Photo: Daily Herald File Photo Local Indigenous elder Liz Settee speaks during Coldest Night of the Year in Prince Albert / Michael Oleksyn, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
By Michael Oleksyn
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Prince Albert Daily Herald
A Prince Albert Elder wants people to remember the meaning of Red Dress Day on May 5.
The annual event was first held in 2010 in memory of Indigenous women and girls across Canada who have gone missing or been murdered. Settee said it’s good to see the issue acknowledged in public, but the change needed to reduce the number of missing and murdered has been slow.
“We can’t forget that these people are missing and murdered and the families that are going without closure,” Settee said. “That’s got to be so hard to not have that closure, to not know where they are, and not know what happened to them.”
Settee said the day serves as “a refresher” for the public, and a reminder that Indigenous women and girls are still going missing.
“This is still significant and it’s everywhere,” she said. “We just need to bring awareness, and we need to be cognizant of the families that are still in limbo.”
On the anniversary of her disappearance The family of Happy Charles had an awareness event on Good Friday to mark the anniversary of her disappearance. Settee said Charles’ disappearance is the MMIWG case that most people think of when they think of Prince Albert.
Settee said that even though there are no large public awareness events this year to mark Red Dress Day, local residents are still recognizing it in their own way.
“I know a lot of the schools will be, and that also brings awareness to our young people,” she explained. “The schools will be doing something for them in their individual schools and there are people that will be individually, or maybe in the office, doing something for it, so it does resonate with people.”
Traditionally the PAGC Women’s Commission has put on an awareness event at the Sisters in Spirit monument at the riverbank. The monument is dedicated to local women, girls, and two-spirit people who have been murdered or gone missing. That event was typically organized by late former Women’s Commission Chair Shirley Henderson.
“I guess it’s just having that community person to bring people together so we can have one voice, one big community voice,” Settee said.
Settee said the current situation is infuriating. There is hope, she said, but reducing the number of missing and murdered women will require changes to the justice system.
Settee said she wants to see stiffer penalties for domestic abusers. She said the justice system takes too long to work through cases.
Settee added that she had many thoughts on the issue but people need to hear some things because it has to be said.
“I’m not biting my tongue on this one. Everybody says our justice system is not just. You beat a woman and you might get six months community sentence. You beat a dog and you get a huge fine or a year jail sentence or two-year jail sentence, so where does that put the priority on women? Is that justice?”