A vigil for missing and murdered indigenous women in Canada. Photo by Max Fine Day / Twitter
After years of pressure, the Canadian government has finally launched a national inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, a total of 1,181 Native women have gone missing or have been murdered between 1980 and 2012. That figure exceeded prior tallies but the Native Women’s Association of Canada estimates the true number could be as high as 4,000 because authorities don't look into all of the cases, The New York Times reported. “There was no investigation,” Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Carolyn Bennett told the paper, referring to one recent case. “The file folder’s empty.” The inquiry has been funded with $40 million Canadian ($31 million US), according to the Times. Get the Story:
Calls of Justice for Aboriginal Women Echo Down Canada’s Highway of Tears (The New York Times 5/25) Royal Canadian Mounted Police Report:
Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women: A National Operational Overview (May 2014)
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