On 14 February, CPTers joined the 20th annual Strawberry Ceremony at Toronto Police Headquarters for Missing and Murdered Indigenous women, girls, trans and two-spirit people. As organiser Audrey Huntley said, these gatherings began in solidarity with the loved ones of Indigenous women murdered by a serial killer in Vancouver. At the same time, “Indigenous women going missing and being murdered are part of the fabric of the settler colonial project called canada.”
Huntley writes, “We chose this location, police headquarters, to underline the complicity of the state. We have always understood the femicide of Indigenous women to be systemic, and an ongoing genocide. Our view was reflected some 13 years after we first started gathering here in the report issued by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls in 2019. Sadly as of October 2024, only two of the 231 excellent calls to justice have been completed. In this past year, we saw an upsurge of missing posters across the country – women, girls, trans and two spirit people still are not safe.”
At the Strawberry Ceremony, people held photos and placards commemorating missing and murdered women, girls, and trans and two spirit people. Speakers’ voices broke as they remembered their loved ones, and several urged listeners to keep trusted people informed of their whereabouts at all times.
Faced with this heartbreaking situation, may we pray for the social transformation envisioned in organising group No More Silence’s beautiful statement of core values and beliefs:
In Ceremony
The process of supporting each other in this work is a process of ceremony, healing, grieving, and honouring. Public Mourning as a political act that flies in the face of societal indifference and complicity.
Support, not shame or stigma
No one life is more or less valuable than anyone else. We must unlearn stereotypes about people who use drugs, trade sex, experience homelessness or housing insecurity etc. This includes encouraging conversations about how to reduce the harm associated with these behaviours while meeting people where they’re at.
Decolonizing gender and sexuality
Unlearning homophobia and transphobia, supporting Two-Spirit, Trans and gender non-conforming people.
Changing the story
Resisting and shifting victim blaming approaches, languages and narratives about who can or does go missing or face violence.
Sovereignty
Over our bodies and stories. Trusting that people, especially women, are capable of making decisions about their bodies, safety and lives.
Alternatives to the state
This work is not funded by state-based agencies or in collaboration with law enforcement. We rely on the donations and volunteer work of partners, families, and advocates. We believe in actively building alternatives to the police, in responding to violence though we recognize sometimes that is the only option available to families or individuals.
Community collaboration
Collaborating with other families, Indigenous peoples & communities is a way to support one another, highlight other work and build each other up.
Humility and compassion
Humility and compassion within this work is part of remaining open to hearing feedback, teachings and acknowledging compassionately that everyone has something to share.
