On December 6, join your union in commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Montreal massacre.
On this day in 1989, a gunman murdered 14 women at Montreal’s Ecole Polytechnique because they were women.
Their names were: 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.
These tragic events led to Parliament proclaiming December 6 as the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women.
Thirty years later, gender-based violence remains the reality for many women across Canada.
One in three women will experience abuse in her lifetime. Every 6 days, a woman is killed by her intimate partner.
Much work remains to be done and building awareness and solidarity is the first place to start.
The United Nations is observing the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based violence from November 25 to December 10.
This year’s theme is Orange the World: Generation Equality Stands Against Rape. The UN Women says: “While names, times and context may be different, women and girls universally experience rape, sexual violence and abuse in times of peace or war.”
Violence against women has no place in our society. Join us in raising awareness to end violence against women. All women deserve to be safe at home, at work and in our communities.
In Solidarity,
Wayne Hanley
President, UFCW Canada Local 1006A
