Inuit women gaining status

Page 7

Promoting the economic development capabilities of Inuit women is one of the goals of Pauktuutit, the national Inuit women's organization whose name is taken from the pegs used to stretch animal skins while drying.

The economic contributions made by Inuit women have not historically been thought of as significant, said president Martha Flaherty. That changed with the first national fashion show featuring Inuit designs held in Iqaluit four months ago, where more than 500 pieces produced by Inuit women were showcased.

Before the fashion show, women were put down everywhere they went because producing arts and crafts was not considered a viable way to make a living, said Flaherty, who is living proof of the fallacy of that belief.

"My Mom brought me up by sewing, and I'm the oldest of 10," she said.

Most of the business opportunities in the Inuit community were designed for large-scale groups and mostly for men, Flaherty added. Protecting original clothing and jewelry designs is of primary importance to the women who make the clothing, she said. Designers like Linda Lundstrom, who copied traditional Inuit parks with the warm inner wool layer and outer light layer, are getting rich from their ideas.

"The Inuit people are getting ripped off and it's getting worse and worse," Flaherty said.

Pauktuutit will hold a meeting soon to discuss ways to protect their designers. Giving each garment a label with the designer's name is one possibility.

"We like to give women a chance to produce arts and crafts with proper protection," said Flaherty.