OTTAWA – Today we remember the 14 women who were murdered on December 6, 1989 at l’École Polytechnique de Montréal. They died because they were women. Thirty-one years later, gender-based violence persists.
The UN recently reported on the “shadow pandemic”, an increase in all types of violence against women and girls, particularly domestic violence, since the start of the COVID-19 crisis.
“We can never forget the underlying motive that triggered that tragic event in Montreal,” said Green Party Leader Annamie Paul. “Gender-based violence is omnipresent both in Canada and around the world.
“The pandemic has disproportionately affected women. Racialized, low-income and Indigenous women, as well as women with children, have seen record job losses in 2020, leaving many in precarious and oftentimes perilous situations.
“Urgently addressing the ongoing issues of domestic abuse and violence is integral to the Green Party’s recovery plan. This includes more funding directed towards helping marginalized women including trans women, girls, femme-identified and non-binary people, racialized women and women of colour, Indigenous women and immigrant women. We must also meet the calls for justice from the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMWIG) inquiry and introduce the MMWIG National Plan which has already been delayed. Fighting misogyny in all its forms is essential to overcoming the disturbing escalation of violence against women.”
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For more information or to arrange an interview:
Rosie Emery
Press Secretary
613-562-4916x206