Manitoba drivers now have one more option to choose when getting a license plate. At a cost of $70, the sale of these new plates will help support families of the MMIG2S (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirited) community.
From each plate sale, $30 will be donated to Winnipeg-based Ka Ni Kanichihk, an Indigenous-led charity that provides prevention and intervention programs to help families and individuals of all ages heal from trauma, find success in life, and become leaders themselves.
They also provide education and job skills training and mentorship. Proceeds from the licence plate sales will primarily support education costs for students from MMIWG2S families.
The announcement of the new plates, which are available at any Autopac agent, was made on December 8 by Bernadette Smith, Minister of Housing, Addictions and Homelessness, and Justice Minister Matt Wiebe, the minister responsible for Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI).
“I introduced the bill to create this special licence plate on behalf of MMIWG2S families as it is very close to my heart and has impacted my own family deeply,” said Smith in a press release. “We wanted to make sure other Manitobans recognized the significant impact of the reality we face. Ka Ni Kanichihk has incredible programs that support families who have been impacted by the loss of missing and murdered loved ones. Supporting education is a priority for these families and for me. This will truly make a difference in our community.”
Smith introduced the bill earlier this year and on May 30 it received royal assent in the Legislature after garnering unanimous support from all the parties.
There are two designs. One includes a red handprint and the other features a red dress. They were chosen, in part, based on consultations with MMIWG2S family members. Both have become nationally recognized symbols which incite people to resist violence against women and gender-diverse individuals.
“The pain and grief of the families of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people is felt every day across our province,” said Wiebe. “These specialty plates are just one small way Manitobans can show solidarity and contribute to an important cause.”
According to an RCMP report, nearly 1,200 Indigenous women and girls were murdered or went missing between 1980 and 2012.
In September 2016, the federal government launched a national inquiry to investigate the cause. Three years later, the MMIWG National Inquiry released their final report, finding that the murders and disappearances were largely the result of “persistent and deliberate human and Indigenous rights violations and abuses.”
The REDress project began with Métis artist Jaime Black. Her goal was to draw public attention in an artistic way to the gendered and racialized nature of violent crimes meted out against Indigenous women in Canada.
Red, she says, is a sacred colour in many cultures. The fact that the dress is empty, she adds, is symbolic of the person who is no longer with us.
Dodie Jordaan, the executive director of Ka Ni Kanichihk, is grateful for the license plate initiative and believes the proceeds will go a long way to healing within the Indigenous culture.
“Together we drive change, honouring the lives of the missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQ+ while supporting survivors and communities on the path to healing and justice,” Jordaan said in the press release.
According to Wiebe, the license plates have the potential to raise around $180,000 for Ka Ni Kanichihk by the spring of next year if all 6,000 plates are purchased by then.
