{"id":83620,"date":"2023-02-14T16:51:03","date_gmt":"2023-02-14T21:51:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=83620"},"modified":"2023-02-15T11:14:24","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T16:14:24","slug":"gallery-brock-community-unites-to-remember-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-and-girls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2023\/02\/gallery-brock-community-unites-to-remember-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-and-girls\/","title":{"rendered":"GALLERY: Brock community unites to remember missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls"},"content":{"rendered":"

As she looked around the room, Robyn Bourgeois was overcome by emotion.<\/p>\n

Brock\u2019s Vice-Provost, Indigenous Engagement felt tears welling up as she stood before a packed Pond Inlet to deliver not only a message demanding justice for missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people, but also a challenge to the University and wider community.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m asking folks to make a commitment to contribute in one way or another to making meaningful change in this society,\u201d Bourgeois said. \u201cIndigenous women and girls continue to go missing every day. This cannot continue.\u201d<\/p>\n

She called on the individuals to think about what they can do personally to address violence against Indigenous women and girls, asking them to commit to that action for the coming year.<\/p>\n

Tuesday\u2019s gathering was part of a weeklong initiative<\/a> that strives to honour the lives of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people. The event featured a traditional song from Bourgeois as well as art displays and workshops, which saw participants make beaded medicine pouches, M\u00e9tis sash bookmarks, beaded red dress earrings and seal skin bracelets.<\/p>\n

Empty red dresses will remain on display inside and outside of Brock\u2019s main campus and the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts in downtown St. Catharines until Friday, Feb. 17.<\/p>\n

The REDress Project began as an art installation by M\u00e9tis artist Jaime Black at the University of Winnipeg in 2011 to signify the loss of thousands of Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit, lesbian, gay, trans, bisexual, queer, questioning, intersex and asexual (2SLGTBQQIA) people over the past 40 years to colonial violence.<\/p>\n

This was the first in-person REDress event held by Brock since 2019 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is such an important day for us, an important day for me,\u201d said Bourgeois, herself a survivor of colonial violence, who shared her own experience through an art installation at the event. \u201cThis is our first time meeting in person in three years and I didn\u2019t realize how powerful that would feel until I\u2019m standing here with all of you.\u201d<\/p>\n