Today was declared ‘Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People Awareness Day’ in Prince George.
On a national level, May 5th is ‘Red Dress Day’ across Canada, which signifies awareness for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls across Canada.
Lheidli T’enneh Chief Dolleen Logan says today is particularly important for Northern BC, given the region’s long, dark history with the Highway of Tears.
“While it’s a national problem, most Indigenous nations and communities have had members go missing, the majority of course of those being women, but the national spotlight on this issue is often here in BC and into Alberta,” explained Logan.
She says that while it’s unfortunate that the Highway of Tears is located in BC, it only amplifies the need for recognition across the province.
Chief Logan also says that this day provides an opportunity to emphasize a very important lesson to women and girls in Northern BC.
“We want to get the word out to these young girls, please do not hitchhike, and please do not be alone,” added Chief Logan.
She noted people in more rural Northern communities often have to rely on hitchhiking to get to where they need to be, simply because there are no other transportation options available.
“People hitch-hike, they’ll take rides and unfortunately we don’t have a Greyhound anymore and people will continue to take rides, it’s scary,” she stated.
Greyhound ceased operations across Northern BC in 2018, which eliminated routes between Prince George, Dawson Creek, Prince Rupert and Valemount.
Since then, BC Bus North has attempted to fill the gap in transportation opportunities in the North, however, there is still a dire need for services in the region.