Norfolk declares gender-based violence an epidemic

Norfolk County has joined a growing number of municipalities in declaring gender-based violence an epidemic.

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“Every day there are reports of more intimate partner incidents,” said Coun. Kim Huffman, chair of the Police Services Board of Norfolk. “Those numbers are staggering.”

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Amber Wardell, Haldimand and Norfolk Justice for Women Review Team coordinator, told councilors at Wednesday’s council-in-committee meeting the number of incidents reported to police has doubled over the past few years.

Since Jan. 1, Norfolk OPP officers have investigated 424 domestic disputes. Officers were called to a total of 506 incidents in 2022. Wardell said that compares to 252 incidents in 2020 and 268 in 2019.

“Those numbers don’t include sexual violence, which we know is widely unreported,” she said.

Wardell said rates of gender-based violence and femicide are on the rise across Ontario, with a gender-based killing of a woman happening about once a week.

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“It is not only the prevalence of gender-based violence which continues to increase across Ontario communities,” said Wardell. “Survivors and abuse services have been reporting violence experienced has become more severe since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The request for a declaration of gender-based violence as an epidemic aligns with the jury recommendations from last year’s inquest into the 2015 deaths of three women in Renfrew County.

Huffman received support for a motion calling for the county to submit a letter to the province declaring gender-based violence an epidemic in the community and Ontario. The motion didn’t include a commitment to other requests from the Haldimand and Norfolk Justice for Women review team, including working with the agency to provide gender-focused training for all Norfolk County employees.

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Chris Van Paassen was the only councilor to vote against the motion.

“Isn’t it our policy that we don’t make motions from deputations,” he said. “We ask for a staff report on the issue.”

Huffman said advisors had already received “all the information we will require from the experts.” Coun. Adam Veri agreed, saying “there’s nothing staff is going to report to us that wouldn’t convince me to send our letter to the province. I can’t imagine arguing against it.”

“If that’s the case, I will surprise people and argue against it,” said Van Paassen.

That prompted Huffman to “apologize to the community on behalf of this issue that we have council members who choose to take a stance where they have no leg to stand on.”

Mayor Amy Martin read out a partial list of municipalities that have “all passed some level of recognizing and validating that gender-based violence is on the rise, whether it’s an epidemic or not.”

In making its declaration in September, Haldimand County heard the move would give local organizations involved in gender-based violence the ability to receive funding.

Earlier this month, Brantford councilors voted to move forward with declaring gender-based violence and intimate violence an epidemic in the city. Its resolution calls for more resources and a community action plan to deal with the issue.

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