Mr. Speaker, today all parties of the House stand in solidarity in the fight to end male violence against women. Today we remember the 14 people who were killed for being women. We also remember the hundreds of women, young and old alike, across Canada who have been hurt or killed.
Violence against women knows no boundaries. It affects women of all regions of the country, of all cultures and all ages. Too many women in this country live with some degree of fear in their daily lives. Until women can live without fearing violence at home and in our communities we have not achieved equality.
Yesterday in Montreal a monument was unveiled in memory of the 14 women killed at the École Polytechnique. The monument is designed to present a shock wave to those who see it because there are those who fear we are forgetting.
Today all of us in the House and all Canadians need to feel that shock wave because 10 years after that violent tragedy violence against women still exists. We must all renew the pledge made eight years ago to remember and to act in solidarity and create policies in the House that work toward ending the root causes of violence against women.