During 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, from November 25 to December 10, we call on everyone to take action.

Today is a national day of mourning.

Today is a national day of action.

Today we remember all women, Two Spirit folks, and gender diverse folks killed by misogynist violence.

Today we remember Saengduean Honchaiyaphum killed by her ex-husband in Faro, Yukon last October.

Today we remember the intersections of violence that collide to make the oppressed even more vulnerable.

Today we remember the fourteen women killed at École Polytechnique 32 years ago.

Today we remember the overwhelming number of Indigenous women, girls, and Two Spirit folks that are abused, disappeared, or murdered each year.

Today we name colonialism, that never stopped, that is ongoing.

Today we fight for Indigenous sovereignty.

Today we remember the transwomen who we have lost to the dangerous combination of misogyny and trans hatred and often racism as well.

Today we recommit to action.

Today we recommit to learning and unlearning.

Today we recommit to taking care of each other.

Today we recommit to taking care of ourselves.

Today we fight to end systems of oppression.

Today we recommit to seeing and naming anti-feminist misogynist violence.

Every day our actions create communities based on love, healing, equity, and consent.

Preventable deaths

Femicide is preventable. We need to be able to recognize the warning signs and to take action.

Helping a Friend

Since most survivors never tell a helping professional, friends have a huge role to play in increasing safety and offering support to folks who are in abusive relationships.

When a friend trusts us with their story it’s important to:

• Believe them.

• Let them know it’s not their fault. They did not cause the assault.

• Listen. Listen. Listen. This can be really difficult as we want to jump in and help, but please sit with them and listen. It can be a really big gift to your friend.

• Validate what ever feelings they are having. There is no right or wrong way to feel after an assault.

• Ask their permission before doing research or sharing their story. Sexual assault takes a tremendous amount of power away from survivors. Trusting survivors to make their own decisions after an assault is key.

• Ask if they’d like to explore options instead of giving advice. Avoid ‘shoulds’ , ‘musts’, and pressuring your friend to do what you think is right. Survivors get to choose what happens next. You can ask if they would like more information about getting medial care, collecting evidence, or reporting options, and as supporters, we have to be OK with the possibility of hearing ‘no’. Get to know the resources that they might need. Click here to learn about Dawson City helpers.

• Get support for yourself. It can be tremendously hard to sit with a friend who has been hurt. You deserve support too. The tricky part can be getting confidential support. You’re the expert at taking care of yourself and know that DWS’ 24 Hour Support Line has got your back to help to brainstorm resources and with confidential supportive listening - 867.993.5086.

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