montreal massacre

December 6

by Jarrah Hodge

Today is the National Day of Action and Remembrance on Violence Against Women. Today we remember Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daigneault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maud Haviernick, Barbara Klucznik Widajewicz, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne-Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michèle Richard, Annie St-Arneault, and Annie Turcotte, who were gunned down on this day 23 years ago in Montreal, simply because they were women participating in a man’s world – women the shooter perceived to be feminists.

We also remember the many, many women in our own communities and around the world who have been the victims of gender-based violence since then, as well as those who have faced it and survived, and those who continue to face it every day.

We also commit to taking action to ending violence against women here in Canada and around the world. The Montreal Massacre is part of a larger picture. Still to this day women experience more family/intimate partner violence than men. What they do experience is more severe. And we can’t forget that those most at risk of violence are women of colour and Aboriginal women.

The fact that over 582 Aboriginal women and girls have gone missing or been murdered in Canada in recent years is a tragedy. The fact that it was allowed to happen without a national inquiry is a disgrace. And while individual perpetrators need to answer for the violence, we as a society need to talk about the social forces, including misogyny, that lead to this kind violence.

We’ve been talking about it for decades but we need to keep talking. Speaking out against violence needs to happen in the media, online, and face-to-face with our family, friends, coworkers, and even total strangers.

Please also support the YWCA’s Rose Campaign and consider taking some actions they suggest:

  • Take action to change women’s lives by sending an email your MP
  • Speak up about violence in your community
  • Encourage people who commit violence to get help
  • Teach girls to protect and empower themselves
  • Raise children who can resolve conflict without violence
  •  Make sure your home, workplace and community are safe for women and girls
  • Speak out against negative media images of women and girls
  • Promote women’s economic and political equality
  • Support organizations that work to end violence against women
  • Donate your time and support the cause
Posted on December 6, 2012 by jarrahpenguin in Can-Con, Feminism, Politics Leave a comment

On December 6, We Remember

On December 6, we remember Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daigneault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maud Haviernick, Barbara Klucznik Widajewicz, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne-Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michèle Richard, Annie St-Arneault, and Annie Turcotte, who were gunned down on this day in Montreal, 1989, because they were women.

Last year I wrote an article for the Vancouver Observer about why we need to care about the Montreal Massacre, even more than twenty years after the fact. I was surprised by the vitriol the article received from people who opposed the long gun registry, which I mentioned supporting. Thankfully the opponents of the registry lost their fight in Parliament, but over the past year there’s been more reason for feminists to be concerned with violence against women than to celebrate victories.

In particularly, rates violence against Aboriginal women – part of our colonialist legacy – are still shockingly high. The Native Women’s Association of Canada identified 153 cases of murder of Aboriginal women between 2000 and 2008: a number which represents 10% of female homicides despite the fact that Aboriginal women make up only 3% of the female population. For more information and statistics, read NWAC’s 2010 Sisters in Spirit report.

Unfortunately our federal government is much better at creating ad campaigns about supporting crime victims than they are at taking real action to stop violence, especially against Aboriginal women. Recently the Harper government announced it would no longer fund NWAC’s work on the Sisters in Spirit campaign, which includes maintaining a database of missing and murdered Aboriginal women.

December 6 is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Today remember the 14 women who died in Montreal, as well as other victims of violence against women, and those women in Canada and around the world who continue to live with the threat of violence every day. We also commit to taking action, keeping situations like the battle over the long gun registry in mind to remind us that when success is possible when feminists and other progressives stand united for equality.

-Jarrah

Posted on December 6, 2010 by jarrahpenguin in Feminism, Politics 1 Comment

20 Years After the Montreal Massacre, We Remember

Today, on the 20th anniversary of the Montreal Massacre, we observe the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. With heavy hearts we remember the 14 women killed on December 6, 1989 in Montreal, targeted because they were women.

It’s also a day when we take action, take a stand, and raise our voices to eliminate violence against women in our communities across Canada.

I have a reflection on December 6th in the Vancouver Observer this week and here are some links to other writings on the 20th anniversary of the Montreal Massacre.


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Posted on December 6, 2009 by jarrahpenguin in Can-Con, Feminism 1 Comment