The Athletic Centre has been grappling with gender issues of late as “women only hours” come under criticism from members.
“Even if women are instilled with confidence and expertise in the weightroom, it seems as though this is not enough to overcome the challenges posed by the culture of the AC,” said U of T student Joseph Edwards
But supporters of the women only hours believe that affirmative action can produce a culture of confidence amongst the Athletic Centre’s women.
“Hours that aren’t women-only can be very intimidating. Some women don’t attend when men are present because of cultural and religious reasons,” said Agata Durkalec, University Affairs Commissioner for SAC.
The hours, two per week in the aquatic centre and one a day at the strength and conditioning center, were established in 1994, after consultation with various individuals from across the faculty and university. However, during a meeting on November 12, several members of the athletic center presented their grievances with the women-only hours to the Council of Athletics and Recreation.
“Whatever number of hours are available to men, the simple fact is that more hours are available to women,” said Joseph Edwards, a U of T student, and Carl Morey, a faculty member, in the statement.
The task force met in 1994 to explore the legal implications of the women only hours, said Ziyaad Vahed, a co-chair of the committee that makes equity issue recommendations to council. Found to be legally sound through affirmative action, they safely established the policy.
Mary Ann Pilskalnietis, the other co-chair, said the November 12 meeting was the second most highly attended of their history. When women-only hours were unanimously upheld, there was ” a lot of energy around reaffirming.”
But Morey says the serious questions that arise from the regulation are not being recognized at all by the AC.
“I was also distressed to hear that the attendance numbers are not increasing at all, or at least very minimally, and remain low despite the continuing women’s hours,” added Edwards.
Tony Amaral, a member of the AC staff who sees everyone who passes in the AC Centre when he swipes T-Cards, observed that a regular group of women attend the hours. “Affirmative action takes time,” he noted.
In the future, the Faculty of Education and Health seeks to organize a Strength and Conditioning Centre Advisory Group, which would include a communication strategy to promote women-only hours.