On Dec. 6, 1989, Lauren Tribe was studying at Western when 14 women were murdered in a mass shooting at École Polytechnique in Montreal. Another 14 people were injured. The perpetrator screamed that he was fighting feminism.
Now a Western engineering professor, Tribe is leading efforts to mark the 35th anniversary of the tragedy, engaging students, faculty and staff in a unique memorial to pay tribute to the lives lost.
“The victims were loved. They were sisters, daughters. A lot of these women at École Polytechnique, they were just about to graduate, some had interviews lined up for the following week. There is such a loss of opportunity,” Tribe said.
“Ending violence against women and girls is not just a women’s issue. It’s a whole society issue. We need everybody involved – everybody can help.” – Lauren Tribe, Western engineering professor
Fifteen silhouettes were cut, painted and installed outside the Spencer Engineering Building in honour of the 14 victims at École Polytechnique and Lynda Shaw, a Western mechanical engineering student who was murdered in 1990.
It’s one of several displays – including hand-painted posters Tribe designed and installed inside Western engineering buildings – to ensure everyone is engaged in the conversation about ending violence against women.
“This is an issue right here in London, Ont. People who haven’t been directly impacted by it don’t think it’s prevalent. It needs to be stopped,” Tribe said.
Western is part of a group of community organizations and advocates marking the grim anniversary on Dec. 6, now known as Canada’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.
The Faculty of Engineering is hosting its annual vigil online at 10 a.m., with the theme “Looking Back, Looking Forward.” Local agencies in London, Ont. are running an early morning event at Goodwill Industries at 7:45 a.m., followed by an evening candlelight vigil in Victoria Park at 5:30 p.m.
“Violence against women is a pervasive reality and a social problem. It looms in the mind of any woman who is trying to chart her path home after dark, make decisions about whom to trust or just live her life day to day,” said Tracy Isaacs, special advisor to the provost on gender-based and sexual violence.
“When students, staff and faculty come together to acknowledge that and to commit to actions that will shift the culture of misogyny, we can make our campus, and indeed the world beyond its borders, a safer place for all of us.”
Western’s role in ending gender-based violence
Western is a hub of research, training and advocacy to drive change on gender-based violence. Its Centre for Research & Education on Violence Against Women & Children (CREVAWC) was formed after the events of Dec. 6, 1989.
An expert panel released a report on the École Polytechnique tragedy, recommending more community and research collaborations, among other directives.
CREVAWC answered the call in 1992, the result of a partnership between Western, Fanshawe College and the London Coordinating Committee to End Women Abuse. It has been part of Western’s Faculty of Education since 2001.
Despite decades of award-winning work – and meaningful progress – women continue to be killed by their intimate partners across the country.
“The tragedy at the École Polytechnique is part of our history, but Canada’s femicide list is part of our present. Women are still vulnerable and die because they are women. Indigenous women and girls are four times more likely to be victims of femicide. All this to say: there is still work to do,” Isaacs said.
The vigil at Western on Dec. 6 will include photos of women who were killed by their partners, as well as “pledge hands” – hand shapes cut from card stock where students, staff, faculty and others from engineering schools across Canada write pledges to end violence against women.
Dec. 6 memorial ‘a group effort’
Tribe hopes the silhouettes, posters and pledges will drive curiosity and then, action.
“If people are a little more aware and open their eyes a bit, it’s a starting point. They have an opportunity to volunteer, go to a vigil, support a friend or family member or sign a pledge.”
Many volunteers helped to create the memorial and prepare for the Dec. 6 event.
After Tribe sketched out a silhouette of a woman and made a life-size paper version, University Machine Services jumped on board by making a template. The wood was ordered and a co-op student cut out 15 silhouettes using the template.
Lauren Tribe (Christopher Kindratsky/Western Communications)
Engineering students and staff stopped by Tribe’s lab every Tuesday afternoon for sanding, painting and varnishing.
“That was one of the best things about this display, it’s been a group effort,” Tribe said.
Engineering students are passionate about ending violence against women, as well as equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in the field, she added.
“Even though this is a day mainly remembered in the engineering program, I hope more than just engineering students, staff and faculty learn about the tragic history,” said Eesha Sharma, vice-president of advocacy with Western’s Undergraduate Engineering Society.
“This goes much further than engineering; gender-based violence happens everywhere. I also hope to see more men present at the ceremony. It is very common for women in engineering to be present and interacting in the ceremony, but having the support and willingness to learn from men is what makes true change.”
Sharma will emcee the Dec. 6 vigil.
“We are looking back to remember those lives. They meant something,” Tribe said of the 14 women. “They would be about my age, may even have had kids that went through engineering programs.”
The 35th anniversary sparked a wider Western-led video project, with mother and daughter pairs who are engineering students or graduates – from universities across the country – reflecting on the day and its meaning. Some, like Susan and Samantha Goertz, are Western alumni.
“I felt a calling to be more involved in the women in engineering space,” Samantha, BEng’24, said after attending her first vigil honouring the victims of Dec. 6 while studying at Western.
This year, that vigil continues, alongside other initiatives to draw attention to the larger societal issues.
“I hope our efforts lead to some action, that people are aware there is continuing violence against women and we all have a part to play to stop it,” Tribe said.
“We can do something and we can prevent it.”
Remembering the 14 women killed on Dec. 9, 1989:
Geneviève Bergeron
Hélène Colgan
Nathalie Croteau
Barbara Daigneault
Anne-Marie Edward
Maud Haviernick
Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz
Maryse Laganière
Maryse Leclair
Anne-Marie Lemay
Sonia Pelletier
Michèle Richard
Annie St-Arneault
Annie Turcotte
