Nov. 25 to Dec. 6 marks the annual 16 Days of Activism against gender violence.
Despite the United Nations declaration of the elimination of violence against women in 1993, violence and abuse directed at women and girls continues. Recent events in the media have brought the issue of gender violence in Canada into public attention. Staggering numbers of women are coming forward, tweeting about or otherwise disclosing stories of abuse, most of them unreported officially.
The situation in B.C. is no different.
More than half the women in B.C. have experienced physical or sexual violence since the age of 16. That’s more than one million women. Every year in B.C. there are more than 60,000 physical or sexual assaults against women, almost all of them committed by men.
For Aboriginal women, those numbers are even higher. In a report released on May 16, the RCMP identified that 1,017 indigenous women and girls were murdered between 1980 and 2012 and that 164 cases of missing indigenous women and girls remain unresolved.
Children too are victimized by abuse. It is estimated that every year 800,000 children witness their mothers being abused and 30 to 40 per cent of those children experience direct physical abuse themselves.
Our community is not immune to violence against women. Applying national statistics to the Sunshine Coast, out of every five women you know, at least two have likely been subjected to abuse in some form.
Last year Yew Transition House alone received 846 calls on its 24-hour access line. Other services, too, are in constant demand as women deal with the impact of abuse on their lives and the lives of their children.
Sunshine Coast Community Services Society offers several free and confidential support programs for women and children who have experienced violence. If you are being or have been abused, please call. You are not alone. It is not your fault. If you know of women who are experiencing or have experienced abuse, please give out these numbers and speak up for women’s safety when you can.
Yew Transition House 604-885-2944 (24- hour line)
Women’s Counselling 604-865-0105
Women’s Outreach 604-741-5246
Community Based Victim Services 604-885-0322
St. Mary’s Hospital Sexual Assault Services (ER)
The 16 Days of Activism will close at a vigil on Dec. 6 at 5 p.m. at Kinsmen Hall in Dougall Park in Gibsons organized by the Sunshine Coast Labour Council. Everyone is welcome.
— Submitted by the Sunshine Coast Prevention of Violence Against Women In Relationships Coordinating Committee
