Katie Cooke
Excerpts From Oral History Interviews
Katie Cooke, Chair of the well-known Task Force on Child Care, lives in Victoria. On March 4, 2000, she was interviewed in-person by Susan Prentice. At the time of the interview, Katie was 80 years old. In a wide-ranging interview, they covered many topics. In the excerpts below, Katie reflects on the origins and outcomes of the Task Force, and what advocates need to do to to change public policy.
listen to clip 1 1:07 596KB
listen to clip 2 0:46 427KB
listen to clip 3 1:28 757KB
Susan: Why did the Task Force get started?
Katie: "The reason it got started was because, if you recollect, there was going be an election -- because Pierre Trudeau went walking in the snow and said 'I'm resigning.' John Turner came in and said 'We'll have an immediate election, clear the air, and win the election...'
Well, Judy Erola who was Minister Responsible for Status of Women and Mines, had wanted to have a Task Force on Child Care. She was a single mother herself, so she had some idea of the problems. Because of the upcoming election, they [the Liberals] needed a platform, they have to have a platform. And so they said, 'All right, go ahead. Here's a little bit of money and have a Task Force.'
"The Task Force having been set up, nobody [paid] any attention to it because we lost our Liberal government and our Minister. The Tories ran around for six months without having a clue what they were doing, which happens.
And so nobody paid any attention to us, and we decided we were going to do it right. ... I was very happy to get some decent research out, research that people could use.
Did I think the Tory government was going to really listen? No, I didn't think so."
Susan: It's now the year 2000. Your report came out 14 years ago. And there's been not much progress -- I believe -- at the national levels.
Katie: I don't think there will be at the national level.
Susan: So here comes the question. What do you think will happen? If policy changes do occur, and it won't be the national level, where it be?
Katie: It's got to be started at the provincial level.
Susan: What about provinces that don't have money to do that?
Katie: Well, this is where if you've got child advocacy, child care advocacy groups - for heaven's sake, let them pay more attention to their home province!
Susan: Rather than the national level?
Katie: Yes! And point out what the drawbacks [of federal control] are. I mean there's the whole problem of regional differences. If you talk about anything that's universal, you wind up with somebody in an ivory tower sending out regulations for child care centres which are going to be totally inapplicable in a fishing outport in Newfoundland. It won't work!
