Fashion Revolution is a global non-profit advocating for a clean, safe, fair, transparent, and accountable fashion industry. With a Global Network of 80 country teams and counting, they mobilize citizens, brands, and policymakers through research, education, and advocacy.

Fashion Revolution Week is their annual campaign bringing together the world’s largest fashion activism movement to showcase activist projects worldwide, challenge how fashion is made and consumed, and inspire collective action.

BWSS and My Sister’s Closet (MSC) are taking part in Fashion Revolution Week to spotlight the deep connections between fashion, justice, safety and the environment. The fashion industry too often thrives on the exploitation of women and the planet, reflecting the same systems that enable gender-based violence.

As we also mark Violence Against Women Prevention Week, we’re reminded that prevention must include economic, environmental, and social justice.

Through BWSS current campaign, “Wear Justice, Build Safety”, we’re calling for a fashion future rooted in dignity, sustainability, and collective action.

Here are some tips by Fashion Revolution that we will be following for the week.

When we say that survivors of domestic violence don’t just leave — they escape — this is what we mean.  

Not long ago, Jade, a mother of two boys, whose names have all been changed to protect their identity, came to us after living through years of abuse at the hands of her partner, the father of the children. The abuse didn’t just target her, it extended to her children as well. It was her eldest son, Luca, who was just 12 years old, who bravely stepped in to protect his mother and called the police. His courageous call set everything in motion.  

Together with her sons, Luca and Elio, Jade fled to a transition house – they were then referred to Battered Women’s Support Services (BWSS). With that interim safety, this is where their healing journey began.  

Through counselling and support groups at BWSS, Jade began to name the abuse. She realized, in hindsight, that it was the years of violence, intimidation, coercion, and fear that kept her trapped in the relationship. Her boys began to open up, too, disclosing the heartbreaking truths of what their father had done to them. A brutal lived experience that no child should ever have to carry.  

Jade felt so much shame and guilt for not leaving sooner… but also a fierce determination to protect her children and break the cycle of violence for good.  

But escaping abuse doesn’t mean it ends. Her former partner utilized post-separation abuse tactics and began stalking and harassing her and the children, including showing up unannounced outside their home and at the children’s school and activities. This was menacing and designed to intimidate and instill fear in the hearts of her and the boys.  

A vital next step involved a BWSS legal advocate accompanying Jade and her children to court to secure a family law protection order. However, despite the order of protection, fear remained constant as Jade’s former partner continued to be an intimidating presence in their lives.  

He would often drive by their home and show up at the children’s school activities unannounced. On one occasion, while Luca was playing volleyball, he looked up to see his father watching him from a distance—the anger on his father’s face gave him nightmares. This ongoing surveillance and intimidation instilled deep fear in both Jade and her children because they were still not safe.  

Despite the stalking, Jade kept going. A BWSS support worker encouraged her to keep a journal and document all the sightings and encounters she had with her former partner. Her children kept journals, too. Together, they documented every threat, every encounter, and every moment of fear.  

Eventually, with support from BWSS, Jade was granted permission from the court to relocate with her children to another province, a difficult decision that meant leaving her community, her city, and everything familiar behind. But it also meant safety, freedom, and a chance to start again.  

And she did.  

Today, Jade is a school teacher. Her boys are thriving. Just recently, she sent a heartfelt message to the BWSS team, full of gratitude for the support she received from BWSS. She still remembers every piece of guidance, every word of encouragement, and every moment of compassion.  

This is what your support makes possible.  

During this Violence Against Women Prevention Week, as we #WearJustice #BuildSafety, we’re shedding light on post-separation abuse—and how leaving isn’t the end of the violence for many women. In fact, it’s often when abuse escalates. We stand beside survivors like Jade, who continue to experience harassment, legal bullying, financial control, and threats long after leaving an abusive partner. 

Will you make a gift today?  

$1000 provides a complete cycle of programming for one survivor who is dealing with post-separation abuse. Your donation, whether it’s $50, $250, or $1000, helps us provide survivors with safety planning, legal advocacy, trauma counselling, and resources needed, not just to leave the relationship but to escape and rebuild lives. 

“Wear Justice, Build Safety”, launching April 21, is a two-week fundraising and public awareness campaign that highlights how systems of violence—at home and in the garment industry—are interconnected. The campaign is led by Battered Women’s Support Services (BWSS), with the goal of raising $75,000 to support frontline anti-violence services, prevention education, and economic empowerment.

Vancouver, B.C. — As Canada marks Violence Against Women Prevention Week (April 20–April 26) and Fashion Revolution Week (April 22–April 27), a bold new campaign is calling attention to the threads that tie together the global fashion industry and the epidemic of gender-based violence.

“Wear Justice, Build Safety”, launching April 21, is a two-week fundraising and public awareness campaign that highlights how systems of violence—at home and in the garment industry—are interconnected. The campaign is led by Battered Women’s Support Services (BWSS), with the goal of raising $75,000 to support frontline anti-violence services, prevention education, and economic empowerment.

“Whether it’s a garment worker overseas or a woman rebuilding her life after leaving abuse, the common thread is economic control. In the face of rising costs, trade wars, and job insecurity, survivors are being pushed to the edge.” Said Angela Marie MacDougall, executive director at Battered Women’s Support Services. “But we also know that women have always found ways to resist—through creativity, care, and community. This is a moment to honour that resilience and build systems where safety isn’t a privilege, but a right.”

The inclusive two-week events will feature:

• Fashion Revolution Thrift Crawl – BWSS Social Enterprise, My Sister’s Closet will be a part of the 2025 Fashion Revolution Week Thrift Crawl from Sunday, April 27 to Sunday, May 4, hosted by @fash_rev and @remakeourworld! Mark your calendars, stay tuned for more info, and get ready to thrift!
• A special podcast mini-series hosted on And Still We Rise, exploring the intersections from thread to shelter – Exposing the Hidden Links Between Fashion and Gender-Based Violence
• A week of powerful social media storytelling, highlighting survivor voices and ethical fashion under hashtags #WearJustice and #BuildSafety.
• Opportunities for the public to donate, attend events, and learn how fashion choices can be a force for change.

Fashion Revolution Week, created in response to the 2013 Rana Plaza factory collapse, is a global movement demanding transparency and justice in fashion supply chains. Violence Against Women Prevention Week brings awareness to the realities of domestic and intimate partner violence, which continue to impact over half of women and gender-diverse people in Canada.

“The women who sew our clothes and the women who seek safety from violence are often the same—poor or working-class. They are surviving overlapping systems of extraction, from unpaid care work to underpaid labour to intimate partner violence,” says Lucy Hagos, Manager My Sister’s Closet. “This isn’t about charity—it’s about economic justice, dignity, and the power of collective care to create real safety.”

The funds raised will go directly to supporting women and gender-diverse people who are navigating violence, poverty, and complex trauma, and to programming that builds long-term safety and economic autonomy—including employment skills, education, and training that support survivors in rebuilding their lives.

Media and community members are encouraged to get involved by attending events, sharing stories, and making donations through.

For women leaving intimate partner and domestic violence, the legal system in Canada is often not a pathway to justice, but another source of trauma. Despite decades of feminist advocacy and efforts to reform the law, Canada’s legal systems continue to reflect colonial and patriarchal foundations, failing to meet the complex needs of women experiencing gender-based violence.

Canadian law, rooted in British common law traditions, historically treated women as the legal property of their husbands or fathers. Under the now-obsolete doctrine of coverture, a married woman had no legal identity separate from her husband. She could not own property, sign contracts, or seek redress in court.

While these laws have been repealed, the legacy of this gendered legal framework persists. Today, women who experience violence continue to face systemic barriers, disbelief, and inequity as they navigate family, immigration, child protection, and criminal legal systems. In many cases, the very structures meant to protect survivors are used to further marginalize and control them.

Historically, under British common law—imported and upheld in Canada through colonial legal systems—children were considered the property of their fathers, not their mothers. Fathers had near-total legal authority, including control over custody, education, and discipline. Mothers had no custodial rights and could be denied access to their own children upon separation or divorce.

Children born outside of marriage were labelled “illegitimate” or “bastards”, a legal status that excluded them from inheritance, legitimacy, and social recognition. This doctrine of legitimacy reinforced patriarchal control over family structures and punished women for sexual and reproductive autonomy.

This legal legacy continues to influence family law today, where custody decisions and parenting arrangements often prioritize parental rights over children’s and survivors’ safety.

A defining moment in the history of feminist legal advocacy in Canada was the Murdoch v. Murdoch decision in 1975. Irene Murdoch, an Alberta woman, had experienced years of violence from her husband while working full-time on their ranch. When she applied for divorce and requested a share of the ranch she had helped build, the Supreme Court of Canada denied her claim, ruling that her contributions were not sufficient to establish a legal interest in the property.

The ruling sparked national outrage. It became clear that women’s unpaid labour in marriages—and the abuse they endured—was not recognized or valued by the legal system. The Murdoch case became a flashpoint for reform, fuelling a movement to change matrimonial property laws and bring attention to the economic dimensions of domestic violence.

Today, a major concern for advocates is the growing emphasis on Alternative Dispute Resolution in family law—particularly mediation. While promoted as a faster and less adversarial process, mediation assumes equal power between parties, ignoring the dynamics of coercive control, fear, and ongoing abuse that often continue after separation.

BWSS has long critiqued this shift, noting how abusive partners weaponize legal systems—especially family court—to maintain power and control. Survivors are forced into unsafe negotiations, discouraged from seeking court orders, and pressured to agree to shared parenting arrangements that compromise their safety and that of their children.

Recent legal developments continue to expose the system’s failures:

• The R v. Jordan decision (2016) set strict time limits for criminal trials, intended to address court delays. However, the result has been a significant number of cases—including domestic violence charges—being stayed due to procedural delays. Survivors are left without justice, while perpetrators avoid accountability.
• In Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia (2022), an Ontario Superior Court recognized coercive control as a form of family violence in a tort claim under family law. While groundbreaking, the case also highlighted how rarely courts understand or address the full scope of abuse survivors face. Legal definitions remain narrow, and responses are inconsistent across jurisdictions.

These cases illustrate how women experiencing violence continue to be let down by a system that remains adversarial, complex, and largely indifferent to lived experience.

For more than 30 years, Battered Women’s Support Services has provided legal advocacy and support for women impacted by intimate partner and domestic violence. Now through our Justice Centre at BWSS, we assist survivors in navigating family, immigration, child protection, and criminal legal systems.

Our legal advocates do not provide legal advice but offer:

• Legal information and education
• Assistance with orders and self-representation for survivors
• Advocating with Legal Aid BC
• Safety-focused support in understanding court processes
• Accompaniment and advocacy in legal settings
• Referrals to lawyers and legal aid resources

We also work to change the system itself—advocating for law reform, challenging discriminatory practices, and naming the ways legal systems continue to uphold power imbalances and state violence.

Justice for survivors is not found in quick fixes, mediation mandates, or time limits on trials. True justice requires deep systemic change—grounded in an understanding of how gender, race, class, migration status, and colonialism shape women’s experiences of violence and their interactions with the law.

At BWSS, we will continue to support survivors as they navigate these systems—and we will continue to fight for a legal system that centres safety, accountability, and human dignity.

Justice Centre at BWSS is hosting a new series of legal advocacy workshops for both survivors navigating the legal system and frontline workers who support them. Here is more information about Supporting Survivors Through The Legal System workshops.