Red dresses are lining the downtown streets of Huntsville in honour of Red Dress Day.
Observed annually on May 5, Red Dress Day is a national day of remembrance, reconciliation, and activism honouring the lives of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirited People. The movement began with the REDress Project, an art installation created in 2010 by Métis artist Jaime Black.
The local installation is being led by Hope Arises Project Incorporated, an Indigenous-led charitable organization based in Huntsville. The group distributed hand-sewn red dresses to downtown businesses, encouraging them to display the garments in their windows as a sign of solidarity and awareness.
According to president and founder Joyce Jonathan Crone, the initiative was very well-received by the business community, with a total of 39 red dresses handed out.
“It was an overwhelming positive response,” Crone said. “We could have had 20 more dresses and easily given them out to businesses in Huntsville.”
Crone said Red Dress Day serves not only to raise awareness, but also to foster education and acceptance of Indigenous people within the community.
“We are speaking our truth,” she said. “We are looking back but also looking forward, because this human rights crisis continues to happen. It is not just in the past, it continues.”
Crone added that the initiative also helps honour the families of those who are missing or murdered, many of whom continue to seek answers and justice.
“Just imagine losing someone but not having closure, not being able to put the spirit of that person at rest, not being able to understand what happened,” she said.
Crone pointed to national statistics, noting that Indigenous people made up about five per cent of Canada’s population but accounted for roughly 25 per cent of homicide victims as of 2023. She also said 63 per cent of Indigenous women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime and are 12 times more likely to go missing or be murdered than non-Indigenous women.
“I get overwhelmed when I see every red dress and what it means, it’s not just a symbol, it’s a life,” Crone said. “Each of these dresses represents an individual mom, daughter, grandmother, sister, auntie, friend who is missing.”
Crone expressed gratitude for the strong support the local community has shown and emphasized how important ongoing support is to the initiative.
“There is no community without unity,” she said. “When you work together, hope arises.”
