"Rally for missing and murdered indigenous women"

Dozens of people gathered for a rally in Hamilton on Friday, shutting down parts of the Clairmont access going up the escarpment, to demand justice for missing and murdered indigenous women.

John Garlow of Six Nations and Kristen Villebrum, of Hamilton, led the day-long rally, held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., as dozens of people throughout the day, both native and non-native, honked their support for the cause.

"We're having a sacred fire for missing and murdered indigenous women and part of that is to enhance the voice of our stolen sisters," said Garlow. "I am holding the Crown of Canada responsible for our missing sisters. I want to help the families have some kind of answers on what happened to their loved ones. We need a government that will hold an inquiry (into missing and murdered indigenous women) and get some answers. It's not right that they treat us like this."

The issue of an inquiry into more than 1,200 missing and murdered indigenous women in Canada over the past 30 years has been a controversial topic for the Conservative government, with Prime Minister Stephen Harper refusing to hold the inquiry and telling the press: "It isn't really high on our radar, to be honest."

His government's inaction on the issue has drawn the ire of both native and non­-native social justice groups across the country.

The group lit a sacred fire at the bottom of the access and forbade police from coming near the fire with out disarming first, said Garlow.

There were only two negative reactions from passing motorists throughout the day, he said.

Sue Gallant, a non-native Hamilton woman, said she was there to "support my native sisters. It is a shame what the Harper government has done. They have chosen to ignore these women, giving them no voice and no recourse. We need to unite. We need to stand together to fight for our women and our rights."

This Sunday, on Oct. 4, vigils will be held around the country and here on Six Nations for missing and murdered indigenous women as part of the annual, national "Sisters in Spirit" vigil, a movement started by the Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC) to honour their lives and support their family members.