In 1989 in Montreal, Quebec, fourteen young women were murdered simply because they were women. The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence was instituted across Canada in 1991 to remember the victims and to take action against gender-based violence. Because gender-based violence is woven intrinsically into our culture, and widely represented in popular media, we often encounter it and feel silenced and slighted. Today, let’s claim the right to live free of violence.
Speak up.

Place your fingertips on your throat, and empower yourself:

I use my voice and speak out clearly,
I defend the rights that I hold dearly,
I speak up and take a stand,
For freedom from violence throughout the land.
I speak my truth from deep within me,
Because silence equals complicity.
Silence equals complicity.

Practice the skill of calmly speaking truth to “power.” All women deserve to live safe and free.