National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women
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The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women (french: Journée Nationale de Commémoration et d'Action Contre la Violence à l'Égard des Femmes), also known informally as White Ribbon Day (''Jour du Ruban Blanc''), is a day commemorated in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
each December 6, the anniversary of the 1989
École Polytechnique massacre École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...
, in which armed student Marc Lépine murdered fourteen women and injured fourteen others in the name of "fighting feminism". The commemoration date was established by the Parliament of Canada in 1991. The legislation was introduced in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
as a private member's bill by
Dawn Black Dawn Black (born April 1, 1943) is a politician in British Columbia, Canada. Born ''Dawn Whitty'', Black became involved in politics from a young age, she became an assistant to New Democratic Party Member of Parliament Pauline Jewett. Member ...
, Member of Parliament for
New Westminster-Burnaby New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...
, British Columbia, and received all-party support. Canadian flags on all federal buildingsincluding the
Peace Tower The Peace Tower (french: link=no, Tour de la Paix) is a focal bell and clock tower sitting on the central axis of the Centre Block of the Canadian parliament buildings in Ottawa, Ontario. The present incarnation replaced the Victoria Towe ...
on
Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (french: Colline du Parlement, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its Gothic revival suite of buildings, and their archit ...
in Ottawa,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
are flown at
half-mast Half-mast or half-staff (American English) refers to a flag flying below the summit of a ship mast, a pole on land, or a pole on a building. In many countries this is seen as a symbol of respect, mourning, distress, or, in some cases, a salut ...
on December 6. Canadians are encouraged to observe a minute of silence on December 6 and to wear a
white ribbon The white ribbon is an awareness ribbon sometimes used by political movements to signify or spread their beliefs. It is usually worn on garments or represented in information sources such as posters, leaflets, etc. The White Ribbon has been t ...
(or a
purple ribbon This is a partial list of awareness ribbons. The meaning behind an awareness ribbon Awareness ribbons are symbols meant to show support or raise consciousness for a cause. Different colours and patterns are associated with different issues. ...
) as a commitment to end
violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often con ...
. The victims of the 1989 massacre were Geneviève Bergeron, 21; Hélène Colgan, 23; Nathalie Croteau, 23; Barbara Daigneault, 22; Anne-Marie Edward, 21; Maud Haviernick, 29; Barbara Klucznik, 31; Maryse Laganière, 25; Maryse Leclair, 23; Anne-Marie Lemay, 22; Sonia Pelletier, 23; Michèle Richard, 21; Anne St-Arneault, 23; and Annie Turcotte, 21. In response to the event, many Canadians have worked hard to establish memorial sites all across the country to ensure that people will become more aware of the incident that occurred. This is intended to force society to recognize how often violence occurs towards women and to appreciate the lives of the women who were killed. Feminism advocates and activists trying to stop violence directed towards women have shown concern about using the massacre to solely represent violence against women. The day is aimed to examine the power dynamics between men and women. The news took the ascribed perspective of the killer having mental problems. This effectively dismissed feminist analyses stating that the killer went to this extent to proclaim his anti-feminist opinion. Every act that exists on the spectrum of violence against women happens due to women being viewed as less human than men. That is why the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Woman stands for more than simply one massacre. It stands for
awareness Awareness is the state of being conscious of something. More specifically, it is the ability to directly know and perceive, to feel, or to be cognizant of events. Another definition describes it as a state wherein a subject is aware of some infor ...
and change against the violence that occurs to women all around the world at the hands of men. Thirty-five percent of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner
sexual violence Sexual violence is any sexual act or attempt to obtain a sexual act by violence or coercion, act to traffic a person, or act directed against a person's sexuality, regardless of the relationship to the victim.World Health Organization., World re ...
, according to the United Nations.


See also

*
International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women The United Nations General Assembly has designated November 25 as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (UN General Assembly Resolution, Resolution 54/134). The premise of list of minor secular observances#November, ...
on November 25 * Public holidays in Canada * Stop Violence Against Women, a campaign of Amnesty International *
White Ribbon Campaign The White Ribbon Campaign (WRC) is a global movement of men and boys working to end male violence against women and girls. It was formed by a group of pro-feminist men in London, Ontario in November 1991 as a response to the École Polytechni ...


References


External links


National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women at Status of Women Canada
* http://www.swc-cfc.gc.ca/commemoration/vaw-vff/remembrance-commemoration-en.html * http://www.osstf11.com/news/event-658.php * https://web.archive.org/web/20141208055319/http://ywcacanada.ca/en/pages/rose/about * {{Authority control 1991 introductions Annual events in Canada December observances Feminist protests Violence against women in Canada Winter events in Canada 1991 establishments in Canada