Rankin Inlet (Dec 13/04) - A large crowd gathered in Rankin Inlet this past week to remember those whose lives were cut short by violence.

It was also an opportunity to move forward in creating a safer community in which to live.

Light a Candle for Peace in the Community was held on Dec. 6, a national day of remembrance and action on violence against women.

On Dec. 6, 1989, 14 female students were shot dead at the Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal by a lone gunman.

The Rankin event was organized by six concerned citizens: Gerry Pflueger, Michael Kusugak, Kathi Thompson, Mary Lee Aliyak, Veronica Tattuinee and RCMP Sgt. Grant St. Germaine.

Pflueger said the candlelight ceremony was the first in what the group hopes will be a series of events aimed at reducing the instances of violence in the community.

"There's too many people who come out to something like this once a year and then they go home and forget about it," said Pflueger.

"We want to get a course of action started that will, someday, make a difference in the community.

"We're going to hold another public gathering some time in January."

Breaking the cycle

Violence against women runs deep in Rankin, with the community having suffered through the deaths of two young women during the past two years.

Pflueger said one key to breaking the cycle of violence rests with the youth of the community.

She said it's encouraging to hear the youth speak about the need to end family violence in Nunavut.

"We spoke with students at Simon Alaittuq school before the candlelight event and they became involved in quite a discussion on the topic of family.

"They also talked about the spinoffs to family violence and how there's a kid bullied at school pretty much every day.

"It was encouraging to hear them making those connections.

"They want the violence to stop and that, in itself, bodes well for the future."