RED WOMEN RISING Indigenous Women Survivors in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside Carol Muree Martin and Harsha Walia We gratefully acknowledge that our work takes place on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm, Skwxwú7mesh, and Səl̓ ilwətaɁɬ nations. We honour and thank the stewards of these lands and waters. Dedication This labour of love and service is dedicated to all women whose courage and kindness inspires us every day. Those whom we have lost continue to live in our hearts and will never be forgotten. RED WOMEN RISING Indigenous Women Survivors in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside Carol Muree Martin (Nisga’a – Gitanyow) and Harsha Walia, 2019 The Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) is an organization which works collectively amongst Indigenous Nations in B.C. and acts as an advocacy body to provide a cohesive voice regionally, nationally, and internationally in support of Indigenous Nations and communities, and to promote and protect each Nation’s exercise of Sovereignty within their traditional territories. We write in support of the work of the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre on documenting and reporting on the horrific and systemic violence faced by Indigenous women in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. This report is comprehensive and compelling. It is based on direct input from over a hundred Indigenous women through dozens of focus groups, and it details the narratives of Indigenous women on the layers of colonial gendered violence that they have faced since birth. DEWC is one of the few safe spaces in the DTES exclusively for self-identified women and their children, and thus uniquely positioned to author this ground- breaking report, and to ensure that its findings are acted on with the urgency that is required. On behalf of the UNION OF BC INDIAN CHIEFS The Yellowhead Institute strongly endorses the research presented in this report. Our institute was founded in order to analyze the structures of domination in Canada affecting Indigenous lives and to support Indigenous governance and self-determination through accessible information, collaborative research, and education. This report embodies our core principles by contributing a rigorous and powerful assessment of the role of gender-based violence in a colonial context—and its impacts—as theorized by survivors. There would be no Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Inquiry without the dedicated advocacy of organizations like the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. This collective record of members is an invaluable contribution to broader national efforts to diagnose the underlying causes of violence against Indigenous women, girls, trans and two-spirit people in Canadian society and therefore the tangible roots of oppression to address. We stand behind this excellent report and the Indigenous leadership it provides on the elimination of gender-based violence on these lands. Hayden King Shiri Pasternak Executive Director Research Director Yellowhead Institute Yellowhead Institute TABLE OF CONTENTS Credits ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1 About ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------4 Executive Summary ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------6 We are CD and Sandra - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 7 I am DJ Joe - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 11 Summary of Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 15 I am Theresa Dolores Gray - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 26 Violence and Safety ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30 I am Corinne Ducharme - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 33 I am Sophie Merasty - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 35 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 39 I am Suzanne Kilroy - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 47 I am Marlene Jack - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 49 Displacement From Land ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 52 I am Teresa (Tia Maria) Perrault - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 55 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 59 I am Louisa Starr - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 65 I am Marge Humchitt - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 68 Poverty and Economic Security -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 70 I am Mary Speck - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 73 I am Debra Leo - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 75 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 78 I am Stella August - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 85 Housing------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 88 We are Pearl and Kim Baptiste - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 91 I am Priscillia Tait - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 93 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 95 I am Elaine Durocher - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 101 Child Welfare ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------104 I am Robin Raweater - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 107 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 111 I am Beatrice Starr - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 116 I am Larissa Healey - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 119 Policing, Prisons & Justice System ----------------------------------------------------------------------124 I am Chilli - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 127 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 129 I am Kayla Fox - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 137 Health and Wellness --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------140 I am Cynthia Mack - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 143 Participatory Research and Literature Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 145 I am Veronica - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 150 Thirty-five Key Recommendations ----------------------------------------------------------------------154 Full List of 200 Recommendations ----------------------------------------------------------------------160 Recommendations to End Violence Against Indigenous Women in the DTES - - - - - - - - - 161 Recommendations to End Indigenous Women’s Displacement from Land - - - - - - - - - - 165 Recommendations to Guarantee Economic Security for Indigenous Women in the DTES - - - - - 168 Recommendations for Safe and Affordable Housing for Indigenous Women in the DTES - - - - - 172 Recommendations to Keep Indigenous Families Together in the DTES - - - - - - - - - - - - 175 Recommendations to End Criminalization of Indigenous Women in the DTES - - - - - - - - - 178 Recommendations for Indigenous Women’s Wellness in the DTES - - - - - - - - - - - - - 183 Endnotes ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------186 CREDITS Authors Carol Muree Martin (Nisga’a – Gitanyow) and Harsha Walia Copyright This report is available under a creative commons license with attribution. You may distribute or cite this report provided it is correctly and fully credited, and not used for commercial purposes. This report can be cited as “Martin, Carol and Walia, Harsha, Red Women Rising: Indigenous Women Survivors in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside,” Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre, 2019. List of Contributors Indigenous women survivors in the DTES and members of DEWC: Eight Indigenous women who Catherine Moses, Makwa Debra Leo, Homalco, prefer to remain anonymous Sahgaiehcan Cree, in the in the DTES for 25 years Amber Robinson, Haisla, DTES for 17 years Edna Edgar, Kitasoo, in the DTES for 13 years Cheri Bullshields, Blood Tribe, in the DTES for 37 years Annette Morris Misjee, Carrier, in the DTES for 2 months Elaine Bissonnette, Cree, in the DTES for 30 years Cheryl Lynn Bird, Little Black River in the DTES for 10 years Ashley Hanefeld, Cree, Ojibway, in the DTES for 4 months Elaine Durocher, Métis, in the DTES for 18 years Chilli Bean, Shushwap, in the DTES for 16 years Ashley Sleigh, Siksika, in the DTES for 30 years Ericka Michell, Carrier Sekani in the DTES for 2 years Christine Stewart, Haisla Eva Kovacs, D’Nai Whitehorse, Audrey Hill, Haida, Cindy H, Cross Lake, in the DTES for 42 years in the DTES for 20 years in the DTES for 3 years Gloria Baptiste, Morricetown Bernice Cristine Sinclair, Corinne Ducharme, Cree, Wet’suwet’en, in the Pinaymootang, in the DTES for 44 years DTES for 33 years in the DTES for 18 years Crystal Lynn, Woodlands Cree, Gwen Paul, Sechelt, Beverly Wesley, Slate Falls, in the DTES for 14 years in the DTES for 35 years in the DTES for 7 years Cynthia Mack, Toquahat Helen Worm, Cree, Bobbi