On the eve of the 33rd anniversary of the massacre that claimed the lives of 14 women at Polytechnique, the families of the victims and survivors of the tragedy are calling on New Democrats and Bloc Québécois to come out in favor of Bill C-21 on gun control.
“We are counting on them to break through the cloud of misinformation spread by the gun lobby and Conservative MPs as this is the first opportunity in 33 years to ban assault weapons in Canada once and for all. “said Nathalie Provost, survivor of feminicide at Polytechnique, in a press release.
Remember that the Bloc Québécois and the New Democratic Party (NDP) have both promised to ban assault weapons, which are often the cause of massacres like that of December 6, 1989. These promises are in line with the fight conducted by various groups, including PolySeSouvient.
“We are therefore counting on them so that we can finally turn the page, with the achievement of the main objective that we have set ourselves to pay tribute in a concrete way to the fourteen young women murdered, including my daughter Anne-Marie”, mentioned Suzanne Laplante. -Edward, whose daughter died during the massacre at Polytechnique.
Down with disinformation
PolySeSouvient also called for distrust of the disinformation that would be conveyed by the Conservatives and the arms lobby. It should be noted that, contrary to what is said, Bill C-21 aims to ban only assault weapons designed to kill massively. Weapons typically used for hunting are therefore not covered by this, according to PolySeSouvient.
“The nuances in the text of the law make all the difference. When these details are taken into account, the allegations of the opponents fall apart,” said Heidi Rathjen, coordinator of PolySeSouvient, a graduate of Polytechnique and witness to the 1989 massacre.
“There is a very high level of complexity in this file in technical terms. […] The interpretation of the text of the law by opponents is fundamentally erroneous and in some cases deliberate, either with the aim of scaring hunters and generating opposition among the last,” she said. elsewhere expressed.
Several commemorative events
As every year, several commemorative events take place on December 6 and the days around, in order to remember the sad events of 1989, when a gunman murdered 14 women and injured 13 people at the École Polytechnique de Montréal.
This anti-feminist attack shook all of Quebec, so much so that we continue to remember and pay tribute to the victims.
The day of December 6, 2022 will be marked by two events, namely the laying of wreaths of roses in front of the commemorative plaque and the installation of 14 light beams on Mount Royal, at 5:10 p.m., the time when the first shots were fired in 1989.