Fonds 10-006 - Helen Levine fonds

Helen Levine (nee Zivian) was born in Ottawa in 1923. She was a social worker, activist and professor. At the School of Social Work at Carleton University, she introduced women's issues and feminist perspectives into the curriculum for the first time. She received the Governor General's Award in Commemoration of the Persons Case for advancing the equality of women in Canada.

Helen Levine was actively involved in the women’s movement since the late 1960s. She was a member of the Faculty of the School of Social Work at Carleton University from the mid-1970s until 1988. Upon retiring, she practised feminist counselling as well as speaking and doing workshops on topics related to women’s personal and political struggles. She was a member of the Crones, a group of older feminists; of a singing group called Sistersong; and of Woman-to-Woman, a feminist counselling project in Ottawa. She published many articles, most of which have been critiques of the conventional helping professions and of the issues related to a feminist counselling approach. In October 1989, she was one of six women across Canada to receive the Person’s Award, in recognition of her contribution to improving the status of Canadian Women.

Helen Levine died in Ottawa in 2018.