‘This is happening here’: Manitoba grapples with domestic violence on day of remembrance

On National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, advocates are speaking up, as gender-based violence continues to climb in Manitoba.

It’s a day of mourning, a day of remembrance, and a day of action.

On National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, advocates are speaking up, as gender-based violence continues to climb in Manitoba.

Angela Braun, executive director of Genesis House, an emergency shelter for Southern Manitoba families experiencing abuse, told Global Winnipeg it’s an issue that hits much closer to home than some might think.

In February, the province was shaken by the news that a man from the Carman area was charged with the murders of his common-law partner, their three young children, and his teenage niece, a series of events described by premier Wab Kinew as a “dark time” for Manitoba.

“I think most of the time, there is a sense in the community that it’s not happening here because it’s not front and centre,” Braun said.

“And I think that has been pulled back on this family and on this community and in our whole service area — that this is happening here, and in the most devastating way possible, where a whole family was lost to domestic violence.”

Braun said for many years, the statistic that was frequently cited was that once every six days, a woman or girl was murdered by a family member. Those numbers, she said, have increased dramatically.

“At this point, we’re talking about every other day. Every other day, a woman or girl is murdered in Canada by somebody that she should be able to trust,” Braun said.