MMIWG Vigil Held in Montreal
Written by Paul Graif on 15 February 2022
Organized by Quebec Native Women (QNW) and the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal (NWSM) a vigil and march was held in downtown Montreal Monday evening to honour Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG).
“There’s many provinces across Canada that do a vigil or a march on this particular day,” Nakuset, the Executive director of the NWSM told K1037 News. “We hadn’t had one in Montreal for probably about four years, so we felt it was time to do one. We really wanted to give a message of awareness, the work that’s being done and what is needed to happen.”
Nakuset says hundreds of people braved the freezing temperatures as they listened to speakers and marched from Parc Emilie Gamelin down Ste Catherine street. The evening began at 6 pm and wrapped up before 8 pm. Nakuset says it’s about implementing the 231 calls to justice that came from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
“We haven’t really seen the government implement anything. I know they had a plan of action, so like a strategy. but I don’t know if it was ever implemented. So it’s really important that initiatives like Ishkwe, that the Native Women’s Shelter runs. Basically it’s a program where as soon as a woman goes missing we’re working with the families. We’re working with the police. We’re working with lawyers. We’re working with everyone to find that woman,” she said.
K1037 posts a photo and story of a Missing or Murdered indigenous woman each day on our Facebook page.
