Missing, murdered aboriginal women honoured in marches

Gladys Radek holds a picture of niece Tamara Chipman close to her heart, something she has done every day since Chipman disappeared in 2005 along Highway 16 in northern British Columbia.

It kind of hit too close to home for me, first of all because she is my niece, she is my brother's only natural child and she was also a young mother,"Radeksaid from her home inOrillia, Ont.

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The shock of losing her niece jolted Gladys Radek into action.She hadbeen attending annual memorial marches for murdered and missing aboriginal womensince 1994, to support friends and relatives who have lost loved ones. But in 2005, the fight for justice became personal.

"Here I am eightyears later and there is still no sign of Tamara and there is still no sign of a lot of the other girls ... some have gone missing for decades. They are treated as they are disposable."

On Friday, Radek, of the Gitxsan and Wet'suwet'en First Nations, is hosting the first annual Memorial March for Murdered and Missing Aboriginal Women in Orillia,one of 20 confirmed citiies participating in this year'sevent.

The now national marchstarted in 1991, after a woman was murdered on Powell Street, in Vancouver. Her name is not spoken today, to honour the wishes of her family.

The Womens Memorial website says, This womans murder in particular was the catalyst that moved women into action. Out of this sense of hopelessness and anger came an annual march on Valentines Day to express compassion, community, and caring for all women in Vancouvers Downtown Eastside, Coast Salish Territories.

Raising awareness

Like the annual march, Radeks activism surrounding violence against aboriginal women has been years in the making.

She co-founded Walk4Justice, a campaign to raise awareness and seek justice for missing and murdered women.In 2008, the first walk was held and women fighting for justice marched 4,000 kilometres, from Vancouver to Ottawa.

Spreading awareness about the heartbreaking losses in so many indigenous families, Radek said, was done with the help of her War Ponya van covered in pictures of missing and murdered women and girls.

She [the van] carried the spirit of our women through all our walks, shes been on six walks, she's been on several journeys across Canada, she's raised awareness, been to every parking lot you can imagine.

The War Pony has been on about four Valentine's Day marches in Vancouver, and has carried many family members to and from thePickton inquiry into missing and murdered women, many from Vancouver'sDowntown Eastside.

For a lot of people, it [the War Pony] was an eyeopener for them;their response was usually sorrow in realizing this was happening in Canada.

Now Radek, as well family members and walkers, want the van now out of driving commission to become a missing and murdered women's memorial on the highway outside Winnipeg.

In 2011, on National Aboriginal Day, Radek set out on a caravan with volunteers, and brought a message to Parliament Hill. In the House of Commons, she told MPs that a national public inquiry for missing and murdered Indigenous women was needed.

The majority agreed, they all felt that yes it was needed. The main concerns that Canadians have is the cost, but from my view, it would be cost effective.

Pressing for national public inquiry

She said an inquiry would deal with some of the systemic or root causes of violence against women poverty, lack of affordable housing, human traffickingand exploitation,for example.

A public inquiry is going to show where the ball was droppedin the seriously flawed judicial system itself.- Gladys Radek

This week's federal budget included renewed funding $25 million for five years, beginning in 2015 to reduce violence against aboriginal women and girls. There was no promise of a public inquiry.

Radek said its just a drop in the bucket.

When you think about the levels of violence especially with aboriginal women, we have 637 bands in Canada affected by violence the budget is over fiveyears, so that'sfivemillion a yearits not enough.

"A public inquiry is going to show where the ball was dropped in the seriously flawed judicial system itself."

But she says theres one thing anyone can do to help.

If you do hear about a missing or murdered women, you know take your blinders off and help the family ... theres a lot of pain that is involved with i t... and we also want people to know that we are still pushing for a national public inquiry.