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What Strikes a Chord?

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What Strikes a Chord? 2019 THE CONSTRUCTION OF RESONANCE IN COLLECTIVE ACTION FRAMES ON MISSING AND MURDERED INDIGENOUS WOMEN AND GIRLS IN CANADA LISA MENKE 6501877 Utrecht University Date: 30 July 2019 A Thesis submitted to the Board of Examiners in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts in Conflict Studies & Human Rights Lisa Menke |1 Supervisor: Ralph Sprenkels Date of Submission: 30 July 2019 Program Trajectory: Research Project (15 ECTS fieldwork upon which the thesis is based, the project forms an integrated part of the final thesis) & Thesis Writing (15 ECTS) Word Count: 27415 Cover Image by Lisa Menke Lisa Menke |2 Abstract Indigenous activism focusses on Indigenous rights and Indigenous sovereignty. One issue that connects to both these themes is that of Missing and Murdered Indigenous women and Girls (MMIWG). This issue entails the disproportionality between the numbers of Indigenous women who go missing or are murdered and that of other women in Canada. The issue is emblematic of the marginalized position of Indigenous women as a result of racism, sexism, and colonialism. Indigenous activists need to mobilize two key audiences, an Indigenous and a “White settler” audience, in order to achieve change with their activism. This research studies the resonance construction of Indigenous grassroots activists concerning the issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls in Canada since 2016. Through the use of participant observation, interviews, and the use of secondary sources, such as newspaper articles and documentary film, this research provides a description of the context in which Indigenous grassroots activism on MMIWG takes place and identifies Benford and Snow’s (2000) core framing tasks in Indigenous grassroots activism. Eight in-depth interviews serve as the basis of an analysis of resonance construction among an Indigenous as well as a “White settler” audience, the two key audiences of MMIWG activism. This research finds that conditions of colonialism, social marginalization, and lack of government response have shaped the context of activism. Additionally, activists tend to frame MMIWG as a structural issue that needs to be addressed at the root while also preventing further harm to Indigenous women and girls. This research also finds that among the sample of this research credibility, i.e. the “believability” of a frame, weighs more heavily than salience when activists construct resonance among a “White settler” audience, while salience, i.e. the “visibility/recognizability” of a frame, weighs more heavily than credibility among an Indigenous audience. This research proposes the idea of the resonance equilibrium to visualize this finding. There are also indications that other factors, such as space and collective identity, play significant roles in resonance construction among Indigenous grassroots activists. Keywords: Framing Frame Resonance Indigenous Activism Grassroots Activism MMIWG Canada Lisa Menke |3 Acknowledgements When first starting this journey of setting up and conducting my own research I would not have imagined to be able to write a piece of over eighty pages. I still vividly remember the struggle of having to write my first paper in university (the paper in question was only 800 words). I would not have been able to write this thesis without those that helped me along the way, and I would like to take this opportunity to give thanks. To my respondents, who were willing to trust me and open their hearts to me. Without your trust and stories this thesis would not have existed, and I am forever grateful. I would also like to thank you for inviting me into your homes and communities and sharing your stories. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be a part of your ceremonies, learn how to bead, visit a pow-wow, and eat my first fry bread (it was delicious). Thank you B., for trusting me and vouching for me. Thank you for showing me the ropes and showering me with gifts and love. You made me feel at home. Meegwetch. I would also like to thank my supervisor, Ralph Sprenkels, for giving me the freedom I needed and for gently nudging me in the right direction anytime I felt stuck. To Janine, my Conflict Studies partner-in-crime and part of the “humanities duo”. Thank you for all those discussions on framing theory on the train and for helping me work through issues of ethics, emotions, and just life in general. I would also like to acknowledge that this research took place on unceded Algonquin territory. I thank the Algonquin people for allowing me to visit their lands. The lands that provided me with food and water for three months and the land that protected me from raging floods. Through this acknowledgement I recognize the effects of colonization and I affirm my commitment to a process of decolonization. Lisa Menke |4 Table of Contents Introduction: Indigenous Grassroots Activism on MMIWG p. 6 The Research Puzzle: On Convincing a Diverging Audience and Framing p. 8 Chapter One: Theoretical Framework and Methodology p. 12 Framing in Collective Action p. 12 Resonance Construction in SMO Campaigns p. 15 Research Methodology p. 17 Step of Method p. 18 Data Collection Techniques p. 19 Sampling p. 20 Chapter Two: The Issue of MMIWG and Its Historical and Sociological Context p. 21 What is the Issue? - The Disproportionate Victimization of Indigenous Women p. 21 Who are the Women? - Young, Indigenous Mothers p. 23 When Does Activism Happen? - Late 80s Activism p. 23 Where Does It Happen? - A Nationwide Problem p. 24 Why? – Dominant Causes and Factors p. 24 “Colonialism, eh?” – The Role of Canada’s Colonial Legacy p. 24 “Over-Policed and Under-Protected”- The Failure of the Canadian State p. 31 “We are Second Class Citizens Living in Third-World Conditions”- Social Marginalization p. 33 The National Inquiry p. 34 Response p. 35 Chapter Three: Chapter Three: The REDress Project, SIS Vigils, and the Women’s Memorial March: The Claims and Frames of Indigenous Activists p. 38 The Downtown East Side February 14 Women’s Memorial March p. 38 What Does It Look Like? p. 39 The Setting p. 39 Significance of the Date p. 40 Sisters in Spirit Vigils p. 41 What Does It Look Like? p. 41 The Setting p. 42 Significance of the Date p. 43 The REDress Project p. 43 Lisa Menke |5 What Does It Look Like? p. 44 The Setting p. 45 Significance of the Date p. 45 Claims and Frames: A Human Rights Issue Rooted in Structural Problems p. 46 Diagnostic Frames p. 46 Problems and Causes: A National Tragedy That is Rooted in Structuralism p. 46 Who is to Blame? - The Failure of Police and State p. 47 Boundary Framing - David and Goliath p. 48 Amplification of Victimization - Our Sisters in Spirit p. 49 Prognostic Frames - Address the Tip Whilst Melting the Iceberg p. 50 Proposed Solutions - Learning, Unlearning, Protecting and Funding p. 50 How Can the Solutions Be Attained? - Families First and Community Building p. 53 Motivational Frames - Fulfil Your Responsibility and Protect Your Fellow Human p. 54 Call to Action - Fulfill Your Duty and Get Rid of That Attitude! p. 54 What Rationale is Invoked? - “We’re All the Two-Legged Tribe” p. 55 Vocabularies of Motive p. 56 Chapter Four: Resonance Construction - On the Split between Different Audiences and the Resonance Equilibrium p. 58 A Double Audience: A “White Settler” vs. an Indigenous audience p. 58 Constructing Resonance among a White Settler Audience p. 59 “We Always Have to Have Proof” - The Role of Credibility among a “White Settler” Audience p. 60 On Aligning and Not Aligning - Constructing Salience among a “White Settler” Audience p. 63 Constructing Resonance among a Non-White and Indigenous Audience p. 66 “Everyone Has Their Own Truth” - On the Role of Credibility among an Indigenous Audience p. 67 “What You Say is Nothing New” - Constructing Salience among an Indigenous Audience p. 70 Other Factors in Constructing Resonance - On Space and Identity p. 72 Conclusion: MMIWG and The Balancing of Audiences p. 76 Appendix I: List of Respondents p. 80 Works Cited p. 81 Lisa Menke |6 Introduction: Indigenous Grassroots Activism on MMIWG “And can you imagine […] when you have these emotions evoked from you, you question like ‘oh my gosh, I would never be able to deal with that, they’re so strong’ or ‘how do they, you know, they go on’. And then more than that: ‘I want to help in some way now. No one should feel that’. You don’t want people to be hurting. And to know that it’s going on, you’re like ‘ok, how do we stop this?’”1 said one of my respondents when explaining how he connected the issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls to the daily lives of a non- Indigenous audience. In 1992, a group of women from different races, nationalities, and ages, many of whom were Indigenous2, took to the streets of Vancouver’s Downtown East Side to protest the deaths of the women in their neighborhood. The public did not look onto this kind of “disruptive” behavior too kindly. Passersby shouted verbal abuse and the protesters were struck by trash flung at them from passing cars. The protesters persisted and eighteen years later, during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, their march, which had become an annual occurrence, boasted a record number of participants, despite the city’s best efforts to halt that year’s march. DTES’s women inspired one grieving daughter in Ontario to act to bring attention to the murders and disappearances of Indigenous women and girls to the Canadian federal government. She hosted a vigil on Parliament Hill on October 4th. The DTES women march until this day and Bridget Tolley and Families of Sisters in Spirit (FSIS) still occupy the steps of Parliament every October 4th.
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