Mr. Speaker, families of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls will gather in Vancouver East and lead the 28th Women's Memorial March in honour of loved ones lost.
Since the 1970s, over 900 indigenous women and girls have gone missing from the Downtown Eastside or have been killed. For decades, community and family members have been working day and night to get justice for their loved ones.
Today, I want to acknowledge my constituent, Lorelei Williams. As a family member, she turned her grief to action and founded Butterfly in Spirits, a dance group to empower indigenous women and girls. Lorelei won the Samara Everyday Political Citizen award for her tireless advocacy and her front-line work.
From April 4 to 8, survivors and family members can share their testimonies with commissioners from the national inquiry in Vancouver. All of Canada needs to listen. We need to believe women who bring us their truths. We need justice for the women and their families. Justice means no more stolen sisters.