The Rotary Club of Toronto - Women’s Initiatives Committee (WIC) Presents:
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY MARCH 5TH, 2021 WITH SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER,
Emilie Coyle, Executive Director of Canadian Elizabeth Fry Societies (CAEFS), the National Headquarters in Ottawa
together with Rashida Samji, who will tell us of her experience in Federal Prison.
Please join our virtual lunch meeting to hear about the plight of the unfortunate women caught in Canada’s Justice system. What does Elizabeth Fry do to help these women and why are so many of them in remand in our provincial prisons? How does it affect their lives, their families, and ultimately our society?
CAEFS has 24 local member societies providing front-line services. The national team takes on the key issues that impact criminalized women and gender-diverse people by defending prisoners rights, building our community’s capacity, and raising public awareness. www.caefs.ca
and Special Speaker: Rashida Samji
Friday, March 5, 2021 - Time: 12:15 Noon to 1:15 PM
Rotary Virtual Meeting via Google Meet and YouTube Live
Topic: International Women's Day
Host: Pauline Lyons and WIC Chair Deb Snider
and Rotary Toronto's Women's Initiatives' Committee
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Views and Opinions Expressed Disclaimer: The views and opinions are those expressed by the Speaker and
do not necessarily reflect the official views or opinions, policy or position of The Rotary Club of Toronto or its Members.
Biography Emilie Coyle
Emilie Coyle is the Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies. She previously worked as Director of the
Refugee Sponsorship Support Program at the University of Ottawa. Emilie has practiced family, criminal and immigration law. In addition to her professional accomplishments as a bilingual legal professional and not-for-profit advocate, Emilie was a co-founder of Parents 4 Diversity, a citizen’s group working with parents and teachers to address discrimination with the goal of making schools safer for all children and youth and a proud sponsor of LGBTQ+ refugees for many years. She lives with her partner Adam and her children Maia and Niko and loves a good book recommendation.
Rashida Samji aced her Aga Khan High School with straight A’s. In years to follow, she rose to upper echelons of Canadian society as a highly regarded legal professional.
Faced battling for life, she looked Cancer in the eye and beat it, not once, but two times over. Often seen as a speaker for charity events, she lived in the city of her dreams. Life could not beat her. Then the winds of change finally brought Ms. Samji to her knees. A series of poor choices and misfortunate alliances incarcerated Rashida into a Federal Prison.
Losing her career, her reputation and even her family alliances, she pivoted her focus and started making different choices. She is today rebuilding herself as a peer advocate for LGBTQ and Indigenous cultures and advocates for incarcerated women. She is determined to make a positive difference.