The Feminist Leading A Party That Has Problem With Strong Women. Wilson-Raybould, Philpott, Dhalla

Justin Trudeau has built much of his political identity around being a feminist leader, but recent events within the Liberal Party raise serious questions about how strong women are treated when they pose a challenge to the establishment. The disqualification of Ruby Dhalla from the Liberal leadership race is just the latest example of this growing pattern, following the high-profile ousting of Jody Wilson-Raybould and Jane Philpott.

Dhalla, a former MP, had reportedly signed up over 100,000 new members and was performing well in internal polling, positioning herself as the real challenger to Mark Carney’s presumed coronation. Yet, a secretive party committee—its members unknown—determined she was unfit to run, citing allegations that were leaked to the press and later walked back. Despite multiple retractions, the damage was done, and her candidacy was ended. In a press release, Dhalla outlined what she described as multiple irregularities that overwhelmingly favored Carney, raising concerns about whether this was truly a fair process.

It would be interesting to know what Trudeau himself was aware of during all of this. As the leader of the Liberal Party, it’s difficult to imagine he had no knowledge of who sat on this committee or how decisions were being made. While he has championed women’s rights in many respects, the juxtaposition between his words and the way his party handles strong, independent women is striking. It’s a contrast that has left many Liberals—and Canadians more broadly—at odds with the party’s direction.

With this leadership race now tainted by serious questions of legitimacy, it’s becoming harder to take the Liberal Party seriously as a champion of democracy and inclusion. The pattern of sidelining strong women who refuse to simply fall in line is impossible to ignore, and it raises broader questions about what kind of party the Liberals want to be moving forward.