National day of remembrance & action on violence against women

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27 years ago in Montreal 14 people were killed simply because they were women and for many, it’s more than some long ago tragedy, it’s still an every day worry.

Olga Kulikovsky was abused by her ex-husband, controlled for 25 years. She was isolated from friends and family and was not allowed to drive.
“I didn’t even realize that I was being abused because he didn’t do anything physically but now I realize that the definition of violence is mental, psychological as well as physical.”

This past year in the city of Hamilton 110 women and 174 children fleeing violence came to the Martha house, a Good Shepherd emergency shelter to escape abuse. Hamilton police say they respond to nearly 20 domestic abuse calls every day of the week.

The director of the sexual assault centre in Hamilton says violence fuelled by misogyny persists and when political figures like Donald Trump brag about groping women, it allows a culture for domestic violence to continue. “The concern is obviously what kind of permission that attitude gives are we taking 20 steps back.” Lenore Lukasik.

But Olga has hope through her children, “I have 4 teenage boys and they talk to each other and say hey that’s not cool,” and it’s hoped that kind of dialogue will lead to bigger changes.