Lesson #3: Violence Affecting Indigenous Women

Question 1

Violence Affecting Indigenous Women

(3)

Answer 1

(1) are almost three times more likely than non-Indigenous women to become a victim of a violent crime in Canada.
(2) more likely to be victims of spousal violence than are non-Indigenous women
(3) close to half (48 per cent) of these Indigenous women reported the most severe forms of violence, which included being sexually assaulted, choked, beaten, or threatened with a gun or knife.

Question 2

Amnesty International reports that:

Answer 2

Indigenous women in Canada aged 25 to 44 are five times more likely than non-Indigenous Canadians in the same age group to die of violence

Question 3

Before the arrival of the Europeans, some Indigenous societies and communities were:

(3)

Answer 3

(1) matriarchal, which means that women headed the social organization of the community
(2) Even in those that were not matriarchal, Indigenous women still had significant roles, including taking part in politics, decision making, family life, marriage, and ceremonial life
(3) Women were often in charge of key decisions—in some Indigenous societies, women would even select which men would be in positions of leadership

Question 4

When European religion, customs, and laws were forced on Indigenous peoples:

Answer 4

women’s roles began to be devalued.

Question 5

Other effects of colonization also contribute to the high degree of violence many Indigenous women face today.

Answer 5

many families are struggling not only with multiple risk factors resulting from the legacies of abuse in residential schools but also with the fact that their traditional ways of recognizing women as equal and sacred have been undermined and damaged.

Question 6

Another related factor that perpetuates violence against Indigenous women:

Answer 6

stereotyping caused by discrimination

Question 7

As of March 2010, the Sisters in Spirit initiative estimated that:

Answer 7

582 Indigenous women in Canada had gone missing or had been murdered over the past 30 years

Question 8

data show that, although they represent only 4.3 per cent of the total female population in Canada:

Answer 8

Indigenous women represent 16 per cent of the female homicides in Canada.

Question 9

In response to the Highway of Tears, in the fall of 2005, the RCMP established:

(2)

Answer 9

(1) Project E-PANA, an initiative specifically designated to investigate the Highway of Tears cases
(2) investigates cases of missing or murdered women dating from 1969 to 2006 that took place along or near three BC highways (16, 97, and 5).

Question 10

In February of 2013, they released a report documenting the lack of police accountability, abusive policing, and the failure of police and the government to protect Indigenous women and girls in northern British Columbia.

Answer 10

the Human Rights Watch

Question 11

This final report highlights how people in authority not only have ignored their responsibility to protect Indigenous women and girls but also have taken advantage of them.

Answer 11

Those Who Take Us Away: Abusive Policing and Failures in Protection of Indigenous Women and Girls in Northern British Columbia, Canada

Question 12

Project Evenhanded

Answer 12

in January 2001, the RCMP and VPD created a special taskforce on missing women

Question 13

The final report by the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry highlighted:

Answer 13

the systematic bias of the police.

Question 14

the Report noted two measures as needing immediate attention

Answer 14

(1) the allocation of funding to existing centres that provide emergency services to women in the sex trade
(2) the development and implementation of an enhanced public transit system in northern BC communities (most notably along Highway 16)

Question 15

A significant recommendation of the report:

Answer 15

To put in place measures to enhance the safety of vulnerable women. Initially, these would involve conducting evaluations of current programming and developing new protocols to measure high-risk offenders

Question 16

One day after the release of the Human Rights Watch report Those Who Take Us Away (on February 15, 2013), Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett called for the launch of:

Answer 16

a missing and murdered women’s committee. A unanimous vote on February 27, 2013, approved it.

Question 17

The mandate of the missing and murdered women’s committee was to:

Answer 17

study violence affecting Indigenous women

Question 18

the missing and murdered women’s committee comprised a report titled what?

Answer 18

Invisible Women: A Call to Action—A Report on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women in Canada

Question 19

One reason for the expressed disappointment of the missing and murdered women’s committee report was:

Answer 19

that the report’s final 16 recommendations did not reflect the witnesses’ testimony

Question 20

What was notably missing from the missing and murdered women’s committee report?

Answer 20

the recommendation that a national public inquiry into the missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada be established, along with a national action plan to address this crisis

Question 21

common aspects found throughout Indigenous societies in North America are:

Answer 21

the influence and importance of women

Question 22

internalized colonialism

Answer 22

whereby Indigenous peoples themselves will start to internalize feelings of self-doubt. Such as thinking that they are inferior, and start to internalize colonizers pressed negative views. And in some cases might even try to imitate and follow the colonizer, taking on horrible and untrue beliefs about themselves, and as a result, develop self-hatred for who they are.

Question 23

What does the headdress symbolize for JJ Nepin?

Answer 23

It is a symbol of leadership - it is something that is earned.

Question 24

What does Nadya Kwandibens say in regards to the importance of the headdress?

(2)

Answer 24

(1) t is not something to be taken lightly.
(2) It is a responsibility you have to your nation - your fellow man.

Question 25

Maryanne Pearce identified in her Ph.D thesis

Answer 25

From 1946 to 2013, 824 cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls were identified

Question 26

From 1980 to 2012, were cited by The Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Answer 26

1,181 cases of missing and or murdered Indigenous women

Question 27

Estimates from community members from the Walk4Justice initiative estimate:

Answer 27

the number to be over 4000. Gladys Radek (Gitxsan/Wet’suwet’en) and Bernie Williams (Haida) founders of the Walk4Justice have collected the names of 4,232 of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls along their walks—which includes a walk across the country from Vancouver to Ottawa

Question 28

Highway of Tears

(3)

Answer 28

(1) due to the large numbers of women who have gone missing or been murdered in the area.
(2) This highway connects Prince George and Prince Rupert in BC, and is 724 kilometers long.
(3) estimates of between 18 to 40 women have been murdered or disappeared in the area—with the majority of these women being Indigenous

Question 29

Hilary N. Weaver states:

Answer 29

“…violence against Native women exists in a social environment, largely shaped by the context of colonization, which allows and promotes ongoing violence”

Question 30

was largely founded due to Indigenous women banding together to overcome the discrimination within the Indian Act

Answer 30

The Native Women’s Association of Canada

Question 31

The Native Women’s Association of Canada

(3)

Answer 31

(1) In 1974, it became a non-profit organization.
(2) It aims to enhance and promote the political, cultural, and social well-being of Indigenous women in Canada
(3) includes, being a national voice for Indigenous women, supporting common goals, as well as promoting Indigenous women in leadership.

Question 32

True or False? The Independent Investigations Office (IIO) is limited to investigating only certain types of serious bodily injury or death, and rape and sexual abuse are excluded from its mandate.

Answer 32

TRUE

Question 33

Why are stereotypical and sexualized representations of Indigenous women dangerous and hurtful?

(3)

Answer 33

(1) Stereotypical and sexualized representations of Indigenous women are dangerous because they are distorted, untrue, and send a horrible inaccurate message assuming that sexual exploitation is okay and acceptable.
(2) People then act on this in real life, whereby Indigenous women are horribly dehumanized, and sexual violence is seen as a “norm”
(3) These representations open the door to violence against Indigenous women by reasserting historical labels once applied—by characterizing Indigenous women as less than human and, thus, as “rapable” sexual objects”