Today, we are unveiling our national Rose Campaign to end violence against women, girls and gender diverse people. With gender-based violence at crisis levels in Canada, the campaign—created in remembrance of the 14 women murdered at École Polytechnique on December 6, 1989—invites collective action and systemic change.
The campaign kicks off with our National Advocacy Summit in Ottawa from November 18–20, which brings together dozens of YWCA leaders from nearly every province and territory. The summit will map a bold advocacy and policy agenda centered on justice, safety and equity.
The campaign launch will culminate with the hybrid in-person and online event The Walrus Talks: Ending Gender-Based Violence at the National Gallery on November 19 at 7PM ET. The event is expected to draw hundreds live and thousands more. Learn more or register here.
”YWCA Canada has been on the frontlines of gender-based violence for over 150 years. We are currently facing a gender-based violence epidemic in this country and can hardly keep up with the need. But this can be a turning point,” says Aline Nizigama. “Share the campaign, tune into the event, take action. This ends when we all begin—one voice, one rose, one action at a time.”
Get Involved
- Share the campaign on social media. Find us on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn. And help spread the message using #YWCARoseCampaign.
- Take action by visiting the campaign webpage and tell us how you’ll begin.
- Donate. Your generosity helps fund trauma informed programs, advocacy and support for survivors and the children. If you’d like to contribute to the efforts of your local YWCA member association, please find your community YWCA here.
- Share a rose online on December 6 (Canada’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women): download the rose visual and post it on your social media in solidarity and raise awareness.
Stats and Facts: Gender-Based Violence in Canada
- Organizations across the country observe November as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
- A woman or girl is killed every 48 hours. 1 in every 5 victims killed is Indigenous (Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability).
- Of these femicides, 93% were committed by a male intimate partner or a family member of the victim (WAGE).
- A woman is killed by a former or current intimate partner every 4.2 days (ACWS).
- In 2024, 187 women and girls were killed in Canada. (Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability).
- Half of victims were killed by a current/former intimate partner and another 28% were killed by another family member. 77% of these women/girls were killed in a private location, such as their own home (Provincial Association of Transition Houses and Services of Saskatchewan)
- At least 154 children were left without mothers in 2024 due to femicide (Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability).
- Over 1,000 women are turned away from violence against women (VAW) shelters every day due to capacity issues (Fred Victor). Of those who manage to secure a temporary shelter bed, approximately 1 in 5 eventually return to live with their abuser (Statistics Canada, 2019).
- In Ontario alone, 106 Municipalities have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic (Building a Bigger Wave).
