After 50 years, we wish we could say that Nellie’s wasn’t needed as much as ever. But it is. In Canada, 187 women and girls were killed by violence in 2024, up from 148 in 2019. Many more cases of gender-based violence are unseen, with thousands of women and children living through it every year.
During the month of November, we honour National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in Canada, as well as Women Abuse Prevention Month in Ontario. These awareness months aren’t just symbolic — at Nellie’s, we see them as a critical reminder that building safer communities free of violence is a collective responsibility.
Want to join us in being part of the solution? Here are three different ways you can help us work together to build a future free of gender-based violence.
Raise awareness
Awareness is the first step towards action that leads to real community change. Here are some accessible ways that you can help spread knowledge:
- Share accurate information about warning signs, myths vs. facts, and how to safely support someone.
- Amplify organizations doing frontline work.
- Challenge harmful narratives when they come up in conversations or media.
Support survivors safely
When someone you know is being abused, it is incredibly difficult to know how you can help. But with compassion and judgment-free support, they can begin to work through their fears, manage the complexities of leaving, and feel empowered to start afresh. Here’s how you can provide safe support:
- Believe survivors, and avoid judgmental language.
- Talk, and most importantly, listen. Respect their choices and stay in regular contact so they know they always have someone they can turn to when they need help.
- Know the red flags of escalation and when it’s critical to encourage professional help.
- Provide helpful resources, such as crisis lines, shelter information, or legal supports.
Support shelters and prevention organizations
With rates of gender-based violence rising across Toronto, the need for trauma-informed support has never been greater — but we can’t do it without your support. Here’s how you can help us provide safety, strength, and support for women and their children as we work toward a future free of gender-based violence:
- Donate — once or monthly — to help meet the rising needs of gender-based violence survivors. Monthly donations give us invaluable security that we can pass on to the women and children we support.
- Host an event in support of Nellie’s. Not only are you donating essential funds for the vital work we do, but you’re also raising awareness of the violence, poverty, and homelessness affecting women and their children in our community and beyond.
- Advocate for better funding at municipal and provincial levels, as well as policies that protect women and gender-diverse people.
By taking even one of these steps, you help strengthen the safety net that women and their children rely on every day. Change doesn’t happen all at once — it happens through consistent, collective action. Thank you for standing with us this month, and for helping us build a community where everyone has the chance to live free from violence.