Northern Manitoban stories, ideas shape new Thompson monument to honour MMIWG

A new monument in Thompson will soon give families of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in northern Manitoba a place to grieve and honour their lost loved ones.

Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak — the organization that represents First Nations in northern Manitoba — is constructing the monument. Its design was created after gathering stories and ideas through consultation with families in First Nations communities across the north.

"Everything that is in there has significance," said Heidi Spence, the director of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak's MMIWG liaison unit.

"Whether … [the idea] was through a dream, through a story, maybe some of the land, some of the animals that are in the north — they're in there."

The monument will show an Indigenous woman wearing a jingle dress, with a floral adorned shawl behind her.

She will be surrounded by northern wildlife, such as wolves and caribou. The back of the shawl will be lit up to look like the northern lights.

Development work began in 2019 on the monument, which is intended to fill a gap in the northern region of the province. There are are already monuments in southern Manitoba, in Winnipeg and Sagkeeng First Nation.

Spence and her team travelled to seven different northern communities, including Fox Lake Cree Nation, God's Lake First Nation and Shamattawa First Nation, to hear from families of missing and murdered women and girls, and gather their ideas to help shape the final design.

Families were eager to share about their loved ones, Spence said.

"Because [the monument], it represents the North. That represents where home is for them, where their loved ones would have grown up."

Architect and lead designer David Thomas produced what is now the official design.

A long time coming: mayor

Thompson Mayor Colleen Smook said that the monument has been a long time coming.

"With us having such a large Indigenous population, it's actually a shame that it didn't start here," she said.

In March 2018, public hearings were held in the city as part of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Over two days, testimonies were shared by more than 20 people.

Spence said that the new monument will be placed on a hill across from an existing bush plane monument in Thompson — originally meant as a tribute to aviation in the North, but which some have said also serves as a painful reminder for residential school survivors who were flown out of their communities to the schools.

The new monument will be at the opposite end of the Miles Hart Bridge — a main route into the city — from the plane monument, said Spence.

"Whichever way you're driving, you're gonna see this big, beautiful monument," she said.

According to Smook, MKO and the city administration team are figuring out the final details to ensure the monument is properly accessible.

The unveiling of the monument is tentatively set for March of this year.

Spence hopes that it will be a constant reminder of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people.

"We can never forget the women and two-spirit people that are gone, or that still experience violence today," she said.