Content Warning: gendered violence, missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit+ people (MMIWG2S+)
As you may have noticed, we’ve had several important days in quick succession! This one is the last (but certainly not least) in the trio, because today is Moose Hide Campaign Day.
The Moose Hide Campaign is an Indigenous-led grassroots movement to end gender-based violence. It began in 2011, when Raven Lacerte and her father Paul were hunting along the Highway of Tears and were gifted with the appearance of a moose. After a successful moose hunt, they were reflecting on the many missing and murdered women and girls that BC’s Highway of Tears is infamous for and decided to take a stand against violence towards women and girls. They cut the hide of the moose into squares and asked people to wear pins made of the cut squares to signify their promise to do no harm to women and children in their life. I recommend watching The Story of the Moose Hide Campaign for the full story of how the Moose Hide movement came to be - it’s an excellent video.
Wearing a Moose Hide pin represents your commitment to ending gender based violence. Though the campaign began with men and boys promising to honour, respect and protect women and girls, it has expanded: now everyone is invited to participate with the goal of stopping the normalization of violence towards marginalized genders, starting conversations about healthy masculinity, and engaging men and boys to take initiative and be part of the solution. The campaign has grown rapidly, and this year, the Moose Hide campaign celebrated sending out its 5-millionth pin by presenting it to Barb Ward-Burkitt, Executive Director of the Prince George Native Friendship Centre, for her lifelong dedication to addressing the crisis of MMIWG2S+.
Here are some things you can do to take action on May 16th:
Wear a Moose Hide pin
Fast on May 16th from sunrise to sunset
Take part in the Walk to End Violence or organize a walk/event in your community
Watch the livestream of the Moose Hide Campaign ceremony & take part in the virtual workshop on May 16th from 8:30am - 1:00pm PST
Start a conversation with a friend, family member or coworker about gender-based violence and what you can do to create a culture of care and respect
Reflect about what you can do to combat gender-based violence
Spread the Moose Campaign by sharing it with your family, school, workplace, etc.
Donate to the Moose Hide Campaign
As a nonbinary individual, gendered violence is a topic close to my heart. In addition to people in my personal life who have been affected, it brings to mind my experiences coming across a search party for a missing woman during a backcountry hike, reading the names on École Polytechnique (Montreal Massacre) memorials on Dec. 6th, and stopping at memorial sites in Vancouver Chinatown during the Women’s Memorial March. Everyone is affected by gender based violence in some way, and it will take all of us to shift the culture that allows it to continue. I will be fasting and giving out pins on May 16th, and I hope you will join in whatever way you can - even just wearing a pin or sharing on social media! Every effort is a step in the right direction.
Author: Basil, ITMP Admin
Image credits: Moose Hide Campaign Team via Campaign Day 2024 social media assets download page
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