It’s an anniversary seemingly stuck in time like the vibrant faces of 14 young Québec engineering students.
Thirty-five years ago on a cold December night, a lone gunman stormed into L'École Polytechnique Montréal and murdered 14 women. And although much time has passed, femicide and violence towards women remains a disturbing issue in Canada with rates showing it is only continuing to rise, officials warn.
That’s one of the reasons Huronia Transition Homes will again be hosting a National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women vigil Friday at Operation Grow (436 Bay St. in Midland).
"This vigil is an opportunity for our community to come together in solidarity with those impacted by gender-based violence," Huronia Transition Homes executive director Haily MacDonald said.
"It is a time to reflect on the progress we have made and to renew our commitment to ending all violence against all women."
National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women has occurred every December 6 since that dark 1989 evening to challenge the long-standing complacency towards violence against women and to demand that Canadian citizens collectively hold themselves accountable in working to end this crisis.
Organizers say this year’s event is particularly poignant in light of calls across the province for the government of Ontario to address intimate partner violence, the highest rate of femicide documented since at least 1995.
And just this past summer, Midland resident Julia Brady was the victim of femicide at a Seventh Street residence.
“This is always a powerful event, and this year feels heavier with the femicide of Julia Brady this past summer. It is a stark reminder of the importance of coming together in community to envision and action a future free from violence for all people."
Besides remembering the 14 women murdered at L'École Polytechnique, the vigil, which begins at 6 p.m., also pays homage to the 58 women and five children that have been murdered in Ontario so far this year.
According to the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability, femicide rates have deeply accelerated in the past five years, and in 2024.
So far, this year 167 women and girls have been murdered.
The term femicide was first documented in a book by John Corry in 1801 called A Satirical View of London at the Commencement of the Nineteenth Century when it was used to refer to the killing of a woman.
“It was not until 1976, however, that the term was reintroduced publicly in the modern age by male violence against women feminist pioneer, expert and activist, the late Professor Diana E.H. Russell, at the International Tribunal of Crimes Against Women,” the the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability notes on its website.
“Professor Russell used the term to bring attention to male violence and discrimination against women.”
Following are the names of women and girls murdered so far this year nationally as recorded by the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability.
No name released
Chloé Lauzon Rivard
Tannis Corrigal
Maria Medeiros
No name released
No name released
No name released
No name released
Madisyn Denea
No name released
Narjess Ben Yedder
Tanya Wiebe
No name released
Rommelia Ascuncion
Morgyn Rose Ascuncion-Massicotte
No name released
Amanda Clearwater
Bethany Manoakeesick
Isabella Manoakeesick
Myah-Lee Gratton
Lorraine Marsolais
Renee Marie Laroque
Elisabetta Caucci-Puglisi
Manon Blanchard
No name released
Chelsea Davidenas
Hayette Bouguellid
Navdeep Kaur
Estella Wheeler
Nariman Abdul Alghafour
Darshani Dilanthika Ekanayake
Ashwini Wickramasinghe
Ranaya Wickramasinghe
Kelly Wickramasinghe
Danielle Dobersheck
No name released
Julia MacIsaac
Balwinder Kaur
No name released
Joanne Bender
No name released
Celine-Marie Owens
Louise Houle
No name released
Jennifer Polak
Sharon Brown
Gertrude Cheong
Vanessa Terry
Josianne Faucher
Tatjana Stefanski
Melissa Duquette
Manpreet Kaur
Brianna Hayes
Suzanne Fortin
No name released
Cathy Prosje
Pawitarpreet Kaur Sidhu
Sheri Sabattis
Jo-Anne Patry
No name released
Jennifer Allen
Marie-Claude Raymond
Beverly Constant
No name released
Dona Sajan
Makayla Zanae Roxburgh-Carpino
No name released
Amanda Caza
No name released
Rachel Muswagon
Naima Rezzek
Rihab El-Mahdi
Shannan Leigh Hickey
Brenda Toulejour
Irina Draghicescu
Xavia Skye Lynn Butler
Louise Thompson
Milka Spanovic
Jessica Lynn St. Jules
Judith Organ
Deborah Owen
Tori Dunn
No name released
Samira Yousefi
Alisseaha Golar-Kotlar
Jo-Ann Jackson
Carly Walsh
Madison Walsh
No name released
Thi Trang Do
Cheryl Sheldon
Nora Jean Sumner
Threna Waskahat
No name released
Victoria Dill
No name released
Ashley Isabella Murdock
No name released
Jean McCalla
Margoth Arriaza
Andrieana Montgomery
Julia Brandy
Breanna Broadfoot
Bran Abed
Jaeden Chaisson
Jordan Leinen
No name released
Christine Rogers
Teresa Poirier
Shaylene Johnson Paul
Sarah Prehay
Ying Zhang
Linda Salagan
Christina Tina Louise Mackenzie
Barbara Church
Yuk-Ying (Anita) Mui
Éve Chachai
No name released
No name released
Keilia Windigo
Terrance Tony-Kishayinew
No name released
No name released
Amber Dawn Robson
Jennifer Zabarylo
No name released
Aylissa Rovere
No name released
No name released
Zenada Gula
Jelena Domjanic
No name released
Vanessa Valencia
Xioamei Wang
Kelsey Watt
Lucy Wood
Amanda Keewatin
No name released
Dushi Lakshmanan
No name released
Laurie Crew
Katrina Zwolinski
Trinh Thi Vu
Léonor Geraudie
Vérane Reynaud Geraudie
No name released
Delina Pinksy
Kassidy Ballantyne-Holmes
No name released
Brenda Tatlock-Burke
Khadija Charmant
Brkti Berhe
Baby girl
No name released
No name released
Briannah Clowes
No name released
No name released
Lindsay Danchella
Guangmei Ye
Raven Crate
Jordanna ‘Jo Jo’ Kucher
Parween Adel
Roshnee Gurung
No name released
No name released
Sheila Hercules
