Londoners mark Red Dress Day

Members of the Indigenous community gathered Tuesday morning at Atlohsa Family Healing Services, a non-profit organization offering Indigenous-led programs in London, Ont. to mark Red Dress Day.

“Red Dress Day is to remember and to acknowledge all of the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls and two spirited people,” said Sierra Jamieson an Indigenous activist. “It’s a day to really grieve and to come together as a community and support women.”

Jamieson said the community comes together every year to mourn through sharing stories and experiences.

“It’s important because it’s genocide across Canada that our women are experiencing are our two spirited people are experiencing,” said Jamieson. “It’s something that needs to be talked about and as hard as it is, the harsh reality of it, it’s something that needs to be brought to light.”

Jamieson said the red dress symbolizes the blood shed by murdered Indigenous women and girls.

“It’s an ongoing thing of silence and bloodshed,” she explained.

Activists said Indigenous women go missing every day and events like this help shed light on the topic.

“It’s one of those things that you have to come out to these types of events to hear what’s going on, so that you can have a better understanding,” said Jamieson. “We’re very open to people coming and supporting us.”