Several local organizations are holding events at Vancouver Island University as part of 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.
Melissa Stephens, chairperson for VIU Faculty Association's women and gender equity committee, said some of the issues her group is focusing on this year include transphobia, violence against gender-diverse people, and the toxic drug crisis. The committee is also hosting a focusing on Sudan and grassroots organizing for liberation.
"These 16 days are a concentrated period of time where we have an opportunity to collaborate, and we have been collaborating with the student union and with local organizations that support the elimination of gender-based violence and advocate for gender-diverse people who are disproportionately exposed to violence," Stephens explained.
Some of the events include ',' an intersectional analysis of the root causes and impacts of the toxic drug crisis; for the Haven Society wish list; and a vigil for the .
"It's going to, of course, observe the 14 women killed in 1989," Stephens said, "but we are also really focusing on some really current issues around sexual health education, digital violence as well as missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls as well as two-spirit individuals. We hope to address transphobia, genocide and a range of other issue. There will be pledges, vigil, several guest speakers, bannock served, [and] several information tables from local organizations."
In 2023, of the potential for "serious violence" from the "anti-gender movement," following an attack earlier that year at the University of Waterloo, where a 24-year-old graduate entered a gender studies class and stabbed a professor and two students with a kitchen knife.
CSIS defines the "anti-gender movement" as "the ideological opposition to the socio-cultural shifts that are represented by the integration and acceptance of gender theory, including acceptance of the 2SLGBTQIA-plus community."
"CSIS assesses that the violent threat posed by the anti-gender movement is almost certain to continue over the coming year," the agency noted.
In an interview with the B次元官网网址 Bulletin, KJ Reed, a professor with VIU's studies in women and gender, brought particular attention to the levels of harassment and violence directed at transgender individuals in the current social climate.
"When CSIS is coming out with that statement, that's of very significant concern to trans communities," they explained.
"Trans and gender diverse people in Canada are significantly more likely than cisgender people to have experienced physical or sexual assault since the age of 15, so 59 per cent of trans folks versus 37 per cent of cisgender folks. Trans people are more likely to experience online harassment, and harassment at work and violence, more so than cisgender people."
In B.C. specifically, approximately six in 10 trans youths reported being discriminated against because of their gender, according to the published this November. Twenty-seven per cent of British Columbia trans and non-binary youths surveyed felt unsafe at school.
"When you have trans youths being limited where they feel safe, it really curtails their participation in public. If you don't feel safe in your local community centre for using the gym or going to the mall or finding a place to use the washroom, having to limit your day [with the question of] where are safe places."
The event started last month and continues until Tuesday, (Dec. 10). A full schedule of events can be All events are open to the public.
