Residents in Brossard, Que., were stunned early Sunday morning, as they woke up to find out there had been a triple homicide in a high-rise building.
Synthia Bussières, 38, and her two young boys were killed.
Police had detained the woman’s spouse, later confirming the homicide.
One organization that works with victims of domestic violence in Quebec is calling what happened to the mother a femicide.
They say it was the third in two weeks.
SOS Violence Conjugale, an organization whose mission is to help ensure the safety of victims of intimate partner violence throughout Quebec, says the latest killings have brought the total number of femicides this year to 10.
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They say more needs to be done to prevent these killings from taking place.
“There are regions where there’s not enough shelters in place, where there’s not enough space. Montreal is a good example, the south shore,” said Claudine Thibaudeau, a social worker with SOS Violence Conjugale.
Advocates like Marie-Emmanuelle Gennesse, who is currently doing her master’s degree in domestic violence, say there need to be more conversations around femicides.
Gennesse and her sister Florence-Olivia operate social media accounts on TikTok and Instagram called the.sisofficial. The accounts have a combined following of about 400,000.
Their goal is to create videos and posts that reach a younger audience to educate them on issues women are facing in Quebec and around the world.
Gennesse says with the provincial election campaign well underway, she says, she can’t wrap her head around why there hasn’t been any talk about it.
“It’s been eight weeks and there has been a femicide every week. I mean, I don’t understand how this is not the first thing politicians are discussing because they actually have the power to do something,” she said.
On the campaign trail Tuesday, Quebec Solidaire spokesperson Manon Massé said the current government hasn’t done enough to help combat issues like femicide.
She said, if her party is elected, they would give more money to organizations helping victims of domestic abuse, create affordable social housing for women seeking shelter and invest more in education.
“The only way we can prevent it is in education,” said Massé. “We have to have a strong education around gender equality, around sex education classes.”
Quebec Liberal Party Leader Dominique Anglade said more than words are needed to help solve the issue of femicides.
“We need action,” she said. “We need to make sure we support women, the way they need to be supported. When they call and they say, ‘I have an issue,’ this needs to be taken seriously.”
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