Acadia University is pleased to host community and campus members at the annual Sisters in Spirit (SIS) Vigil on October 4 to celebrate, honour, and remember Aboriginal women and girls, as well support families who have been tragically touched by the loss of loved ones to violence.

At the request of local chiefs, this year's vigil will also include missing aboriginal men, boys, and families. This is the fourth annual event at Acadia University and is the ninth year that Sisters in Spirit Vigils have been held across Canada on October 4th.

To raise awareness, some Acadia students are collecting new and gently used shoes, as well as red dresses, to create an art installation in the K.C. Irving Environmental Science Centre, located on campus.  This installation will represent more than 600 missing aboriginal women and girls, and untold number of missing men, boys, and families across Canada.  The public is invited to drop off new or like-new shoes at Welkaqnik, Aboriginal Gathering Space in the DeWolfe House located at 52 University Avenue, or to bring them directly to the KCIC on October 4th and place them within the exhibit in the foyer.  After the vigil, the shoes will be donated to aboriginal communities in Nunavut and Labrador.

Darlene Copeland and Natalie Doucette of Mi'kmaq Family and Children Services are the lead organizers of the community-driven event that attracts Mi'kmaw community members from across the province.  

Dr. Cynthia Alexander, a professor who has helped the Indigenous Student Society of Acadia and students across campus co-ordinate this event in each of its four years at Acadia, says that events like this are important, because they help to raise awareness to this issue. She points out that “this past summer, the federal government has rejected calls from the premiers of Canada, as well as international calls for a national inquiry into violence against Aboriginal women and girls.” 

The events are taking place on October 4th from 4-7 pm, starting at Welkaqnik, the Aboriginal Gathering Space on Campus (52 University Avenue) then moving in a walk of remembrance around campus and down to KCIC Garden Room for the vigil.

Last year's vigil attracted about 100 people, and the event co-organizers are hoping for an even larger turnout this year.

For more information, please contact Dr. Cynthia J. Alexander, professor in the Department of Politics, at calexander142@gmail.com

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