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Julie's Bio

 

Bio: Julie S. Lalonde is an internationally recognized women’s right advocate and public educator. A franco-ontarienne originally from Northern Ontario, she is based in Ottawa. Julie holds a BA and MA in Canadian Studies from Carleton University and works with various feminist organizations dedicated to ending sexual violence, engaging bystanders and building communities of support. Julie is a frequent media source on issues of violence against women and her work has appeared on Al Jazeera, CBC’s The National, TVO’s The Agenda, Vice, WIRED magazine and FLARE, among others.

 She counts getting a sexual assault centre at Carleton, keeping calm while debating Margaret Wente on live TV and having Stephen Harper side with her, as career highlights.

 Julie has won numerous awards for her work including "Best Volunteer in a Leading Role” by Volunteer Ottawa, a two time winner of the "Femmy Award" and she is a recipient of the Governor General’s Award in Commemoration of the Persons Case. 

 

 

Activism is my rent for living on this planet – Alice Walker

I’ve called Ottawa home since 2003, but I am forever a Northerner. I was born in Sudbury, Ontario and spent most of my life moving around various parts of Northeastern Ontario where I landed in Ottawa for school.

Being a Northerner means I love winter, poutine and Frenglish. Sure sign of my Northern roots? When someone honks their car at me, I assume they’re just trying to say hello.

A certified bookworm as a child, my obsession with Harriet the Spy spawned my love of documenting people’s stories. You can also blame Harriet for my adoration of yellow coats.  

Awards

In 2013, I won Volunteer Ottawa's Best Volunteer in a Leading Role for my work to end violence against women in Ottawa.

VolunteerOttawaAward

In 2013, I received the Governor General's Award in Commemoration of the Persons Case. 

GovernorGeneralAward

In 2011, I received the "Femmy Award" in recognition of my work to improve the status of women in the National Capital Region. 

Education

I have a BA (Hons) from Carleton University in Canadian Studies and Women's Studies (2007).

I have an MA in Canadian Studies from Carleton University (2013). My thesis was a qualitative analysis of the daily experiences of economically disadvantaged elderly women in rural and urban Ottawa. You can download my thesis here. 

Professional Life 

Public education  

  • I developed and now manage draw-the-line.ca, a bystander intervention campaign created by the Ontario Coalition of Rape Crisis Centres (OCRCC). 
  • In 2011, I founded the Ottawa Chapter of Hollaback!, an international movement dedicated to addressing street harassment.

Advocacy

  • I was the co-chair of the Ottawa Chapter of The Miss G__ Project, a campaign dedicated to getting Women’s and Gender Studies into the Ontario High School Curriculum. Oh, and WE WON.
  • In 2007, I took on the (now infamous) task of opening a student-run, university funded sexual assault centre at Carleton University. The centre opened in September, 2013. 
  • I sit on the board for the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada.
  • In response to the anti-choice Motion 312 put forward by Stephen Woodworth in 2012, some friends and I started The Radical Handmaids, a pro-choice group that uses street theatre and satire to raise awareness about Parliamentary attacks on reproductive rights. We also wear really amazing hats.

Support Work

  • Since 2006, I have been a support worker at the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Ottawa (SASC). 

Journalism 

  • I am the host of “The Third Wave”, a weekly feminist radio show on CHUO 89.1FM. It airs every Tuesday from 5-6pm EST. Not in Ottawa? You can stream it live here
  • I do tons of freelance writing on the topics of rape culture, sexual violence, bystander intervention and social justice activism in Canada. 

When I’m not trying to solve all the world’s problems, I can be found cruising around in my ’74 VW Super Beetle, reading really depressing historical fiction or dancing to the worst techno you’ve ever heard.