Call It Femicide 30 Years Later

Call It Femicide: 30 Years Later

Today, we commemorate December 6^th the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women following the murder of 14 female engineering students at l’École Polytechnique de Montreal in 1989.

BWSS commemorates the many ways in which women experience gender-based violence — from Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, transgender women, gender non-binary folks and the broad spectrum of women and girls across Canada.

This day continues to be a poignant reminder of the ongoing work that needs to be done to end gender-based violence. Today is as important as it was in 1989 with the murders of the 14 women in Montreal. It reminds us how endemic and how much of an epidemic that violence against women is in Canada.

30 years later and the epidemic continues. In 2019, a total of 118 women, girls were killed by violence in Canada. On average, every three days, one woman or girl is killed in this country according to the #CallItFemicide report.  

This is a reminder that women and girls do not experience violence as a coincidence –rather, gender-based violence is the result of structural, deep-rooted discrimination and cultural norms.

BWSS has been providing programs, services, support, and advocacy to end gender-based violence for forty years. Now, more than ever women, trans women, and gender non-binary folks are speaking out about their experiences. While societal attitudes are shifting, this new report is another reminder that our work must continue and that Canada still has a long road ahead before women and girls can live free without the fear of violence.

Read the full report here.

If you would like to support BWSS frontline work, donate here.