Three women on a panel discussion at the Italian Cultural Institute.

Femicide and Femminicidio: A Shared Emergency

Every three days in Italy, a woman is killed violently by a man. In Canada, it’s every 48 hours.

In collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute of Toronto, Aura Freedom hosted Femicide and Femminicidio: A Shared Emergency, an evening of knowledge sharing, education, and cross cultural dialogue exploring the shared realities of femicide in Canada and Italy. It was a collective reckoning, a space of truth-telling, and a reminder that across borders, our struggles and our resistance are deeply connected.

Bringing together advocates, policymakers, academics, students, and community members, the event created space to examine how communities in both countries are responding to the ongoing crisis of femicide through advocacy, prevention, and systems change. Femicide and femiminicidio are not isolated tragedies. They are part of a broader, systemic pattern of violence against women and girls that demands collective action.

At the heart of the evening was a panel discussion featuring Aura Freedom’s Founder and Executive Director, Marissa Kokkoros, alongside international human rights lawyer Barbara Spinelli and Barbra Schlifer’s Executive Director, and feminist lawyer, Deepa Mattoo. Drawing on their diverse expertise, the panel explored legal responses to femicide, grassroots advocacy, survivor centered approaches, and the role governments must play in preventing violence before it occurs.

The event featured powerful installations including the Red Bench/Panchina Rossa, a widely recognized symbol originating in Italy that honours the lives of women lost to femicide.

Aura Freedom’s Behind Closed Doors installation offered a powerful look into intimate partner and familial femicide – and the reality that women and girls are most often killed by the men closest to them. Click HERE to learn more about our Behind Closed Doors campaign.

Guests also had the opportunity to engage with the 4000 Cover Stories display by the Native Women’s Resource Centre, commemorating the missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada.

The evening concluded with a moving, powerful musical performance by Andrea Ramolo. Alongside the grief and heaviness, there was something else in the room: feminist joy, hope, and power. The kind that emerges when people come together with purpose. The kind that reminds us we are not alone in this fight. The kind that fuels movements, sustains organizers, and makes transformation possible. Events like these serve to remind us of the importance of cross-cultural solidarity, community-led responses, and sustained advocacy to address femicide.

Aura Freedom extends our sincere gratitude to the Italian Cultural Institute of Toronto, our distinguished panelists, the media agencies who helped amplify this important discussion on gender-based violence, and all who joined us in creating space for learning, reflection, and action.

Together, we remain committed to building a future where women and girls can live free from violence, in Canada, Italy and all over the world.

Watch the event as covered by:

Visit our Femicide Info Hub to learn more: https://aurafreedom.org/femicide/

  • Poster on Indigenous women's violence, with resources in Canada.
  • Aura Freedom International display highlighting femicide statistics with wooden bench.
  • Open book detailing the genocide of Indigenous Women in Canada.
  • Purple door in library with femicide awareness message.
  • Woman interviewed about violence against women by Aura Freedom International.
  • Woman performing with tambourine and microphone at Italian Cultural Institute.
  • Two advocates against femicide with a sign and book.
  • Woman interviewed by camera crew regarding intimate partner violence awareness.
  • Three people conversing at an Aura Freedom International event.
  • Women presenting at Italian Cultural Institute panel discussion.
  • Two women presenting at a panel discussion with microphones.
  • Three women panelists discussing at the Italian Cultural Institute Toronto.
  • Panel discussion with audience at Italian Cultural Institute Toronto.
  • Woman performs with drum for audience at cultural event.
  • Four smiling women at Italian Cultural Institute event.
  • Women at Aura Freedom event discuss femicide statistics in Canada.