Message from Ettie Rutherford

Ontario Provincial Representative, Congress of Black Women of Canada

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Violence against Women

 

On December 6, 1989 fourteen women were killed in Montreal by a murderer who drove the men out of a University of Montreal classroom so that he could assassinate only women.

Consequently, December 6 marks the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women.

During this time our thoughts turn to the fact that in Canada an average of 182 women are killed annually.51 % of Canadian women have been victims of at least one act of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16, plus the fact that in 2000,women made up 86% of the victims of violence. Our Black women are part of those statistics. Violence, including sexual violence against women and girls, is a reality in all communities so why do we believe that we are immune from this assumption of power by our men?

 

Strangely enough   although the media and ongoing facts make us aware of violent young men in our own community we tend to pretend that violence against women does not exist because, as is the case with so many other ills, some of us believe that by ignoring the facts the issue will disappear or at least will exonerate us from dealing with this dilemma in a meaningful way. Do we really believe that our young men who kill each other out of anger and misplaced feelings of power are not abusive to the women and children in their families? Do we really believe that the silence among our women and girls means that there is an absence of violence among us? Our community, as well as religious and educational institutions have been noticeable silent on this topic, and yet we will openly discuss the horror of violence if a man is brutalized in a gang or by the police .

 

Why the silence concerning spousal and child abuse?  Do our women not bleed? Do they not deserve the protection of the law and of the community?  Do they not deserve to be treated with love and respect?

Yes they do. They are our mothers, daughters, sisters, nieces, extended family, neighbors   and the very backbone of every household.

 

Since assault in the family is a crime and a health hazard we need to arm our women with information about the justice system, the role of the police, the impact of violence on our children, the availability of shelters and other community resources ,as well as  specific strategies for safety and survival.

 

As a dedicated women’s organization we in the Congress need to assume an active role and denounce the dastardly acts of violence against our women and girls.

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It is not a matter of “should we?” as much as a matter of “why don’t we?”

It is our obligation to do some meaningful intervention in this area because the research shows that in the last five years violence against women and girls have increased by 120 % because of the rise of violence on television, in popular lyrics, as well as on the Internet .and lest we forget…..Statistics show that 33% of teenage girls report experiencing physical abuse form their boyfriends.

Bear in mind that women’s and girls’ safety is not a luxury. It is a human right.

So let us educate our respective communities about this evil among us and provide a comfort zone so that women will feel comfortable in confiding in even one person in the Congress who can support them in the struggle for safety, self esteem and the dignity that they deserve.

 

May God bless us all and give courage to those in the struggle so that they will be able to go forth and seek needed  support.

In Sisterhood We Can Be Strong!