Montreal Massacre a dark day in Canadian history
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| Audience/Grade: | College Freshman - Continuing Education |
| Discipline(s): |
Engineering Diversity |
| Learning Resource Type: | Community - Discussion Forum/Mailing List/Newsletter |
| Media Type: | WWW |
| Author(s): |
Josh Kjenner
Organization: University of Alberta Department: Engineering |
| Description: | News article from the College of Engineering at the University of Alberta, Dec. 6, 2008. Excerpt: "December 6, 1989 will be forever remembered as one of the darkest days in Canadian history. It was on this day that Marc Lépine entered the École Polytechnique in Montreal and committed one of the most horrific crimes this nation has ever seen. After crying “J'haïs les féminists (I hate feminists),” Lépine savagely murdered 13 female engineering students, one female secretary, and then turned his weapon upon himself. Violence of this nature, regardless of motivation, is always deeply disturbing. This incident, however, was doubly shocking due to the motivation of the killer. Lépine blamed many of the problems in his life, including not being accepted into engineering school, on females. This eventually manifested itself in what is now called the “Montreal Massacre.” The effects of this event were felt in many aspects of Canadian life, including the feminist and gun control movements. It particularly reverberated in engineering faculties across the nation, which were, and continue to be, overwhelmingly composed of males. This December 6 marks the 15th anniversary of that tragic day. Although this event was incomprehensible in 1989, when one considers the gains made by Canadian females in the last decade and a half it seems even more unfathomable." |
| Rating: |
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| Related Resources | |
| Keywords: | women in engineering |
| Usage Tip | |
| Use of Resource: | Shocking event in recent history. I note the use of "tolerance for women in engineering" as having somewhat lower expectations that I would hope today. "Although the university is working, through programs like WISEST, to increase the tolerance of women in technological fields and hopefully prevent a repeat of the Montreal Massacre, their involvement is not limited to prevention. University administration, in concert with the Faculty of Engineering and the Engineering Students Society, have installed a memorial plaque in the Engineering Teaching and Learning Centre (ETLC) dedicated to the 14 women who lost their lives, and have plans for a small lounge area around it." |
| Difficulty: | Easy |
| Interactivity Level: | Very Low |
| Version Info | |
| Publication Date: | December 2008 |
| Platform/Format: | WWW |
| Cost: | Free |
| Download URL: | http://www.engineering.ualberta.ca/nav02... |
| Metadata: | IEEE LOM Record |
| Collection: |
NEEDS
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