25 Years After the Montreal Massacre
December 6, 2014 11:11 AM Subscribe
For 45 minutes on Dec. 6, 1989 an enraged gunman roamed the corridors of Montreal's École Polytechnique and killed 14 women. Marc Lepine, 25, separated the men from the women and before opening fire on the classroom of female engineering students he screamed, "I hate feminists." Almost immediately, the Montreal Massacre became a galvanizing moment in which mourning turned into outrage about all violence against women. December 6th is now commemorated in Canada as the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Twenty-five years after the Montreal Massacre, the Montreal Gazette interviews four of the survivors: Jocelyne Dallaire Légaré, Heidi Rathjen, Nathalie Provost and Michèle Thibodeau-DeGuire.
Journalist Shelley Page reflects on how she "sanitized the feminist outrage over the Montreal Massacre."
Journalist Shelley Page reflects on how she "sanitized the feminist outrage over the Montreal Massacre."
I turned the dead engineering students into sleeping beauties who received flowers from potential suitors. ... I should have referred to the buildings they wouldn’t design, the machines they wouldn’t create and the products never imagined.
They weren’t killed for being daughters or girlfriends, but because they were capable women in a male-dominated field.
I should have written that then.
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posted by WidgetAlley at 11:36 AM on December 6, 2014 [50 favorites]
They weren’t killed for being daughters or girlfriends, but because they were capable women in a male-dominated field.
I should have written that then.
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posted by WidgetAlley at 11:36 AM on December 6, 2014 [50 favorites]
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posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 11:36 AM on December 6, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 11:36 AM on December 6, 2014 [2 favorites]
Lest we forget:
Geneviève Bergeron (b. 1968), civil engineering student.
Hélène Colgan (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Nathalie Croteau (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Barbara Daigneault (b. 1967), mechanical engineering student.
Anne-Marie Edward (b. 1968), chemical engineering student.
Maud Haviernick (b. 1960), materials engineering student.
Maryse Laganière (b. 1964), budget clerk in the École Polytechnique's finance department.
Maryse Leclair (b. 1966), materials engineering student.
Anne-Marie Lemay (b. 1967), mechanical engineering student.
Sonia Pelletier (b. 1961), mechanical engineering student.
Michèle Richard (b. 1968), materials engineering student.
Annie St-Arneault (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Annie Turcotte (b. 1969), materials engineering student.
Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz (b. 1958), nursing student.
posted by MartinWisse at 11:37 AM on December 6, 2014 [57 favorites]
Geneviève Bergeron (b. 1968), civil engineering student.
Hélène Colgan (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Nathalie Croteau (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Barbara Daigneault (b. 1967), mechanical engineering student.
Anne-Marie Edward (b. 1968), chemical engineering student.
Maud Haviernick (b. 1960), materials engineering student.
Maryse Laganière (b. 1964), budget clerk in the École Polytechnique's finance department.
Maryse Leclair (b. 1966), materials engineering student.
Anne-Marie Lemay (b. 1967), mechanical engineering student.
Sonia Pelletier (b. 1961), mechanical engineering student.
Michèle Richard (b. 1968), materials engineering student.
Annie St-Arneault (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Annie Turcotte (b. 1969), materials engineering student.
Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz (b. 1958), nursing student.
posted by MartinWisse at 11:37 AM on December 6, 2014 [57 favorites]
Page mentions Reframing The Montréal Massacre, Maureen Bradley's documentary on the media coverage of the attack. Bradley has posted the film to Vimeo.
posted by Going To Maine at 11:45 AM on December 6, 2014 [6 favorites]
posted by Going To Maine at 11:45 AM on December 6, 2014 [6 favorites]
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We're going to a candlelight vigil at the United Church here in downtown Kingston at 4 pm.
posted by Kitteh at 11:49 AM on December 6, 2014 [2 favorites]
We're going to a candlelight vigil at the United Church here in downtown Kingston at 4 pm.
posted by Kitteh at 11:49 AM on December 6, 2014 [2 favorites]
This happened during my first year as an undergraduate at UVic. I still remember.
posted by Nevin at 11:54 AM on December 6, 2014
posted by Nevin at 11:54 AM on December 6, 2014
An essay from a friend. Excerpt: "I don’t think being a women in technology is worth dying for, but I learned early that some men think it’s worth killing for. "
posted by olinerd at 12:34 PM on December 6, 2014 [21 favorites]
posted by olinerd at 12:34 PM on December 6, 2014 [21 favorites]
That's my generation. I completed my final engineering exam in spring of 1989.
Thank you for posting this.
While the 25 years have not always been easy, this reminds me I am still alive.
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posted by infini at 12:41 PM on December 6, 2014 [5 favorites]
Thank you for posting this.
While the 25 years have not always been easy, this reminds me I am still alive.
.
posted by infini at 12:41 PM on December 6, 2014 [5 favorites]
The Conservatives will be putting the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act into force this same day.
posted by bonobothegreat at 12:56 PM on December 6, 2014
posted by bonobothegreat at 12:56 PM on December 6, 2014
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
posted by Pocahontas at 1:03 PM on December 6, 2014
posted by Pocahontas at 1:03 PM on December 6, 2014
The Conservatives will be putting the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act into force this same day.
Peter MacKay's comments on Montreal massacre set off Twitter furor
posted by a lungful of dragon at 1:49 PM on December 6, 2014 [4 favorites]
Peter MacKay's comments on Montreal massacre set off Twitter furor
posted by a lungful of dragon at 1:49 PM on December 6, 2014 [4 favorites]
Thank you for posting this.
Good old Peter MacKay put his foot in his mouth this week over this issue. Not unexpected, I'd say.
Nevertheless, my friend and I got into a discussion about this very thing. Both with wives and daughters, we find ourselves default feminists - I surely want my girls to do whatever they want in life and it breaks my heart to think that they may be treated differently than their counterparts solely based on gender.
I took a bit of a devil's advocate stance with this in our discussion. In much the same way that terrorism was the focus of the Ottawa shooting, anti-feminism was the focus of this mass murder. But, clearly, mental instability is one of the primary causes of both these incidents. It seems super insensitive to turn this into a gun control discussion yet again, but then again that's part of the issue too.
I asked the academic question (I believe that it's really both): at what point does this become a violence against women issue over an arbitrary mass murder/gun control/mental health issue? What are we learning from this? Is it a gun control issue? Can we learn something about this particular episode, or was it just a random trigger from an unbalanced individual? I really think, again, that it is indeed part of a systemic issue of violence against women. I recognize the need for symbolic acts to coalesce action, but I find it disheartening that we need to rally around a mass murder in order to bring attention to violence against women when we all see it every day in much more accepted or tolerated forms.
In any case, Peter MacKay should really just shut up more often.
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posted by jimmythefish at 1:52 PM on December 6, 2014
Good old Peter MacKay put his foot in his mouth this week over this issue. Not unexpected, I'd say.
Nevertheless, my friend and I got into a discussion about this very thing. Both with wives and daughters, we find ourselves default feminists - I surely want my girls to do whatever they want in life and it breaks my heart to think that they may be treated differently than their counterparts solely based on gender.
I took a bit of a devil's advocate stance with this in our discussion. In much the same way that terrorism was the focus of the Ottawa shooting, anti-feminism was the focus of this mass murder. But, clearly, mental instability is one of the primary causes of both these incidents. It seems super insensitive to turn this into a gun control discussion yet again, but then again that's part of the issue too.
I asked the academic question (I believe that it's really both): at what point does this become a violence against women issue over an arbitrary mass murder/gun control/mental health issue? What are we learning from this? Is it a gun control issue? Can we learn something about this particular episode, or was it just a random trigger from an unbalanced individual? I really think, again, that it is indeed part of a systemic issue of violence against women. I recognize the need for symbolic acts to coalesce action, but I find it disheartening that we need to rally around a mass murder in order to bring attention to violence against women when we all see it every day in much more accepted or tolerated forms.
In any case, Peter MacKay should really just shut up more often.
.
posted by jimmythefish at 1:52 PM on December 6, 2014
I have no idea who Peter MacKay is, but it was disappointingly easy to guess which of these two said the horribly insensitive thing.
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posted by benito.strauss at 2:38 PM on December 6, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by benito.strauss at 2:38 PM on December 6, 2014 [1 favorite]
He's our Justice Minister but regardless, he should STFU.
posted by Kitteh at 2:46 PM on December 6, 2014
posted by Kitteh at 2:46 PM on December 6, 2014
Sounds like he could stand to be replaced by a Social Justice Minister.
posted by Pope Guilty at 2:47 PM on December 6, 2014 [6 favorites]
posted by Pope Guilty at 2:47 PM on December 6, 2014 [6 favorites]
at what point does this become a violence against women issue over an arbitrary mass murder/gun control/mental health issue?
It can be more than one thing: the endemic sexism in society gives shape to the anger engendered by mental illness. Lapine may have killed because he was mentally ill, but he sought out specifically women to kill (in his minds they were all also feminists) because he lived in a world where non-mentally ill men still see women as "taking" their positions, and feminism as an "attack" against men, rather than a fight for women (and men) against patriarchy.
posted by jb at 3:05 PM on December 6, 2014 [21 favorites]
It can be more than one thing: the endemic sexism in society gives shape to the anger engendered by mental illness. Lapine may have killed because he was mentally ill, but he sought out specifically women to kill (in his minds they were all also feminists) because he lived in a world where non-mentally ill men still see women as "taking" their positions, and feminism as an "attack" against men, rather than a fight for women (and men) against patriarchy.
posted by jb at 3:05 PM on December 6, 2014 [21 favorites]
Peter MacKay is one who is staggeringly undeserving of the position of influence he luxuriates in.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 3:22 PM on December 6, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 3:22 PM on December 6, 2014 [2 favorites]
I have a magnet that says "Feminism is the radical notion that women are people"
I just went to see She's Beautiful When She's Angry, about the early years of the 2nd wave movement. One of the women interviewed said that birth control is the most important thing. I would say that eradicating the mindset that women are objects is primary.
posted by brujita at 3:23 PM on December 6, 2014 [3 favorites]
I just went to see She's Beautiful When She's Angry, about the early years of the 2nd wave movement. One of the women interviewed said that birth control is the most important thing. I would say that eradicating the mindset that women are objects is primary.
posted by brujita at 3:23 PM on December 6, 2014 [3 favorites]
The Conservatives will be putting the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act into force this same day.
It's worth noting that a significant number of academics/activists/people, myself included, are of the opinion that this will lead to serious harm for sex workers, especially already-marginalized ones.
Page's article is fantastic; a great reflection on how easy it is to get co-opted by the culture around us.
..............
posted by Lemurrhea at 3:23 PM on December 6, 2014 [1 favorite]
It's worth noting that a significant number of academics/activists/people, myself included, are of the opinion that this will lead to serious harm for sex workers, especially already-marginalized ones.
Page's article is fantastic; a great reflection on how easy it is to get co-opted by the culture around us.
..............
posted by Lemurrhea at 3:23 PM on December 6, 2014 [1 favorite]
That piece by Shelley Page is really fantastic and powerful, thank you for including it.
posted by desuetude at 3:46 PM on December 6, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by desuetude at 3:46 PM on December 6, 2014 [3 favorites]
There is a gun store in Vancouver, Reliable gun. I saw, via a friend on Facebook, that they are holding a "blow out" sale today. On the store's Facebook page several people, myself included, pointed out the massacre anniversary.
I saw the Peter McKay clip from the house. It frustrated me. December 6 was an attack on women, on feminism, but that was obscured from his words.
posted by radiocontrolled at 4:21 PM on December 6, 2014
I saw the Peter McKay clip from the house. It frustrated me. December 6 was an attack on women, on feminism, but that was obscured from his words.
posted by radiocontrolled at 4:21 PM on December 6, 2014
This whole affair has haunted me me in a strange way for all those years. Mostly because of a variety of coincidences. The day of the massacre I was walking from my apartment on deLorimier to that of a friend who lived nearby. There were men running around on Bordeaux street from door to door. One of them came to me and asked me “Do you know Marc Lepine?” and of course I didn’t then. They were journalists looking for his place. He lived next door to me. I learned later that we went to the same cégep (senior high school in Qc) at about the same time. He also did kill a girl I went to elementary and secondary school with. Barbara Daigneault was actually a very quiet A student. We weren’t very close. We went to a public school that thaught music as well as the regular curriculum. She played cello, I played violin. We were nerds I think. I remember playing Eleanor Rigby with her and a few others. It really feels bad even after all these years.
Then also I think of Marc Lépine, and caporal Denis Lortie and those guys at Columbine and all those men all around North America who lose their minds and kill as many people as they can, on a regular basis now, and I can’t make any sense of it, and it also feels very bad.
posted by L E M M at 4:40 PM on December 6, 2014 [20 favorites]
Then also I think of Marc Lépine, and caporal Denis Lortie and those guys at Columbine and all those men all around North America who lose their minds and kill as many people as they can, on a regular basis now, and I can’t make any sense of it, and it also feels very bad.
posted by L E M M at 4:40 PM on December 6, 2014 [20 favorites]
I was in high school in 1989, and I have clear memories of the shock and horror of hearing the news that day. I was only a couple of years away from university myself at that point. It's no exaggeration to say that day and its aftermath have had a strong influence on my development as a feminist.
I agree with jb--expressions of mental illness are shaped by the surrounding culture. In a culture that positions women as inferior, it's entirely unsurprising that an angry, marginalized, mentally ill young man would express his rage by murdering women.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 4:54 PM on December 6, 2014 [4 favorites]
I agree with jb--expressions of mental illness are shaped by the surrounding culture. In a culture that positions women as inferior, it's entirely unsurprising that an angry, marginalized, mentally ill young man would express his rage by murdering women.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 4:54 PM on December 6, 2014 [4 favorites]
Thanks aclevername. I'm sorry I missed your post; I only searched for the phrase "Montreal Massacre."
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 6:45 PM on December 6, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 6:45 PM on December 6, 2014 [1 favorite]
I'm a female engineer that works at a university, and I think of this sometimes when walking past classrooms where a female student is giving a presentation.
December 6 is a day where being myself feels like a political act.
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posted by tchemgrrl at 6:49 PM on December 6, 2014 [19 favorites]
December 6 is a day where being myself feels like a political act.
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posted by tchemgrrl at 6:49 PM on December 6, 2014 [19 favorites]
The memorial on Mont Royal tonight is really something.
Important footnote: one of the biggest outcomes of the Massacre was the creation of the federal long-gun registry. I don't have data on me right now, but it was seen to be a major tool for law enforcement in reducing gun crimes. The Conservatives of course scrapped the registry. It was a long-standing bugaboo of their rural base.
Finally, Peter McKay has repeatedly displayed the kind of lazy misogyny, as evinced by the quote above, that demonstrates, at best, an indifference to women that is breathtaking in a cabinet minister.
posted by dry white toast at 10:42 PM on December 6, 2014 [4 favorites]
Important footnote: one of the biggest outcomes of the Massacre was the creation of the federal long-gun registry. I don't have data on me right now, but it was seen to be a major tool for law enforcement in reducing gun crimes. The Conservatives of course scrapped the registry. It was a long-standing bugaboo of their rural base.
Finally, Peter McKay has repeatedly displayed the kind of lazy misogyny, as evinced by the quote above, that demonstrates, at best, an indifference to women that is breathtaking in a cabinet minister.
posted by dry white toast at 10:42 PM on December 6, 2014 [4 favorites]
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posted by chicainthecity at 7:15 PM on December 7, 2014
posted by chicainthecity at 7:15 PM on December 7, 2014
dry white toast: "one of the biggest outcomes of the Massacre was the creation of the federal long-gun registry. I don't have data on me right now, but it was seen to be a major tool for law enforcement in reducing gun crimes. The Conservatives of course scrapped the registry. It was a long-standing bugaboo of their rural base. "
It's worth noting that while a reaction to the killings the long gun registry wouldn't have affected Marc Lepin. He held a valid less restrictive gun license at the time and would have have been granted the current license. And Canada has a long history of a pattern of registry-> restriction-> prohibition and confiscation when it comes to firearms.
posted by Mitheral at 5:59 AM on December 10, 2014
It's worth noting that while a reaction to the killings the long gun registry wouldn't have affected Marc Lepin. He held a valid less restrictive gun license at the time and would have have been granted the current license. And Canada has a long history of a pattern of registry-> restriction-> prohibition and confiscation when it comes to firearms.
posted by Mitheral at 5:59 AM on December 10, 2014
And Canada has a long history of a pattern of registry-> restriction-> prohibition and confiscation when it comes to firearms.
I wish we would continue that history.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:19 AM on December 10, 2014 [2 favorites]
I wish we would continue that history.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:19 AM on December 10, 2014 [2 favorites]
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posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 11:16 AM on December 6, 2014