What’s Current: Montreal Massacre 26th anniversary memorialized across Canada

A light show at the top of Mont Royal featured 14 beams of light to honour the 14 women killed on December 6, 1989. (via CTV News)
A light show at the top of Mont Royal featured 14 beams of light to honour the 14 women killed on December 6, 1989. (via CTV News)

Polytechnique massacre 26th anniversary memorialized in Montreal.

University of Ottawa law professor, Elizabeth Sheehy, spoke at a vigil hosted by the Bernadette McCann House for Women on Sunday, in recognition of National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. She concluded her talk by pointing to some ways individuals can help in the effort to reduce and eliminate violence against women:

“Men can reject pornography and prostitution as practices that normalize and even glorify violence against women. Men can oppose the so-called ‘men’s rights movement’ —  after all, [Montreal Massacre perpetrator] Mark Lépine was one of them, as it attacks and tries to defund our efforts to combat violence against women…

…Women need to be heard, believed and affirmed in their fear. Seek help for yourself, seek support for yourself… Remember that you’ve likely only heard the tip of the iceberg when a woman discloses, as many battered women either traumatically bury the worst or hold back from inflicting the information on their loved ones. Lastly, don’t offload her safety onto her. No woman can keep herself safe alone. It takes a community.”

Vancouver Rape Relief & Women’s Shelter held their annual Montreal Massacre Memorial even on Saturday. Collective member and front-line worker, Louisa Russell, told CKNW, “We’re demonstrating in a plethora of ways the many creative, bold, bright moves that women have taken this year to resist male violence.”

“Beat writer pedophiles and the white male leftists who love them.” Ginsberg, Burroughs, Bukowski: These men are celebrated as progressive iconoclasts of sexual freedom. But the freedom they fought for seems relegated to male sexual entitlement and normalization of sexual violence at the expense of the young and vulnerable.

Jimmy Carter declared free from brain cancer!

Jimmy Carter’s recent TED Talk: “Why I believe the mistreatment of women is the number one human rights abuse.”

Man rapes 28-day-old baby girl in India.

Tehran Symphony Orchestra leaves stage rather than bow to demand to ban female members.

Carol, a film depicting a lesbian relationship, dominates at New York film critics circle awards.

Susan Cox

Susan Cox is a feminist writer and academic living in the United States. She teaches in Philosophy.