Women and gender nonconforming folks continue to face significant barriers, inequities, and dangers.
This is due to systemic forces such as sexism, transphobia, and cisnormativity. Though progress has been made, there is still so much to be done; whether it’s expanding access to healthcare for LGBTQ2+ folks, increasing access to trauma-informed care for survivors of gender-based violence, or fighting for income equality, everyone has a role to play in creating change for gender equality.
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Creating a Safer City
For people of all genders.
Be the change in the fight for gender equality by working through these simple steps. Take the actions, read the blogs, dig into the statistics, or attend a Vital Conversation event; each step you take will make a difference.
Amplify
Follow, engage with, and share the causes and organizations that you’re passionate about on social media. Help spread their message throughout your personal networks.
Use Your Voice
Speak up when faced with opinions or structures that perpetuate gender-based harm. Ask elected officials, or candidates how they’re fighting gender-based violence, discrimination, and sexism. Ready to write to an elected official? You can reference this template to guide your communication.
Show up
Find and attend local events, meetings, debates or marches that allow you to show your support by standing alongside those impacted by the issues firsthand. Showing up in solidarity with those who have lived experience as an ally and a supporter can help advance real change. Make signs, tell friends, and show up.
Share Your Resources and Time
Reach out, connect and support local organizations fighting against forces such as sexism, transphobia, and cisnormativity, and the harms they produce. Donations and volunteer time are needed to help make change. Click here to see our full guide of local organizations and find one that you’d like to support.
And stay in touch! Be the Change will be sharing additional, tangible actions that will make a difference in the lives of members of our community. Sign up for our special email list to be kept in the loop.
Know your Numbers.
Both ANOVA and London Abused Women’s Centre (LAWC) have continued to experience an increase in demand and urgent need for their services. In the 2021-2022 fiscal year, LAWC reported a 6% increase in overall service provision interactions with women and girls who are survivors of male violence against women. LAWC provided a total of 11,717 service provision interactions including 6,006 counselling, group and urgent support service interactions as well as 5,711 phone calls for service.
In 2021-2022 ANOVA reported a 14% increase in calls on their 24/7 crisis and support line and saw a 13% increase in the length of shelter stays. They reported 351 women and dependents who received services in shelter, a 21% increase from the previous year and a 46% increase in women who were supported with walk-in services. ANOVA also played a role in addressing sexual violence in schools working with the Centre for Research and Education on Violence Against Women and Children (CREVAWC). Together, they trained over 8,000 first year and student leaders at Western University in over 200 small-group training sessions this past summer, as part of Western’s response to the sexual violence that took place last September.
Increases in walk-in services, in-shelter services, calls to support line, & length of shelter stay
This chart shows four arrows pointing upwards. Beginning at the leftmost arrow, the first arrow represents the percentage rise in the number of women who were supported with walk-in services at ANOVA from 2021 to 2022 and depicts the number 46%. The second arrow represents the percentage rise in the number of women who received in-shelter services at ANOVA from 2021 to 2022 and depicts the number 21%. The third arrow represents the percentage rise in the number of calls to ANOVA’s 24/7 crisis and support line and depicts the number 14%. The fourth arrow represents the percentage rise in the length of shelter stays at ANOVA and depicts the number 13%.
Want to dive deeper into the issue of gender equality in London and Middlesex County?
Check out our London Vital Signs Data Hub for more data.
We recognize that we have blindspots; if we’ve missed an important message or if you’re aware of a statistic that has changed, please contact us and let us know.
London Leaders
There is so much knowledge in our community. This is a city full of activists, movement leaders, changemakers and lived experience experts and there is so much more to learn from them. Many are sharing their perspective on what’s next and building on the call for each of us to Be the Change.
Explore the diverse perspectives that provoke new thinking:
Conversations
You’ve Taken Action.
But Don’t Stop There.
Change happens when people come together. Encourage those around you to take action. To help, we’ve designed these downloadable graphics that you can share on your own social media.
Click on the image to download.
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