We are proud to say that on November 7th, 2023 the City of Greater Sudbury unanimously voted to join over 60 other municipalities across the province in declaring intimate partner violence (IPV) an epidemic.
“By declaring gender-based and intimate partner violence an epidemic, Greater Sudbury has joined municipal governments across the province in recognizing survivors and advocating for change,”
Paul Lefebvre, City of Greater Sudbury Mayor
Mayor Lefebvre follows by saying, “The city calls on the provincial and federal governments to provide the necessary support to the emergency, social services, health care agencies and police services to meaningfully address the gender-based violence and intimate partner violence epidemic.”
In the past 49 weeks, the Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses (OAITH) has tracked 55 confirmed femicides across Ontario (not including unconfirmed cases still under investigation). They are set to release their annual femicide report on November 25th, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Last year, from Nov 2021 – Nov 2022, OAITH recorded 52 femicides. That’s one woman murdered each week in our province. Tragically, this year we have already surpassed that number.
These are however not just statistics, they are lives lost that have impacted and devastated families, friends, and communities. After the triple femicide of Anastasia Kuzyk, Carol Culleton, and Nathalie Warmerdam, the first recommendation to come from what is widely known as the Renfrew County Inquest was a call to formally declare Intimate Partner Violence as an epidemic.
November is National Women Abuse Prevention Month. This commemorative month aims to promote education and prevention, support survivors, and advocate for policies to combat domestic violence.
“Declaring IPV an epidemic is saying we take it seriously, that we can now leverage more policies that will work toward eliminating IPV. We need more prevention programs for boys and girls; more counselling for survivors and perpetrators, and the children who get caught in the crossfire; and we need to start funding shelters.”
Marlene Gorman, Executive Director of YWCA Sudbury Genevra House