The Women’s Y Foundation is launching a fundraising campaign boasting an ambitious objective: zero!

The Women’s Y Foundation of Montreal is thrilled to announce the launch of the Objective Zero fundraising campaign. This campaign aims to support the activities of YWCA Montreal, which acts daily against exclusion, violence and gender-based inequality.

Each year, the organization helps and raises awareness among thousands of women, girls and gender-diverse persons through its services and programs, which allow them to get re-established, and develop their self-confidence and autonomy. YWCA Montreal’s multi-service approach is implemented through employability and entrepreneurship programs, safe housing, prevention and awareness-raising projects for youth and schools, and community activities, not to mention legal information and help for caregivers.

Why Objective Zero?

Because our dream is to reach zero. Zero as in zero violence against women and girls, zero problems for women to access housing, zero sexual relations without consent, zero online harassment. In short, zero gender inequality or gender-based violence.

The problem is that we are still far from zero:

• 78% of domestic violence victims are women. Each year at the YWCA, we see the prevalence of domestic violence across all the programs and services we offer. In 2021-2022, over 70% of women supported by our housing services and over 20% of participants in our employability programs were victims of violence.
• Almost 9 out of 10 victims of sexual violence are women or girls. 33% of women report having been a victim of sexual assault from the age of 15 or older. Youth between the ages of 15 and 24 are more likely to be victims of sexual assault.
• On average, men earn 16.1% more than women annually. If we look at the average pension benefit income, the gap is 25%.
• Over 40% of single-parent, women-led households live below the poverty line. Note that 84% of single parents are women.
• Close to five times more women spend more than 30% of their income on housing than men do.
• 42% of online hate is based on sexism and misogyny.
• Over 30% of women and girls between the ages of 15 and 34 years have been victims of sexual cyberviolence.

This is why the YWCA Montreal’s daily actions are more relevant than ever. We need to bring an end to gender-based violence, inequality and exclusion.