Red dresses hang in Calgary trees to honour missing and murdered Indigenous women
'We as a society should be aware that this is ongoing'
On Tuesday, a small group from the Calgary chapter of the Bear Clan Patrol tied red ribbons and hung red dresses from trees along Memorial Drive.
Each bears the names of missing and murdered Indigenous people.
Yvonne Henderson says they've been hanging up dresses over the past few days around the city, and will continue on Wednesday.
"We as a society should be aware that this is ongoing. And it shouldn't be. And that our people matter," she said.
"People see the dresses and they see the shirts and they see these flags we're handing, they belong to somebody's family member that's no longer here. And that's really important."
Wednesday is the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and Two-Spirit People (MMIWG2S). The Bear Clan Patrol will host a vigil at 6 p.m. along Memorial Drive which will be livestreamed to smudge, pray sing and honour those who are gone.
People are being asked to honour the day by hanging red dresses or shirts in their front windows at home.
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Alberta has one of the highest rates of missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada.
"It has to be done … people have to know," said Hip Deranger. "It's not just one day of awareness. I have to tell my daughter all the time to watch out … and it's unfortunate."
The Women's Centre of Calgary is also holding a virtual event at 1 p.m., for those who wish to learn more about what the day means and how to take action.
The dresses will be removed following Wednesday's vigil.
With files from Dave Gilson