Marc Lépine: The Montreal Massacre (Crimes Canada: True Crimes That Shocked The Nation) 9781508584568, 1508584567

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Marc Lépine The Montreal Massacre

Volume 2 by

RJ Parker

Crimes Canada: True Crimes That Shocked The Nation

Marc Lépine The Montreal Massacre

Volume 2 by RJ Parker Crimes Canada: True Crimes That Shocked The Nation

ISBN-13: 978-1508584568 ISBN-10: 1508584567 Published by: Vronsky Parker Publication an Imprint of RJ Parker Publishing, Inc. Published in Canada

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Acknowledgements I want to personally thank my editor, Deb Hartwell and all of my beta-readers. I can't thank you enough for your ongoing support. ... RJ June Julie Dechman Darlene Horn Ron Steed Katherine McCarthy Lorie Matteson Marlene Fabregas Jennifer Marshall Lorrie Suzanne Phillippe Kipp Poe Speicher Anthony Lowman Melissa Craft Paula Price

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Crimes Canada: True Crimes That Shocked the Nation

Series Introduction Canadians take pride in their reputation as a “nice” and “polite” people, as global blue-helmeted United Nations peacekeepers. Canadians often like to point to their American neighbours and the reported high crime rates, remarking on just how safe Canadian cities are. Canada’s largest city, Toronto, with a population of 2.8 million people had only 57 homicides in 2014, while Chicago, with 2.7 million people, reported 425 murders in the same year. Canadians will tell you that nobody in Canada has a “constitutional right to bear arms” and that no firearm, handgun, or rifle, can be purchased without the buyer first being checked by the local police and issued a Firearms Acquisition Certificate (FAC). Handguns are very difficult to acquire legally, and a permit to actually carry one beyond driving with it unloaded and locked in the trunk of your car to and from a gun range, is almost impossible. Until recently, by law, rifles had to be registered with a national gun registry, and automatic and many military grade semi-automatic rifles, and high capacity magazines are completely outlawed. Canada has a relatively good reputation for peaceful race relations, and unlike the United States, which has taken the “melting pot” approach to immigration, Canada celebrates and encourages “multiculturalism.” Urban “ghettos,” although they exist in Canada, are few and far between. But having said all that, when Canadians go off the rails and perpetrate a violent crime, it is often so spectacularly crazy that it makes headlines around the world. From the mysterious still unsolved disappearance in 1919 in Toronto of Canadian millionaire Ambrose Small that was dubbed in the international press as a “crime of the century” in its time, to the recent world-wide coverage of gay porn actor Luka Magnotta’s murder and necrophiliac dismemberment of a victim recorded on videotape and posted on social media, Canada’s crimes often not only shock the nation, but the world too. Canadians who might be smug about their sense of security and safety and sense of order forget that some of the world’s most shocking crimes took place in Canada. Cases like: Serial killer Clifford Olsen who murdered 11 children and then persuaded authorities to pay his family $10,000 for every body whose burial site he would reveal; The husband and wife serial killers known as “Ken & Barbie”—Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka— who kidnapped, raped, tortured, and killed adolescent girls, videotaping their horrific crimes along the way, including the rape and death of Karla’s own kid sister; Mark Twitchell—the “Dexter Killer”—a wannabe filmmaker and fan of the TV show Dexter, who set up his own murder studio in a laneway garage and used the internet to lure a victim to it, murdering and dismembering him; The Quebec Biker War between the Hells Angels and the Rock Machine outlaw motorcycle clubs that claimed 150 lives; Canada’s Mafia Wars that took thirty-five victims in 2012 alone between warring mobsters in Toronto and Montreal; The rape-murder of a street shoeshine boy by a ring of pedophiles on Toronto’s then notorious Yonge Street “strip”; Russell Williams, a colonel in the Canadian Air Force and a commander of a strategic airbase, who piloted the Queen of England, Prince Philip, and the Prime Minister of Canada, and was convicted of raping, torturing and murdering two women while videotaping his crimes; Peter Woodcock, who murdered three children by the time he was seventeen, was confined to a psychiatric facility for thirty-four years until the day he was given his first day pass, when he murdered a fourth victim; And the subject of the first volume, Robert Pickton, a British Columbia man who inherited a pig farm

worth a million dollars and used his wealth to lure skid row hookers to his farm, where he later confessed to murdering forty-nine female victims, dismembering and feeding their body parts to his pigs which he supplied to Vancouver area restaurants. In this multi-volume series edited by crime historian Dr. Peter Vronsky and true crime author and publisher RJ Parker, some of Canada’s most notorious shocking crimes will be described and explored, including some of the cases mentioned above.

Crimes Canada: True Crimes that Shocked the Nation, will feature a series of Canadian true crime books published by VP Publications (Vronsky & Parker), an imprint of RJ Parker Publishing, Inc., one of the world’s leading Indie publishers of true crime. Peter Vronsky is the bestselling author of Serial Killers: The Method and Madness of Monsters and Female Serial Killers: How and Why Women Become Monsters while R.J. Parker is not only a successful Indie publisher but also the author of books like, Serial Killers Abridged: An Encyclopedia of 100 Serial Killers, Social Media Monsters: Internet Killers, Parents Who Killed Their Children: Filicide, and Serial Killer Groupies. Both are Canadians and have teamed up to share shocking Canadian true crime cases not only with fellow Canadian readers but with Americans and world readers as well, who will be shocked and horrified by just how evil and sick “nice” Canadians can be when they go bad. Finally, the editors invite their established Canadian fellow authors and aspiring authors to submit proposals or manuscripts to VP Publication at [email protected].

Canada Canada is known all around the world for its tranquility and peacefulness. It is a country with beautiful landscapes, where people are all ready to befriend strangers and in no time become great friends for a lifetime. The world has only a few countries such as this that have such stable conditions and are enemies to almost no one. Not only is the country cited for its poised nature but also for its high rate of literacy. With a number of world-class universities that are abode to millions of intellectuals, the country prides itself on a high standard of education. There is no doubt that every educated figure would want to experience such a place where the cool snow falls and individuals peacefully enjoy their hot meals as they meet new people and make friends along the way. However, the calmness of the country was perhaps deceptive. The innocent beings enjoying themselves in the fresh air and taking in the beautiful sights did not know what was being nurtured among them. A creature with no mercy, with no love in the heart, was about to bring out of the shadows a darkness upon this vibrant trusting society, whose only flaw, perhaps, was innocence. It is known that there are some people in every crowd that have certain qualities that make it difficult for them to adjust to their own societies. However, no one is aware when these maladjustments might become one of the biggest nightmares for those who are among the closest to them. The monsters with stories of brutality have filled the world’s history books and are those who are always talked about by others with tears in their eyes and fear in their hearts. Perhaps Canada was such a country that was unfortunate enough to be victimized by such a monster.

Marc Lépine Gamil Rodrigue Liass Gharbi (Marc Lépine) was born on October 26, 1964, in Montreal. He was a son of a very troubled couple. His mother, Monique Lépine, was a Canadian-born nurse while his father, Rachid Liass Gharbi, was an Algerian immigrant. His father was an investment fund salesman with a history of abusing and looking down at women. At the time of Lépine’s birth, Gharbi, the boy's father, was in the Caribbean on business, where he was having an illicit affair. Lépine’s family encountered various troubles and moved frequently. Lépine had spent much of his childhood in Costa Rica and Puerto Rico. In 1968, however, his family permanently settled in Montreal, and shortly after this, the family saw a huge financial setback in an investment market downturn at the Swiss mutual funds company where Lépine’s father was employed. It is believed Gharbi passed on his hostile genes to Lépine. Gharbi was a very harsh person who demanded his wife serve him as his personal secretary and slapped her for making any mistakes. He was a very rude and strict father, never paying much attention to his children, especially Marc, as he thought expressing any kind of love and affection towards children would spoil them. The neglect, however, was not just limited to lack of attention; it was rather escalated to a more brutal level when, in 1970, Gharbi hit his son so hard that the marks remained for weeks after. Eventually, Lépine’s mother decided to leave Gharbi. In 1976, his parents separated. Marc was taken under the custody of his mother after his parents separated. He and his sister lived mostly with other families, only seeing their mother on weekends while she worked to make ends meet. Marc was deemed a brilliant child, but he was also someone who had remained isolated and found himself to be uncomfortable with peer and family relationships. 1

In 1977, Marc, with his mother and sister, moved to a new house in the suburb of Pierrefonds. While there, he attended junior high and high school. A quiet student, he earned average to above-average grades. Being teased at school for his original name, Gamil Rodrigue Liass Gharbi, Lépine changed his name at the age of fourteen to Marc Lépine. It can be understood how Lépine’s early life had immensely affected him. No wonder people go crazy with such depressing backgrounds. Certainly for most of us, life is not fair; however, there are still ways that those who are ridiculed as such can break the walls in which they have been confined. The story of Lépine’s troubled life continued as he grew older. Even his own sister did not spare him. He was a boy who had been bullied and suffered humiliation from his sister who liked to publicly ridicule him by laughing at his acne and lack of girlfriends. Ironically, Lépine used to imagine her dead, even giving her a mock funeral at one point.

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Lépine’s mother sought a role model for her son through a Big Brothers program. The experience produced positive results for two years. He found that he loved photography and motocross, or crosscountry racing on motorcycles. But his Big Brother was eventually accused of molesting young children, and although the Big Brother and Marc denied any of this, their relationship soon ended.

It seemed whenever Marc found happiness, it was taken away from him, only to be replaced by much stronger grief and anxiety. The dark clouds from his early life followed him around forever. Lépine might also have had those brutal instincts to kill and harm people. This phenomenon was evident in his obsession with Adolph Hitler and World War II. He was also attracted to action and horror movies.

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In September of 1981, Lépine, then seventeen years old, tried to join the Canadian Armed Forces as an officer cadet. However, he was rejected due to being anti-social, according to his suicide letter. In an official statement from the military after the massacre, it was said that Lépine was simply considered “unsuitable” for the job after being assessed. As Lépine neared adulthood, the sorrows that had left him deeply scarred were not healed; instead, his troubles simply grew even greater. At the age of eighteen, in 1982, Lépine and his family moved to Saint-Laurent, Quebec. This move deprived Lépine of his best school friend as they were out of contact. This was just the start of another period that was about to bring Lépine’s life an ocean of loneliness and despondence. In 1982, Lépine enrolled in a two-year pre-university course in pure sciences at CEGEP de Saint4

Laurent, a public French language community college in Montreal. He also worked a part-time job at a local hospital where his mother was the Director of Nursing. Lépine served food and performed custodial work at the hospital. His colleagues, however, saw him as someone who was nervous all the time, hyperactive, and immature.

After completing a year in college, Lépine quit the science program and found his way in the field of electronic technology through a three-year technical program. The program was designed to launch its graduates into the workforce with immediate employment. At this time, Lépine’s teachers described him as a hard-working individual who was quiet and performed well in classes, especially those associated with electronics and technology. Later, however, Lépine abruptly, and without giving any explanations, stopped attending classes, thus failing to earn his diploma.

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Lépine then left his mother’s home and settled into an apartment of his own. He applied to the University of Montreal, the place that was to become the horrific site of history in Canada. Sadly, the admissions staff did not know at the time what type of monster they were welcoming to their community. Lépine was admitted to the University to study engineering. *** Soon, Lépine found himself fired from the hospital in which he worked. It was yet another blow in his miserable life. His employers fired him for insobordiante behavior toward his superiors and neglect of his duties. It was at this point that Lépine seemingly had enough. First it was his dad, and then it was his school, then his sister, and now his job. The negative series of events had Lépine enraged and it was this anger that inspired him to conceive a plan in which he would commit a murderous rampage.

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Lépine took three courses in efforts to earn his diploma in the fall of 1987. He performed very well in all of them. After receiving his diploma, Lépine enrolled himself in a course in computer programming at a private college in Montreal in February 1988. The course was funded through a government student loan scheme in favor of Lépine. Taking his old high school friend along with him, Lépine moved to a downtown apartment and during the winter of 1989, he took a CEGEP night-course, a pre-requisite required to be completed before entering the course at the University.

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Although Marc never felt comfortable with women, he wanted a girlfriend. He liked to boast of his knowledge in front of women and boss them around. Even when Lépine was with men, his usual topic for discussion would be his hatred of feminists and how much he disliked career-oriented women, particularly those who filled up positions that were seemingly meant for males, like the police forces. He firmly believed that women should remain at home taking care of their families.

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Lépine applied to the University of Montreal once again, however, in his second attempt, his application was rejected since he still did not have the required courses to get admitted. By March 1989, Lépine withdrew himself from the computer programming course. When he met the admissions officer of the university, he complained about how women dominated the job market and were constantly taking opportunities away from men. So, this was Lépine. From childhood until adulthood, he was against women and feminism. However, his eccentricities were no stranger than any other human being. He could have become much more if he’d just remained focused on his goals rather than being so paranoid about women and the job market. There can be many psychological explanations given about his beliefs and thoughts, but we all know that they are futile now. One could, however, learn that in this world of extreme competitiveness, everyone has the right to fight, to move on, and endure societal pressures. It is all about equal opportunities for everyone.



The Massacre Twenty-five-year-old Marc Lépine held a Ruger Mini-14 5.53mm (.233) semi-automatic military style rifle in his hand along with a hunting knife. With extreme hatred in his heart against feminism, this brutal and mentally disordered person would enter a classroom in the University École Polytechnique de Montreal and mercilessly shoot dead fourteen female engineering students before committing suicide himself. The event is certainly a major tragedy in the history of Canada. Over a dozen innocent lives were wasted, due simply to the act of some madman. The event took place on December 6, 1989, and, to this day, December 6 is commemorated as the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

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It is unclear if Marc Lépine had already planned the day or did everything spontaneously, but whatever the case, the sixth of December became a day of horror for the students of the University of Montreal. 11

Marc Lépine arrived at the building housing the École Polytechnique, an engineering school affiliated with the University of Montréal. Lépine was familiar with the layout of the building, as he had been in and around the École Polytechnique at least seven times in the weeks leading up to the event. Lépine sat for a time in the office of the registrar on the second floor. He was seen rummaging through a green plastic bag, and did not speak to anyone, even when a staff member asked if she could help him. He appeared agitated, as if waiting for someone who had failed to arrive. He made eye contact with no one; his posture was stiff and his expression was grim. When an employee in the office asked if he needed assistance, he got up, grabbed his bag without a word, and walked away. The employee did not think much about it. The end of the semester was a tough time for students, and many were tired. Lépine left the office. With classes in session, the halls were clear and no one was about, no one who could raise an alarm. People in the offices were preparing to leave for the day. That would work in his favour. This was the moment. He had attached a high-capacity banana clip magazine to his rifle, so he could fire thirty rounds in quick succession from his semi-auto rifle, and he had plenty of ammunition. He was ready. He entered a peaceful classroom in the University that was filled with over sixty engineering students. They were left with no time to process what was going on at the moment. A witness later reported that most of the students thought that it was some type of a joke, as it was the last day of their class. However, little did they know that for many it was indeed ‘the last class.’

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After approaching a student giving a presentation, Marc said, “Everyone stop everything.” Professor Bouchard looked at him, annoyed. He squinted, as if trying to remember who this student was. In French, the young man asked the ten female students to get up and move across the room. He then told the men to leave. No one moved. A few people laughed, thinking it was some kind of hoax. That was the worst thing they could have done. Lépine had considered himself humiliated enough in his twenty-five years. On this day, of all days, he was not going to be treated in that way. Lifting his rifle, he shot twice into the ceiling. It was no joke. “You’re all a bunch of feminists!” he shouted angrily. “And I hate feminists!” One of the students, Nathalie Provost, said, “Look, we are just women studying engineering, not necessarily feminists ready to march on the streets to shout we are against men, just students intent on leading a normal life.” Lépine quickly responded, “You're women, you're going to be engineers.” He then opened fire on the students from left to right, killing six and wounding three others, including Provost, whom he shot three times. Before leaving the room, he wrote the word “shit” twice on a student project. This cunning man had bought his highly lethal weapon from a sporting goods store whom he told it was for "small game." The only game Lepine had in mind were humans, young women. Lépine bought the military style rifle on November 21, 1989, was planned and thought through.

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suggesting that he had not committed his attack on a whim, it

After the shooting in the classroom, Lépine marched towards his next targets and started moving through the corridors, the cafeteria, and another classroom, searching in a blood frenzy for more “feminists” to kill. First, Lépine walked toward the second-floor corridor and attempted to kill a female student in another room after injuring three students in the corridor. However, when Lépine did not succeed in killing the female student, he made his way to an emergency staircase to reload his weapon.

Upon return, he tried shooting through the locked door of the room which the female student had hid herself in, fortunately, he failed in shooting the door open.



Relentlessly, Lépine continued walking through the corridor, shooting others along the way. In the cafeteria on the first-floor, about a hundred people were present. After returning to the first floor, Lépine shot a woman standing near the kitchen. It was then that the crowd turned frantic and chaotic. Later, Lépine got into an unlocked storage area where two women were hiding from all that was happening. Unfortunately they were spotted by Lépine, who killed them as well. By this time, police had arrived and assembled outside. Several went to cover the exits, lest the gunman slip away, but it took nearly twenty minutes before they decided to enter. They were not certain where he was and did not wish to endanger anyone. Calls went to a dispatcher for more ambulances, and those wounded students who could walk on their own ran to meet them outside.

The madman monstrously walked up an escalator to the third floor of the building, shooting one female and two male students. The killings continued as Lépine made his way to another classroom and instructed three students who were apparently giving a presentation to leave the classroom. Lépine then went on to shoot Maryse Leclair, a student present in the classroom. She pleaded for assistance, which attracted him back to her. Those who survived this bloodbath recounted for newspapers what he did next. The strange young man sat down next to the wounded woman, quietly pulled a knife from the sheath strapped to his body, and stabbed her in the heart. She screamed in surprise and pain. This violent act shocked those who were watching. The man had no mercy, but there was nothing anyone could do. He pulled the knife out and then plunged it in twice more until the girl fell silent, blood gushing from her wounds. The last words spoken by Lépine after stabbing this young woman was, “Ah, shit.” He turned the rifle’s barrel toward his own face, pressed the muzzle against his forehead, and pulled the trigger. The rifle discharged, blowing off part of his skull as he fell to the floor. No one moved. The place smelled of hot metal, gunpowder, and fresh blood. Nevertheless, clearly it was over. Approximately sixty bullets remained in the boxes he’d carried with him. He had killed fourteen women: twelve engineering students, one nursing student, and one employee of the university, and injured fourteen other people, including four men. As police swarmed in, Montreal Police Director of Public Relations Pierre Leclair entered the building and went from one floor to another to assess the situation. Through a window in the third-floor corridor, he saw a young woman lying on a platform, on her back. He stopped. He could not believe what he was seeing. It was his daughter. Rushing to her, he realized that she was among those who had been killed; more horribly, she had been stabbed as well as shot. *** Soon after the massacre, the friendly city of Montreal was shocked and shaken as media commentators started reporting the details of the event. A feminist activist, Francine Pelletier, who is also the newspaper columnist at Montreal’s La Presse newspaper stated that she was “totally floored” after hearing about the incident. The most shocking news for her was that when the police found a list of intended targets in the killer’s pocket, one of the names written on it was her own. Perhaps she was simply fortunate enough to escape death that day. The list that the madman left behind is a legacy of the women who were killed; a loud acclamation that these women were those who stood for the progress of all women. The attack did not deter the women in favor of feminism to let down their cause; it just increased their frustration and anger about the inequality between men and women. After the incident, women went head-on and demonstrated in towns and cities all over the country.

The List and the Letters The killer did not leave this world without leaving behind some sort of explanation. Inside Marc Lépine’s 14

jacket, police discovered a suicide letter along with two letters addressed to some of his friends. Each letter had the date on which the massacre was carried out. Initially police did not disclose all of the contents of the letters and only revealed some details in the days after the attack. However, three years later, everything was released to the world. Marc Lépine had a list on which the names of the victims were written and this piece of information was disclosed to journalist Francine Pelletier. The list had names of nineteen Quebec women that were the certain targets of Marc Lépine, as he considered these women to be staunch supporters of feminism. Among these nineteen apparent feminists was Pelletier herself, a union leader, a politician, and a TV personality. In the contents of the letter, Lépine justifies himself as someone rational and mentions some of the reasons for his brutal attack. He also included statements expressing his extreme hatred for feminists. The following is an English translation of his suicide letter: Forgive the mistakes, I had 15 minutes to write this. (See also Annex.) Would you note that if I commit suicide today 89-12-06 it is not for economic reasons (for I have waited until I exhausted all my financial means, even refusing jobs) but for political reasons. Because I have decided to send the feminists, who have always ruined my life, to their Maker. For seven years life has brought me no joy and being totally blasé, I have decided to put an end to those viragos. I tried in my youth to enter the Forces as an officer cadet, which would have allowed me possibly to get into the arsenal and precede Lortie in a raid. They refused me because asocial [sic]. I therefore had to wait until this day to execute my plans. In between, I continued my studies in a haphazard way for they never really interested me, knowing in advance my fate. Which did not prevent me from obtaining very good marks despite my theory of not handing in work and the lack of studying before exams. Even if the Mad Killer epithet will be attributed to me by the media, I consider myself a rational erudite that only the arrival of the Grim Reaper has forced to take extreme acts. For why persevere to exist if it is only to please the government. Being rather backward-looking by nature (except for science), the feminists have always enraged me. They want to keep the advantages of women (e.g. cheaper insurance, extended maternity leave preceded by a preventative leave, etc.) while seizing for themselves those of men. Thus it is an obvious truth that if the Olympic Games removed the Men-Women distinction, there would be Women only in the graceful events. So the feminists are not fighting to remove that barrier. They are so opportunistic they [do not] neglect to profit from the knowledge accumulated by men through the ages. They always try to misrepresent them every time they can. Thus, the other day, I heard they were honoring the Canadian men and women who fought at the frontline during the world wars. How can you explain [that since] women were not authorized to go to the frontline??? Will we hear of Caesar's female legions and female galley slaves who of course took up 50% of the ranks of history, though they never existed. A real Casus Belli. Sorry for this too brief letter. Marc Lépine

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After listing nineteen names, the letter then closes with “Nearly died today. The lack of time (because I started too late) has allowed these radical feminists to survive. Alea iacta est (The die is cast).”

Keeping the victims names alive: Geneviève Bergeron, 21 Hélène Colgan, 23 Nathalie Croteau, 23 Barbara Daigneault, 22 Anne-Marie Edward, 21 Maud Haviernick, 29 Maryse Laganière, 25 Maryse Leclair, 23 Anne-Marie Lemay, 22 Sonia Pelletier, 28 Michèle Richard, 21 Annie St-Arneault, 23 Annie Turcotte, 20 Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz, 31

Was Lépine Rational? It is very difficult to answer that question. Rationality is just another subjective reality where everyone seems to have their own views about what is rational and what is not. However, the case at hand is something that everyone would deem to be a brutal act with no justifiable reason behind it. There can be various theories and concepts, both in the realm of criminology, psychology, or even theology to explain the true motives behind Lépine’s actions, but none would be concrete enough to explain clearly as to why this ordinary person led himself to commit such an act and afterward kill himself by his own hands. Soon after this tragic event, the media, police departments, bloggers, and various organizations started researching the causes of this unprecedented event. The massacre became a mainstream topic of discussion around the world, especially here in Canada, as it truly ‘shocked the nation.’ Many scholars have said the act was carried out due to a mental disorder that Lépine had acquired from his past experiences. Inferring from the suicide letter, some saw the act as something that was just crazy and done out of the isolation that Lépine had suffered from as a child. Criminologists referred to the act as hate or bias crime against women. This was because Lépine’s victims included women and those who were categorized as supporting feminism. Feminists declared the massacre as an act of “gynocide.” Investigators conducted interviews with Lépine’s family to get a better understanding of what was going on inside his mind. One psychiatrist dubbed the act as a personality disorder. Theories were presented that suggested Lépine’s relationship with his father was the cause of this act. This is because, as was mentioned earlier, his father was a brutal man who would hit Marc as a boy, and due to this, he felt isolated and victimized, thus causing brain damage. Some suggested that Lépine lost touch with reality and was simply psychotic, and as he wanted to forget the injuring memories he had of his miserable past, he was led to commit such an act. The list goes on and on. However, it can be inferred from Marc’s life that he was sort of always enraged with women. He often would let out his hatred in discussions with friends, venting his dislike of the idea of women taking up career positions that were traditionally held by men. From the suicide letter though, it is clear that Lépine was simply fed up and had enough. The fact that he mentioned in the first few sentences that he was committing suicide due to political reasons and he wished to send the feminists back to their Maker is enough evidence to suggest that Lépine’s continuous bad experiences with women in his early life just developed a very firm and resolute hatred for women. He was also not comfortable with the idea that women were competing with men in the job market. Though Lépine killed those fourteen women and himself, to this day, people of various disciplines study this rare phenomenon that took place in the serene lands of Canada.

The Aftermath It seems that Lépine left long-lasting injuries for those who witnessed the crime scene. Many students and staff members who saw the incident became victims of various types of financial losses, social problems, and even suffered from psychological disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder. The impact was such that some students even committed suicide. Among them, there were some who wrote in their suicide letter that the pain and sorrow that the massacre brought was just too much for them to bear. Even years after the event, people are still disturbed by the massacre. The massacre also prompted people to carry out a gun control movement. In fact, a survivor by the name of Heidi Rathjen, who was present in one of the classrooms of the University that Lépine did not get into, organized the Coalition for Gun Control with Wendy Cukier.

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The activities of this movement were

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the reason that the Canadian Parliment passed Bill C-68. It was a firearms act that made gun control regulations much stricter. According to this act, gun owners should be trained, and firearm applicants must be screened more rigidly. The act also reinforced proper storage of guns and ammunition and their registration, as well as how to transport weapons in your vehicle to gun ranges or hunting grounds. Canadian women became more spurred by the event. Movements and demonstrations marked the country’s landscape, as the massacre was seen as ‘violence against women,’ and rightfully so. Canadian 18

feminist Judy Rebick said, “The death of those young women would not be in vain, we promised.” A House of Commons Sub-Committee on the Status of Women was also created and it issued a report entitled “The War against Women” in June of 1991. The report, however, was not endorsed by the full standing committee.

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Later, the Federal Government established the Canadian Panel on Violence Against Women in August 1991. In June 1993, a final report was published with the title of “Changing the Landscape: Ending Violence – Achieving Equality.” Additionally, a two-pronged action plan was proposed by the panel, called the “National Action Plan,” which was comprised of an “Equality Action Plan” and a “Zero Tolerance Policy” intended to increase women’s equality and deter violence against women under strict government policies. There were criticisms of these reports as well, stating that the plan was a failure as it did not offer a practical timeline or strategy for implementation and the final report was not influential at all.

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After the massacre, the male survivors were targeted by critics. This occurred because many pointed out that the male students did not act or try to subdue the killer and remained silent throughout the entire incident. It was stated that the men should have taken some action to distract Lépine in some way. Some students and staff never stepped foot in the Polytechnique again. Sarto Blais, a graduate, hanged himself eight months after the massacre, writing in his suicide note that he was torn apart by guilt that he didn't stop Lépine. The following June, his parents also committed suicide, unable to cope with the loss of their only son. A newspaper columnist named Mark Steyn described the male inaction as a “culture of passivity” that was present in the men of Canada and saw this as a reason for Lépine’s haphazard shooting. Also, he stated that the contemporary Canadian maleness is not represented by Lépine or Gharbi, but by the professors and men who remained inactive during the massacre in the classroom and silently obeyed Lépine, by leaving the classroom and abandoning their fellow female classmates. He considered this something that is unimaginable in any other culture in human history.

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On the other hand, the females were also criticized for taking the stand that the massacre was all about violence against women. Some say that the women’s extreme position on supporting feminism led to such an act. Critics were of the view that females who honor feminism are creating a division between males and females, which harms society by making men feel guilty. Some also hold the opinion that Lépine was some kind of hero who exhibited a great example of masculinity and whose actions should be revered. Since the day of the massacre, people’s hearts have remained fearful. Every December 6, the massacre is commemorated as the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women. There has also been a White Ribbon Campaign that was started by a group of men in 1991 in London, Ontario, to raise awareness about violence against women. The ribbon acts as a symbol for men to give up 22

on arms. The commemoration went to such an extent that in Vancouver, when a group of women built a memorial dedicating it to “all women murdered by men,” a huge controversy took place, as the memorial 23

seemed to suggest that all men are murderers. Because of this, the Vancouver Park Board banned any type of memorial that condemned any specific group. ***

In 2008, after remaining silent for a long time, Monique Lépine, Marc's mother, finally decided to present her views to the world, and so she published a memoir called Aftermath. In the memoir, Lépine’s mother described all the grief and misery that she had suffered after the incident. The book is not available in eBook, and from what I can tell, was available only in hardcover and is no longer in print. The event was a very horrible point in the history of Canada indeed. However, rather than only mourning about those who have left this world, it is now incumbent on every citizen of Canada to uphold the spirit of male-female 24

equality and try to make every citizen feel a part of his or her society. It's interesting to note that Monique also lost another child. Her daughter, Lépine’s sister Nadia Gharbi, died of a drug overdose in 1996. Two children, each dead by their own hands.

Monique Lépine

Nadia Gharbi

Perspectives - The Bigger Picture Even years after the massacre, people still have not forgotten the incident. It has remained in the hearts of Canadians, constantly frightening them and telling them that their home is no stranger to madmen like Lépine. Obviously, this could happen again. Academics, theologians, criminologists, and psychiatrists have all studied the event. If such an incident is to be kept from repeating in the future, the only way would be to dive deep into the roots of the problem and find out what caused Lépine to commit such a heinous crime. So far, all that has been discussed relates to the immediate stories of the massacre, how it took place, and what the reactions of the people were. However, there is much more to this than meets the eye. Soon after this tragic event, two figures came into the picture to more fully understand the facts and 25

26

the outcomes. Criminal Anthropologist Elliott Leyton and television broadcaster Barbara Frum were two of those people who were eager to take the case to more intellectual levels rather than an emotional one. Frum conducted an interview with an eyewitness of the incident who had fortunately survived the attack. A student of the university, Pierre Robert, was the first person to relate the incident in detail that took place in the classroom. Robert was asked to describe the behavior of the murderer, to which he replied that when Lépine entered the class, he seemed very calm, and due to his slow and calm manner, the students thought that it was just a joke, especially because it was the last day of school. But that calmness ended quickly when Lépine fired at the wall. Robert said that after firing the first shot, Lépine’s voice became nervous and he was speaking really fast. Elliott Leyton reasoned that Lépine was certainly a mass murderer. However, he mentioned that Lépine also proved to be one exception for a mass murderer in that he targeted his victims on the basis of gender. Usually, mass murderers kill their victims classified by a particular social class, ethnic group, religion or race. In an interview, Leyton explained that, apart from the fact that Lépine victimized women specifically, one common behavior he exhibited, which is frequently shown by mass murderers alike, is he believed women were the sole cause of his failure and loss. This is typical of all mass murderers, as they believe a specific group is the cause of their distress. Leyton explains that when a person begins believing in a certain ideology or takes in some belief, there is a unique aspect of the human mind called “projectivity” where, instead of rendering itself more confused about the outside world, it seems to believe (“project”) everything is fitting right into place. The mind believes connections exist everywhere now, particularly connections between the actions of a specific group and the tragedies of one’s own life. Some feminists believe that men are an oppressive force while Lépine believed the opposite. To be more clear, Lépine’s actions made feminists think that he was against women—an interpretation that seems to fit perfectly well given the situation at the time. Even today, Lépine is remembered and labelled as a mass murderer who had been abused as a child and disliked women extremely. No matter how many people see Lépine’s actions as those of a madman, one thing is certain—this is absolutely not the case. Lépine had already coldly planned this attack beforehand, and it could have only been carried out by someone who was rational. After all, Lépine did have a bright mind at school and college. The question, however, is whether Lépine actually was a determined cold-blooded killer or just extremely enthusiastic about the belief that he held. As far as the case of being a cold-blooded killer is concerned, a cold-blooded killer is someone who has no concern for the human life and is completely without compassion. If the interpretation of Barbara Frum is put forward, Lépine was certainly a coldblooded killer. Many believe when one person in a relationship murders the other, the murder is regarded as a “crime of passion” or a “domestic murder.” It implies that the crime was committed due to anger and was sort of a response to a prevalent relationship problem between the couple. Over half of these types of murders result simply from a relationship that the female victim is involved in. However, this does not describe Lépine’s actions, as the women he victimized were completely unknown to him. On the other hand, there is a bit of mystery behind Lépine’s decision to specifically target the women in the University of Montreal. It must be said again that Lépine’s application for admission in the university had recently been rejected. In the letter Lépine wrote, he indicated his actions had a political motive, rather than economical. The feminists, on the other hand, interpreted this as an act meant particularly to victimize women. Although these women may be right, it must not be forgotten how Lépine had suffered a life full of neglect and misery. Putting Lepine’s actions entirely in the framework of “gynocidal” violence is quite controversial, as there are a number of reasons that can be presented to explain why he committed this crime. A slogan often used by feminists, “The Personal is Political,” has been used to represent and highlight the importance that women keep in the political framework of a country. The slogan was actually used by

Carol Hanisch in an essay entitled “The Personal is Political,” which was published in the Redstockings’ literary collection, Feminist Revolution, based in New York in 1969. From this time on, various feminists have written extensively about a woman’s role as a mother and a wife and regarding the predicaments that they face in the realms of the workforce and politics. The point to be made here is that none of these writings and problems mentions even to the slightest extent the similar problems that men have in their lives concerning the areas of politics and work. Then there was the “battered wife defense” that came about in 1977 after the case-precedent of Francine Hughes. Hughes was a Michigan housewife who was called to court for drenching her husband with gasoline when he was asleep and then setting him on fire. She was accused of murder, however, she was found not guilty. This was because Hughes defended herself by saying that she was a wife who had suffered psychological and physical abuse for seventeen years during the time she had spent with her husband. She was freed because it was proposed that she was completely unable to end the relationship or do anything against the abuse. This behavior was dubbed as “battered woman defense.” After the massacre, much research was done to gather as many details as possible about Lépine’s life. It was told that the Montreal Police threw themselves into a full-scale investigation about the life of Marc Lépine; but, unfortunately, all that was gathered simply suggested that he was a bright child with a very depressed and troublesome youth and no psychological abnormalities as such. The failure to attain more information was due to the fact that, as the authorities put it, recalling the event again and again for the sake of understanding Lépine’s life brought miseries into the lives of those who have lost their loved ones due to the massacre. Hence, it was demanded that the investigation be ended. The problem which consequently arose was that much of the information that had been gathered about Lépine was not true. Some information was just incomplete. Why was Lépine rejected from the University of Montreal? Was the official reason given by the military for not accepting Lépine actually the fact? Due to the lack of answers to these questions, Lépine remained a person of mystery whose life and mind were not understood in their entirety at the time. So, what we have at the end is a woman, Francine Hughes, who is confined to the typical woman’s role of being a mother and a wife, and at the same time, there is this apparent madman named Marc Lépine, who is also a miserable person, not ever getting anything in life that he desired, subjected to rejection by society as a whole, and deprived of a family relationship, having no intimate relations with his parents and siblings. Both of these people have suffered social pressure in some way or the other. In the case of Francine Hughes, she was held as a victim of domestic violence through her own family whereas Marc Lépine was a person who unfortunately fell into the hands of an unjust society where his family, friends, colleagues, and the entire community treated him unfairly, making him feel isolated and dejected. Both of them exhibited different behaviours to let out their frustration with the world. Francine Hughes killed her own husband, whom she believed was responsible for her own misery. Lépine, in contrast, killed some unknown women just because he thought these women, or more specifically feminists, were the sole reason for his desperate life and because of whom he was, they denied entry into the careers that he very much desired for himself. It is likely Lépine could not have adequately let out his frustrations to any other person, even if there actually was someone who cared about the views of men at the time. He had his education in the field of electronics and technology, not really the subjects that would help him understand how he felt exactly. He also did not receive any type of formal education in social sciences and hence this did not help him either. So, it can be said that he was just another creature wandering earth, trying to find out the meaning of life and why was he even part of it. However, believing that no one was able to quench his curiosity and anxiety, he’d simply had enough. 27

A notable writer on feminism and media, Peter Zohrab, said that, after the massacre, the Men’s Movement responded defensively, apparently not wanting to be considered as people who hated women, like Marc Lépine. However, Zohrab claimed that Lépine was not exactly a misogynist but was someone who fought for Men’s Rights. The problem was that he did this with a rather extreme approach. Zohrab highlights the point that in Lépine’s letter, it is clear he was trying to express the various troubles he’d faced and which somehow reflected aspects of feminist sexism. Zohrab also explains that, on close examination of Lépine’s letter, his stated reasons might be a sign of misogyny for many, but they actually carry justification and has legitimate explanations. This situation somehow relates to that of the battered women years ago whose pleas were not heard or paid attention to. This was because, at that time, men were in the position of power. However, in Lépine’s time, to some extent, it was the opposite. Women were the ones who did not want to listen to the the pleas of Lépine, a lone man trying to figure out what was happening to him and his falling world. The validity of the above can be proved. However, much depends on others accepting that Lépine was perhaps not actually an insane person, but an intelligent man, normal like any other human being on this earth. The only difference is he was damaged by life and was prevented from achieving his goals, perhaps because his family background was a hindrance or simply his social class did not allow him to progress. Again, we come down to the same unanswered questions: Why was Lépine rejected entry in the military? According to Lépine, it was because he was antisocial. But was this really true? Did the official reason given by the military hold any significance at all? When we try to dig a bit deeper, the questions grow even more complex. Did Lépine actually think of himself as an antisocial person? Did he feel inferior, or

was he made to feel inferior among his peers due to his employment status and financial position? Did he actually realize his social status was a significant aspect of his failure? Or did he just internalize the unjust behaviours that he encountered because he was somehow convinced that he was antisocial? It is impossible to uncover the answers to these questions. The people Lépine turned to, apparently in search of help, were the ones who just could not do anything to improve his life—but what they did not realize is the consequences of their ignorance left a severe impact on his psyche. Unfortunately, Lépine was soon forgotten after his death and merely deemed as a hateful murderer. In western society, domestic abuse is considered a social problem nowadays, but the bigger question is whether this kind of behavior, either at work or school, or even in the open public, is something of a concern on a larger scale where the entire society comes into question, or is it just an issue that would be more properly dealt with if more attention was paid to individuals and their interpersonal problems? Just three days after the incident, there was another perspective presented by The Times, in London, England. In the article, the reporter claimed police officials were of the opinion that Lépine actually had “problems of the heart” and was a very sensitive person who would become “devastated by the smallest rejection.” In addition, the writer of the article told that Lépine’s life was filled with contempt for women, since he’d had a series of certain unsatisfactory relationships with women. Therefore, this and the earlier analysis pose an entirely new scenario. Lépine was definitely not a madman, or a mass-murderer, or someone who just hated women since birth; rather, he was someone who’d gotten his mind twisted in a world filled with rejections, injustice, financial setback, and hindrance to pursuing a desired career path. The problem is that, after the Montreal Massacre, some feminists continued to deny or simply did not understand the other aspects of Lépine’s life. They only considered the end result of a cause that has much more complex implications. Due to this, feminists have only looked at Lépine’s troubled childhood and the attack that he committed and so they are now the ones who disregard many other explanations and reasons that arise when examining various other problems that Lépine had in his life right from childhood until his death. Just saying that Lépine killed those women in the University of Montreal because they were women does not make any sense. These judgements only make the situation more difficult to understand and do not provide any good reason as to why Lépine committed such an act. It can be said that he was just a person who thought women should not forget their roles as mothers and wives; but, while doing so, something went wrong. We may never know the true reason behind his actions that day, especially if others continue to disregard other factors that may have contributed to his behavior.

The Lone Wanderer Lépine’s crime earned him the title of a ‘women-hater.’ But he did not kill people just because they were women. Lépine’s letter may shed some light on his actions. He wrote, “It is not for economic reasons (for I have waited until I exhausted all my financial means, even refusing jobs) but for political reasons.” For certain, Lépine did not have any personal gains. He’d refused taking on jobs, and he’d waited until he was broke, wretched, and miserable. So unfair the world is to some that they are compelled to let out their anger in ways not seen as appropriate in the eyes of the society. Lépine committed these murders for a political reason, as he mentioned in the letter. For sure, political reasons do not mean that Lépine was a heartless killer who hated females. It was also not anything personal, for he had done it out of a political motive. What was that motive? Whom was he so inspired and moved by? As these answers remain a mystery to this blinded world, one thing can be said for certain—Lépine was fighting for what he believed was the greater good. A good that he perceived to be gradually vanishing from our pitiful planet. However, fighting so, he was fighting within himself. “Not for economic reasons” may imply for many that Lépine was satisfied with having enough money to support himself. Lépine was just another person hit by economic crises and suffering financial problems as a result. There is a reason he wrote the sentence “for I have waited until I exhausted all my financial means, even refusing jobs.” Having a background in sciences, Lépine did not have the capability of expressing his true feelings in mere words. Only fifteen minutes to write his reasons didn’t help either. The meanings of his words on that piece of paper, on which his hands touched the last time, could have been interpreted in many ways, but it was the arrogance and blindness of mankind that obscured the truth from being revealed.

Today, everywhere in the world, we see powerless people lying next to roads, starving and pursuing what has been destined for them—eternal misery. Yet some of them have the courage to stand up and go against their fate and act on their will, challenging those who put them down. But for how long are these powerless people able to sustain their determination? Someday society is certain to put them down again, perhaps even without knowing. Lépine had no power, whatever he had was marked by tears, sorrow, sadness, and isolation. He was just another black patch on this earth. Was it his fault? No one knows. However, like everyone else, he had feelings, he had beliefs. Somehow growing in fields teeming with feminism, everywhere were the sounds of women’s rights, their cry for justice. They demanded to take on occupations that once were only known to men. Lépine’s surroundings were empty. There was no one to hear his crying soul, crumbling to pieces, trying to heal itself. Frustrations are sure to grow in such a fury that no one then shall be able to hinder it. Lépine resorted to violence; not out of madness, but out of sheer desperation. There is just not enough room available in the heart or soul to take in the injustice. He was a victim of shame, wandering the streets, being bashed, kicked, and rejected from society. So whose fault was it? Was it the agenda followed by feminists or was it the brutality of men indeed? The debate is endless. Lépine’s actions were not strange to this world. History has seen many more bloody scenes being painted by humans themselves on the canvas of this planet. There was the time of Adolph Hitler, the Islamic Revolution, wars, the Black and the White, and the Montreal Massacre. The list goes on, but the human race does not realize what it has done. To some, Lépine may be a hero; but, for others he is a cold-blooded killer. Could not it be that some feminists just took the instance of Lépine to promote their cause? Could it not be that some feminists did not actually want to see Lépine’s scars? If they had seen his background, the motive of feminism might not have been that pressing. It is very strange yet remarkable that, no matter how much one says that there is a good cause to fight for in this world, it is sure to have an economic benefit connected to it when seen with hindsight. Females wanting to get jobs, wanting to end male dominance, wanting to become more equal, desiring recognition and fame. All for what? If Lépine kills fourteen women, are all Canadian men like that or all the men in the world? The conclusions are too controversial for anyone, so controversial that no one cares what the implications of ignoring the truth might be. Truly, the darkest places in hell are reserved for those who remain passive even after seeing deadly sins being committed in front of them. A few were there to dispute the Massacre becoming a universal symbol of violence against women. 28

Stephen Roney objected to the common notion that was spreading all across the world that Lépine was representative of all men in the world. “I am against men’s violence against women,” he said. “As I am against men’s violence against men, women’s against women, and women’s against men. But again we seem to be selective: is other violence okay? Worse, we make all men guilty of Lépine’s crime.” There was also the voice of Adam Jones, protesting against the White Ribbon Campaign. The interpretation that he gives of the White Ribbon Campaign is quite interesting to note. He says that the campaign seems to mean that men should mourn over the shootings only if a part of that mourning is devoted to recognizing the fact that some of these men are actually capable of committing such acts. And here is where the parting of ways occurs. Men had been involved in violence against women in the earlier ages, and today women can be involved in violence against men. The difference is simply of vision. Men’s violence can be viewed in physical terms, in the killing of fourteen women on December 6, 1989; whereas,

the violence of women toward men is not seen by the physical eyes. And, as we know today, only what the eyes see is believed, is just another example of the injustice that has been happening since time immemorial. The White Ribbon Campaign seemed to suggest that men are all the same—violent, coldblooded killers who would go to the extent of murdering women just like Lépine did on the peaceful floors of the University of Montreal. How wise it is of women to hold all men responsible for the actions of just one man? The grief should not be just over the killings that took place, nor should it be just over violence against women; the grief should be over the blindness of this world that is just not able to see the truth. The Die is Cast. A beautiful play written by Gilbert McInnis had the courage to boldly step into the field and demonstrate to the numb viewers the realities that were veiled behind the so-called White Ribbon Campaign. A play that was meant to portray humanity, its true essence, its true identity. “It was my attempt to deconstruct that image to understand the ‘spirit’ behind it, perhaps even to smash it and recreate a more balanced one. Essentially, it was my desire to make him [Lépine] human again. I did not do this to demean the pain of those who suffered by his ‘burden,’ but to deconstruct the whole dehumanizing force behind the ‘image’ of the white ribbon campaign.” McInnis’s statements were incredibly controversial at the time. But there were people who actually saw the truth, the light, yet were ridiculed, ignored, and condemned. The die had truly been cast. There was no turning back. No one could have reversed the horrors that took place on that day. The horrors that were not just rooted in the killings of December 6, 1989, but in the ideology that some radical feminists were spreading after those events. To them, men were brutal machines who only wanted women to do chores, take care of children, and be a personal punching bag at the end of the day. Perhaps this truly was a political conspiracy. Perhaps Lépine did fear the day when men would be inferior to women, so inferior that no one would be there to hear the cries of pain from men. It is only Lépine in the present; the future may have many more desperate men who may not have any means to have a fulfilling life. Perhaps this is the day that Lépine feared. 29

David Peterson del Mar, a renowned author, has put the human nature in probably the most accurate wording yet. Leaving behind the shootings in Montreal, leaving behind the stance of feminists, leaving behind all controversies, arguments, and hatred, David Peterson del Mar explains his views by claiming whenever there is an occurrence of a moral panic in a society, like the Montreal Massacre, people’s attention tends to divert from the prevalent inequities and inequalities in the world to more trivial issues concerning social and cultural disorder. When these people focus on violence alone as the major social problem, they fool the rest of mankind less powerful than them by making them believe that people like Lépine are responsible for the many social ills that are present. It is people like Lépine who are to be blamed. It is people like Lépine who should be condoned. Sad as it is, the fooled human beings believe these people in power and condone things that are just too useless to be condoned. Feminists were in power. They ran campaigns and demonstrations, protesting all over the country against Lépine’s actions and to stop “violence against women.” What they did not know is that it was this kind of behaviour and actions that inspired Lépine to commit the murder. What they did not know is that some feminists themselves who were being violent to themselves; it was some feminists themselves who were responsible for the social vice for which they blamed Lépine. Lépine was gone, but the wrong he was trying to remove from the roots of this earth was not. It is obvious then, that violence can originate from both positions of power and powerlessness. The powerful ones are the source of true violence taking place on the face of this earth. As they go on with their dogmas and doctrines, gathering their disciples, they seem to put down existing patterns of dominance and control. Marc Lépine was just someone who rebelled against the powerful, however, like every man standing up against his king, he gets his existence removed forever. Lépine had been beaten; he’d lost the war. The war that he had been fighting for a very long time. Trying to find peace, solace, happiness, and most of all, true love. Finding nothing in the barren lands on which he walked upon, the only thing he had control of was the weapon of violence. A tool through which he could tell the world more about himself. Something which he had been so desperate about during the last seven years before the massacre. And then some feminists labelled Lépine a mass-murderer, a symbol of violence against women. Why are their hearts so blocked and curtained? Why do they not realize that the rejections, exclusions, and wrongs that were faced by women were also something that Lépine faced? The die had been cast and reversal was just a child’s dream.

Remembrance - Lépine's Legacy Twenty-six years have passed since the massacre, and Canada’s air has been filled with the snowy scent as always. The University of Montreal still stands boldly, with its front tower upright and tall. And so, December 6 is a day of remembrance for of all the victims who died at the hands of Marc Lépine. Some complained that the media at the time incited fascination in the hearts of people when they showed the face of the murderer and his apartment, with the front door and seemingly mysterious coat rack and such other unimportant aspects of his life. Women’s lives were overshadowed, feminists said. Yet again a blow on the scars of Lépine’s miseries. If they were truly being overshadowed, commemorations then would have been just a way to seek attention. Indeed, it was to some extent. There they said that Lépine’s life story should not be investigated further, as it aggravated the pains of those who now had to live with broken families. But then, wouldn’t the commemorations remembering those who died also inflict continuous pain on the families deprived of their daughters? How ironic. There were flags displayed; monuments erected; pieces of art, writings, films, and plays created; and debates discussed all surrounding the massacre. Great efforts were made to erase the memory of Lépine from everyone’s mind, but perhaps some people are just too important in the history of this world to be forgotten. Although this might have been the only option for the deprived families to throw out their sorrows and start living anew, there could have also been much effort put into trying to understand Lépine better. A long time has passed and yet Lépine stays in the memory of many. Is it not remotely possible that feminists today might have taken a different position over Lépine’s action? A position that might make them realize Lépine was not a heinous individual—that he too had a heart? A heart that was shattered into pieces, just like the hearts of those who lost their families due to the massacre. Is it not possible that Lépine wanted his pain to be felt by the world so that maybe they would at least know the pain of being deprived of a good family? Is it not possible that Lépine too wanted a normal and happy life like those who were studying in the University of Montreal? The problem is that, even if this were realized by some in today’s world, it is unlikely most will ever consider Lépine as someone sane, someone with a good heart, someone… human. Inequality is a social problem that not only brings sorrow to those who are less privileged and harms the economy, but also a vice that prevents the privileged and the well-off community from understanding the pains and sufferings of those down below their ranks. How would they? They are blessed with good education, ample food to eat, time to spend with their families and friends, and dreams to pursue. Lépine did not have any of these, and the tragedy that such a position brings cannot be understood until one experiences it for oneself. The academics can do research, the rich can mourn, the kings can live their lives according to their desires, but what they cannot do is make someone happy, someone who only had to taste the blood and ruins of the wretched. So amusing it is that, in this world, only the ones sitting on top of the class ladder can have people listening to them—but these people do not ever talk about that one being who might be suffering in the crowd, waiting passionately for someday when his upper-class peers will understand. The women in the University of Montreal were indeed victims. They were murdered for a crime they did not know. But they were also the ones in positions of privilege, privileged enough to come to an institution to pursue their career goals. The attack on them was carried out by someone who wanted the same. If, on that day, someone had the courage to speak to Lépine in a compassionate voice; or, if someone had the guts to stand up and take that gun from him and encourage him to let out all he had collected in all these years, maybe all this would not have happened. Humans are not machines; they have emotions, no matter how cruel they are, how heinous they are, or how rude they are. Sometimes, all one needs is a shoulder on which to cry on, someone who, in the end, clears those tears away with a sensitive hand, offering love and care. Today, as I write these words, it may be possible that someone who may be in a position like Lépine’s somehow reads them. Perhaps now that someone is shedding tears that he thought he could control, perhaps now that someone has lost all hope. There is just one thing to remember: seek and find. Try hard and this life is kind enough to offer a helping hand. Seek the one whom you desire and who knows, maybe there is someone far beyond the boundaries that you know, waiting for you… anxiously… passionately. The world is too small and people are hungry for love. It only requires a true heart that can surround one in a surreal world where all sorrows are forgotten.

The next book in the Crimes Canada collection will be released on May 22, 2015.... Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka: The Ken and Barbie Killers by Peter Vronsky. All books can be found under the following link: bit.ly/CRIMESCANADA

About The Author



RJ Parker, P.Mgr., CIM, is an award-winning and bestselling true crime author and serial killer expert. He has written 17 true crime books, available in eBook, trade paperback and audiobook editions, which have sold in over 100 countries. He holds Certifications in Serial Crime and Criminal Profiling. Parker publishes True CRIME and CRIME Fiction for several authors under his company, RJ Parker Publishing, Inc. Parker was born and raised in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland, where he resides, and also lives in Toronto, Ontario. Parker started writing after becoming disabled with Anklyosing Spondylitis. He spent twenty-five years in various facets of Government and has two professional designations. In his spare time RJ enjoys playing the guitar, mandolin, piano, drums, steel guitar, and sax. Many years ago he filled in several times with the rock bank April Wine, although Country and Irish music is his favorite. As of December 2014, RJ has donated over 2,100 autographed books to allied troops serving overseas and to our Wounded Warriors recovering in Naval and Army hospitals all over the world. He also donates a percentage of his royalties to Victims of Violent Crimes.

Contact Information Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/RJParkerPublishing Email - [email protected] Email - [email protected] Website - http://.m.RJParkerPublishing.com Twitter - @AuthorRJParker Amazon Author's Page http://bit.ly/RJPARKER Books published by RJ Parker Publishing, Inc. http://bit.ly/RJPP-BOOKS Books by RJPP are available on Amazon in eBook | Paperback | Audiobook | and some in Large Print

References 1Weston, Greg; Aubry, Jack (7 February 1990). "The making of a massacre: The Marc Lépine story Part I." The Ottawa Citizen. 2Lépine & Gagné 2008, pp. 150–2, 155–56, 193. 3Lépine & Gagné 2008, pp. 30, 32–33, 158. 4McDonnell, Rod; Thompson, Elizabeth, McIntosh, Andrew, and Marsden, William (9 December 1989). "Killer's father beat him as a child; A brutal man who didn't seem to have any control of his emotions." The Gazette, Montreal. 5McDonnell, Rod; Thompson, Elizabeth, McIntosh, Andrew, and Marsden, William (9 December 1989). "Killer's father beat him as a child; A brutal man who didn't seem to have any control of his emotions". The Gazette, Montreal. 6Weston, Greg; Aubry, Jack (8 February 1990). "The making of a massacre: The Marc Lépine story Part II." The Ottawa Citizen. 7Lépine & Gagné 2008, pp. 32, 191. 8 Sourour, Teresa K., (1991) Report of Coroner's Investigation

9Roux, Martine (18 December 1999). "Pour comprendre Marc Lépine" (in French). La Presse 10 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/dec/03/montreal-massacre-canadas-feminists-remember 11http://murderpedia.org/male.L/l/lepine-marc.htm

12 http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/society/crime-justice/the-montreal-massacre/Lépine-spares-male-students.html 13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89cole_Polytechnique_massacre 14 Sourour, Teresa K., (1991) Report of Coroner's Investigation. 15Malette, L. and Chalouh, M. The Montreal Massacre, Gynergy Books, 1991. 16Rathjen, Heidi; Charles Montpetit (1999). December 6: From the Montreal Massacre to Gun Control. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart. ISBN 0-77106125-0. 17 http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=2330026&Language=e&Mode=1&File=16

18 Rebick, Judy (December 6, 2000). "Where's the funding for abused women?" CBC. Archived from the original on March 21, 2007. Retrieved March 7, 2007. 19Vienneau, David (January 19, 1991). "Probe on violence toward women blocked." Toronto Star. p. A4. 20Harder, Sandra. "Violence against women: the Canadian Panel's final report." Government of Canada. Retrieved February 3, 2007. 21Steyn, Mark (April 18, 2007). "A Culture of Passivity." National Review. Retrieved April 20, 2007. 22"Men wearing white ribbons." CBC. November 27, 1991. Archived from the original on 2011-06-29. Retrieved March 7, 2007 23Campbell, Charles (November 11, 2004). "Magnets for Memory." The Tyee. Retrieved December 31, 2006 24“Monique Lépine marks Montreal Massacre anniversary." Canada: CBC. December 2, 2009. Retrieved October 22, 2013. 25

http://pi.library.yorku.ca/ojs/index.php/cws/article/viewFile/10642/9731 26

http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/society/crime-justice/the-montreal-massacre/lepine-spares-male-students.html 27

http://marclepine.blogspot.ca/2009/05/media-censors-extremist-protest-against.html 28

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Table of Contents Acknowledgements Crimes Canada: True Crimes That Shocked the Nation Canada Marc Lepine The Massacre The List and the Letters Was Lépine Rational? The Aftermath Perspectives - The Bigger Picture The Lone Wanderer Remembrance - Lépine's Legacy About The Author Contact Information References