Council Votes On Girls’ Hockey: Rinks Will Have To Prove Equal Ice Time
Posted December 4, 2009 3:05 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
After a council debate that went into overtime, the city has made a decision: eight hockey rinks will have to prove that equitable treatment will be given to boys’ and girls’ teams.
The move came after the Toronto Leaside Girls Hockey Association threatened to launch a human rights complaint over a perceived lack of ice time.
“There are men playing on ice that the children should have. They’re playing at better times for less cost and the girls deserve their fair share,” Ron Baker, president of the LGHA, argued on Tuesday.
The eight arenas, which are run as arms-length bodies, will have to submit their plans for the 2010-2011 season.
Coun. Janet Davis, who introduced the motion, says it isn’t about an equal amount of ice time, it’s about a proportional amount of ice time.
Critics countered that it wasn’t a gendered issue – there simply wasn’t enough ice in the city, and many leagues practice and play at odd hours.
No new rinks have been built in Toronto in 30 years.
With files from The Canadian Press.
