Content Warning: This statement includes mentions of violence against women and gender non-conforming people.  

Today marks 35 years since the tragic attack at L’École Polytechnique, where 14 women were targeted and killed simply because they were women. These women had families, dreams, and their whole lives ahead of them – all stolen in an act of violence. On this National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, we honour their lives- cut short – and the longer lives they deserved to live.

In Canada, a woman or girl is killed every 48 hours. Indigenous women and girls are six times more likely to be killed than their non-Indigenous counterparts. Women continue to experience sexual assault and harassment at home, in public, online and in the workplace. In fact, 80% of sexual assaults occur in someone’s home and 70% are committed by someone the survivor knows, like a family member, friend, or a coworker. About half of all sexual assaults occur on dates.

These statistics only tell part of the story. Many survivors never report assaults due to fear, social stigma, distrust of police, and the overwhelming burden of proof placed on survivors in sexual violence cases. This makes it even harder to understand how widespread the problem really is.

Adding to the crisis, far-right extremism is a growing threat to the rights of women, Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary and gender non-confirming people.

Gender-based violence is upheld by societal attitudes, systemic failures, and inaction at every level. This also means we have the collective power to make things better.

Today, we renew our commitment to work for gender equality, support survivors, and take action to end gender-based violence. Together, we can create a safer and more equal Canada for everyone.

If you or someone you know is facing abuse of any kind, you can call the Assaulted Women’s Helpline at 1-866-863-0511.

You can find a list of provincial and territorial supports at the Canadian Centre for Women’s Empowerment.

In memory of

Geneviève Bergeron

Hélène Colgan

Nathalie Croteau

Barbara Daigneault

Anne-Marie Edward

Maud Haviernick

Barbara Klucznik Widajewicz

Maryse Laganière

Maryse Leclair

Anne-Marie Lemay

Sonia Pelletier

Michèle Richard

Annie St-Arneault

Annie Turcotte

Resources:

Canadian Centre for Women’s Empowerment 

White Ribbon Campaign 

Facts and Stats from Women and Gender Equality Canada 

Canadian Women’s Foundation

This article was first posted on the PSAC website.

The 16 Days of Activism campaign runs each year from November 25 to December 10 and calls attention to the needs for action to put an end to gender-based violence against women and girls.

As part of this international campaign, the federal government’s theme for this year is Come Together, Act Now. As per the government, the theme “emphasizes how crucial it is to involve everyone in Canada – particularly men and boys – in changing social norms, attitudes and behaviours that contribute to gender-based violence. It is also a call to action urging all of us to recognize the signs of gender-based violence and to reach out for support, for ourselves or loved ones.”

We invite all our members to take a look at the federal government’s campaign page for ways to get involved as part of the 16 Days of Activism. Be sure to also check out the related United Nations campaign UNiTE. Led by UN Women, this initiative “was created to support the civil society led 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence campaign around the world.” The UNiTE theme for this year is “Every 10 Minutes, a woman is killed. #NoExcuse. UNiTE to End Violence against Women”. Read more about UNiTE here.