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The Tragically Hip honours 1989 Ecole Polytechnique massacre victims with new 'Montreal' music video

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Canadian rock band the Tragically Hip have released a new music video to honour the victims of the mass shooting at the Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal on Dec. 6, 1989.

Ten women and four men were also injured after a gunman opened fire at the Universite de Montreal’s engineering school 32 years ago.

The band released the video on the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women.

The video shows The Tragically Hip playing their song ‘Montreal’ live at what was then the Molson Centre in Montreal in 2000.

The video also features portrait sketches of the women who were killed in the attack.

The women killed that day were Anne-Marie Edward, Anne-Marie Lemay, Annie St-Arneault, Annie Turcotte, Barbara Daigneault, Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz, Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Maud Haviernick, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Michèle Richard, Nathalie Croteau and Sonia Pelletier.

All but two of the victims killed in the shooting were engineering students at the university.

The portrait sketches included in the music video are by artist Stew Jones, while the background paintings are by Willo Downie.

The video, directed by Mike Downie and Tim Thompson, also depicts Mont Royal where 14 beams of light are projected into the sky every year on Dec. 6, in remembrance of the women who were killed.

In a message included at the end of the video, the band said they “stand with the families of the 14 victims and the survivors of the femicide at Ecole Polytechnique in 1989.”

“We fully support their ongoing effort to ban all semi-automatic assault weapons,” the message reads.

The band’s song ‘Montreal’ was featured on the band’s EP Saskadelphia released in May. The EP features six previously unreleased songs that were written for their 1991 album ‘Road Apples.’

In a post on Twitter, the band said they have also created a CD and flexi disc single with the song ‘Montreal,’ and ‘It’s a Good Life if you Don’t Weaken,’ featuring the artist Feist.

The Tragically Hip said they will be will be bundled with t-shirts, with proceeds from the sales to be donated to the PolyRemembers/PolySeSouvient group.

In a post on Twitter on Monday, Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante said the memory of the attack is “still painful.”

“For too many women, violence continues to be a part of everyday life,” she wrote in French. “Let us remember, so that violence against women stops and that they have a future that belongs to them.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also paid tribute to the victims of the attack.

“We honour their memory and unite our voices in condemning the misogyny that led to this tragedy,” he said in a statement.

Trudeau invited Canadians to “honour the victims of the Ecole Polytechnique massacre.”

“Our thoughts are with their loved ones as well as the survivors of this senseless tragedy,” he said. “Let us also reflect on what we can all do – through our words and actions – to end gender-based violence and foster a society where women, girls, and gender diverse people feel safe, are respected, and can reach their full potential.”

With files from The Canadian Press

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