REDress
Tecumseh
THE PROJECT
In Canada, Indigenous Women and Girls are
12 times more likely
to go missing.
History of the REDress Movement
The REDress movement begun with Metis artist Jamie Black.
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Her initial art installation sparked a grassroots movement across Canada, representing all the Indigenous Women and Girls who have lost their lives to the systemic racialized and gendered violence Indigenous women continue to face in Canada.
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The colour red was chosen because it is the only colour the spirits can see. The Red Dresses are hung in demonstration to lead the spirits of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls back to their homes, their families, and their communities.
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We celebrate Red Dress Day on May 5th in remembrance of those spirits whose journey's ended too soon. To learn more about Red Dress Day, click here.
About Us
THE HARD TRUTH
6 out of 10
Incidents of violent crime against Indigenous people go unreported.
Over 4000
MMIWG2S in the last 30 years, roughly 3 people per week.
Only 1,200
Cases recognized by the RCMP
The Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC) published an MMIWG Fact Sheet in October of 2020. In this publication, they note that Statistics Canada found that, even when controlling for other risk factors, Indigenous identity alone remained a risk factor for violent victimization of Indigenous women.
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NWAC notes that the RCMP does NOT collect information regarding tracking violence against Indigenous people at all. The RCMP covers 75% of Canada's geography and oversees 630 Indigenous communities.
Police recording of events, if and when they do, claim their basis in a 'visual assessment' made by the officer involved, determining whether or not the woman is Indigenous.
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The final report of the 2015 National Inquiry Into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls includes 231 individual calls for justice directed at governments, institutions, social service providers, industries, and all Canadians.
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To read the NWAC Fact Sheet, click here.