Tuesday, May 06, 2025

Canada's Red Dress Day

May 5 is the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit+ People (MMIWG2S+) 
Red River Métis artist and activist Jaime Black founded the REDress project in 2010 after she displayed her first REDress installation at the University of Winnipeg that included a series of empty red dresses to honour and symbolize the lost lives of Indigenous women at the hands of violence. 
It is an installation art project based on an aesthetic response to this critical national issue. The project has been installed in public spaces throughout Canada and the United States as a visual reminder of the staggering number of women who are no longer with us. Through the installation I hope to draw attention to the gendered and racialized nature of violent crimes against Aboriginal women and to evoke a presence through the marking of absence. 
I also wanted to note that later this month, HighWater Press is publishing Black's book REDress Art, Action, and the Power of Presence - click the link for more info.
Here's a good summary:
In Saskatoon, the Saskatoon Star Phoenix reported on the annual Red Dress Day walk: 
The Red Dress Day Walk was started in Saskatoon by Faith Bosse. Her daughter, Daleen Bosse, was a 25-year-old University of Saskatchewan student, wife, and mother who disappeared in 2004 and was later found murdered. 
 “As the daughter of a missing and murdered Indigenous woman, hosting this walk is important to me, and being her voice, as well as the voice of other women and girls, who are still missing or have been taken away from their families,” Faith Bosse said. “My main goal is to get the message out to our community and also educate them about the dangers we as Indigenous women face every day.” 
...Events and displays were also held across the province, including on campus at the University of Saskatchewan and University of Regina, the provincial Legislative Building, Wanuskewin Heritage Park and Remai Modern. 
 Darlene Okemaysim-Sicotte, co-chair and long-time member of Iskwewuk E-wichiwitochik (Women Walking Together) said Red Dress Day is for affected families “to share their love about their missing loved ones. Nothing about us without us.” 
What it means:

Today is Red Dress Day. As an Indigenous woman, this day is deeply personal. We carry the stories of our sisters, our aunties, our daughters — too many taken, too many still missing. Red Dress Day is a day of remembrance. But it must also be a call to action.

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— Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse (@jodiabndp.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 9:49 AM
And here is a very good Bluesky thread:








There were also significant announcements today:

In recognition of Red Dress Day, the Manitoba government announced new funds that families impacted by missing and murdered loved ones can access for help.

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— APTN News (@aptnnews.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 1:34 PM

Twenty years after Amnesty International released its first report on MMIWG, a delegation from the international human rights organization gathered on Parliament Hill for a Red Dress Day vigil held by Algonquin activist Bridget Tolley and her family.

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— APTN News (@aptnnews.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 5:21 PM

Red Dress Day in Canada. For indigenous women in Canada, the impacts are even more deadly. Indigenous women are killed at seven times the rate of non-indigenous women in Canada. Thank You to my colleague @leahgazan.bsky.social for fighting and winning the Red Dress Alert.

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— Bonita Zarrillo🇨🇦 (@mp-bonitazarrillo.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 9:37 AM
This is very true:

Red dress day is everyday. Truth and reconciliation day is everyday. Indigenous peoples day is everyday.

— krystlesilverfox.bsky.social (@krystlesilverfox.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 8:32 AM
More reading here:

On this Red Dress Day, I'd like to ask if you've read the final report of the National Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls report? If not, today is a good day to start. www.mmiwg-ffada.ca/final-report/

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— âpihtawikosisân (@apihtawikosisan.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 12:19 PM

as May 5th comes to an end remember your support shouldn't. if you were unaware until now, today is National Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women; or 'Red Dress Day' ❤ take some time today to research; i have a resource for you if you don't know where to start: thecolourred.carrd.co

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— 🌿TQ🖤 (@witchytq.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 8:49 PM

4 comments:

Cap said...

Remembering is important, but what's more important is fixing the problem. Not one of the indigenous posts above even names it. The Final Report blames colonialism and patriarchy for reducing women's status within indigenous communities, which comes close but dodges the issue.

The problem is *men* - violent men! And let's be honest, that includes violent indigenous men. Until we can name the problem, we won't fix it. I wish I could say that the Gladue principles that require judges to consider the unique circumstances of indigenous offenders when sentencing them were helping, but I've seen no evidence of reduced male violence against women and girls. Remembering the victims isn't enough, we need better solutions. And since male violence isn't limited to indigenous women and girls, we all have a stake in this.

Cathie from Canada said...

Thanks Cap.
Just a note that as well as the problem of violent men, Red Dress day is intended to confront Canadian society, particularly police, for ignoring or minimizing violence against Indigenous women -- think of serial killers like Robert Pickton who were able to commit crimes for years because police didn't treat the deaths as important - and in that, police were only reflecting the attitudes of the wider society. I hope society has moved beyond that now, though we still need to check our privilege. Days like Red Dress Day remind us to do this.

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Jenn Jilks said...

It is a difficult thing to solve. There has to be change.