Cormack views December 6th as a "reminder that we need to resolve to end violence against women"

EDMONTON - The AFL will commemorate December 6th by holding an annual workshop to strategize concrete actions to eliminate violence against women.

This year will mark the 11th anniversary of the massacre of 14 women at L'ecole Polytechnique in Montreal. The women, all engineering students, were killed by a gunman on December 6, 1989.

"It is important that we honor these young women. Their deaths now symbolize the experience of so many women whose lives have been shattered by gender-based violence," says AFL President, Audrey Cormack.

"Each year, this day serves as a reminder that we need to resolve to end violence against women," says Cormack.

Cormack adds, "when 51% of Canadian women are victims of violence, it sends a clear message that there is still a lot of work to be done."

Since 1990, the Alberta Federation of Labour's Women's Committee has made a commitment to holding annual workshops to develop practical strategies that address the problem of violence against women. This year's workshop, "Action and Healing: It Starts With You" will be held on December 7th in Calgary.

"By bringing men and women together in these workshops to look at ways to end this violence, we are creating change. We are, in effect, giving people the tools they need to actively fight violence against women," says Cormack.

"It is through education, activism and collective action that we can begin to make some inroads - for the prevention and elimination of all forms of violence against women," says Cormack.


For further information contact:

Audrey M. Cormack, President   @   499-6530 (cell) / 483-3021 (wk) / 428-9367 (hm)


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