Status of Women committee  Actually, I mostly got to complete them. I never got to do all the notes they gave me. The reality is we need to make sure there are services by indigenous women for indigenous women, developed by the victims of human trafficking, so they are best suited for the people they were designed for.

Status of Women committee  I believe a basic livable income would change a lot of factors for many women who are vulnerable and who end up putting themselves into situations that put them at risk. I believe if we had a basic livable income, it would make sure that women are not as vulnerable as they are today.

Status of Women committee  People who don't have their communities, families and the land they came from, where they learned to survive, become very vulnerable. They become victims of things like sex crimes, especially in our oil and gas sector, as much as nobody wants to admit that.

Status of Women committee  Thank you. That's exactly what I mean. Many of our young people especially during COVID-19 were isolated and put into positions where they were looking for their networks and community attachments through things like the Internet. This made them very vulnerable to strangers who were out there to exploit them.

Status of Women committee  Actually, I would support a red dress alert. I think that's a fabulous idea. If there were more tools put into the tool kit to help our families when women go missing or when we believe people are vulnerable, I do believe that a lot fewer women would be lost to us permanently. Thank you.

Status of Women committee  Thank you very much for the opportunity. I do support what Cora was saying. We need to have indigenous services that are available on the ground to women. We need to help build those. In fact, one of our recommendations would be building a Métis anti-human-trafficking strategy, with the victims themselves helping to develop that strategy.

Status of Women committee  I believe that part of what needs to happen is creating safety for women to be able to report. Police are not a safe place for women at this point in time. It's a shame, but that's the reality of the story that we live. We need to create spaces that are safe for people to report, so that when they are reporting, they don't become victims of the systems that are supposed to be there supporting them.

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Chair, and committee members for making space for Women of the Métis Nation - Les Femmes Michif Otipemisiwak, to come and present today. Human trafficking is of great concern to all of us. I'm presenting to you from the motherland of the Métis nation and Treaty 6 territory in Edmonton, Alberta.

Status of Women committee  Yes, it has been pushed back. The recommendations have been made for a very long time now. It's been three years since the reports from the inquiry in “Weaving Miskotahâ” have been out, and longer for those from the TRC. A lot of the commitments that were made have not been acted on, and that has significantly impacted young women and girls.

Status of Women committee  For me, it's about trying to make sure that the resources we need get to the communities' program service providers who are providing mental health services to help our young people.

Status of Women committee  In our community, we have grandmothers. I know that people have a tendency to call them “elders”, but they really love to be called “grandmothers”, and they're the grandmothers who collectively work together. When they come together in circle, they bring the young people with them and they pass on the tradition, knowledge and language of who we are.

Status of Women committee  Many of our communities have land-based learning opportunities for people to reconnect to who they were, their culture, their identity and their ability to work through many issues. There have been many programs and pilots that have been examples of bringing our youth back to being a connected part of our community and our society.

Status of Women committee  Absolutely. As a young child, I was very fortunate to have my community around me. I was able to connect with family and always have people who loved and showed support, caring and kindness. Our young people now are missing that, especially our young women. We need to bring them back to connect with the grandmothers and the grandfathers so that they can feel connected to society.

Status of Women committee  Absolutely.

Status of Women committee  Thank you for the opportunity for Les Femmes Michif Otipemisiwak to speak to the committee today on experiences of mental health for Métis women, girls, two-spirit and gender-diverse people. I'm speaking to you from the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people here in Ottawa, but I actually live in the Treaty 6 territory and the mother of the Métis land in Edmonton, Alberta.