People gather outside Vancouver City Hall for a Red Dress Day memorial on May 5, 2021. On Monday, Indigenous people and their allies will mark the 15th anniversary of the day of remembrance and awareness. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
Santana Dreaver · CBC News · Posted: May 05, 2025
Events across province aim to raise awareness for and remember missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls
Monday marks 15 years of Indigenous people and their allies gathering, marching and holding ceremony for the hundreds of Indigenous women and girls who are missing or have been murdered in Canada.
The national day of awareness and remembrance, known as Red Dress Day, was inspired by Métis artist Jaime Black after she created the REDress project — an art installation of red dresses hanging in public spaces that serve as a visual reminder of the Indigenous women and girls who are no longer with us.
Since 2010, Indigenous people and allies have taken part in the project — hanging red dresses, creating artwork, and marching together to remember loved ones and call those who are missing back home.
According to the Government of Canada, 63 per cent of Indigenous women have experienced physical or sexual assault in their lifetime. In 2023, Statistics Canada released a report showing that Indigenous women and girls were six times more likely to be murdered than other groups of people in Canada.
- Indigenous fashion festival held at Tk̓emlúps for Red Dress Day
- PhotosRed Dress Day 2022 — commemorating murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls in B.C. — in pictures
The federal government launched the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Woman and Girls (MMIWG) in 2016. In the final report released in 2019, 231 calls to action were made along with findings of genocide against Indigenous peoples in Canada.
Amnesty International, an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, says Red Dress Day matters because it “makes the invisible visible.”
“Red Dress Day is a significant day,” said Don Tom, chief of Tsartlip First Nation and vice-president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs (UBCIC).
“We must continue to bring awareness to ensure all Indigenous women are safe. It’s a day to say we haven’t forgotten the many women and girls whose lives have been taken too early. We demand justice and action on this day.”
On Monday, the UBCIC and non-profit Justice for Girls will be making an announcement about the deaths of Tatyanna Harrison, Chelsea Poorman and Noelle O’Soup, alongside their families.
