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Last summer, the frozen yogurt store I was managing fell under new ownership. Despite everyone's best efforts to get along, there was a lot of tension between the new owners and the old staff. It very quickly became apparent that the new owners were sexist. They made comments like "The women shouldn't be doing deliveries. Those boxes are very heavy." and "Why don't you ask [female employee]? She must know how to bake." We repeatedly told them that those comments were unacceptable, but they did not stop making them. Eventually they started doing things like promoting male employees over female employees despite the female employees having more experience and better service. Even when I specifically told them that a certain male employee would not be suitable in a supervisor role and that the female employee had already pretty much been doing that job and doing it extremely well, they chose to promote the male stating "No, [female employee] should stay in the front of the store. She is so good with the customers and she has such a pretty face." Because of their sexist beliefs, the new owners would not allow the better employee to do their job properly or to be promoted simply because she was a girl. It was oppression for the sake of continuing male oppression in the workplace. Without promoting female employees, there could be no female employees in a position of power to then stop the oppression from being perpetuated

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During the christmas holidays , my mother,s uncle came to visit our family.  As often happens, we talked about politics and it went badly.  He brought up that he thinks that the Black Lives Matter movement isn't real, because black people are just using it whenever they want to get away with something criminal.  When I confronted him about the disproportionate amount of black people in the american prison system, he claimed that statistics were made up by liberals and fat cats so they could stay in power.

His view is oppresive because he is dismissing the experience of others.  He told of a story where a black man stole a car, and was killed by members of the army outside Petawawa.  I told him that Black lives matters probably should have been involved because I didn't think death is a valid punishment for robbery.  He said that killing him was the only option available, and they had done the right thing.

It is systemic oppression to think that shooting civilians is an appropriate action at any time, and to accept when another person dies as "justified".

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I used to work at a grocery store for 3.5 years. In that time, I was subject to sexism on multiple occasions. I know that some males who started working at this store after me, were making more money right off the bat. Also, I was promised a supervisor position many times but the upper management (which were all male) kept making excuses as to why I wasn't being promoted. But male workers were being promoted all the time.  Through out my entire employment at this grocery store, it was very clear that it was a male dominated store.

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Jonie Calvin   Oppression of Homosexuals 

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Jonie Calvin   Oppression of Homosexuals 

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It's is kind of sad that in most African countries especially Cameroon where I come from , homosexuality is being regarded as an abomination and as a taboo. I used to think that way too, and because Cameroonians consider  this Homosexuality as  "White man concept of worshiping the devil"  most people turn  to hide their true sexual orientation from others and suffer in silence.

I think a lot of sensitization still needs to be done in these African countries because due to culture, religion they believe what they are doing is for the best interest of the population I once though the same but due to what i gathered from research and teachings from some of my courses i now think differently

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Shaun Hughes part 2 because this thing is stupid

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Shaun Hughes part 2 because this thing is stupid

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I was very upset to see such disgusting racism not only within my family just in general. I looked to my uncle and said "youre more of a terrorist for saying a comment like that and trying to create fear in the minds of the people around you then that man will ever be." he shut right up. Ignorance get us nowhere. People need to speak up against it.

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There was this fitness trainer Job open at my former job site, to work with seniors. Considering i have being a fitness trainer for 5 years, i saw this as an excellent opportunity for me, to do something i was more passionate about. Hoping with the extra advantage i was already working at the agency and had a really good work record and relationship with co-worker and resume to backup. But i felt really discriminated upon when the shortlist for the position was done and i was not even included. when i inquired from the assistance manager who was in-charge of recruiting, he made me to understand that the position was only available for white as requested by their clients.

Emmanuel Duala-Ekoko

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Over the holidays, I was watching the news with my family members when a nice story came on about a Syrian refugee who came to Canada a year ago and is now working as a mechanic. They then showed a clip of the man working on a car when my uncle felt the need to blurt out "he's probably putting a bomb in it".

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I have never experienced oppression first hand, however, I have witnessed it numerous times. When my father experienced oppression in his young adult years in his church community. Upon entering a new church community he was shunned by his act of having a child out of wed lock. When his first daughter was born, she was sent to the church to be baptized but he was not allowed to be in front of the congregation with her because she was born out of wed lock. This along with other acts of exclusion were committed due to my father's behaviors from before he became a member of the church. This became a story to teach his family of how to distinguish religion from faith and how to distinguish God from the church.

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There are still a lot of companies that still treat their employees unjustly. I experienced this at a company I worked for for 8 years as a hairstylist. We would basically would work for 8-14 hours a day, and only get paid for 7 hours. If you are booked with clients all day, you were expected to work through it with no breaks at all. The way they justified this was on the days where you do not have clients is when your breaks were taken. Which is crazy because we never had any down time, and it was always busy. worst employer ever. I do not know why I wasted 8 years of my life.

Nimo Fahie

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I am doing my placement at the Robert Smart Center. Our clients are youth that are at extreme risk of self harm or suicide. There is a lot off oppression against these youth as mental health is often looked at as not a real illness. After working with these youths for several months now I can firmly tell you that mental illness is as serious as and conventional illness.

Our clients often feel powerless to their mental health issues cause they are constantly told or shown that mental health isn’t a real illness.  Robert smart takes the youth that all other centers say “No” too, they say no cause they are not equipped with the knowledge to deal with mental health issues. Any mental illness (depression, impulse control, or FASD) should be considered as real as any other medical issue.

Taylor Gagne

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Oppression of drug users accessing harm reduction supplies 

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Oppression of drug users accessing harm reduction supplies 

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My placement at the Carlington Community Health Centre has allowed me the opportunity to work  in crisis intake. Through that channel we provide anonymous harm reduction services to injection and inhalation drug users. This includes: clean needle exchange, needles, ties, pipes, waters, alcohol swabs, vitamin c, community referrals, counselling, etc.

Often when speaking with these individuals they describe a sense of shame that they feel in result of society's treatment towards them. Fortunately this is kept minimal through crisis intake due to the report my supervisor has built with the clients and her straight forward approach. I think this is great as it allows clients to access services at this location without the added stress of being judged by the worker.

Harm reduction services are a public health initiative that saves lives and better promotes the health and safety of the communities where these services are offered. In my opinion those who choose to access these services are being responsible member of society. However, when harm reduction is brought up as a topic it is often highly debated and the morality of users is often brought up. Many still view it as promoting drug use on a systematic scale and believe that drug addiction is a choice and people who make it aren't worthy of help unless they are quitting. We as SSW students know from our education that addiction isn't simply an "addiction" in the basic sense but has a strong mental health component. An individual may decide they want to and are ready to quit, however due to the complex process they have to make this choice for themselves and be truly ready to make this change.

With that said I would like to see all of society support those accessing harm reduction supplies without judgement about how they "should be quitting instead of accessing more supplies". It is unfair to their personal journey and independent choice.

Lindsay Alward

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Systematic oppression at its finest. (Deeana Deal)

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Systematic oppression at its finest. (Deeana Deal)

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So I am doing my placement at a Community House. Recently the house had apply for and received a grant to have the kitchen in the house renovated. How wonderful right? Not so much. My supervisor was excited too until she walked into the house after the renovations where, supposedly, finished.
The beautiful, high end and very costly, floors were installed and every single edge was lifting. I walked in with her to view the completed work and I was sure she was going to collapse from sadness and shock. Seeing the shoddy work my heart sank as well. As we walked round my anger grew because she explained That the flooring had a fifteen year warranty that was no longer valid. She went on to tell me that Ottawa Community Housing (OCH) would never allow outside trades to do work inside the homes that they are responsible for. So for this job they hired their own guys. This fact voided the warranty and what a shame indeed.
I, however, did not understand the reality of the situation and kept asking how she could allow that to happen. I pointed out the obvious of course, that it was her money, her grant, and she should have been able to choose who put the flooring in and did the renovations for this job. I was adamant about the injustice that was done to her beautiful expensive floors and how they massacred such high end material. Honestly I was beside myself with it all.
My supervisor was sobering when she explained the reality of the situation to me. She said plainly that this is a systematic rule implemented by OCH across the board and that there was no choice at all. It was either allow OCH to have their workers do the work or she was not getting her new kitchen at all. The sadness in her eyes when she said' "In this field we pick out battles and my only thought or realization from this experience is the understanding of  the struggle the tenants living here have each time something breaks or needs to be worked on. They have no choice to comply and no choice to accept the shoddy work done just as we have no choice right now."
I stood there with my mouth falling open, disheartened, and totally speechless as the truth about this systematic oppression sunk in.
Think about it? Who is there to complain to anyway?

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Oppression concerning seniors with alcohol addiction issues

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Oppression concerning seniors with alcohol addiction issues

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There here! We have been warned about the impending age of senior baby boomers for literally decades Now the time is actually here; not only are baby boomers large in number, they are also blessed with the greatest longevity of any generation that has preceded them.
Something that I have learned since being placed in Housing Help is that it is not only our healthcare system which is beginning to feel the strain-it is also now being seen in subsidized housing and "housing first" initiatives such as Dom Hostels. I already know how little empathy society has for those afflicted with the curse of addiction; it is understandable to a degree-after all, there are not many diabetes patients who rob homes in order to pay for their insulin; nor are there cancer patients who impulsively jump in there cars, and rev off over the speed limit, cross to the wrong side of the road and kill another driver . However, now that I have been attending board meetings and outreach concerning rooming houses in the downtown region, there is coming to light that the age group which is seeing an increase in addiction are seniors. It is people who are over the age of 65 who are filling the decrepit buildings after being evicted from subsidized housing programs due to alcoholism.(not drugs-alcohol kills more slowly). These people have the triple-whammy stigma of being seniors, addicts, and destitute to boot.There are no addiction /alcohol programs or outreach in seniors buildings..
None but the most dedicated of social workers  social service workers and health workers  are reaching out to these people. These are the newest version of Canadian pariah. The police do not even want to pick them up, in many cases.

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Oppression is something that occurs all the time in every part of the world. It is something that is frowned upon by the general public, yet many of us remain silent about it. Oppression is something we hear about on the news all the time, and many of us disagree with oppression, many of us also don't take action to end oppression. Looking back, I can't truly say that I've experienced or witnessed oppression first hand. However, I am aware that oppression is quite common and although there are many people taking some action to stand up to it, many of us do not. For example, consider the violent, discriminating acts towards the Jewish population in Germany. Due to a difference in beliefs and/or rituals, many of the Jewish people suffered a great deal, many of them losing everything; their lives, their homes, their families/children, and their dignity. This goes to show how oppression does stem from a system. One leader who had so much power, was able to attract many followers and persuade them to believe that the Jewish population needed to be eliminated. This one act of oppression by this leader, created a whole nation to be oppressive. Oppression has been directed towards every race, gender, religion, and even to those with developmental and physical disabilities, and those with mental illness. Although diversity is embraced by many, it is not accepted by all - resulting in the acts of oppression we hear about so often. I can't really speak because I have never been the victim of oppression. So I truly can't relate to that black man who was killed because of the colour of his skin. I can't relate to the Jewish people who lost everything because of their faith. I can't relate to the person in the wheelchair who didn't get the job because of their disability. I can't relate to the LGBTQ community who have been subject to acts of violence because of who they love. I can't relate to the man that was falsely accused because he is Aboriginal. I can't relate because I am not in the shoes of any of these "groups". What is disturbing to me is why it matters what colour our skin is, who we choose to love, what we choose to believe in, if we have a disability or a mental illness. At the end of the day, we're all human. So why do we look down upon our differences instead of embracing them? I may not witness or be subject to oppression, but I am aware that it is an ongoing issue. And instead of hearing about it and feeling bad, I NEED to take a stand and do my part in ending oppression.
Michaela O'Gorman

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Workplace compression for disabled workers

I have not witnessed this myself yet however I know the harmful effects it can ha ha on many people trying to seek employment in the ever-growing economy where they all just want the “normal” people to work with them.   It  is unacceptable that this is happening in an era where inclusion of all is of utmost importance. This type of oppression should not be happening at a time like this. People need to recognize that diversity matters and in order to do that they should need to educate themselves on the ever growing population that is our world. People with disabilities get oppressed all the time for the most basic things and employment is no different.  The gap between people with disabilities and employment is very large and some prospective employers have the lack of know how when it comes to hiring and keeping people with disabilities. However some take it in stride and hiring people with disabilities and embracing what THEY CAN do.  Companies like EQUI-HIRE and Magnet Today are helping to bridge the gap so people with disabilities can feel more accepted and less oppressed by their communities and by society as a whole when it comes to finding and keeping a job.

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I have witnessed oppression in my own workplace at a part time job. The company I work for is in fact  an "equal opportunity employer" however, after a new employee started who had some learning disabilities and developmental delays, I unfortunately witnessed many people who worked there already comment on this young women on multiple occasions by discriminating her against her work ethic due to her disabilities. As a person who can be outspoken at times I certainly was the first person to remind everyone that she is just as capable as anyone else, even if it takes her longer to do things. I believe this is oppression because she was being denied many work tasks and looked down on for her differences.  As soon as people hear the word "disability" they get stuck on the word. However, if people looked passed the first 3 letters they would find the word ability.

(Temecka May)

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Not sure if this would be considered oppression, but I will share this anyway. I once worked for a hardware store, it claimed to be a wheelchair accessible store. One of the first things I noticed about the store was that there was a priority bathroom stall, and a sink that was lowered. BUT the door to get into the washroom was a very heavy door with no push-button. This door always remained closed, I brought it up to the store manager and he simply replied to my concern "that's out of my control."...I didn't end up staying long at that job, and looking back on it now, I should have taken that to HR because of the code violation. Would this be Oppression of people with disabilities? Failure to follow code/failure to report??

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Something I recently noticed at my work place is some individual think that some of the ladies that come there for the food bank shouldn't be there because they expect too much. They are blaming the client's behavior on drugs not considering that she/he might be going through some things that does not include drugs.  There's an individual that comes there giving the workers a hard time, so some people start saying that she's lying about her reasons for not having a home and wanting help from the food bank. I am not sure if this would be considered as oppression but i don't think people should be judged just because they don't have what others have.

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I have no personal experience with

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I have no personal experience with oppression. But i have witnessed many types of oppression in the world weather in person or on the internet. The world suffers from oppression of all sorts, from racism to gender issues. Today more and more issues are being acknowledged and we are progressing as a society

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An example of systemic oppression that I recently notice is the prison system. After watching the 13th, which demonstrates the history of racial inequality in the United States. Most of the prisoners were minority  who were sent to prison for longer senses because of drug possession, or racially profiled due to their color. The documentary 

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An example of systemic oppression that I recently notice is the prison system. After watching the 13th, which demonstrates the history of racial inequality in the United States. Most of the prisoners were minority  who were sent to prison for longer senses because of drug possession, or racially profiled due to their color. The documentary 

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Iv'e noticed a couple of times

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So, there was a small issue that happened at my placement where one of the guys who always comes by the Center ended up getting denies for food at the food bank because of where he lives in the city. I did not know that this was considered an oppression thing...but now it is.

Marcus L

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My placement is with the homeless population, and a large majority of this population have a disability of some degree, or is a new to our culture, or both. An act of oppression which the client's face on a daily basis is the fact that they will not be hired in the work place nearly as easily as other members of society since they may need extra help or training, and housing is less likely to accept them because they may not be as "qualified" as an individual who is not disabled, or may be accustomed to this culture. This is an experience of oppression because this group of people are being marginalized and made to feel subordinate based on something that is completely out of their control. The homeless population is homeless because they are not considered "normal" therefore society has decided not to give them the same chance as everyone else; THIS is oppression.

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50's Style Oppression of women by Jessica Miscio

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50's Style Oppression of women by Jessica Miscio

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In my daily life I notice my friends family treating his mum like the 'woman of the house' . I see them expecting her to be up at 6 to get their breakfasts ready, keep the house clean, prepare all the meals, ect along with keeping up a regular job. I have heard them say things such as 'I don't think mom got around to that yet'. Although she is used to living her life out like this, I am stunned that they expect her to keep in control of responsibilities like packing lunches and laundry for fully grown men. Though she seems to enjoy taking care of them it bothers me that they don't even lift a finger to help her when she is sinking in work that they have created for her.

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Oppression about colored children and the school system By: Giovanna Granata

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Oppression about colored children and the school system By: Giovanna Granata

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I've been in a grade 7 class for placement and I noticed that during class children have been getting in trouble for talking and not listening. However, this class isn't the greatest because they all are pretty loud by themselves. However, the only ones that really only get called out are black children. I've noticed that there's this one specific black child that gets told to go to the hall and wait to be spoken too. I find it not fair, yes they are children so they do all get in trouble but I've noticed that the children who are black seem to be getting into more trouble and troubles with the teacher then the children who are white or any other ethnicity.

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Many women at my placement have disabilities, either physical or mental and ended up needing resources such as ODSP not because they feel they cannot keep up or do the job but are unable to get jobs and resources based on the fact that employers feel that someone else could do the job with less help or effort from the employer. Many of these women deal with micro-aggressions everyday even at the Centre from others in the same situation. There are assumptions and biases instilled within society, and most are unconscious of these feelings against those they feel are less "able" or "lesser" based on their physical or mental disabilities.

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I myself have witnessed people say to my friend "Oh, you don't sound black" or "You look pretty for a black women". She has confided in me that she feels both offended and confused by these comments. Not only have I seen oppression based on race towards a friend but also in the streets of down town Ottawa. A older white male referred to a young adult male of colour as a thief, a liar, violent and a "dirty nigger" out of nowhere.  Oppression is a large issue in society that is for sure.

Dana Deline

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I am who I am!                               I think every single person in the world has experienced oppression. I have experienced oppression when I first came to Canada, I barely spoke English and I was treated very wrong by class mates. Not only I was bullied and isolated, I was pressured to take off my head scarf (Hijab) and I believe that is oppression itself. To not be accepted for who you are and the way you are, or even for your religion practices or your physical appearance. 

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I am who I am!                               I think every single person in the world has experienced oppression. I have experienced oppression when I first came to Canada, I barely spoke English and I was treated very wrong by class mates. Not only I was bullied and isolated, I was pressured to take off my head scarf (Hijab) and I believe that is oppression itself. To not be accepted for who you are and the way you are, or even for your religion practices or your physical appearance. 

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I had an experience with oppression. I went to a Shoppers recently to pick up a few things. Based on my age and image, the workers assumed that I was a thief and/or had no money and that I went in there to steal. The location of the store was downtown, which did not help their overall impression of me. While I was shopping, I heard one of the workers page the manager to the desk, and overheard them talking about me. He then stayed close by, hovering around the isles I was in, and it made me feel very angry. I pretended like I had no idea what was going on, but inside of me I really wanted to give him my two cents. I went to the cash and spent a large amount of money and left. This experience showed me how sad the world is today and it made me feel that I was in the wrong. 

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I had an experience with oppression. I went to a Shoppers recently to pick up a few things. Based on my age and image, the workers assumed that I was a thief and/or had no money and that I went in there to steal. The location of the store was downtown, which did not help their overall impression of me. While I was shopping, I heard one of the workers page the manager to the desk, and overheard them talking about me. He then stayed close by, hovering around the isles I was in, and it made me feel very angry. I pretended like I had no idea what was going on, but inside of me I really wanted to give him my two cents. I went to the cash and spent a large amount of money and left. This experience showed me how sad the world is today and it made me feel that I was in the wrong. 

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After having personally experiencing harassment within the workplace and having seen it second hand,  it seems that harassment against women in the workplace is used as a form of oppression. When someone of higher power uses their 'authority' to speak or address a woman in a specific way at the workplace that is usually sexual and inappropriate they are using harassment to oppress women's abilities to accomplish a job or feel empowered. Harassment creates feelings of fear, shame, embarrassment, guilt, and so on... a specific example of this is a co-worker tried to make comments and solicit themselves. This caused a great deal of stress at work, outside of work, and also created a sense of guilt as if I had almost brought on these comments and sexual harassment. However, that is far from the case. It makes it a feeling of oppression because I felt like because of my position I couldn't tell anyone, and that I was the one who had done something wrong. Which affected my ability to function at work and in everyday life.

Gabrielle Crete

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exploiting 3rd world countries to make products

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exploiting 3rd world countries to make products

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This is an example of oppressing the poor. Wealthy companies choose to exploit the poor and not pay them fair wages in order to make more money for themselves.This is a form of oppression since the wealthy is taking advantage of the poor and are benefitting from not providing them proper health care coverage, proper working conditions or fair wages.

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I have witnessed many situations of oppression throughout my life. One of which consists of when my friend did not want to do her homework and said that her assignment was "gay". This is an experience of oppression because the definition of gay means homosexual but instead it has now become a "normal" thing to say when something is unpleasant.