In the past 10 years over 3,000 women and children have been deemed to be murdered or missing. 80% of
these are Aboriginal women and children. There has been minimal police action to resolve this staggering
number of human losses. This is one reason why Aboriginal women are organizing to eradicate violence. They
are demanding that a federal inquiry be held so that Canada will be responsible to its citizens and to the
friends and families of the missing and murdered women.
Violence against Aboriginal women was highlighted in Amnesty International’s report, Stolen
Sisters: A Human Rights Response to Discrimination and Violence against Indigenous Women in Canada.
In 1996, government statistics revealed that Aboriginal women between the ages of 25 and 44, with status
under the Indian Act, were five times more likely than all other women of the same age to die as the result
of violence. Today, this statistic has not changed.
Equally appalling is the failure of our criminal and justice system to provide adequate protection to
Aboriginal women. Many people have heard of about the missing and murdered women from the Downtown Eastside
in Vancouver. Each time a woman went missing a call went out for an increased police investigation.
Unfortunately, for many women that call was answered far too late.
A number of people have embarked on an Aboriginal Walk4Justice. A group of Aboriginal people left
Vancouver on June 21 and are walking across the country to Ottawa. They intend to make presentations to
Parliament and demand a public inquiry into this tragedy. Many walkers have family members who are among the
3,000 missing women.
CUPW is making a donation to the Aboriginal Walk4Justice. It is everyone’s responsibility to stop violence
against Aboriginal women.
The Aboriginal Walk4Justice is coming to the following communities:
Regina: July 22-24
Brandon: July 26-28
Winnipeg: July 30 - August 1
Thunder Bay: August 11-13
Sault Ste Marie: August 19-21
Toronto: August 29 - September 2
Ottawa: September 12
Please greet these walkers as they come to your community. Show your support to ending violence against
Aboriginal women.
