Red Dress Day is on Sunday, May 5, serving as a day of reflection and activism in honour of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ peoples. This week, the Xwexwilmexwawt office (room B309) at the Abbotsford campus is commemorating the day with a red dress memorial.

The Red Dress campaign grew from the REDRess Project by Métis (Anishanaabe and Finnish) artist Jaime Black. The installation, which was first featured at the University of Winnipeg, has reached international fame and has become a powerful symbol.

“Red Dress Day is a reminder of the historical, intergenerational, and individual responsibilities that I and all Canadians hold to open my heart and mind to the voices of those around us,” says Paul Brammer, School Coordinator, School of Social Justice and Global Stewardship (SOJUST).

The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls featured 2,386 participants over a three-year period from September 2016 to December 2018. The inquiry’s final report – Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls – was issued in June 2019 and can be downloaded here. The Report delivers 231 individual Calls For Justice, which you can read here and here. However, according to Amnesty International, while January marked nearly five years since the release of the report, only two of the Calls for Justice have been implemented, and no timeline for implementation has been released. 

The Assembly of First Nations’ website contains excellent information on the report and future plans of action. The Government of Canada website provides a useful overview of the government’s timeline. 

The National 24/7 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls crisis line is 1-844-413-6649.