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On Red Dress Day, hundreds of people marched through downtown Kelowna from the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society to the Law Courts to raise awareness for and remember the thousands of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQIA+ people who have been victims of racialized and gendered violence across Turtle Island, also known as Canada.
Over a chorus of hand drum beats and cheers the phrase "We are still here," was proclaimed to the crowd that had gathered in front of the Kelowna courthouse on May 5.
"Red Dress Day is a reminder of the disproportionate violence that Indigenous women and gender-diverse peoples face," said the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society.
Speakers from the Friendship Society, Elders from across the Okanagan and Indigenous leaders told the sea of red in downtown Kelowna that despite systemic acts of genocide including residential schools and the 60s scoop, and the ongoing crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQIA+ people, First Nations people from Turtle Island continue to stand strong.
The goal of the May 5, Red Dress march, hosted by the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society, is to honour survivors and victims of abuse and advocate for calls for justice and policy changes.
In 2019, the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls reported that "persistent and deliberate human and Indigenous rights violations and abuses are the root cause behind Canada’s staggering rates of violence against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQIA+ people."
The aesthetic behind the national day of awareness is inspired by Métis artist Jaime Black’s REDress project, in which she hung empty, red dresses as a visual reminder of those who were taken from their communities in acts of racialized and gendered violence.
"I hope to draw attention to the gendered and racialized nature of violent crimes against Aboriginal women and to evoke a presence through the marking of absence," states Black on the REDress Project website.
The red dress represents the bloodline and connection between people. According to traditional Indigenous knowledge, red is the only colour spirits can see, so the red dresses aid in calling the spirits the missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and Two-Spirited people back to their loved ones, explained Leanna Curtis, the Indigenous healthcare advocate for the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society.
As an offering of tobacco was being placed in the soil beside the courthouse, the Elders sent a message to those who were victims of violence and abuse and were no longer with their families.
"Hopefully they feel us gathered here today."
Red Dress Day march through downtown Kelowna, hosted by the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society
— Today in the OK (@todayintheok.bsky.social) May 5, 2025 at 3:15 PM
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