Measure the success and strength of our community by the health and wellbeing of all citizens
In Ontario, 37 women were killed by men in their lives in 20191 including in London. Our community also struggles with a tenacious opioid crisis, unaffordable housing, inequities for Indigenous people, as well as burgeoning mental health issues. These all put pressure on individual agencies, and the system as a whole.
At the recent 2020 Launch, the LCCEWA released our 2nd Annual Snapshot to continue a dialogue in London. We are working to connect the dots between social and systemic issues that include violence against women, inequality, rising poverty, mental health, addictions, engaging men, human trafficking, affordable housing and employment.
Developed by the Southwest Region VAW Coordinating Committee (SWRCC) as an 'action-in-a-box' regional strategy to engage and inform government about the state of our communities. The goal was to build a bigger wave of public attention to the epidemic of femicide and violence against women and children.
The Snapshot helps to measure our success as a City by telling the stories and highlighting the numbers of people who are struggling to survive in the current system.
Understanding and addressing the complexity of social issues is essential for prevention, informed policies, and prioritizing support for families. It’s important for municipal, provincial and federal leaders to better understand that violence committed against women is not just an issue that happens between people, it is a bi-partisan societal issue that has high individual, social and economic costs.
London is a city with great strengths. Solutions to our most pressing problems require the engagement and support of the whole community. We are using the Snapshot to tell the story of what is happening on the ground and to think together about what it takes to be successful as a community.