Problem of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women By Muhammad Uzair

By Muhammad Uzair | For Walling’s Blog-post | Posted May 10^th, 2019 |

Photo taken by Fibonacci Blue, this was a march of women who called on law enforcement around the world to take the murders and disappearance of Indigenous women seriously\

 1181. That’s the number of Indigenous women who have gone missing or have been murdered. These women can be someone’s mother, daughter, wife, or sister who have been missing or have been killed over the past 25 years in Canada. They have left their families in sorrow and grief. Are the lives of aboriginal women less important than the lives of non-indigenous women living in Canada? Why is less respect given to Indigenous women? Those who have committed these unforgivable deeds must be taken care of as soon as possible, so that they won’t do it to other women. One way to help the indigenous women is by helping, supporting, and protecting the Indigenous community so that women won’t have to become victims of racism, stereotypes or human trafficking.

In 2014, a report made by the NWAC (National Women Association of Canada) concluded that, around 4 percent of the population of Canada is made up of Indigenous women and roughly 50% of these women have been victims of human trafficking.  In 2016, the homicide rate for Indigenous females was five times that of non-Aboriginal females. This troubling reality is rooted in Canada's history of racism and colonialism. Racism against Indigenous women is a common thing in Canada, and it can be tied all the way back to the time of the residential school system, where Aboriginal kids were separated from their families and were forced to live in catholic schools.

The people who have committed these crimes don’t just decide to do them. It is their society, their environment, and their surroundings, who have led them to have stereotypical thoughts about the Indigenous women. This is the root cause as to why indigenous women face racism, because that’s the kind of image they have in society which effect generation by generation.

To solve these problems, I have proposed a few solutions that can fix all this. We must focus more on the Indigenous society and help them get a firm stand in our society, and for those who think that this is unfair should know that, because of the residential school’s system, the Indigenous community has faced many problems such as, racism, unemployment, and education problems. We can also support organization such as NWAC, me-too movement, etc. We must take actions to stop the problem of the missing and murdered Indigenous women, so that Canada can be a better and a safe place for everyone despite their ethnicity or background. If we don’t, then this problem will just increase and never end.

Work cited

Hill, Gord. "MISSING & MURDERED INDIGENOUS WOMEN & GIRLS." Briarpatch, Nov.-Dec. 2018, p. 21. Student Edition, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A563358142/STOM?u=saskplschools&sid=STOM&xid=33a27efc

Hunter, Anna. "The violence that Indigenous women face." Canadian Dimension, Mar.-Apr. 2005, p. 34+. Student Edition, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A131157916/STOM?u=saskplschools&sid=STOM&xid=4053167a

Ogorzalek, Stephanie Mulhern. "Innovative Partnerships: Combating violence against indigenous women and girls." State Magazine, Dec. 2018, p. 1C+. Student Edition, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A572552055/STOM?u=saskplschools&sid=STOM&xid=563b239a

Blue, Fibonacci. “Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women's March.” Flickr, Yahoo!, 14 Feb. 2017, www.flickr.com/photos/fibonacciblue/32778542291.