Cambria Harris’ artwork Search for Us is a powerful call to action on the MMIWG2S+ crisis, posing the question: “What if it was your daughter?”

From Personal Loss to Collective Strength: Cambria Harris’ Path Forward

At this, Cambria Harris will be the keynote speaker at an event hosted by the Centre for Human Rights Research (CHRR) and Indigenous Engagement and Communications (IEC). She will share her family’s story and her continued advocacy through the #SearchTheLandfills movement.

“I want to speak from lived experience, so that students at University of Manitoba can better understand what many of their Indigenous peers are facing every single day as a result of systemic injustice,” says Harris.

Art, she explains, has played a central role in her healing journey. Whether through painting, digital design or sewing, Harris sees creative expression as a way to process grief, spark awareness and mobilize resistance. 

“Art helped me find myself again. For me, every piece—whether it’s painted on canvas, wood, or worn as a ribbon skirt—is a form of resistance. It’s a way of reclaiming space and responding to colonial violence.” 

Harris also calls on universities to turn awareness into action. “We need more faculty members translating MMIWG2S+ research into tangible supports—like legal clinics. Becoming an informed ally is just the beginning. What matters is what you do next.”

Cambria Harris (left) is a seamstress as well and has been sewing ribbon skirts to heal from grief over the past two years. She believes that creating and sharing ribbon skirts brings good medicine into the world.

Ceremony Opens the Space: The Thought Behind the Event Design

“With guidance from the Office of the Vice-President (Indigenous) (OVPI), ceremonial elements were carefully chosen to open this event in a meaningful and respectful way,” says Dr. Pauline Tennent, Manager of the CHRR, one of the event organizers. “We want to create a healing space for Indigenous participants while honouring the depth of Indigenous cultural traditions for all.”

This marks the third year that the CHRR and IEC have partnered to host “An Event in Honour of Red Dress Day” at UM.

A special highlight of the event is the collaborative community artwork led by Professor Sherry Farrell Racette. Rooted in beadwork from the 2024 National Day of Action for MMIWG2S+, the evolving piece invites participants into a shared act of remembrance and resistance—one that celebrates the resilience and creativity of Indigenous women and gender-diverse individuals.

“For the University community, it’s incredibly important to recognize that this is a human rights issue that is close to home – that Indigenous students and staff right here on campus may be impacted by MMIWG2S+.” 

Artwork: “To Sew is to Pray” by Sherry Farrell Racette

Research as Resistance: UM’s Justice-Oriented Networks

Professor Adele Perry, Director of the CHRR and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, is a recent recipient of a SSHRC-funded project titled Calling for Justice and Re-Imagining Governance: The Rematriation of Indigenous Women’s Human Rights and the Obligation of All Governments. The project examines how institutions are responding to the crisis of MMIWG2S+, grounded in years of academic collaboration and community advocacy, often led by Indigenous women.

“Cumulatively, research highlights the system challenges in implementing the National Inquiry’s 231 Calls to Justice,” says Perry.  

Dr. Adele Perry, Director of the Centre for Human Rights Research (CHRR).

But identifying the problem is only the first step. “Research builds over,” she explains. “It supports the social movements pushing for change. Indigenous women and gender-diverse people have brought this issue to the forefront of public and political discourse.”

UM, as a public research university, has a responsibility to turn this knowledge into meaningful pathways toward justice.

Dr. Don Davies, Director of Indigenous Research in the OVPI, adds a vital perspective:

“Red Dress Day must include the voices and presence of men. This is not just a ‘women’s issue’—it’s a matter of shared societal responsibility.”

Dr. Davies and his team have been honoured to work alongside Zongiigabowin Circle, a men’s wellness group led by Elder Carl Stone, to embed MMIWG2S+ education in peer mentorship. Rooted in Indigenous teachings, this initiative offers a community-led approach to fostering accountability and healing among men.

As a key part of UM’s Indigenous community, Zongiigabowin Circle uplifts Red Dress Day through healing, accountability, and shared action.

Beyond Symbolism: UM’s Enduring Commitment

In recent years, the CHRR has partnered with IEC on events that bring visibility to MMIWG2S+ and the Calls for Justice—demonstrating UM’s sustained commitment to truth, justice, and reconciliation. The Margaret Laurence Endowment Fund has offered financial contributions, while also supporting initiatives like the Women’s and Gender Studies Lecture Series, which explores the impacts of gendered colonial violence and the Justice Tracking Project monitors government responses to the 231 Calls for Justice.

“True commemoration means creating change,” says Professor Nathan Derejko, who has attended Red Dress Day events for several years.

“The national crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people is a deep wound within the structure of Canadian society. Red Dress Day offers us a vital opportunity to examine the roots of this violence and reflect on our shared responsibility to act.”

Walking a path; never alone, painting by Nadzin Degagné

Event Details
Time: Monday, May 5, 2025 – 1:30 p.m.
Location: Centre Space, Russell Building (Campus Map)
Open to: All UM community members and the general public
What to bring: Ribbon skirts encouraged but not required; ceremonial tobacco will be available on-site. Registration required.

“Colonialism, both of the past and of the present, racism, patriarchy, (and) sexism have come together to produce a context where Indigenous women, girls and two-spirited people, have found themselves disproportionately coming to harm,” Perry said.

“We, as a society, have repeatedly shown ourselves kind of unable and unwilling, and often kind of a combination of both, to address those circumstances and to honour to those women and girls and two-spirited people, and their families,” she added.

To read the full story about the Red Dress Event, please visit Global News Winnipeg.