Montreal Polytechnic and other organizations across the country will pay tribute Saturday to the 14 women who were killed at the engineering school 36 years ago in a brazen crime. antifeminist attack.
During a windswept morning ceremony at the Montreal School, wreaths and bouquets of white roses were laid in front of a memorial plaque in Polytechnic Institute main building.
The morning event was attended by members of the school community, including Université Polytechnique de Montréal President Maude Cohen.
“It's time to commemorate these events, what happened, and remember these young women, their dreams and what they ultimately wanted to be: to be engineers,” Cohen said Saturday.
“But it’s also a time for us to look to the future and see how we, as a university, can make a difference for women in engineering.”
In the evening, 15 beams of light will illuminate the night sky over Mount Royal in honor of the 14 victims who died in the attack, and for the second year in a row an additional light will be added for all victims of femicide.
Families of the victims, dignitaries and political leaders, including Prime Minister Mark Carney, Quebec Premier Francois Legault, Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez-Ferrada and the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec. Manon Jeanotte will be present at the evening ceremony.
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At 5:10 p.m., during the first shots fired in 1989, fourteen beams of light will rise one after another as the names of the women killed in this anti-feminist attack are announced. The lights will remain on until 22:00.
The fourteen women killed in 1989 were Genevieve Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daignault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maude Havernick, Maryse Laganiere, Maryse Leclerc, Anne-Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michel Richard, Annie Saint-Arnaud, Annie Turcotte and Barbara. Klyuchnik-Vidaevich.
Thirteen more people were injured in an anti-feminist attack carried out by Marc Lépine, who committed suicide. He ranted about feminists ruining his life.
The National Day of Remembrance and Action against Violence against Women, informally known as White Ribbon Day, falls on December 6 to mark the anniversary of the Polytechnic massacre. Other events are planned in schools and communities across the country.
In a statement, Carney paid tribute to the 14 women, calling the massacre “a solemn reminder of the devastating consequences of gender-based violence.”
“The horror of December 6, 1989 was an attack on women and the values of equality, dignity and respect that define who we are as Canadians. It forces us, year after year, to confront gender-based violence wherever it occurs, and to balance remembrance with responsibility,” he said.
Speech Valdez, Canada's minister of women and gender equality, also called the massacre a day that “has left an indelible scar on our nation.”
“Thirty-six years later, their impact remains. Their stories continue to be felt in every corner of Canada, reminding us not only of the devastating cost of gender-based violence, but also of our collective responsibility to combat it,” she said.
“We cannot change what happened on that tragic day, but we can – and must – continue to act.”
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre said in a statement that “tackling violence against women is a moral imperative.”
“This is not just a time to remember their names. This is a time to fight for our country's promise: that every woman – no matter her background, profession or circumstances – can live safely, with dignity and without fear.”
The mayor of Montreal said in a statement that 36 years after the tragedy, women have the right to live without fear and realize their dreams. She called for the values of respect and equality to be passed on to future generations.
According to her, this is a duty to the victims of the Polytechnic Institute and those who need protection today.
“This anti-feminist act, fueled by hatred, is a stark reminder that violence against women remains intolerable,” Martinez-Ferrada said. “In Montreal, we must continue to fight for equality, justice and safety for all women and girls.”
© 2025 The Canadian Press
