12 Aug Real series: Cyndia Mondésir

Could you please introduce yourself?

Hello, my name is Cyndia Mondésir. I am a 21-year-old young black woman living in Ottawa, and studying at the University of Ottawa in Communications and Women’s Studies. I was born in Canada but was raised by Haitian immigrants that sacrificed their lives in order for my sister and me to obtain equal opportunities in Canada. In high school, I was always determined to make a change and get involved in my community. This is when I decided to co-create our Equity and Equality club, which involved our student body in a diverse discussion about feminism. I would say that my actual professional career began working with grassroots and community-based organizations, the first one being the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW). CRIAW is the only women’s organization in Canada focused exclusively on nurturing intersectional feminist research and making it accessible for public advocacy and education. As a volunteer, I was mesmerized by the work these women had been doing, and I was later promoted to project coordinator for their youth magazine, the Feminist Word (F-Word). This magazine is really awesome because it is a platform where young women’s voices are elevated and where they can safely share their stories and concerns in relation to the women’s movement. I’ve also been lucky enough to work for another nonprofit which is, the Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA). We work to ensure that Canada complies to the conventions and treaties that we’ve signed on to. We are focusing a lot on Indigenous women and their rights as well as making sure that we end all sex discrimination against them in the Indian Act. To add, I’ve also had the honour to work for Senator Marilou McPhedran on Parliament Hill and be a youth consultant on gender equality for the Government of Canada’s Department of Women and Gender Equality. As grateful as I am for my career and my education, I don’t necessarily like to only introduce myself as the things that make me useful to society. I think as individuals, we’re much more than that. I am an activist, a survivor, a writer, a music enthusiast, all in all, a creative. I’m passionate about many causes and am completely dissatisfied with the status quo, and so, I’m just an individual trying to make a change, whatever that means. I honestly wish I could take more naps, but I am too busy fighting for women’s rights.