Not such a long way after all, baby.

YWCA : “December 6, our National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women is a day to remember not only 14 young women who were killed for choosing to fulfill a professional dream, but all women who have died as a result of violence. It is a day for Canadians to reflect and work towards ensuring the safety of women and girls in their communities.”

G&M : “YWCA Canada has launched a national “Rose Button” campaign calling for a federal strategy to stop violence against women.
Paulette Senior, the group’s CEO, said a “major societal shift” is needed to end the problem.
Ms. Senior is calling on Canadians to e-mail their members of Parliament a virtual rose on Dec. 6 – the ninth anniversary of the Montreal massacre, in which gunman Marc Lépine shot 14 women dead.”

The G&M article, which incorrectly moves the date of the Montreal massacre up ten years, goes on to provide some statistics :
“the medical costs of violence against women at $1.1-billion a year, plus $4-billion annually for criminal justice, social services, and lost productivity.
• More than 31,000 incidents of spousal violence against women were reported to police in 2006. It’s estimated that over 70 per cent of incidents go unreported.
• Women are more likely than men to be the victims of the most severe forms of partner abuse, such as homicide, sexual assault and stalking.
• Almost 40 per cent of women in Canada who reported assault by a partner said their children witnessed the violence and the woman feared for their lives in half those cases.
“To prevent violence before it starts, it must be treated as unacceptable behaviour whenever and wherever it occurs,” says a YWCA statement.”
Whenever and wherever it occurs…

The G&M article, as of this writing, is followed by 75 reader’s comments of which the overwhelming majority complain of a “Canadian neo-Matriarchy” and “RadFem LGBT FASCISTS”. Women start the fights and assault men just as often, they say. A comment that all violence regardless of gender is bad is met with the response “Man hater!” There are calls for a reduction in funding to both the YWCA and womens’ shelters on the grounds they are unfair to men.

Dear G&M commenters : In the 19 years since the Montreal massacre, many of you do not appear to have come a long way, baby. And so we continue to mark this day and will continue to do so every year until you catch up.

Written by;
Alison@Creekside