The Assembly of Quebec Catholic Bishops is inviting churches across the province to ring their bells Wednesday to remember the seven women allegedly killed by their partners since the start of the year.
The timing is right to take a symbolic gesture and ring church bells, said assembly spokesperson Sabrina Di Matteo.
“There’s currently a lot of pressure, social and politically,” Di Matteo said. “Seven femicides in seven weeks, it deeply shook us.”
Their call to action comes as several events are taking place across Quebec ahead of the Easter holiday to honour the memories of the women who have recently died in the province from domestic assault.
Women’s shelters are inviting citizens to gather across Quebec for protest marches on Friday in support of victims of domestic violence and to pressure the government to invest more money into services for domestic abuse victims.
And on Saturday, the family of 29-year-old Rebekah Harry, who died on March 23 from injuries resulting from an alleged attack by her boyfriend, is organizing a march in Montreal to honour her memory. Harry’s brother, Teddy Frenette, read the names of seven women killed this year by their partners, during a news conference on Monday.
“No man should ever put their hands on women,” Frenette said. “We hear the stories but we choose to close our eyes and we think it can never happen to me, can never happen to my mother, can never happen to my sister, or my friend.”
Brandon McIntyre, 32, was charged Monday with second-degree murder in connection with Harry’s death.
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