Dawson College – Love in Action: student-led events to honour murdered and missing Indigenous women

Thursday, February 14 was Valentine’s Day, a day set aside to celebrate love. A group of Dawson students opted to take the opportunity to raise awareness and honour the murdered and missing Indigineous women, girls and two-spirit people.

The Centre for Gender Advocacy at Dawson, associating itself with a Canada-wide call to action to cast light on the cause, built a program of events on Valentine’s that began with a silent protest in the Metro. People were asked to gather during rush hour at a downtown station in the network, carrying signs and wearing red.

The protest was peaceful and widely covered by television stations and on social media, as was the event that followed.

https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/dawson-holds-community-feast-to-remember-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-1.4298306

https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/montreal-metro-mmiwg-women-march-1.5019549

The gathering then moved to Dawson for a feast called Love in Action, featuring spoken word and musical performances by elders, activists and singers.

A cornerstone of Dawson’s Strategic Plan is the Graduate Profile which advocates that students at Dawson working towards their diplomas and beyond practice social responsibility and community engagement to become informed, engaged citizens.

“Students will develop an informed concern for the larger good, appreciate social and cultural diversity, respect the values of others and act responsibly towards the environment. Students will be encouraged to make a difference in the quality of life of their communities through both political and non-political processes.”

Dawson College respectfully acknowledges that its campus is situated on the traditional land of First Peoples. Dawson affirms its commitment to fostering Reconciliation in Indigenous-Canadian relations in accordance with the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action.

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