Hundreds stood in silence as they remembered the women in their communities who have, over the years, either disappeared or been killed. After a few minutes, shouts and cries filled the room as each expressed the joy that these woman brought to their lives.
The conference room at Penticton乌鸦传媒檚 Lakeside Resort and Conference Centre saw, for the first time, a gathering of members from the Okanagan Nation and beyond to discuss how Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) have affected their communities.
In addition to discussing how this has affected them, they also honoured those who have been lost, and tackled what they can do to begin supporting each other.
By the end of the conference Friday night, all seven member communities within the Okanagan Nation will have worked together to develop their own strategy for steps that their nation, communities and individuals can take to start supporting each other.
LOOK BACK:
Currently in the North Okanagan, roughly eight Indigenous women have gone missing or were found to be have been killed over the years, including three that have been reported missing in the past five years alone. There are still a number of women missing specifically in the area between Enderby and Vernon.
These women are among the roughly 4,000 missing and murdered Indigenous women across Canada.
乌鸦传媒淲e need to have awareness, because it乌鸦传媒檚 a systemic issue based off of systemic racism that Indigenous women are the lowest respected (individuals) of society,乌鸦传媒� said Jennifer Lewis, wellness manager at Okanagan Nation Alliance.
乌鸦传媒淲e want to find spaces to support each other to ensure no one is alone, everyone knows that our women are valued, and important, no matter their lifestyle, and that we will be there to support them,乌鸦传媒� she said.
Keynote speaker Elaine Alec examined The Path Forward Sessions, an initiative to support the creation of a safe space for Indigenous women and girls. Approximately 300 community members from every corner of B.C. banded together to develop a list of strategies and initiatives related to causes of systemic violence against women and girls.
乌鸦传媒淭hey left feeling empowered, and they left feeling like they could actually do something now, and they felt like there was a path forward,乌鸦传媒� she said to the crowd.
乌鸦传媒淭his report does not belong to anybody,乌鸦传媒� she said. 乌鸦传媒淭hat was an agreement we all made乌鸦传媒� knowledge is meant to be shared. We need to come together and support each other if we want to create a safe space for our women and girls.乌鸦传媒�
To view the full report, visit .
On Jan. 5, 2015, Roxanne Louie disappeared in Penticton. The next day, RCMP contacted Roxanne乌鸦传媒檚 friends and family which led to a lengthy investigation that was undertaken by Roxanne乌鸦传媒檚 family and RCMP.
A family member shared with the audience the story of Louie乌鸦传媒檚 disappearance.
The purpose of sharing her story, they explained, was to raise awareness and promote accountability. They shared a summary of the events that occurred during the investigation and examined various levels of response from the media, justice system and ministry.
Not only did they talk about their experience with her loss, but also systemic barriers that made the search for her a challenge.
Specifically, family members highlighted the advocacy taken on behalf of Louie by her family, the Osoyoos Indian Band and the larger nation to help find answers.
As relatives spoke about their search, coverage by the media, and the trial itself, there was a sense of anger, frustration and sadness in the room. Even now, there are questions left unanswered, and some share a feeling of injustice.
One family member shared their feelings that some individuals within the justice system are operating from deeply-rooted colonial biases.
LOOK BACK:
Over lunch, Louie乌鸦传媒檚 father, Roger Hall, shared something about her that not many knew.
乌鸦传媒淭he thing about my daughter that a lot of people don乌鸦传媒檛 know, is how much of a loving person she was,乌鸦传媒� said Hall.
乌鸦传媒淗ow bubbly, and just a fun person to be around and to be with-乌鸦传媒� he said, stopped short by a man pushing a cart loudly past him down the hall.
He paused, looking in the direction the man went.
乌鸦传媒淚t was like that 乌鸦传媒� people don乌鸦传媒檛 know how they impact people by just doing what they乌鸦传媒檙e doing,乌鸦传媒� said Hall. 乌鸦传媒淭hey don乌鸦传媒檛 understand, and it乌鸦传媒檚 乌鸦传媒� in all of society today, how we perceive our First Nations people. We乌鸦传媒檙e nice people.
乌鸦传媒淲hen you came here to this land, when your forefathers came to this land, we didn乌鸦传媒檛 meet them with our bow and arrows乌鸦传媒� we met them with warmth. We were hospitable, we fed them, we nurtured them.
乌鸦传媒淲e call the non-native people our little brothers,乌鸦传媒� he continued. 乌鸦传媒淪o that乌鸦传媒檚 how we want to be perceived, as a brother.乌鸦传媒�
Gladys Radek has, for years, supported those searching for missing Indigenous women in B.C. She has also walked across Canada multiple times since 2008 to raise awareness for the cause.
Her involvement with MMIWG started when her niece Tamara Chipman disappeared from the in northern B.C. in 2005.
She was another keynote speaker at the gathering in Penticton and shared not only stories from her work with Indigenous communities in the Vancouver area, but also her plans to continue advocating for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
This summer, she and many others will be walking again, this time from Prince Rupert to Osoyoos.
She explained that when these walks first started, around ten people showed their support. She was encouraged by the room full of individuals on Thursday, who came to show interest in the cause.
She also spoke to how the population of Indigenous peoples in Canada has dropped significantly over the years.
乌鸦传媒淥ur DNA is unique, let乌鸦传媒檚 hang onto it,乌鸦传媒� she said, adding that the only way to do this is by ending violence.
Hall said he hopes he乌鸦传媒檚 still around to see things improve.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 going to be a challenge, and we乌鸦传媒檙e all in this canoe together,乌鸦传媒� said Hall. 乌鸦传媒淎nd how we find solutions 乌鸦传媒� I hope I乌鸦传媒檓 around to find the beauty in all this trauma.乌鸦传媒�
Hall added that he loves all the work people are doing to help create solutions, whether that乌鸦传媒檚 through their own healing, or just to come together as, 乌鸦传媒渢he four colours of people.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淟et乌鸦传媒檚 keep going,乌鸦传媒� he said.
#MMIWG
(More photos below)
To report a typo, email: editor@pentictonwesternnews.com.
<>
