Ontario Association of Interval & Transition Houses

Gender-based violence is a public safety emergency affecting every single municipality in Ontario. Yet, many local safety frameworks are treating it like an afterthought. 🚨
New research from the University of Guelph shows that while municipalities are legally required to build Community Safety and Well-Being plans, the vast majority (over 83%) fail to prioritize Gender-Based Violence as a distinct pillar.
At the same time, frontline shelters are facing unprecedented turn-away rates as housing shortages trap survivors in unsafe situations.

We cannot prevent femicide without system-wide accountability:
1️⃣ Name the crisis: Municipalities must use gender-specific language to address root causes.
2️⃣ Fund the infrastructure: Permanent operational funding for shelters and housing is essential safety infrastructure.
3️⃣ Intervene early: Local safety plans must integrate survivour support before lethal risk escalates.

Click here for the full report https://bit.ly/3RY9UGB
University of Guelph

⚫️Are you an Ontario-based organization supporting individuals/families impacted by Gender-Based Violence (GBV)? Are you concerned about femicide rates in Ontario?
We invite you to join MulberryFinder, our growing, province-wide network!

⚫️What is MulberryFinder?
MulberryFinder.ca is a free, self-led, user-friendly online platform designed to safely connect individuals in Ontario with vital GBV services across the province. Through map-based search tools, direct
listings, and a tailored interactive quiz, community members—as well as family, friends, coworkers, and employers—can quickly find the right support.

⚫️Who is listed?
Our directory connects users with essential programs, including:
💜GBV Emergency Shelters
💜Community-Based Advocacy Services
💜Transitional & Second Stage Housing
💜Sexual Assault Centers ...and many more!

⚫️Why register your organization?
💜In its first year alone, MulberryFinder.ca received over 8,000 visits, proving the critical demand for accessible, trusted support. Hundreds of users now visit Mulberryfinder everyday!

⚫️By adding your programs to the platform, you will:
💜Increase Visibility:
💜Ensure survivors and allies can easily find your vital services.
💜Connect Safely
💜Offer a confidential, barrier-free pathway for individuals seeking help

⚫️Join 250+ Organizations:
💜Be part of a unified, province-wide effort to streamline access to care.

⚫️Take the Next Step:
💜Help us ensure no survivor slips through the cracks. Visit MulberryFinder.ca/login today to review the platform and create your free organization profile!

Click here www.mulberry.ca/login to start today!

Bill C-16 is officially law—but a law is only as strong as its ability to protect the most vulnerable. ⚖️

Enacted on June 18, 2026, Bill C-16 represents a major shift in how Canada’s Criminal Code handles gender-based violence.

This is progress. But as advocates, we have to ask: Who is being left behind? 🤔

🛑 The Gaps We Must Address:

Exclusion of Marginalized Survivors: Because the bill’s language is strictly confined to biological s*x, trans women, Two-Spirit, and gender-nonconforming survivors risk being completely shut out of these new protections.

Statistical Erasure: In half of Ontario’s femicides this month, the perpetrator died by su***de. Because these cases will never go to a criminal trial, these victims are highly likely to be erased from the official statistics meant to track this national crisis.

💡 What Real Safety Looks Like: We cannot simply legislate our way out of gender-based violence. True safety requires breaking down the silos between our existing systems—family courts, criminal courts, and child welfare—so they can share data and respond to warning signs before violence escalates.

We must pair legal consequences with deep, intersectoral prevention programs that tackle the social and economic drivers of violence head-on. Only then can we build a country that is truly free from gender-based violence.

🔗 Head to the link in our bio to read the June Femicide Report
📖 Read the full femicide report here:
June Femicide Report

GenderBasedViolence IntersectionalFeminism SupportShelters

OAITH stands in deep sorrow and solidarity following the tragic shooting in Montréal’s Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood. 🕊️
We mourn alongside the loved ones of those whose lives were violently cut short by preventable hatred.
With reports linking the attacker to a misogynistic incel manifesto, we echo our sector partners: this ideology is not a harmless online subculture. It is a violent and very real threat that compromises the safety of women, girls, and entire communities.
To stop this violence, we must collectively confront, name, and dismantle structural misogyny wherever it breeds—both in digital spaces and our physical systems.

Happy National Indigenous Peoples Day! ☀️
Aligned with the summer solstice—a sacred time of renewal and gratitude towards the land— we celebrate the rich heritage, vibrant cultures, and contributions of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples across Turtle Island.

Today, we join in celebrating:
Enduring Strength & Beauty: Uplifting the vibrant cultures, traditions, and resilience that continue to thrive and shape our world.

Outstanding Achievements: Recognizing the vital leadership, brilliance, and contributions of Indigenous peoples past and present.

Sacred Connection: Embracing this powerful moment of spiritual reflection and cultural connection.

Let’s listen, learn, and celebrate the rich history and bright future of Indigenous communities in Canada today and every day! 🧡

“If you are not counted, you don’t count.”

These words were originally spoken to expose how excluding women from homelessness data keeps their experiences hidden. But today, this exact truth applies to Ontario’s ongoing femicide crisis. When we fail to rigidly track, measure, and enforce system accountability, the structural failures that kill women remain completely invisible.

The cost of this invisibility is laid bare in this month’s data:

📊 The Reality: Stagnant Numbers
With 16 confirmed femicides in Ontario so far this year, the province is seeing the exact same heartbreaking numbers as this time last year.

🛑 The Gap: Stalled Action
While new funding and stronger laws have rolled out, critical safety recommendations from past public inquests are still stalling instead of being put into action. Passing laws isn’t enough if the ex*****on is left unmonitored.

✊ The Solution: System Accountability
To protect survivors and stop these preventable deaths, we need a clear, dedicated mechanism to track how different systems work together and hold them accountable.

Invisibility is a tool of systemic failure. Whether it is hidden homelessness or un-tracked inquest recommendations, we must demand a system that counts the gaps, names the crisis, and acts before another life is lost.

🔗Link in bio for full report

Carolyn Whitzman

June 15th is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and it’s time to bring a deeply hidden crisis into the light.

According to Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario, Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario elder abuse isn’t just a one-time occurrence—it’s a recurring cycle in up to 80% of cases. Whether it’s financial exploitation, psychological harm, physical violence, or neglect, we cannot talk about ending gender-based violence without talking about protecting older adults. With 8% to 10% of Ontario seniors experiencing abuse each year, over 200,000 older adults are currently at risk.

If you’re looking to deepen your practice and better support older survivors, sign up to receive updates on new courses for 2026 Link in bio! * https://bit.ly/4vxNgD2

New course for 2026:
Risk Management and Working with Older Women Experiencing Abuse: Learn how to navigate complex safety planning, identify hidden risk factors specific to older adults, and support older women in safely reclaiming their independence.

Older survivors deserve a sector that is fully equipped to meet them exactly where they are.

Let’s ensure our advocacy covers every generation.

OntarioAdvocacy OAITHTrainingHub AutonomyForEveryone

Pride Month is a celebration, but for 2SILGBTQ+ communities, safety is still a daily protest. True intersectional feminism recognizes that q***rphobia, transphobia, and gender-based violence are direct and equal expressions of patriarchal control over people’s bodies, identities, and autonomy.

The reality for q***r and gender-diverse folks across Canada remains incredibly stark: Hate crimes targeting a gender identity or expression are only on the rise.

We cannot end gender-based violence without fighting equally for every survivor. This June, our advocacy must be intersectional, loud, and focused on dismantling the systemic barriers that leave Q***r communities targeted and unprotected.

OAITH is proud to provide learning opportunities to support GBV organizations as they support 2SLGBTQIA people in their communities. Check out our Training Hub and receive your certificate for Moving Towards Trans Inclusive Shelter and Housing today! oaith.ca/training-hub/

Home is supposed to be a safe haven. But as the housing crisis worsens across Canada, the lack of safe, affordable housing is trapping survivors in violent and unsafe conditions. 🕊️

According to OAITH’s femicide data, an overwhelming 79% of victims were killed inside or directly outside their residence. Without real, affordable housing alternatives, leaving an abuser is becoming an impossible choice for many.

This crisis is also fundamentally altering family structures. Ontario is now home to half of all residents living in multigenerational housing. While pooling resources can be a positive choice, research shows it is only successful when individuals have true autonomy.

When economic desperation forces families together, it places intense financial and caregiving burdens on older adults. These shifting power dynamics are known risk factors for elder abuse and femicide—often perpetrated within the home by family members, including adult sons.

We cannot talk about ending gender-based violence without talking about housing. Our policies must change to prioritize housing as a fundamental human right. ⚖️✊💜

🔗 Read more about how shifting housing norms impact survivor safety at the link in our bio.

SafeHousing housingrightsarehumanrights

Words have power. How the media reports on femicide shapes how our communities, survivors, and policymakers understand gender-based violence. 🕊️

In partnership with , OAITH has analyzed 5 years of local, national, and television news coverage tracking media frames. The trends show a shifting landscape, but our collective work is far from finished.

📉 The Progress: We are seeing a positive decline in harmful victim-blaming language and a shift away from individualizing these crimes as “isolated, random, one-off events.” More journalists are humanizing the victims and explicitly using the term femicide.

⚠️ The Critical Gap: An over-reliance on traditional voices of authority (like law enforcement) persists, often omitting the context of systemic oppression, coercive control, or histories of abuse. Shockingly, only a tiny fraction of media reports include vital local service or help-line information for readers who might be in danger.

The headlines shouldn’t just recount a tragedy—they should be a vehicle for connection, survival, and prevention. Let’s change the frame to move our list to zero.

🔗 Read the full 5-Year Media Analysis Report at the link in our bio.