16 Days of Activism: Society Becoming More Aware of Violence Against Women
– November 25th of this year marks the beginning of 16 days of activism denouncing violence against women. It is an opportunity to raise awareness of this situation that many women are still living with today. Women continue to be victims of violence simply because they are women. In Canada, a woman is killed by her partner or former partner every 6 days. Furthermore, women are 11 times more likely than men to be victims of sexual violence.
“Sexist violence exists and it is often trivialized. The attacks are minimized and the voices of victims are often questioned. But the current wave of survivors speaking out on their own personal experiences shows that it is a collective problem which asks for a social and political answer”, mentioned Rose Viel, Executive Director of Centr’Elles.
These stories in the media have started a debate in Canada, which has started to become more aware of the scale of violence against women. Thanks to the movements such as #metoo, the survivors of sexual violence have started breaking their silence and denounce the violence they have lived. This movement was created to answer the judicial system which does not adequately meet the needs of victims. The debate on sexual violence has been taking place on social media and in traditional media alike. This has led to the creation of bill C-337 which establishes a compulsory training regarding sexual violence for future judges in Canada.
“It is a positive development. We look forward to the adoption of this bill in order to make the judicial system better equipped to handle cases of sexual violence. The training will allow judges to have a better understanding of the impact of sexual violence on victims. The training is a key step to avoid the re-victimization of women during the criminal process ” – Maïra Martin, Chief Executive O cer of Action ontarienne contre la Violence faite aux Femmes (AOcVF).
Let us remember that the 16 days of activism against violence against women begins on November 25th, International Day for the elimination of Violence against Women. Ending on December 10th, International Human Rights Day. These 16 days also includes the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on December 6th. the TBay Women’s Action Network are planning
different activities during the 16 Days of Activism.
These activities can be found on Facebook: 16 Days of Activism
