On the eve of the annual vigil for missing and murdered native women, Susan Martin promised to bring a guest of honour to the event. Yesterday, she stood on the steps of Parliament Hill, holding her daughter’s urn.
Martin is a member of Families of Sisters in Spirit, a grassroots organization led by families of missing and murdered Aboriginal women.
“Today will be the last time I ever get to touch my child’s remains,” she told the group gathered yesterday for the sixth annual vigil to demand justice for their stolen loved ones.
Nine years ago, Martin’s 24-year-old daughter, Terrie Ann Dauphinais, was murdered in her home in Calgary. Her case remains unsolved.
Through Families of Sisters in Spirit, and the annual vigils they hold, Martin began to talk publicly about her daughter. This year, Martin invited supporters to a sacred ceremony on Victoria Island, where Algonquin elder Annie Smith-St-Georges of Kitigan Zibi First Nations would prepare the urn for burial by sealing it in a cedar box.
“I represent the victims, the mothers that don’t have their voice yet,” said Martin. “It’s not an easy task, so I do that for all of us because we are a family.”
Families of Sisters in Spirit has identified more than 500 aboriginal women who are missing or have been murdered. A 2009 report by Statistics Canada found that aboriginal women are almost three times more likely than non-Aboriginal women to report being a victim of a violent crime. Like others touched by these tragedies, Martin feels the federal government should be doing more.
“I get very angry when I see a new family member because they should not be going through what we’re going through – and we seem to be falling on deaf ears.”
Martin and other members of the group met with members of Parliament on Monday to speak about her experience.
“When [MPs] meet the families, they don’t forget them,” said Jennifer Lord of the Native Women’s Association of Canada. “And then that’s a connection that the families can hold on to.”
However, no one from the governing Conservatives showed up at the meeting, said Kristen Gilchrist, a volunteer for Families of Sisters in Spirit.
Irkar Beljaars, a volunteer who helped organize a similar vigil in Montreal, called on the government to create a national task force for missing and murdered native women. “We need our government to look at itself in the mirror and decide what’s right and what’s wrong,” Beljaars said. “What’s wrong is fighter jets and prisons. What’s right is taking care of women in this country.”
As for Martin, her resolve remains strong. “I’m letting go,” she said while holding her daughter’s urn for the final time. “But I’m going to stay positive. I’m still going to fight for justice. I’m still going to take this journey to stop other mothers and family members from feeling what we feel.”
What you can do:
Write to Stephen Harper and your Member of Parliament. Tell them that aboriginal women are loved and valued. Demand a national task force on missing and murdered aboriginal women.
Follow Families of Sisters in Spirit on their Facebook page. You can keep up-to-date on missing women in Canada and help bring them home safely.
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Many photos of the vigil can be seen on the Union of National Employees’ Flickr site |