Today, May 5th is Red Dress Day, also known as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and Two-Spirit People (MMIWG2S). This day honours and brings awareness to the thousands of Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit and gender diverse people who have been subject to disproportionate violence in Canada.
Red Dress Day was first commemorated in 2010, inspired by Métis artist Jaime Black's REDress Project installation. Black hung hundreds of empty, red dresses to represent the missing and murdered women, and the red dress has since become symbolic of the MMIWG2S crisis.
In an effort to raise awareness about the MMIWG2S crisis in our community, WFN staff wore red, and red dresses were hung at WFN offices. We hope that this small gesture will help to bring attention to this important issue and inspire others to take action.
The MMIWG2S crisis is a national tragedy that demands urgent attention and action. We encourage everyone to take a moment today to reflect on the impact of this crisis and to commit to taking action towards ending the violence and ensuring justice for Indigenous peoples in Canada.
To learn more about Red Dress Day visit https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/red-dress-day
To learn more about the MMIWG2S crisis visit https://guides.library.ubc.ca/mmiwg
