Our Submission to Canada’s Study on Anti-Feminist Ideology
Aura Freedom contributed to the study undertaken by the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women (FEWO) on anti-feminist ideology and its impacts on Canadian society.
In Canada and globally, there is an ongoing and rapid normalization of anti-feminist ideology that permeates digital platforms, political discourse, media spaces, everyday social environments, and interpersonal relationships, directly eroding efforts to prevent and end gender-based violence, and threatening long-fought feminist gains.
This ideology shapes attitudes, beliefs and behaviours that both directly fuel and manifest in gender-based violence, while simultaneously undermining the greater movement to prevent and eradicate gendered violence. Although anti-feminist ideology has many far-reaching harmful impacts, Aura Freedom’s submission focused specifically on the links between its rising normalization and permeation, and the direct implications for gender-based violence.
Our submission to FEWO highlights the urgent need to address the growing normalization of anti-feminist ideology in Canada, which directly fuels gender-based violence (GBV) and undermines feminist progress. Anti-feminist ideology, rooted in patriarchy and systemic misogyny, devalues women and gender-diverse individuals, normalizes hostility, and perpetuates cycles of violence, including femicide. It targets youth, shaping harmful attitudes and behaviors, while digital platforms amplify these ideologies through algorithms that promote misogynistic content, particularly to vulnerable young boys. This creates a radicalization pipeline, fostering hostility and violence toward women and marginalized groups.
Our submission emphasizes the intersectional impacts of anti-feminist ideology, disproportionately harming all women, especially Indigenous and racialized women, 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals, migrant women, and other marginalized groups. It also highlights the role of media, legal systems, and political discourse in legitimizing and perpetuating these harmful beliefs.
Aura Freedom calls for a multi-sectoral approach to combat anti-feminist ideology, including regulation of digital platforms, gender-responsive education, sustainable funding for prevention efforts, media reform, and cross-sectoral training. Recognizing anti-feminist ideology as a driver of GBV is essential to dismantling systemic barriers and creating a society free from violence. We urge Canada to act decisively to address this escalating threat and protect the safety, dignity, and equality of all individuals.
Summarized Recommendations:
- Recognize anti-feminist ideology as a fundamental driver of gender-based violence and integrate this understanding into all GBV prevention and intervention efforts.
- Address anti-feminist ideology as a critical public safety and national security issue requiring urgent attention and resources.
- Explore and implement regulation of digital environments, holding tech companies accountable for algorithm-driven harm and establishing formal accountability processes for platforms.
- Embed transformative, gender-responsive education within mandatory school curricula and provide training and resources for educators, youth workers, parents, and youth.
- Ensure sustainable funding for primary and secondary prevention efforts and prevention-focused organizations with expertise in public education and awareness to combat rising anti-feminist ideology movements.
- Invest in media reform to transform media narratives and practices to actively challenge and dismantle anti-feminist ideology by promoting accurate, survivor-centered, and gender-equitable coverage.
- Provide education, resources, and practical tools tailored to high-impact settings—such as schools, families, frontline workers, and community organizations—to effectively counteract anti-feminist ideology and support prevention efforts.
Because anti-feminist movements reject gender equality and delegitimize survivors’ narratives, and their right to live free from violence, they function inherently as movements that normalize, explain-away, and even encourage violence.
