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Our Submission to the Standing Committee on the Status of Women Re: Study on Women's Shelters and Transitional Housing

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In response to a call for written briefs, we submitted the letter below.

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June 11, 2026
 

Women's Space Vancouver welcomes the Committee's study on women's shelters and transitional housing. This submission focuses on the importance of maintaining accommodation that recognizes women's sex-based rights and needs, including access to female-only spaces.
 

Women experiencing homelessness or fleeing domestic violence, sexual violence, trafficking, and exploitation are among the most vulnerable people in Canada. Many have experienced male violence, coercive control, sexual assault, and profound violations of their privacy and bodily autonomy. Some seek shelter with children who have also been affected by violence and trauma. Access to female-only accommodation is a critical component of recovery, dignity, and safety for both women and the children in their care.
 

A significant gap in current policy discussions is the decreasing provision of female-only options within the shelter system. At one time the condition of women-only space was considered critical for all women’s shelters and transitional housing.  There is no evidence that the need for this condition has changed.  In some jurisdictions, women who request female-only accommodation have faced criticism, exclusion, and even allegations of discrimination. Publicly reported incidents demonstrate that some women have faced adverse consequences for requesting female-only accommodation or expressing concerns about sharing intimate shelter spaces with male individuals (no matter their identity). For example, Kristi Hanna left a Toronto women's shelter after objecting to sharing accommodation with a male resident who identified as a woman.(1) In another reported case, two women were removed from a Kelowna women’s shelter after raising concerns about sharing accommodation with a male resident who identified as a woman.(2) 
 

Women's shelters and transitional housing should not be required to give up spaces, beds, or services, for men. If other vulnerable populations require similar types of services, those should be created for those populations, and not at the cost of services for women. Forcing women to share their spaces and services with men undermines the primary purpose of women's shelters.
 

The Committee cannot ignore the safeguarding implications of allowing men in women’s shelters and transitional housing. There have been publicly reported cases involving men identifying as women who were subsequently accused or convicted of sexual offences against vulnerable women. Examples include Christopher Hambrook (also known as Jessica Hambrook) (3), who sexually assaulted women after gaining access to women's shelters and support services; Michael Collins (also known as Mika Lin Katz)(4); Cody D'Entremont (also known as Desiree Anderson)(5); Shane Jacob Green (also known as Stephanie Green)(6); and Tyler Porter, who publicly described exposing his chest and a “bulge in [his] pants” in a women’s shelter.(7)
 

The reasons for providing women-only spaces are clear and long established: safety - no one can tell or predict which men are predators; privacy – women should never have to worry about men observing them in vulnerable situations; dignity – women should be able to feel physically and psychologically safe, to heal, and to recover in an environment that does not put them at risk, given the vast majority have experienced violence and trauma at the hands of men. The lack of women-only shelters and transitional housing is creating a serious barrier for women who need to access critical services, putting women at further risk of harm, including injury or death. The recent BC Coroner’s Report illuminates the dire need to increase access to women’s shelters and the removal of any barriers.
 

Women's Space Vancouver recommends that the Government of Canada:
 

  1. Recognize the importance of maintaining and expanding female-only shelter and transitional housing, ensuring safeguarding standards that prioritize the safety, privacy, and dignity of women.

  2. Collect and publish data regarding the impacts of shelter admission policies on women's safety, service utilization, occupancy rates, and outcomes. 

  3. Ensure that sex and gender identity are recorded as distinct variables in data collection to ensure evidence-based policy development.
     

Women experiencing homelessness or escaping violence deserve housing options that are safe, appropriate, and responsive to their needs. Preserving female-only spaces while expanding services for other vulnerable populations is not exclusionary. Public policy needs to recognize that different populations may have distinctly different needs and that effective public policy should seek to meet those distinct needs.
 

We thank the Committee for the opportunity to contribute to this study.
 

Respectfully,

Kim Zander

For Women’s Space Vancouver
 

Women’s Space Vancouver works to maintain and advance women’s and girls’ sex-based rights.  We advocate for women-only spaces as places for us to resist our sex-based oppression, to create culture, to participate in political organizing, and to seek safety and privacy. We assert that these spaces must be protected.
 

References

  1. Mohamed, R. (October 18, 2024). Woman files human-rights complaint after being denied female-only shelter room. National Post. https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/kristi-hanna-human-rights-complaint-transgender-woman-toronto-shelter 

  2. Van Emmerik, K. (March 10, 2017). Concerns over transgender client at Okanagan shelter. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/3300518/concerns-over-transgender-client-at-okanagan-shelter/ 

  3. Pazzano, S. (February 26, 2014). Predator who claimed to be transgender declared dangerous offender. Toronto Sun. https://torontosun.com/2014/02/26/predator-who-claimed-to-be-transgender-declared-dangerous-offender

  4. News Staff. (January 25, 2025). Edmonton man faces additional sexual assault charges after new victims come forward. CityNews Edmonton. https://edmonton.citynews.ca/2025/01/24/edmonton-man-faces-additional-sexual-assault-charges-after-new-victims-come-forward/

  5. Chen, D. (August 22, 2024). Acquittal for person accused of sexual assault at a Windsor women’s shelter. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/cody-dentremont-desiree-anderson-women-sexual-assault-1.7299486 

  6. ‌Hunter, B. (October 18, 2022). HUNTER EXCLUSIVE: Sex offender who IDs as woman busted for shelter attack. Toronto Sun. https://torontosun.com/news/provincial/hunter-exclusive-sex-offender-who-ids-as-woman-busted-for-shelter-attack

  7. Guest contributor. (September 26, 2019). Male transgender boasts of harassing women in crisis shelter. Women Are Human. https://www.womenarehuman.com/male-transgender-boasts-of-harassing-women-in-crisis-shelter/

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