Friday December 6, 2024 | VICTORIA, BC [Posted 8:22 am | Updated 1:23 pm]
by Mary P Brooke, Editor | Island Social Trends
Watch online at 5 pm: Livestream of the Dec 6 event at the BC Legislature.
It has been 35 years since the murder of 14 young women at École Polytechnique in Montreal.
The act of violent misogyny on December 6, 1989 shook our country and led Parliament to designate December 6 as The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.
That mass femicide, though carried out by a lone male, is seen to have grown out of a societal environment of gender inequity, misogyny, colonialism, racism and other intersecting systems of oppression. All the victims (those killed and those injured) were women students in areas of engineering and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math).
Event tonight at the BC Parliament Buildings:
To mark the 35th Anniversary of the Montreal Massacre at École Polytechnique and the Natonial Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, a candlelight memorial will be held on the front steps of the BC Parliament Buildings at 5 pm this evening, December 6.
The event will be led by Jennifer Blatherwick, Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity.
Watch online: Livestream of the Dec 6 event at the BC Legislature.
Remains a terrible constant:
“Violence against women remains a terrible constant in this country,” said BC Premier David Eby in a statement today. “At least one woman or girl is killed violently every two days on average in Canada, according to the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability.”
“Our government is committed to ending this violence. We are taking action to increase safety and supports for survivors, strength and expand programs that address violence against women, and end the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQIA+ people,” the Premier says.
“Everyone has the right to live without the threat of harm,” says Eby. “We must all recommit ourselves to ending gender-based violence in all its forms, and work together to make BC communities safer for everyone.”
Provincial leadership:
In his recent cabinet appointments for the 43rd BC Parliament, Eby appointed former police officer Garry Begg as the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. Minister of State for Community Safety and Integrated Services is Terry Yung. The new Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity is Jennifer Blatherwick.
Patriarchy still active:
The patriarchal system still adhered to by many in Canadian culture is among the root causes of the oppression and backlash against women. But also, within that, there’s a pecking order for men against which oppressed males push back.
Misogyny as a viewpoint can be viewed under the broader umbrella of mental health. It stems as well from socioeconomic causes of inequity and gender roles.
The attack 35 years ago “was a brutal attack and clear case of gender-based violence, and it remains the most haunting act of violence against women and misogyny in Canadian history”, said Green Party Leader Elizabeth May today.
BC Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau calls the Montreal Massacre “an unspeakable tragedy but also a call to action”, pointing out that women in Canada and in BC “still face violence, discrimination and systemic inequities”.
Remembering the 14 murdered women:
On December 6, 2024 again we remember these women who were murdered only because they were female:
- 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
- Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz
As we mourn their loss and remember their lives, we reaffirm our commitment to fight the hatred that led to this tragedy, and the misogyny that still exists today, it is stated on the Government of Canada website about The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.
National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women:
In Canada and around the world, women, girls, 2SLGBTQQIA+ (two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, plus) and gender diverse individuals face unacceptable violence and discrimination.
Gender-based violence in Canada was magnified and amplified by the isolation and economic challenges experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. There were reports from police services, shelters, and local organization of an increase in calls related to gender-based violence across Canada during the pandemic.
The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women is about remembering those who have experienced gender-based violence and those who we have lost to it. It is also a time to take action. Achieving a Canada free from gender-based violence requires everyone living in this country to educate themselves and their families and communities on gender-based violence, center the voices of survivors in our actions and speak up against harmful behaviours.
December 6 falls within the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (between November 25 and December 10).
History of Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity:
- BC’s first Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity from 2017 through 2020 was Mitzi Dean (MLA for Esquimalt-Metchosin),
- Grace Lore, MLA — a dedicated anti-violence advocate, university instructor and community organizer. — was first elected in October 2020 and given the Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity role right away, based on her long-time activism for addressing sexual violence in communities. From December 2022 to Dec 2023 she was the Minister of State for Child Care, then became Minister of Children and Family Development in January 2024, serving in that role to December 5, 2024.
- In December 2022, Premier Eby shifted the Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity role over to Kelli Paddon, MLA (Chilliwack-Kent), during his December 7, 2022 BC cabinet shuffle. Paddon did not win re-election in October 2024.
- In November 2024, Premier Eby appointed the Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity role to Jennifer Blatherwick (Coquitlam-Maillardville), a former two-term school board trustee in Coquitlam.
===== RELATED:
- Premier Eby appoints his cabinet for the 43rd BC Parliament (November 18, 2024)
- 34th National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women: 2023 (December 6, 2023)
- EDITORIAL on International Women’s Day: still room to grow (March 8, 2023)
- National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women (December 6, 2021)
- More evident violence against women during COVID sparks social and legislative support (November 25, 2021)
- Parliamentary secretary’s statement on Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20, 2021)
- Editorial: Women’s Day marches awkwardly forward (March 8, 2021)
- Working against gender-based violence highlighted on Dec 6 anniversary (December 6, 2020)
- BC Green Leader remembers Montreal Massacre (December 6, 2019)
- RELATED: POLITICS | BC PROVINCIAL ELECTION 2024 | GENDER AND WOMEN’s EQUITY
===== ABOUT THE WRITER:
Island Social Trends Editor & Publisher Mary P Brooke has founded and edited her own news publications on the west shore since 2008.
Before that she created the Writing for Business and Journalism curriculum for the Western Academy of Photography in the 1990s and then the MapleLine Journalism Program (for youth) in 2010. She reported daily on the COVID pandemic during 2020-2021 and since then has reported alongside the BC Legislative Press Gallery.
Mary has been active in promoting the rights of women since her university days, where she launched a women’s organization and studied sociology as well as science and community education.
Ms Brooke holds a B.Sc. (Foods and Nutrition, second major in sociology, along with business and community education), a Certificate in Public Relations, and a certificate in digital marketing. Mary is the mother of four grown children; she ran for school trustee in 2022 to encourage more parental involvement in K-12 public education.