Speaking in favour of the composite resolution titled Justice for First Nations, MoveUP Board Member Joyce Galuska reminded CLC delegates the women killed along the so-called Highway of Tears in the north of BC were predominately First Nations women. Joyce spoke to the resolution as a MoveUP member, and a member of the Haida Nation.

Joyce told convention delegates she has ridden her motorcycle along Highway 16 several times, and each time the scenic natural beauty of the route was tainted by the unsolved murders and disappearances of as many as 40 women. She said couldn’t stop wondering if she rode by a hill where one woman stood, or past a forest where another was murdered.

Aboriginal women suffer disproportionately from violence in Canada, where they find themselves caught in the intersection of sexism and racism, and often class due to poverty rates in aboriginal communities. Joyce argued recognizing an Aboriginal Day in Canada, as called for in the CLC resolution, would honour and bring attention to the issues facing First Nations people.