, storyteller, educator and mobilizer. She is a PhD Candidate in Human Geography at the University of Toronto and is cross-affiliated with the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. She is also the Founder & Creator of Shades of Brown Girl, a global multimedia platform for creative storytelling and community healing for South Asian women.
In her life and work, Amrita is dedicated to understanding and creatively unravelling the multiple relationships between bodies, borders and poetics. Specifically, she focuses her work on themes of intersectional feminism and gender justice; migration, mobility, and the diasporic experience; and sustainable organizational & community development.
Rabbi Yael Splansky, Senior Rabbi, Holy Blossom Temple
Yael Splansky is the Senior Rabbi of Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto’s first synagogue. She joined the congregation in 1998, after her ordination from Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion and became its thirteenth Senior Rabbi in 2014.
Rabbi Splansky currently serves as President of the Toronto Board of Rabbis and as Vice President of the Reform Rabbis of Canada. She is a Rabbinic Fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, the editor of Holy Blossom Temple’s prayerbook, and was a monthly contributor to The Canadian Jewish News for seven years.
Yael Splansky has the unique privilege of being a fourth-generation Reform Rabbi. Together with Adam Sol, who teaches at U of T, she raises three sons.
