(Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images
On Monday, May 5, local groups Huron DART and Stop VAW Perth will take part in Red Dress Day to help raise awareness about the thousands of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people across Canada. Rates of intimate partner violence and gender-based violence continue to rise, and Indigenous communities are impacted the most.
Red Dress Day started in 2010 when Métis artist Jaime Black created a powerful display by hanging hundreds of empty red dresses in public places. Each dress stands for an Indigenous woman, girl, or two-spirit person who is missing or was murdered. This year marks 15 years since the movement began.
In 2019, after a three-year investigation, the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls released a final report called Reclaiming Power and Place. It includes 231 Calls for Justice, asking governments, police services, and all Canadians to take action. The report points to colonialism, racism, and gendered violence as the causes of the crisis.
Between 2009 and 2021, First Nations, Métis, and Inuit women and girls were six times more likely to be victims of homicide compared to non-Indigenous women, according to Statistics Canada.
On May 5, red dresses will be displayed across communities and organizations in Huron-Perth. The dresses are a powerful reminder of the lives lost and the urgent need for action and justice.
To learn more about Red Dress Day, visit the Ontario Native Women’s Association at https://www.onwa.ca/learning-resources-mmiwg.