Flags are half-mast at Humber campuses to mark the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on Dec.6.
More than 30 years have passed since the murder of 14 young women at Polytechnique Montréal on Dec. 6, 1989.
On this day, we mourn and remember the deaths of these young women: Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daigneault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maud Haviernick, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne-Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michèle Richard, Annie St-Arneault, Annie Turcotte and Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz.
The United Nations reported that almost one in three women aged 15 and older, about 736 million, have been subjected to physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual violence, or both at least once in their lives.
The United Nations report on femicides in 2023 said although men and boys account for the majority of homicide victims, women and girls continue to be disproportionately affected by lethal violence in the private sphere.
It reported that an estimated 80 per cent of all homicide victims in 2023 were men while 20 per cent were women with lethal violence within the family taking a much higher toll on women than men. Almost 60 per cent of all women who were intentionally killed in 2023 are victims of intimate partner/family member homicide.
The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women acts as a reminder to reflect and remember those who have experienced gender-based violence and those who have lost their lives because of it.
To honour these victims, students are encouraged to wear a white ribbon or attend a vigil in their community, which is held in remembrance of someone who died with the purpose of offering spiritual and religious relief during their death.
Students are also encouraged to add their voice to the conversation not only today but through the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence which began Nov. 25 and concludes on Dec. 10.
They can use the hashtag #16Days on social media as well as read different articles on this issue to educate themselves and raise awareness not just during this time but all the time.
