It’s been one year since the mass shooting in Portapique. Across the province, communities and families are taking time to remember the 22 lives that were violently and prematurely taken in an act of misogynist violence. Over the past year we have all struggled to make sense of this violence, the loss of innocent lives […]
Domestic violence
Posted inNews + Opinion
Charging shooter’s ex-partner causing ‘rise in misogyny and victim-blaming’
On December 4, Nova Scotia RCMP released an out-of-the-blue update on what they are still calling Operation H-Strong, more commonly known as the worst mass shooting in Canadian history, which began in Portapique on April 18, 2020. In the release, RCMP say they have charged three people with supplying ammunition to the gunman in advance […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Voice of The City: Abuse and violence thrive in isolation and silence
The first person to die from a COVID-19-related death in Nova Scotia was not someone who contracted the virus. It was a woman murdered by her abusive male partner, whom she was forced into isolation with due to social distancing measures. In early April, Stephen Beckett was arrested at his home in Hammonds Plains and […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Making more resources for fathers in Halifax who need them
In 2016, I was a lost father. I had no idea what was to come, it was uncharted territory. I was a male victim of domestic abuse. I quit my job of seven years to try and give my son stability when his mother went back to work after her maternity leave ended. I thought I was doing […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Coffin calls out Kousoulis on domestic violence supports
The Liberal government has unveiled new legislation aimed at protecting the employment of victims of domestic violence. Specifically, the amendments allow employees time off work without invoking sick leave. But there’s a hitch. The leave, up to 16 consecutive weeks, is unpaid. Michelle Coffin, a victim of domestic violence and former Liberal insider herself, says […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Tory leader says premier engaged in a cover-up of Michelle Coffin’s story
Premier Stephen McNeil is changing his tune about the rehiring of Kyley Harris, nearly four months after The Coast first reported Michelle Coffin’s story. Progressive Conservative leader Jamie Baillie pressed the premier on the Liberal Party’s version of events during the first question period of the fall assembly at Province House, Friday. Coffin, a former […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Domestic violence court fast-tracked
A Halifax court designed specifically to deal with domestic violence will open sooner than planned. The court, based on a pilot project in Sydney, Cape Breton, appeared set to launch sometime in 2018. But at a recent meeting between provincial justice department bureaucrats and community advocates, it was announced the court will be up and […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Domestic violence still at our doors
Over Thanksgiving weekend, in the early hours of Sunday, my partner and I were woken by the sounds of a very loud fight happening in the apartment above us. A man’s voice screamed continuously, loud bangs and crashes from what we assumed was furniture being thrown around. A woman’s voice cried and pleaded. My partner […]