Across British Columbia, communities are reeling from a devastating series of femicides. In July 2025, five women were killed by their partners/men they knew and three women were viciously attacked in public—each in a different city, most with warning signs missed, and each preventable.
In the aftermath, there is a question echoing through homes, workplaces, and city halls across this province: Who is responsible for public safety?
At Battered Women’s Support Services (BWSS), we’ve launched #DesignedWithSurvivors, a province-wide initiative that reframes gender-based violence (GBV), intimate partner and sexualized violence and femicide as urgent public safety issues. But we are doing more than naming the crisis—we are driving solutions. That’s why we’ve written to every Mayor and Council in British Columbia, urging them to act now.
The Role of Municipalities in Stopping Violence
When people think about GBV, they often look to provincial or federal governments. But public safety doesn’t live in a throne speech or a distant policy directive—it lives where we do: on buses, in parks, in housing complexes, and in community centres. These are the spaces governed by municipalities. And too often, these are the very spaces where violence is happening.
Local governments fund and oversee police, control public infrastructure, shape transit systems, approve housing and shelter developments, and disburse grants to community-based organizations. They also set the tone for what gets named as a crisis—and what gets ignored.
In short, municipalities matter. Their choices are not symbolic. They are life-altering. They can lead.
What We’re Doing
In June 2025, BWSS sent a letter to every Mayor and Council across BC, calling on them to:
- Acknowledge gender-based violence as a public safety emergency
- Commit to survivor-informed planning and investment
- Share the #DesignedWithSurvivors message to show solidarity and intent
We are asking each municipality to meet with us, and many have already responded. These meetings are about more than checking a box—they’re about building real, tangible local responses that prevent violence and protect lives.
We are working with over 150 organizations and individuals who are ready to act. What we need now is for local governments to step into their power—and their responsibility.
This Is Not About Blame. It’s About Leadership.
We’re not interested in performative statements or empty gestures. We’re interested in action—recognized, funded, coordinated, survivor-centred action.
Too often, gender-based violence in particular intimate partner violence is treated as private. But it’s public. Women are being killed in their homes—homes located in your municipalities. Girls are being assaulted in parks, on transit, in office buildings in our cities. Citywide engagement is required.
If municipalities do not act, the cycle continues. But when they do—when they take responsibility, when they fund prevention, when they centre survivors—everything changes.
What’s Next
Over the coming weeks, we’ll share which municipalities meet with us, which take action, what kinds of action they are taking and which municipalities stay silent. We will celebrate those who lead, and we will continue to press those who don’t. Because this moment demands it.
If you are a resident, we invite you to write to your Mayor. If you are a city councillor reading this, we invite you to respond. And if you are a survivor: know that you are not alone. We are fighting for a future where safety is not a privilege—it’s a right.
Public safety must be designed with survivors in mind. And it must start now
