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National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women 2022

December 6, 2022

On December 6, the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission observes the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. The day was established by the Parliament of Canada to mark the 1989 mass shooting at l’École Polytechnique de Montréal that took the lives of 14 young women.

Every year on this date, we wear white ribbons in remembrance of: 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.

As we remember these women and mourn their loss, it is important to keep in mind that for countless women, girls, 2SLGBTQIA+, and gender diverse individuals violence remains a daily reality.

Gender-based violence has no place in our society. It damages mental and physical health, has a negative effect on the economy, prevents equal participation in public life, and affects all social, economic, and cultural groups,

In as much as National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women is a day of remembrance, it is also a day for each of us to reflect on what we can do, the actions we can take, to eliminate gender-based violence and help create a society in which everyone feels safe and is afforded the opportunity to reach their full potential. We all benefit when women and girls are free from violence and can live their lives to the fullest.

We all have a role to play in fostering a culture of respect, defending women’s rights, and ending gender-based violence.