33 years ago, 14 young women, students in engineering at Polytechnique Montréal were massacred.
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The gunman, armed with a semi-automatic, went into a mechanical engineering classroom, separated the men from the women, asked the men to leave. The women were standing in a row. He opened fire. Not many from that class room survived.
The killer resented women being in engineering. "Feminist have always enraged me..." he said before opening fire.
13 were injured. My friend Nathalie Provost was in that row. She is one of the few survivors.
Nathalie graduated with both her Bachelors, then Masters, has 4 kids and has spent the last 30 years driving change. I admire her. Her resilience is incredible. Je t'aime beaucoup Nathalie et pense a toi souvent. ❤️ See the link below
That was my last year McGill University Electrical Engineering. I was President of the Quebec Coalition of Engineering Students (COFIQ). Nathalie was the President the year before, so a friend and a mentor.
I was one of 11 women only in the class of 1990 Electrical Engineering. Back then, there was engrained culture of machois, misogyny, sexism, anti-LGBQ+2S... it was everywhere, in the hallways, in the classes, in the engineering paper (which month after month degraded women until it was finally shut down). The VP in our student body had to sue for people to realize that what they were doing and saying "was not ok". There were chants (about "no gays in engineering") and the list goes on and on. Saying that you were a feminist back then didn't make you popular.
I tried to blend in even though I was so different. Today, I am using my voice, more and more, to do what I can drive change.
On the flight back from LA on Saturday, I was writing the chapter of my book about "McGill Engineering" and re-living le 14 decembre, 1989 like it was yesterday.
Last night, my Nicki, who is 23, showed me a horrific online promotion that uses the Promo code "POLY" to get a 10% discount on buying guns.... I am not joking.. see links
Trans-Women are still getting killed on average of 2/month in the US, just because they're trans. There is sexual abuse and harassment still rampant in the military in both countries. There is so much discrimination and violence against indigenous women and girls. The list goes on and on.
Today, take a moment to remember. Take a moment to think about what you can do to continue the fight we still have to make the word equal and safe for all.
Share, Comment, Re-Share, Post. Voice your support. Rememberance and Meditation 🖤
#engineering #POLYTECHNIQUE #guncontrol
By,
Suzie Yorke
CEO and Co-Founder