A walk along Dundas brought people together to remember Missing and Murdered Indigenous women, girls, and relatives (MMIWG/MMIR).
The Women’s Memorial March typically takes place on the day most Canadians recognize as Valentine’s Day. It began over in Vancouver and has since spread across the country.
Organizations and activists in London decided to place their own “Day of Action” just before the weekend, on February 13th. Participants started near Ontario Street and ended around Maitland.
The march is also known as the Day of Remembrance. It calls for awareness and action for the violence created by systemic racism and colonialism, which particularly impacts Native women and girls.
Attendees gathered afterwards at the Southwestern Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre. The event presented all the right ingredients for a recipe to face grief: connection, conversation, and action.
“You can hear the crackle of the fire, you can hear the kids in the background, you can hear the people talking. This is all community. This is all connection. This is all healing,” described Bradley Stone, one of the organizers.
Indigenous spiritual practices were incorporated, including smudging, a round dance, and a sacred fire. It not only keeps these practices alive but also serves as a show of perseverance, given that they were outlawed only decades ago, Stone said.
A round dance taking place at Dundas and Adelaide (XFM News / Finn Dermo)
The Potlatch Ban was an amendment to the Indian Act that outlawed ceremonies like those held during the march. The federal government removed the ban 75 years ago, which is only a generation or two away, Stone added.
“For us to be able to be around each other in this empowering, inspiring way. It really helps with the healing work that is going on,” Stone concluded. The Community Capacity Builder was one of many from Atlohsa Family Healing Services that got involved.
“I just get to be a part of the community that I’m serving,” said participant Rylan Mascarenhas. They’re a support worker in Atlohsa’s Anti-Human Trafficking program.
The program is also called Okaadenige, meaning “he or she braids things” in Ojibwe. The organization’s approach brings together three strands: prevention, awareness, and support services.
The organization is a wellspring of community-led support services, like Okaadenige. It regularly hosts workshops and events for Indigenous and non-Indigenous locals.
“I heard the term generational shift. That is what’s happening. Our people are coming back to our ways. Society as a whole is starting to see the kindness, the love, the generosity, the kinship that we are and the loving place we come from when we come from our spirit,” concluded Stone.
