Statement on the Mass Murders of April 18 & 19

For the past week, we have shared in the collective grief, confusion and anger that Nova Scotians – and people across Canada – are experiencing. We again express our most sincere sympathies to the victims’ families, friends and communities. Our thoughts are also with the survivors of this tragedy.

Words like “random”, “senseless”, “unpredictable” have abounded in the recent days’ media accounts but many of us were hearing rumours that the tragic events followed a familiar pattern. And now the RCMP has confirmed what many suspected. The murder of 22 innocent people was rooted in the violence that is, sadly, prevalent in the experiences of many of the women we have worked with over more than three decades. Misogyny, or the hatred of women, has been linked to our nation’s most horrific mass murders including the 1989 massacre of 14 women at Montreal’s École Polytechnique; the murder of 10 women and two men in 2018’s ‘Toronto Van Attack’; and, now, in this most recent tragedy in Nova Scotia. We hear officials repeat phrases like “It is impossible to know what was going through the killer’s mind,” and “The motive remains unclear,” but we do know the patterns and the facts that emerge following these incidents. Domestic or intimate partner violence typically precedes mass tragedy and further investigation of these perpetrators often reveals long histories of misogynistic behaviours and attitudes.

Some may feel that it is ‘too soon’ to be shining a light on the connection between last weekend’s massacre and misogyny but it is an ongoing emergency that must be addressed. Every 2.5 days, a Canadian woman or girl is murdered, most often by a man. Each week, on average, one women is killed by her male partner. The hatred of women that leads to violence and eventual homicide is known as ‘femicide’ and must become part of our vocabulary and we must ramp up our actions to bring an end to it. As isolated as large scale tragedies such as this week’s may seem, there are societal and systemic conditions that lend themselves to this unspeakable violence.

In the days, months and years to come, we will continue to support survivors and victims. And we renew our commitment to working to combat the existing systems and biases that contribute to hatred of and violence against women and girls.

Again, our thoughts and sympathies are with all those affected by this tragedy and we honour all those lost:

Tom Bagley

Kristen Beaton

Greg Blair

Jamie Blair

Joy Bond

Peter Bond

Corrie Ellison

Gina Goulet

Dawn Gulenchyn

Frank Gulenchyn

Lillian Hyslop

Alanna Jenkins

Lisa McCully

Sean McLeod

Heather O’Brien

Jolene Oliver

Cst. Heidi Stevenson

Aaron Tuck

Emily Tuck

Joey Webber

John Zahl

In grief and solidarity,

Sheri Lecker, Executive Director

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