'They are very dearly missed': Red Dress Day event honours missing and murdered Indigenous people

A woman holds a sign that says "No more stolen sisters" on Red Dress Day in Edmonton. May 5, 2021. (CTV News Edmonton)

EDMONTON — Edmontonians wearing red gathered downtown Wednesday to remember missing and murdered loved ones as part of Red Dress Day.

The event started with a drumming ceremony at Churchill Square before the group marched to Beaver Hills House Park.

"I'm very thankful and grateful that we came out to this event today to honour and to celebrate our missing and loved ones," organizer Judith Gale told CTV News. "They are very dearly missed so we want to bring that to light and celebrate them today."

Gale says red is significant because it is a "spiritual" colour in Indigenous culture.

"We believe that it's the only colour that spirits can see, so when we wear red we are calling our spirits to us and letting them know that they are missed dearly and that they are never forgotten," explained Gale.

Red Dress Day is an annual event that started in 2010, but it did not take place last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.