December 6th marked the 26th anniversary of the Montreal Massacre, when a gunman attacked the Ecole Polytechnique engineering school, killing 14 women. The man claimed he was “fighting feminism.” Canada created the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women to commemorate the tragedy and promote efforts to combat violence against women. The Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau stated, “We all have an important role to play in stopping violence against women and girls, and in denouncing misogyny in all its forms.”
This year’s event brought attention to the large number of missing and murdered aboriginal women in Canada. A federal inquiry into these deaths and disappearances is expected to launch in the spring of 2016.
Compiled from: Shulman, Michael, Ceremonies across Canada mark 26th anniversary of Montreal Massacre, CTVNews (December 6, 2015).