Searching for Answers / looking for Action

All across Canada families are grieving…

for their mother,

for their daughter,

for their aunt,

and for their friend.

Grieving for the woman or girl who disappeared into thin air.

Conservative numbers are just below 1200 women and girls missing or murdered in Canada.

This is a tiny snapshot of these lovely women 
(click on the highlighted for more details) 

Found, but too late

Ms.Tina Fontaine, 15

Tina Fontaine's body was found August 2014.  She was in the care of the government when she went missing. 

Bright future Lost! 

Mrs. Loretta Sounders, 26

Loretta Sounders' body was found weeks after she went missing.  Her alleged murderers have been charged. 

Ms. Bella Laboucan, 25

The mystery surrounding Bella's death is still outstanding.    This is Bella's story. 

A Haunting recording, could be a Lead!

Ms. Amber Tuccaro, 22

Ms. Amber's dismembered body was found in a ditch in Alberta the summer of 2012, two years after she went missing. RCMP are appealing to the public to identify the voice in a recorded call from a cell phone.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mEeyd1sF6g   

What would it take to see a modicum of emotion and compassion about these girls and women from the general public? Well, to be fair, the candle light vigils and protest have been well attended. I do believe people care. However, I am not as sure that the enormity of the situation is really appreciated.  

What Next?

Think about it, that is almost four jumbo jet planes full of women and girls.  Next time you are on a flight, imagine that each seat has a  women or a young girl as a passenger, then imagine another 3 or more jets just like it, and now imagine all the passengers go missing and are never heard from again. 

In fact, these numbers are an estimate and it could be much higher than reported.   How many more need to go missing before Canadians collectively view this as an assault on WOMEN / PEOPLE. What is the magic number, the tipping point, before anything is done by our government, when the number of the missing reaches 1,500, 2,000, or more? How much more?

Mr. Harper, does it matter how many more must be reported missing or found pulled from the water, murdered?

We know Mrs. Harper has other priorities.

Why is PM Mr. Harper so desensitized to the plight of the surviving families, the parents, the siblings, and the friends of the women who have disappeared or been found murdered.  Furthermore, why has he not called for an inquiry into the conduct of the RCMP and police in the handling of this matter? In a recent press conference Mr. Harper says it is better left to the RCMP.  Really, Mr. Harper, you may think they are doing a good job but the numbers say different.  And apparently not all of them are doing the job they ought to be doing. 

Who is doing this to the Canadian women and girls? How many murderers are among us? Where are the bodies of these women and girls? If nothing else we need to put them to rest by finding the bodies and bringing them back to their families for a proper respectful burial. 

Think about it, someone is murdering women and girls, and it could be someone you know. Even more of a concern, since this is not an isolated or regional matter, and is happening  across Canada there could be a large number of murderers among us. They are free to continue their assault on women and girls because they think no one cares enough to stop them. Remember the Pickton murders in BC? 

My Connection

I imagine, because of the large number of missing and murdered indigenous women, there must be many people in Canada who have been touched by either knowing someone who is missing, or knowing of someone who is related to someone who is missing or has been murdered. 

Ms. Sandra Gibot

Including me, it is interesting being that I am from a small hamlet of less than 1200 people. But I know of someone who first went missing, and then was found, murdered.  She was my classmate, and I recall her as a young girl with a good sense of humour.  She was smart too.  Later, I had heard she made some bad choices in her young life. One summer, she made a critical error. She decided to go hitchhiking into the United States and was not heard from again.

Much later, her family received a dreaded call from the RCMP.  On the phone, not even in person, the officer described how her body was dismembered and disposed of in garbage bags. Her DNA sample was the only way she was identified. Her killer is a person who picked her up and gave her a ride.  She was 24.

And Ms. Amber, whose killer's voice on a chilling cell phone recording is just one piece in a police investigation, was also from my community, and was the daughter of my older brother’s classmate.         

We owe it as a society to care and to take some sort of collective action. I challenge everyone who reads this blog post to do something. Write the PM’s office and demand he does something about the missing and murdered Canadian women and girls. At the very least, share this story. Someone out there knows something.  Likely, many people out there know something.

If we remain silent, our collective inaction speaks volumes about who we are as a society. The message this sends is loud and clear to me and perhaps to the murderers living freely among us, that Canadian women and young girls can be raped, killed and disposed of like garbage. When did our society become so indifferent to the violence against women and girls?

It has to STOP. Where is the outrage??? We need answers!!!

By the way, you may have guessed, these are indigenous women and girls. This, however, should not make any difference because they are first and foremost human beings, members of our society. We should have protected them. 

In 2014, the Canadian premiers unanimously supported the request for an inquiry.  Finding the body of Ms. Tina Fontaine has renewed the call to Mr. Harper to call for an inquiry.  Still, he remains steadfast against it.  

• An incomplete list of women and girls who have vanished or been murdered
• RCMP Report Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women
• Dr. Sarah Hunt What Should Be Done
• Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women in Canada 
• Sign the Liberal's petition calling for a Federal inquiry into Missing and Murdered women 

http://youtu.be/dBPo9FgRBj4  Missing and Murdered Aboriginal women in Canada video by grade 11 students.

UPDATE AUGUST 28TH, 2014 
Due to mounting pressure the PM has called for an inquiry on Missing and Murdered Aboriginal in Canada.  When Canadians get together on the same page, they can change the course of politics.  It all comes down to VOTES, with an election a year away.  IF ONLY, THIS IS NEWS IS FROM A SATIRICAL NEWS SITE! 

Albert Mercredi

Albert Mercredi
1965-09-04 - 2014-07-27

Albert Mercredi would have been 47 this fall.

On Saturday, July 26, 2014 he was struck down while walking across Franklin Avenue, in Fort McMurray.  He was on the crosswalk, it is rumored that he was hit by a drunk driver.  The driver didn't stop.

Albert was medevac to the university hospital in Edmonton, Alberta.  Sadly, his injuries were too extensive.  He was removed from the life support 6:20 pm Sunday, July 27th.

He was my nephew.

I remember him as a gentle and loving person. He was kind. He was funny.  Some might remember him when he occasionally directed traffic in Fort McMurray. He was loved by many. Whenever he spotted me, even from across the room, he would immediately come to me and would give me a bear hug. And he would entertain me with stories about his escapades.

I remember when he was young, he had a black lab.  They were inseparable.  His dog would wait at the bus stop for him after school.  He loved that dog so much.

Albert was homeless and struggled with addiction most of his adult life.  Still, his life had value. He enjoyed life. He loved and was so proud of his only child, his daughter Antoinette.  He loved his mom and would always tell to her not to worry about him and that he would take care of her. But she worried about and prayed for him.

He didn't deserve to have his life taken from him in this manner.  The driver who didn't remain at the scene was apprehended hours later and will be facing charges related to this incident.

I love you Albert.  May you rest-in-peace.

Update

Since posting this, many people have come forward with stories and encounters with my nephew Albert.  My fellow blogger and friend posted this on her blog after learning about Albert.  Thank you so much for the lovely memory to add to ours.  

What is He Thinking!

ATHABASCA CHIPEWYAN FIRST NATION cHIEF ALLAN ADAM 

chief Adam posted this on his facebook wall. I hoped he would remove it after he got some perspective or sober second thought.  Alas, after more than a week it was still posted on his wall.

He is a First Nation chief, a leader, who we should hold to a higher standard of conduct. I believe there is no excuse or rationale for this type of public display in social media. What is he modelling for the youth in our community?  Personally, I believe this horrific era in history should never be mocked and most certainly not by any leader.  If a federal or provincial politician did this there would be an immediate public outcry.

Indeed, if he thinks there is nothing wrong with posting this image on a social media site how can anyone take him seriously? He is making a mockery of our first nation and if we allow our chief to display this behavior without any ramification from council, we too are culpable.

UPDATE;
I've been told that it is no longer on his facebook, I can't confirm it because I don't see his page. However, he did the right thing by removing it.  

Powerful Voices in the Darkness

Night Spirits, The Story of the Relocation of the Sayisi Dene, Ila Bussidor and Ustun Bilgen-Reinart will touch your heart. It is a story told in the powerful voice of some of the Sayisi Dene First Nation people who continue to be affected by a unilateral decision of the federal government of Canada to relocate their group in 1956. This single act almost destroyed them, had it not been for their inner strength and resilience that comes with having survived for thousands of years on their traditional lands in northern Manitoba, Canada. 

It makes no sense why the Canadian government would make a decision of this magnitude little over fifty years ago, which was thoughtless, shortsighted, and barbaric. What were they thinking!

Imagine what would happen if you and your family were yanked from your community without warning and put in a place that was totally foreign. A place with language and customs beyond anything you could have conceived.  How would you cope in a place where your skills and livelihood were not adaptable to your new environment putting you completely at the mercy of the government?  

This is a story of how the Sayisi Dene barely survived, their struggle, and how they eventually saw a ray of light in the bleakness that consumed them. 

At the end of the day, it was the sighting of a caribou herd, which provided them a glimpse of a renewed sense of hope.  

I highly recommend you read this book. It is a difficult book to read and you'll want to turn away from the ugliness, brutality and the truth as told by the voices in this book. This is our shared Canadian history. It is real. It is ugly. Moreover, it should never have happened. 

I guarantee you will never see another first nation person the same way again because your heart will be open to seeing the integrity and humanity that always existed within each Sayisi Dene.     

An Honest Conversation

Artist / Storyteller Roger Deranger

Inside the summer issue of my recent community newsletter is a beautiful story, "Luezan Tue, A Mystical Place," as told by Roger Deranger.  A story verging on cathartic - wisdom united by inner peace and the sacredness of being in perfect harmony with nature.

I am forever connected to the community of Fort Chipewyan, a hamlet on the shores of Lake Athabasca.  Its people are resilient in the face of many obstacles and hardships, which by-in-large is not of their own making as reported in this health report from the University of Manitoba.   

Fort Chipewyan, Alberta Canada

This is an idyllic summer picture of my hometown, which is the subject of my newsletter.  This newsletter is a pathway to examine the difficulties and celebrate the successes, which hopefully give some insight, particularly of the members of my first nation and how they cope with the adversities of the changing environment. Moreover, it is a newsletter that confronts my first nation's political issues head on to create a community conversation on issues that connect us.  

If you are interested in the newsletter email me and I will provide a link to it.

A Quest to Belong

David Tuccaro Jr.

Once started, I could not put this book down and read it in one sitting. David Tuccaro Jr. is from my community and I know his family.

   

This is an amazing story of one man’s journey, through depression, a life threatening illness, and addiction.  David Tuccaro Jr.’s story is nothing short of inspiring and insightful.

"While it's possible to choose parts of our journey, others will remain unknown and so will life's challenges until they are upon us."

David takes us on his journey leading us to very dark places as he searches within to find solid ground where he felt he belonged.  He brilliantly reveals though his private thoughts how he sees his relationship with his family, and one very special person, and how this spearheads him to self-realization, belonging, and healing.

His story is charged with raw honesty and emotion.  David is an exceptional young man who will influence many people with his courageous story.  Read another review here. 

Signs of Spring

The pool is almost revealed

Snow is melting

Just a bit more

Soon it will be Sunshine and Splashing about!