The Standing Committee on the Status of Women: 20 Years of Representing Women

House of Commons committees provide the opportunity for Members of Parliament to better understand community interests and represent them. In this study, I examine the Standing Committee on the Status of Women’s representation of women through its interaction with Parliament and with civil society. Building upon the literature on representation and intersectionality, I ask the following question: to what extent has the committee applied an intersectional lens in its representation of women? Looking at the studies it has reported on to the House and the voices it has included as part of those studies, I argue that the committee is most likely to report on universalistic issues and to hear from universalistic groups of women than to report on intersectional issues and to hear from specific groups of women.