Ending Violence Blog
Via our award winning blog Battered Women’s Support Services provides education and advocacy as we work towards the elimination of violence.
Women are dying while risk is known anti-violence organizations call for public safety action on intimate partner violence
VICTORIA, BC — This press conference takes place on the traditional territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən peoples, known today as the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. Community and anti-violence organizations from across Vancouver Island gathered today at the Victoria...
She Did Everything Right and the System Did Not.
A breach was a warning. The system treated it as paperwork. A woman in Saanich, British Columbia, Laura Gover, had a Family Law Act protection order. She had a detailed safety plan. She took extra precautions in her home, including a doorbell camera and extra locks....
A woman in Saanich, BC is dead.
A woman in Saanich, BC is dead. Public reporting shows the accused had previously breached a court order involving an intimate partner. That is not a neutral detail. It is a known risk indicator. Two years ago, BWSS released Justice or “Just a Piece of Paper?” because...
When Silence Follows Women’s Deaths: Why We Are Naming Possible Femicides in BC
Public Statement | January 11, 2026 In the first week of 2026, two women have died in separate incidents in British Columbia. Based on publicly available information, both deaths show indicators consistent with femicide and must be understood within the broader...
For safety during the holidays, we need to talk about “walking on eggshells.”
For safety during the holidays, we need to talk about “walking on eggshells.” “Walking on eggshells” is a phrase many survivors accessing BWSS use to describe their daily reality — constantly monitoring tone, behaviour, and mood to avoid conflict, punishment, or harm....
“Crime Is Down” But Women Are Being Killed Pamela Jarvis’s Death Exposes a Failure in BC’s Public Safety Framework
The following statement was issued by Battered Women’s Support Services on December 19, 2025 in response to the killing of Pamela Jarvis and ongoing delays in implementing femicide prevention measures in British Columbia. Another woman has been killed in British...
Risk Assessment Identifies Danger. Safety Planning Navigates It.
Last week, Canadian Press reported that police had identified intimate partner violence risk factors using a confidential tool and a woman was still killed. This detail matters. It tells us something deeply uncomfortable but critically important: this was not a case...
International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers
On the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers, we stand in solidarity with sex workers across British Columbia and honour those who have lost their lives to violence, neglect, and systemic failure. Sex workers live and work in communities throughout BC,...
A Turning Point for Survivor Safety in British Columbia
This week, Canadians witnessed two significant developments in the effort to address gender-based violence. The federal government announced proposed changes to the Criminal Code that move toward naming violence against women more accurately and more honestly....
Rewriting Recognition as Canada Begins to Name Violence against Women as It Exists
This moment reflects a restructuring of how violence is recognized in Canadian law. It marks a step toward naming violence against women and gender-based violence as it exists and not as systems have traditionally preferred to define, minimize, deny, or rationalize....
On the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, BWSS Declares: “16 Days Is Not Symbolic. It’s an Emergency Response.”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 25, 2025 On the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, BWSS Declares: “16 Days Is Not Symbolic. It’s an Emergency Response.” British Columbia faces rising femicide, systemic failures, and unprecedented demand...
Five Actions BC Can Take Right Now to Prevent Femicide 16 Days. One Emergency. Millions of Survivors.
British Columbia is experiencing a devastating rise in femicide and intimate partner violence. Women are being killed in their homes, communities, and relationships at a rate that is both predictable and preventable. At BWSS, we hear every day from survivors...