Every 48 hours a woman in Canada is killed, most often by a man. Because she is a woman. Yet, many Canadians still don’t understand this critical difference between femicide and homicide. On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, a one of a kind bag was created to highlight the difference, and help Canadians understand this national emergency.
“It’s hard for people to care about something they have never heard of. Femicide is defined by the why; women are being killed because they are women. To make Canadians understand femicide, we had to feminize homicide,” said Alexandra McGuirk-Penedo, sr. art director, Forsman & Bodenfors Canada.
This creative campaign, “The Body Bag For Her,” is a collaboration between Forsman & Bodenfors Canada and Aura Freedom, a Canadian non-profit specializing in eradicating gender-based violence. The campaign highlights the femicide emergency by leaning into classic advertising tropes for targeting women. Want to make something feminine? Turn it pink and you have a product “For Her”. These gendered tropes are so ingrained in our society that it became the perfect way to highlight the difference between femicide and homicide.
“We have a tendency in society to treat gender and gender roles as life or death, until it actually is,” said Darby Clarke, sr. copywriter, Forsman & Bodenfors Canada.
This hero spot takes viewers unknowingly through the journey of creating The Body Bag For Her, before revealing the stark imagery of the pink body bag. It is meant to be shocking, because femicide is shocking. Directed by Geneva Pesch via Folktale Films, the PSA culminates by directing viewers to a petition created by Aura Freedom, that calls on the Government of Canada to declare femicide a national emergency so resources on preventive solutions can be unlocked to address the root causes of femicide and keep women and families safe. Print, OOH, social, influencer marketing and broadcast all direct Canadians to a microsite that houses more information on femicide and the petition.
