MORE ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN

The SISTERS IN SPIRIT (SIS) campaign was launched in March 2004, in response to alarmingly high levels of Violence Against Aboriginal women in Canada.

In preparation for its March 2004-March 2005 campaign, NWAC issued a national call for information about women who have been lost to violence (or suspected violence). Based on this anecdotal evidence, NWAC estimates that approximately 500 Aboriginal women have gone missing in the last 20 years.

This estimate is supported by 1996 government statistics which showed that:

Aboriginal women with status were FIVE TIMES more likely to die as a result of violence than any other group of Canadian women.

IN VANCOUVER…
More than 50 women went missing from the city’s Downtown Eastside. On third were Aboriginal, and most were young. These were poor women, involved in the sex trade. They struggled with drugs and alcohol. Some suffered from the effects of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and many were victims of childhood sexual abuse. It is believed that many grew up in foster homes.

These women had families, hopes, dreams. They left behind grieving communities — grandmothers, mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers, and sadly, young children of their own. These young women belonged somewhere and were loved.

NWAC believes that authorities failed to acknowledge or respond to the fact that a disproportionate number of Canada’s missing and murdered women are of Aboriginal descent.

Through the SIS campaign, NWAC sought funding for:

A national, toll-free hotline to report missing Aboriginal women
A national registry of missing Aboriginal women
Public awareness and education
Policy analysis and comprehensive recommendations.

In May 2005, NWAC’s Board of Directors accepted an offer of $5 million over five years from the federal government to fund SIS work until 2010.

WHAT IS THE NATIVE WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF CANADA (NWAC)

The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) is an aggregate of organizations representing First Nations and Métis women in Canada. Established in 1974, NWAC works to enhance, promote, and foster the social, economic, cultural and political wellbeing of First Nations and Métis women within First Nation and Canadian societies. Like a ‘Grandmothers’ Lodge,’ we as aunties, mothers, sisters, brothers, and relatives collectively recognize, respect, promote, defend, and enhance our native ancestral laws, spiritual beliefs, language and traditions given to us by the Creator.

For more information on NWAC please visit our website at www.nwac-hq.org

WHY IS THE LEVEL OF VIOLENCE AGAINST ABORIGINALS SO HIGH?

Like all women, Aboriginal women are entitled to safety, justice and respect. Yet the status of Aboriginal women in Canada does not reflect this right:

Aboriginal women and girls are more likely to live below the poverty line, are more likely to be homeless, and are more likely to engage in prostitution. Because of this Aboriginal women are more vulnerable to violence.

If the level of violence against Aboriginal women is largely attributable poverty and other social characteristics, then the question becomes:

WHY IS THE OVERALL SOCIAL STATUS OF ABORINGAL WOMEN LOWER THAN THAT OF OTHER CANADIAN WOMEN?

The condition of Aboriginal people in Canada, and in particular Aboriginal women, has been shaped by historical events. These are but a few:

Until 1985, marrying a non-Aboriginal cost a Native woman both her status and her right to live on reserve. Thousands upon thousands of women were displaced from their homes and culturally isolated.
The affects of the residential school system, the destruction of culture and the physical, emotional and sexual abuse, have resulted in a widespread cycle of trauma and abuse affecting generations of Aboriginal women and men.
In the 1960s, government policies emphasized removing Aboriginal children from their communities and placing them in non-Aboriginal homes. This trend, known as the “Sixties Scoop”, caused the break-up of many families and resulted in lost identity and culture. Many children were also subjected to trauma and abuse.

NWAC is currently gathering resources about these and other issues. Please continue to check the site regularly for updates.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL CONDEMNS VIOLENCE AGAINST ABORIGINAL WOMEN

In 2004 Amnesty International released a report titled: “Stolen Sisters: A Human Rights Response to Discrimination and Violence Against Indigenous Women in Canada”.

The report includes stories about Canada’s missing and murdered Aboriginal women, and concludes: For more information regarding Amnesty International Canada’s work on Stolen Sisters visit http://www.amnesty.ca/stolensisters/index.php

The report also discusses factors that have contributed to the level of Violence Against Aboriginal Women, such as historical events, and the current social and economic status of Aboriginal people in Canada.

“In every instance, Canadian authorities could and should have done more to ensure the safety of these women and girls.”

OH GREAT SPIRIT

Oh, Great Spirit
Whose voice I hear in the winds,
And whose breath gives life to all the world,
Hear me! I am small and weak,
I need your strength and wisdom.

Let me walk in beauty
And make my eyes ever behold the red and purple sunset.
Make my hands respect the things you have made
And my ears sharp to hear your voice.
Make me wise so that I may understand
The things you have taught my people.
Let me learn the lessons you have
Hidden in every leaf and rock.

I seek strength, not to be greater than my brother,
But to fight my greatest enemy
~myself.

Make me always ready to come to you
With clean hands and straight eyes,
So when life fades, as the fading sunset,
My Spirit may come to you without shame.
All my Relations!

This is an adaptation of a prayer by Chief Yellow Lark, a Lakota Sioux spiritual leader (1887)