The Advocacy Committee met on October 16 and decided to proceed with these initiatives:

1. The Aging and Long-Term Care working group will focus on the 2025 Ontario Council resolution to urge the province to establish a Seniors’ Advocate.
2. A new working group will investigate the current local status of housing.
3. The Winter Clothing Drive and the Tiny Acts of Kindness drives will support the Tiny Home Takeout and its Bell Tower Resource Room.
4. The “Walk to Break the Silence”, Nov. 22 at 1pm, will raise funds for Anselma House and Haven House of the Women’s Crisis Services of Waterloo Region.
5. A December 6^th Vigil will be held to commemorate the 14 women who were killed on December 6, 1989 at École Polytechnique in Montreal.

Upcoming Ontario Council Speaker Series:

• Sat., Nov. 29 – “The Role of Patriarchy: Historical Perspectives & Current Issues”

To register, go to cfuwontcouncil àEventsàSpeaker Series.

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence

November 15 – December 10

The "16 Days of Activism", an annual international campaign, starts on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and ends on Human Rights Day. The campaign aims to raise awareness, call for action, and renew commitments to end violence against women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ individuals.  

Gender-based violence takes on many forms:

•       Domestic violence or intimate partner violence
•       Sexual harassment or assault
•       Child marriage
•       Psychological or emotional abuse
•       Human trafficking
•       Financial/economic abuse
•       Stalking
•       Femicide
•       Female genital cutting/mutilation
•       Online/digital violence

Ways to Take Action

• Donate to or volunteer at a women’s shelter, sexual assault or crisis centre, or an Indigenous women’s support centre.
• Read the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls’ Calls for Justice and consider how you can act on them.
• Wear purple on November 25, International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, to raise awareness.
• Wear a white ribbon and attend a vigil on December 6.
• Write a letter to your representatives urging them to stand against violence against women, harassment, and toxicity in politics.
• Write an op-ed or letter to the editor to raise awareness about gender-based violence and ways to combat it.