The Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW) Stratford will discuss intimate partner violence at a panel discussion at city hall auditorium.
CFUW is a non-profit club working to promote lifelong education, to improve the lives of women and girls, and to enable women to effect positive change for a better future.
CFUW president Cambria Ravenhill said this comes as the city declared intimate partner violence an epidemic in 2023.
“About 10 years ago, there was a horrifying incident in Renfrew County, where someone who was known to be violent went out and killed three of his previous partners. That led to something called the Renfrew Inquest, which had 86 recommendations about intimate partner violence (IPV) and what we can do to create better systems and support for victims,” said Ravenhill.
“The very first recommendation was to declare IPV an epidemic, and since 2015 when this happened, intimate partner violence has actually escalated really through COVID because of the isolation and stress of COVID, so now it’s even worse.”
Ravenhill said while Stratford joined more than 100 municipalities in declaring it an epidemic, the goal of the panel is to take it a step further by figuring out how to fight it.
The panel will include Stratford Police Services Const. Darren Fischer, Executive Director of Emily Murphy Centre, Lisa Wilde, lawyer and co-chair of Shelterlink Board, Alix Grice, and author of The View from Coffin Ridge – A Childhood Exhumed, Gwen Lamont.
The free event on Jan. 29 starts at 7 p.m.
