Day 6:
 
Did you know that Peel has services to support Francophone and French-speaking survivors of violence? 
 
The Peel Violence Against Women(VAW)/French Language Services(FLS) Referral Agreement is to support the Region of Peel's agencies in the VAW sectors to work collaboratively to fulfill the requirement of active offer as outlined in Ontario Regulation 284/11 under the French Language Services Act (FLSA). This agreement partners with OASIS centre des femmes and la Maison d'hébergement pour femmes francophone, who are funded by Ontario's Ministry of Community and Social Services which provide services exclusively in French for women and children who have experienced violence.
 
All 12 Peel MCSS-VAW service providers that are partners to this agreement, recognize and respect the rights of all French-speaking women who are survivors of violence and their children who witness violence against women to receive services in their own language. This agreement has been created to ensure and enhance the capacity of all MCSS funded VAW services in Peel to address the needs of francophone women and their children.
 
http://www.pcawa.org/vawfls-referral-agreement.html
 
Take Action:
 
Book a free workshop with the PCAWA Coordinator today about the referral agreement and how to encourage Francophone and French-speaking survivors to come and feel safe in your agency and make referrals to agencies that provide services in French.  This workshop is available to any agency in Peel that may provide services to women who have experienced violence, and after the training, you can become a signatory to the VAW/FLS Referral Agreement.  Contact Paula Lam, PCAWA Coordinator, at pcawa@pcawa.org or 905-823-3441 today.  Training can be done at your agency and is typically 45 min to 1 hour, but is developed based on your needs.
 
PCAWA is also hosting its annual vigil and shoe memorial event in honour of National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on Dec 6th, 2016 from 5-6pm at The Great Hall in Mississauga Civic Centre (300 City Centre Drive, Mississauga).  In our commitment to supporting Francophone and French-speaking women in Peel, we have our event flyers translated in French.  Please share our French language poster for our Dec 6th event and attend our event:
 
http://www.pcawa.org/events.html

Day 5:

Today is “International Women Human Rights Defenders Day,” a day to recognize and protect women human rights defenders. We acknowledge that around the globe, women fighting for all human rights for all people and all activists defending women’s rights face specific violations as a result of their advocacy or their gender. We admire and celebrate these defenders for their great acts of bravery and courageous acts of resistance.

(Source: http://www.defendingwomen-defendingrights.org/)
 
 Take Action:
 
Be an ally and speak out and defend women human rights defenders.  Many people do not realize the gender-specific risk women human rights defenders face or the important work that they do.   Learn more at http://www.defendingwomen-defendingrights.org/ #SheDefends

Day 4:
 
Let’s show our support for women who have made a decision to flee from violence and seek safety

Take Action:
​
Donate to a local women’s shelter, or a cause that focuses on ending violence against women. Support the Wrapped In Courage campaign (http://wrappedincourage.wixsite.com/wrappedincourage) and purchase a purple scarf in Peel from Interim Place (http://www.interimplace.com/) for $15 from Julia Robinson, Development Coordinator, at 905-403-9691 ext. 2223 or development@interimplace.com - Purple pashminas available and limited stock on infinity scarves.

Day 3:

Every six days, a woman is killed by an intimate partner.

Statistics Canada data shows that the number of women murdered by a current or former partner fluctuates each year, but works out to about one homicide every six days.

(Source: http://canadianwomen.org/blog/10-reasons-violence-still-a-problem)

Although an abused woman does not have control over her ex-partner, or partner's violence, it is possible to increase her and her children's safety. Creating a safety plan involves identifying action steps to increase your safety, and preparing in advance for the possibility of further violence.  Download PCAWA’s safety planning guide here:
http://www.pcawa.org/safety-planning-guide.html
​
Take Action:
Share PCAWA’s Safety Planning Guide with your contacts on social media and in person.
http://www.pcawa.org/safety-planning-guide.html    

Day 2:
Are you concerned about someone you think is being abused, but don’t know what to do? Here are some warning signs of abuse from the Neighbours, Friends and Families website, which is a public education campaign to raise awareness of the signs of woman abuse so that those close to an at-risk woman or an abusive man can help.  

Warning Signs of Abuse

You may suspect abuse is happening to a neighbour, friend or family member, but do not know what to do or how to talk about it. You may worry about making the situation worse, or be concerned about what to do. By understanding the warning signs and risk factors of woman abuse, you can help. 

If you recognize some of these warning signs, it may be time to take action: 

(“They” refers to the husband, partner, ex-husband, or whoever is current hurting her.)

• They put her down 
• They do all the talking and dominate the conversation 
• They check up on her all the time, even at work 
• They try to suggest they are the victim and act depressed 
• They try to keep her away from you 
• They act as if they owns her 
• They lie to make themselves look good or exaggerate their good qualities 
• They act like they are superior and of more value than others in their home 
• She is apologetic and makes excuses for their behaviour or she becomes aggressive and angry 
• She is nervous talking when they’re there 
• She seems to be sick more often and misses work 
• She tries to cover her bruises 
• She makes excuses at the last minute about why she can’t meet you or she tries to avoid you on the street 
• She seems sad, lonely, withdrawn and is afraid 

(While most abuse occurs in intimate heterosexual relationships, it can occur in gay and lesbian relationships as well.) 

Take Action:
​Read more about how to have conversations with neighbours, friends, families and coworkers who may be at risk for violence or may be abusive themselves: Learn the SNCit conversation framework for how to SEE abuse, NAME abuse, and CHECK it to open the door to support on the Neighbours, Friends and Families website.

​Peel Committee Against Women Abuse (PCAWA) is participating in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence Campaign from November 25th (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to December 10th (Human Rights Day).  For the next 16 days (including this one), the PCAWA will be sending out suggestions on the actions you can take to end violence against women and support women in transition.  We encourage all community partners and community members to mark the 16 Days of Activism with us.  Together we can make a difference and contribute to ending violence against women. 
 
Day 1:

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and also the first day of the 16 Days of Activism Against Violence Against Women Campaign.  This year marks the 25th anniversary of this international campaign that started from the first Women's Global Leadership Institute coordinated by the Center for Women's Global Leadership in 1991. The dates (November 25 - International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and December 10 - International Human Rights Day) were chosen in order to symbolically link violence against women and human rights, increase awareness of the systemic nature of violence against women, and to emphasize that such violence is a violation of women’s human rights. This 16-day period also highlights other significant dates including November 29 International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, December 1 World AIDS Day, and December 6, which marks the Anniversary of the Montreal Massacre.
 
(Sources: http://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/take-action/16-days-of-activism and http://16dayscwgl.rutgers.edu/)
 
Take Action:  
​
The UN Secretary-General’s UNiTE to End Violence against Women Campaign theme for 2016 is: “ORANGE THE WORLD: RAISE MONEY TO END VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN”.  Our local community partner GRAN (Grandmothers Advocacy Network) has asked the City of Mississauga to light their buildings orange.  Please “orange” your clothes, facebook profile picture, and spaces today and spread the word through social media #orangetheworld and #16days

For more information:
facebook.com/SayNO.UNiTE
twitter.com/SayNO_UNiTE