Winnipeg MP applauds federal promise to create ‘Red Dress’ alert system for missing Indigenous women

The Federal government has made a commitment in budget 2023 to discuss and ultimately create a “Red Dress” alert.

It would be a system that notifies the public when an Indigenous woman, girl or two-spirit person goes missing.

“It’s a long time coming and it’s because of the work that has been done by advocates and family members and survivors of violence,” said Leah Gazan, the NDP MP for Winnipeg Centre.

Thousands of Indigenous women and girls have gone missing across Canada – many have never been found.

Gazan, along with members in the Indigenous community, have been calling for the “Red Dress” alert system to be put in place for quite some time.

“We know that Amber Alerts for children, 90 per cent of children that are put on Amber Alert are found,” said Gazan. “Our lives are valuable, and we need this now. It is urgent.”

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Gazan says the infrastructure for this system already exists, with authorities already able to share extreme weather and amber alerts to cellphones. Gazan says she will hold Ottawa accountable on their promise to implement this system.

“We have an ongoing genocide in this country, and if we go missing, we must be found,” she said.

Community organization Aboriginal Alert created its own alert system to help find missing Indigenous people. It relies on both the public and police to report when an Indigenous person goes missing, but there is no help from Ottawa.

WATCH: NDP MP urges federal government to create ‘Red Dress Alert’ for missing Indigenous women

Hilda Anderson-Pyrz says this acknowledgement in the budget is a step in the right direction.

“For someone who is working directly on the issue nationally, but also advocating for transformative change, it’s critical those commitments are there and they are ongoing and long-term,” said Anderson-Pyrz, the Chair of the National Family and Survivors Circle.

Anderson-Pyrz says Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people have been going missing for decades, and they continue to fight for their survival every day.

“We have the right for safety and we have the right to security as well,” she said.

Gazan says a system as urgent as this one should already be in place.

“I will not stop advocating in this house until we get the justice we so deserve,” said the Winnipeg MP.