WHY - THIS SITE IS IMPORTANT

The way we remember those we have lost to violence mirrors the depth to which we value the living, inspiring us to prevent further violence.

Winds of change

When fourteen women were murdered at the University of Montreal on December 6th, 1989, there was a huge public outcry. Canada became the first country in the world to build memorials specifically to women who were murdered. Memorial organizers and supporters were determined to cut through the denial of violence in our society, to remember the women we have lost instead of those who killed them.

Lending a hand

Living in a world where women are tortured and murdered simply because they are women harms and demoralizes us all, but we can make a difference by supporting efforts of resistance.

Memorial makers need our support. Although Canada now has over fifty women's memorials and marches protesting the murder of women, their creation is far from easy. The outcry as they come into being - including death threats, attacks in the press and on radio, refusal of funds and public ridicule - occurs because the memorials draw attention to a war that is not over, exposing violence against women.

It is our hope that the website will accelerate global consciousness of violence against women by publicizing memorial events, linking activists from around the world and bringing the crime of femicide further into the open. Sometimes by facing the worst we become empowered to do our best.