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An arc of candles and a wreath of white lilies were displayed Tuesday with the names of the 14 women murdered in the 1989 attack at l’École Polytechnique de Montréal.

Past the glass walls of Edmonton’s Federal Building, where the Alberta government marked Canada’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, the legislative building’s flags were at half mast.

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It has been 27 years since the attack.

But Jackie Foord, CEO of YWCA Edmonton, said Canada is still far from freeing itself of violence against women.

She sees it each day in the growing demand for the YWCA’s domestic violence counselling, which surpassed 2015 levels months ago.

Foord, who spoke at Tuesday’s vigil, thinks the rise in popularity of social media has brought with it a licence for people to say whatever they want, without consequence, as seen recently towards female MLAs.

Whether it’s hateful or hurtful, Foord said, people cover up their statements by saying they’re taking a stand against politically correct language.