Happy International Women’s Day!
Last year the firm celebrated history-making women in law and highlighted women who inspired us. This year, we wanted to give back and fundraise to support women with experiences of domestic violence, also known as intimate partner violence (“IPV”). IPV has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic[1] and women make up 80% of police-reported IPV victims in Canada[2].
To this end, the Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Involvement Committee raised funds to support the BC Society of Transition Houses (the “Society”). The Society is a “member-based, provincial umbrella organization that, through leadership, support and collaboration, enhances the continuum of services and strategies to respond to, prevent and end violence against women, children and youth.”[3] The Society is involved in a variety of projects and operates a bursary for women with experiences of violence to aid those women in accessing education and employment opportunities.[4]
Staff and lawyers donated directly to the Society and the firm matched donations. We are proud to announce that we surpassed our fundraising goal of $2,000, donating over $4,000! Happy International Women’s Day!
– Message on behalf of the Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Involvement Committee
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[1] Nicole Thompson, “Reports of domestic, intimate partner violence continue to rise during pandemic”, The Canadian Press (February 15, 2021), online: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/domestic-intimate-partner-violence-up-in-pandemic-1.5914344.
[2] Marta Burczycka, “Section 2: Police-reported intimate partner violence in Canada, 2018”, Statistics Canada (December 12, 2019), online: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-002-x/2019001/article/00018/02-eng.htm.
[3] BC Society of Transition Houses, “Who We Are”, online: https://bcsth.ca/who-we-are/.
[4] BC Society of Transition Houses, “Donate”, online: https://bcsth.ca/donate/.