Even from a distance, it was possible to see Wendy Favreau methodically making her way along the numerous red dresses carefully laid out on display on top of the grassy knoll across from the Kiwanis Band shelter on Memorial Drive.
Favreau stops at each dress, which on May 5 symbolizes missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, respectfully smudging each garment as she goes along, saying a silent prayer.
“I’m just thinking of the women who suffered abuse, were murdered, or were stolen. I’m thinking of their families. This has taken a toll on them too. They are trying to have closure. Maybe the women left behind little children. The whole family is affected,” Favreau gently explained.
Favreau who works at the North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre in North Bay, joins others across the country living with lingering questions.
“I have relatives who have missing women, and it is hard because they don’t know what has happened. You keep thinking about the whys and the where and what do you do now?” Favreau pondered.
“And then there is hope. Maybe they will return, maybe they will be home safe.”
People soon began arriving at the waterfront where they saw other red dresses on display, hanging from a wire line in front of the band shell.
In the distance, they could hear the sound of approaching men, women, and children completing their march from the Indigenous Friendship Centre on Cassells Street, carrying handmade signs.
Red Dress Day is marked every year on May 5.
It is also known as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit Individuals.
It is a day set aside to share stories, raise awareness, and push for change.
The day hits home for event planner Traci Koritsaris.
“My aunt was murdered. She was hung in her back shed by her husband. My cousin was murdered as well.”
Fittingly, a fine mist fell as people gathered to hear the personal stories of three women who have dealt with abuse in their lives.
Vanessa Brousseau told the crowd her sister Pam was just 22 years old when she went missing one Christmas, leaving behind a five-month-old and a two-year-old.
“She would never have just left her kids.”
Her sister has not been seen since her disappearance.
The boys are now 20 and 22 years old.
Brousseau said police told her Pam would likely be back in a few days and would not file a missing persons report.
Two years before her disappearance, Pam was hospitalized with broken ribs after being beaten up and put through a wall.
A week before her disappearance, her sister was seen with yet another black eye.
“I haven’t had closure now for over 20 years. I still cry, it hurts, I’ve been robbed,” said Brousseau, who went on to say that this is no longer about Pam.
“This is about our future girls, our future boys. This is also happening to our men and boys and people aren’t talking about it enough. When the National Inquiry (into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls) started, that is when I really started my healing journey. I attended therapy for four years, very intense therapy. I didn’t want to do it, but I knew if I wanted to do this, and stand here able to share, I had to do that.”
Brousseau wants to see change happen.
“I want us to be safe. I want us to be protected and in order for that to happen, we need to come together, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, and work together, making things better and right for all of us. I do this because I want change,” Brousseau said with emotion.
“We can all do it if we help each other, if we all stand with each other. It is not easy when the government puts all this red tape in front of us, but we have to keep pushing, keep standing for what we believe in, and protect our children. So, let’s move forward together. Let’s not keep this to a one-day-a-year event, let’s think about our Indigenous women every day.”
Maurice Switzer, President of the North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre spoke to the crowd.
“It is appropriate that the sky is crying a little bit today. Change is coming in this country, but it is very slow,” Switzer stated, thanking everyone for showing their support for “an issue that many people including unfortunately government and police agencies don’t fully pay attention to.”
He too listened intently to the women who shared their personal accounts about abuse in their lives and also wanted change.
“No one should worry about their safety being with their partner or walking down the street. The awareness is good and we’re glad Indigenous people are playing this kind of a role today in making this issue really visible.”
Sylvanna and Faithlynn, two 18-year-olds, hung on to the words shared by the guest speakers.
“I’m young and I grew up being told that Indigenous women were more likely to go missing or get murdered. I have a young sister who is here, and she is only five years old, and I have to tell her that she might go missing or be murdered, more likely than anyone else,” shared Sylvanna.
Faithlynn wants people to do more to draw more attention to the issue.
“Try to go on social media. Organizations like the North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre post a lot of events like this, and I think it is important to get educated about the importance of this day and use kind words. You never know what people are going through. It is a very sad day.”
As a young woman, she is growing up fearful for herself and others.
“I am, I really am. It is very hard knowing that this is a reality for a lot of Indigenous women and girls and two-spirit people. And we want them to be safe.”
See related: Red dresses to make fashion statement about missing and murdered Indigenous women
