Memorial Feast for Missing and ​Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, Men and Two-Spirit People

Join us to commemorate and honor missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, men and two-spirit people. We invite all community members, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to gather in the spirit of learning and respect. Participants are encouraged to bring food or tobacco in memory of a loved one and come together in community to pray and feast. Vegan and vegetarian food and refreshments will be provided.

To open the event, Joyce Carpenter, advocate for missing and murdered Indigenous Peoples will share about her advocacy work and how she is actively involved in supporting family members and participating in events related to missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. Joyce’s daughter, Patricia (Trish) Carpenter, was a 14-year-old mother of a two-month-old boy when she was found dead at a Toronto construction site on September 25, 1992. The Toronto Police Service and Ontario Coroner’s Office investigated the case and the coroner ordered an inquest, which revealed her death was suspicious but there wasn't enough evidence to say it was a homicide. Patricia's case remains unresolved.

This event is organized by Indigenous Initiatives in the Office of the Vice-President, Equity and Community Inclusion (OVPECI) and the Indigenous Education Council in the Office of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic. Amy Desjarlais (Lead, Rebirthed Teachings) will offer a smudge and guide us through ceremony and the practice of feasting.

What is a Memorial Feast?

This practice is similar to our Ancestors’ feast, in Anishinaabe ways of life, we believe a human being’s spirit lives on after the body returns to the ground. That spirit also does work once in the spirit realm. Thus, they expend energy and receive nourishment through feast foods. 

The feast foods traditionally offered in some Anishinaabe communities are: game meats or fish, wild rice, corn, beans, squash and berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries). A Memorial Feast differs somewhat due to the offering of an individuals’ preferences in life. Family members who remain may offer the deceased person’s favorite dishes.

Who are the MMIWGM2S?

MMIWGM2S stands for missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, men and two-spirit people. The families of missing and murdered Indigenous women have been raising awareness for decades. In 2004, the Native Women’s Association of Canada launched the Sisters In Spirit campaign to address violence against Indigenous women and girls, creating a database of these disappearances for greater coordination and communication across communities.

Through this program, the MMIWGM2S communities and allies collectively called for a National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. The National inquiry began in 2016 and ended in 2019. Read the  (PDF file) Executive Summary Report: Reclaiming Power and Place (external link) .

About Amy Desjarlais Waabishka Kakaki Zhaawshko Shkeezhgokwe (White Raven Woman with Turquoise Eyes)

Amy currently works at Toronto Metropolitan University as the Lead, Rebirthed Teachings, in the Indigenous Initiatives unit of the OVPECI. Rebirthed Teachings is a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous staff working together to educate about our shared history together.

Amy is an instructor for Anishnawbe Health Toronto’s Community Health Worker Training Program. Her community work includes sitting as an executive board member at the Centre for World Indigenous Studies, and a general board member for Community Music Schools of Toronto. She is a member of Spiritwind singers with performances all over Tkaronto as a group and individual hand drummer.

Guidelines

• Absolutely no drugs or alcohol permitted while in attendance.
• Family members may be present.
• All visitors please refrain from touching the Elders’ and helpers’ sacred bundle items, drums, feathers, unless asked to do so. etc. 
• No interviews, photography or video recording will be permitted given the nature of the event. We thank you for respecting the families, friends and community members of missing and murdered loved ones.

This event is wheelchair accessible

The university is committed to the accessibility and inclusion of persons with disabilities. If you require any additional accessibility accommodations to ensure your full participation, please email Cher Trudeau, Administrative Coordinator, Indigenous Education Council and Indigenous Initiatives, at cktrudeau@torontomu.ca.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please email Cher Trudeau, Administrative Coordinator, Indigenous Education Council and Indigenous Initiatives, at cktrudeau@torontomu.ca.