Readers may or may not be aware of a story that has erupted from my adopted city of Timmins, Ontario. I cannot add much more to what was said in these articles. They're a good read.
This Ontario Girl Fought Back After She Wasn’t Allowed In A “Boys Only” Robotics Class: http://www.buzzfeed.com/...
Cash Cayen Petitions Library To Open Up Boys-Only Robotics Course: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/...
Timmins Public Library reverses decision on boys-only robotics event after girl's petition: https://ca.news.yahoo.com/...
[Please excuse me for my lack of finesse with the links.]
The petition is still up (https://www.change.org/...) if you want to sign it as well, at last count it had over 23,000 signatures within the span of three days.
Follow me past the great orange squiggle for more of this.
The short story of it is this: nine-year-old Cash Cayen, wanted to sign up for a robotics program at the Timmins Public Library but is declined for being a girl. When her mother asked the Assistant Director if she would tell her "no" to Cayen's face, she does exactly that. Unable to take that lying down and rightly so, Cash and her mother set up an online petition though change.org. This petition was effective; the robotics event was changed to include girls as well. The petition is still up (https://www.change.org/....) if you want to sign it as well, at last count it had over 23,000 signatures within the span of three days. In addition this story has caught the attention of Ontario Library Association and the American Library Association, and many other organizations. A friend of mine working in the library called this PR disaster "a sh*tstorm”.
As I said, I cannot add much more, but I will add this. With the exception of Assistant Director Elaine De Bonis, none of the library staff are to blame for the boys only program. In fact, most if not all of the (all female but one) staff tried to persuade the Assistant Director to make it available to both genders. In fact my friend at the library advised De Bonis not to use "BOYS ONLY" wording. She refused to listen. Nor are Antoine Garwah and Lorraine Cantin, who head Science Timmins, to blame for the faults in the program either. Their position on the teaching of science has always been Science For All. Science Timmins had not realized that it would so overtly exclusive.
As for the Library's official statement:
The Timmins Public Library Board and staff wish to apologize to the public and Science Timmins for the misunderstanding related to the Robotics event which was designed to encourage improved literacy through reading.
I think that this statement is in fact a damage control statement. It was not a matter of "misunderstanding", the program was put out deliberately, and wrongly. The Library was wrong to put out a program like this and and needs to admit it. And they need to address it to the girls that were excluded.
As this is the summertime, and many staff are away, including the Systems Administrator, the library's website has not been able to be updated to reflect the change in the program's policy. However, it should never have seen the light of day in its exclusionary manifestation. Complaints can be directed to Elaine De Bonis at 705-360-2623, ext. 8520 or by email at elaine.debonis@timmins.ca.
If you find yourself caught up in a voicemail tree and speak to another staff member, please be courteous to her (or him), as this debacle was not her (or his) fault.