White Ribbon Day

 Tel Aviv, Israel Hundreds of red shoes are displayed during a protest in Habima Square calling for an end to violence against women   

November 25 was the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women^. The premise of the day is to raise awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to rape, domestic violence and other forms of violence. While the scale and true nature of the issue is often hidden the United Nations estimates that 50,000 women are killed by partners every year. November 25th to December 10th (Human Rights Day) are sixteen days of awareness on this important issue.

 

In Canada the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, also known informally as White Ribbon Day, is a day commemorated in Canada on December 6th.This is the anniversary of the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre, in which an armed male student (I won't use his name) murdered fourteen women and injured ten others in the name of "fighting feminism."

For years I wore a white ribbon on this day and we made them available in congregations I served. While we have allowed this initiative to fade away, the cause is still just as important and immediate. 

We might all take a moment today to pray for those women whose lives are in peril because of brutality within their own homes, in their workplaces, or simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Religion has a lot to answer for in the denigration of women through the centuries but we also have the opportunity as people of faith to provide safe places and support for those who are vulnerable. 

  

Women's shoes displayed to represent missing Aboriginal women