Canada is commemorating the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, marking the 20th anniversary of the Ecole Polytechnique massacre.
On December 6th, 1989, 14 young women were murdered at the school because of their gender and several others were wounded, by a lone gunman.
In Port Elgin, the Southport Club of the Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW) is holding a vigil at 2 Sunday afternoon.
Spokesperson Cheryl Kryzaniwsky says their event will be held at Coulter Parkette in downtown Port Elgin.
Kryzaniwsky says the event will remember those who lost their lives but it will also point out that we haven’t gone very far in eliminating violence against women in the past two decades.
She says a Statistics Canada report just released shows that violence is on the increase against young women, aged 15 to 24.
Kryzaniwsky says politicians must step up to the plate and not just pay “lip service” when dealing with violence against women.
She says everyone, including children, are invited to take part in the service.
She says there will be a couple of speeches but the most poignant part of the afternoon will be when the names of the 14 female students gunned down are read out so they won’t be forgotten.