On any given night in Canada, 3,491 women and their 2,724 children sleep in shelters because it isn’t safe at home. Women are more likely to experience elder abuse from a family member and account for 58% of senior survivors of family violence ( Statistics Canada, 2019). This is compared to 8% men ( Statistics Canada, 2019). Women are five times more likely than men to experience sexual assault ( Adam Cotter, Statistics Canada, 2021).Īpproximately 4.7 million women, 30% of all women 15 years of age and older, report that they have experienced sexual assault at least once since the age of 15.
Women are more likely than men (39% vs 35%) to report experiencing violent crime at some point since age 15 ( Statistics Canada, 2019). Indigenous women and girls are 12 times more likely to be murdered or missing than any other women in Canada, and 16 times more likely than white women ( National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, 2019). Two thirds (64%) of people in Canada know a woman who has experienced physical, sexual, or emotional abuse ( Canadian Women’s Foundation, 2021). In 2020, one in five women killed in Canada was First Nation, Métis, or Inuit ( Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability, 2020). This is a concerning increase from 118 women and girls killed by violence in 2019. In 2020, 160 women and girls were killed by violence.
The proportion of women killed by a spouse or intimate partner is over eight times greater than the proportion of men ( Statistics Canada, 2020). In 2018, 44% of women reported experiencing some form of psychological, physical, or sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetimes ( Statistics Canada, 2021). Research shows that “women disproportionately experience the most severe forms of IPV, such as being choked, being assaulted or threatened with a weapon, or being sexually assaulted” ( Adam Cotter, Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics, 2021).Īpproximately every six days, a woman in Canada is killed by her intimate partner ( Joel Roy and Sharon Marcellus, Statistics Canada, 2019). More than 4 in 10 women have experienced some form of intimate partner violence (IPV) in their lifetimes. The intersection of any two or more risk factors may increase a person’s risk and vulnerability to violence”. Certain populations experience high levels of violence, including women young women and girls Indigenous women and girls LGBTQ2 (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Two-Spirit) and gender diverse individuals women living in Northern, rural, and remote communities and women living with disabilities. Women and Gender Equality Canada says: “While violence affects all people, some people are more at risk of experiencing violence because of various forms of oppression, such as racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia and ableism. It includes sexual, physical, mental, and economic forms of abuse inflicted in public or in private as well as “threats of violence, coercion, and manipulation” ( UNHCR UN Women). It is rooted in gender inequality, the abuse of power and harmful norms.” It disproportionately impacts women, girls, and Two Spirit, trans, and non-binary people. The United Nations says, “gender-based violence refers to harmful acts directed at an individual based on their gender. People facing abuse may have not have access to services that meet their needs (e.g. This includes women with disabilities, Indigenous women, racialized women, trans and non-binary people, and women who are homeless or underhoused. Some are at even higher risks, due to the additional discrimination and barriers they face. But women, girls, and gender-diverse people are at high risk of gender-based violence. It often occurs in private places between people who know each other.Īnybody can be abused, no matter their background, identity, or circumstance. It can happen in families, at work, and between friends and acquaintances and strangers. It can happen between people in romantic relationships. Many forms of this abuse are against the law. It can take physical and emotional forms, such as: name-calling, hitting, pushing, blocking, stalking/criminal harassment, rape, sexual assault, control, and manipulation. It is the types of abuse that women, girls, and Two Spirit, trans and non-binary people are at highest risk of experiencing.