Vigil on Thursday will honour National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women

By ANNA SMITH Local Journalism Initiative on December 5, 2024.

Thirty-five years after the l’École Polytechnique Massacre in Montreal, the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society invites residents to come out to a local vigil in honour of the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

“Fourteen women were killed at l’École Polytechnique in a horrific act of violence and hatred towards women,” said Natasha Carvalho, executive director of the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society. “It was a tragic moment in Canadian history, and also deeply connected to the violence that is an everyday reality for many women in our province, country and around the world.”

It was found that the perpetrator believed himself to be fighting feminism, targeting specifically women within the attack. Police later found a suicide note with a list of 19 Quebec women he considered to be feminists and wished to kill. In response, the Canadian Government declared Dec. 6 the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

This memorial comes during a period of increased incidents for the world, with the 2023 data release by the Alberta Council of Women’s Shelters finding that shelters across the province answered 59,215 calls for help during the previous year – the highest number of calls recorded in the past 10 years.

A total of 8,483 individuals were sheltered, a 19% increase from the previous year; in addition, of those accessing shelter services, 71% completed a Danger Assessment were at severe or extreme risk of being killed by their partner or ex-partner.

“This is why the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women remains important decades after the Montreal Massacre: As a way to remember the lives lost, and to speak for a future where there is no more gender-based violence,” said Carvalho.

This year’s ceremony to honour the victims will take place Friday evening at 5:30 p.m, in Centennial Hall at Medicine Hat College.