The École Polytechnique Tragedy

By: Sarika Singodia, MSW Placement Student for the Office of EDID  

Trigger warning: contains content about gun violence, death, suicide, and femicide.

 On December 6, 1989, a man named Marc Lépine walked into Montréal’s École Polytechnique armed with a semi-automatic rifle. He entered an engineering classroom and ordered the women to separate from the men. After forcing the men to leave, he opened fire on the women while screaming, “You are all feminists.” His hateful rampage resulted in the death of 14 women and the injury of 10 others. Before the police could intervene, Lépine took his own life. Lépine left a suicide note where he listed 19 women he planned to kill, including Quebec’s first female firefighter and a police captain. He also blamed “feminists” for ruining his life.

The École Polytechnique Tragedy, also known as the Montréal Massacre, sent the nation, and particularly the province of Quebec, into a period of mourning. There was also widespread debate about the motives for the attack. Some believed it was an isolated incident. For others, it was rooted in hatred for the place of women in society and an anti-feminist sentiment. As stated by journalist Francine Pelletier, who was one of the women on the shooter’s list, “If he had wanted to target women, he would have gone to a nursing school. He was targeting women who had the audacity to want to do a man’s job.”

In 1991, the Parliament of Canada declared December 6 to be the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. On this day, people all over Canada commemorate the 14 women murdered at l’École Polytechnique. In remembrance of the 14 lives lost, King’s University College will be holding a vigil on Wednesday, December 6. Starting at 11:00 am, there will be words of welcome in the Spriet Learning Commons. Afterward, attendees will proceed to the Quad for a candlelight vigil and a moment of silence. Refreshments will be offered after in the Spriet.

For event details, visit the following link: https://www.kings.uwo.ca/about-kings/visitor-info/calendar-of-events/ecole-polytechnique-tragedy-vigil/
To learn more about the École Polytechnique tragedy, visit the following websites:

Canadian Federation of University Women: https://cfuw.org/take-action/remembering-the-victims-of-the-ecole-polytechnique-massacre-and-a-renewed-call-for-action-on-femicide/

Canadian True Crime podcast: https://canadiantruecrime.ca/episodes/2018/7/4/2829-cole-polytechnique-massacre-part-1

• Trigger warning: contains details of the shooting and death, talk of suicide, and accounts of family violence. 

The Canadian Encyclopedia/L’Encyclopédie Canadienne: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/polytechnique-tragedy