Gendercide

Gendercide is the systematic killing of a group of people because of their gender. In India and China, sex-selective abortions and infanticide targeting girls have caused millions of girls to lose their lives.

Gendercide through sex-selective abortion is happening in Canada. A 2012 article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal showed a skewed male-to-female ratio of children born to recent immigrants to Canada. More boys were being born than girls, and the ratio was especially imbalanced for second and third children.

An editorial in the same journal, entitled "It's a Girl" - could be a death sentence, illuminated how female feticide was happening in ethnic minority groups.

"Female feticide happens in India and China by the millions, but it also happens in North America in numbers large enough to distort the male to female ratio in some ethnic groups."

Rajendra Kale, MD, past Editor-in-Chief of CMAJ

Is it Happening Here?

An investigation by CBC News in 2012 found that 'entertainment ultrasound' clinics across Canada were providing ultrasounds to determine a baby's sex earlier in a pregnancy than doctors would. Some of the ultrasound clinics agreed to offer an ultrasound solely to determine the baby's gender even when the undercover producer indicated that she would seek a sex-selective abortion.

As further evidence that gendercide is happening in Canada, the CBC report highlighted imbalances in census data. In Brampton, a region with many recent immigrants, there are only 86 girls under the age of 15 for every 100 boys.

Is it Legal?

In Canada, there are no laws surrounding abortion - meaning it is legal for any reason, at any time during a pregnancy.

In 2012, MP Mark Warawa introduced a motion asking Parliament to officially condemn the practice of sex-selective abortion, calling it 'discrimination against females'. However, his motion was deemed 'non-votable', and Parliament took no action on the issue of sex-selective abortion.

Documentary: "It's a Girl"

Additional Resources & Articles

DefendGirls.ca - Canadian website raising awareness about gendercide

Women's Rights Without Frontiers - an organization working to end forced abortion and gendercide in China

Invisible Girl Project - raising awareness about gendercide in India and providing support to girls

All Girls Allowed - Christian organization working against gendercide and the one-child policy in China

Gendercide and Sex-Selection: Does it happen in Canada? - a discussion paper from the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada

The 'war on women' that dares not speak its name - National Post, Dec. 19, 2012

The worldwide war on baby girls - The Economist, March 4, 2010

Study finds gender imbalance in children born to Indo-Canadian women - The Globe & Mail, April 24, 2017

Made in 2012, this documentary explores the worldwide issue of gendercide. Shot on location in India and China, it includes interviews with women who have been pressured to have an abortion - and even faced violence - because they were pregnant with a baby girl.

Learn more about the film. This documentary is available to borrow from the Guelph & Area Right to Life office library.

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