‘Difficult and challenging’: Consultations on Red Dress Alert pilot project underway

A report into a proposed alert for missing Indigenous women has been released, showing the benefits and challenges an alert would have.

Lack of trust in police, Internet connectivity in northern and remote communities, and the need for urgent, dignified information have emerged as key concerns in developing a Manitoba-wide Red Dress Alert system.

The feedback came in a series of engagement sessions and was outlined in a new interim report released Tuesday by Giganawenimaanaanig, the group tasked with developing the pilot project for the province-wide system.

“The work has been very difficult and challenging but also work that needed to be done in order to guide the next step in the process,” Giganawenimaanaanig chair Sandra DeLaronde said at a news conference Tuesday.

The system would work similarly to an Amber Alert and would notify the public when an Indigenous woman, girl, Two-Spirit or gender-diverse person goes missing in Manitoba.

The group is in the first phase of developing the project.

According to the report, 29 in-person engagement sessions have been held throughout the province since January, with survivors, family members, leadership, and community organizations invited to weigh in.

“The dialogue has been much richer than we could have hoped for. We are taking the time to carefully review, compare, and collate all the insights and recommendations that were shared,” said project member Kim McPherson.

The report outlined 10 key themes that emerged from these sessions, including Internet connectivity concerns, cooperation across jurisdictions, data collection, and concerns frequent alerts could desensitize the public.

Community members also said they want the Red Dress Alert system to play a role in a holistic and integrated response that includes a two-way exchange of information and coordinating activities like ground searches and canvassing.

Perhaps the most pressing—participants echoed the need for urgency in rolling out the alert system before more lives are lost.

“When we went to Sunshine House, a participant said, ‘I don’t want my name added to the MMIWG memorial book,’” said Giganawenimaanaanig team member Denise Cooke.

Next, the implementation group plans to meet with people with lived experiences with human trafficking and housing insecurity.

A public survey is also underway until the end of June, the group said. Over 1,000 surveys have been completed to date, with those findings set to be released in July.

Afterwards, a full report with recommendations to implement the Red Dress Alert system will be released Oct. 4.

Giganawenimaanaanig hopes all levels of government will be able to move quickly to launch the system by early 2026 at the latest.

“We’re working on the legislation as well for federal and provincial implementation,” DeLaronde said.

‘I believe it will save lives’

There have been numerous calls for an MMIWG alert system, but this particular project stemmed from a federal motion proposed by NDP MP Leah Gazan.

The motion called for the deaths of Indigenous women and girls to be declared a Canada-wide emergency and for immediate funding for a new alert system.

It was unanimously passed in the House of Commons in 2023.

The federal and provincial governments subsequently announced $1.3 million in May 2024 to co-develop a regional alert system—a project that could inform a national version.

“I’m glad to see that it got off the ground. I believe that it will save lives, but now we have to get it up and running,” Gazan told CTV News Winnipeg from Ottawa.

She said the previous Liberal government led by Justin Trudeau didn’t do enough to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 calls to action. Moreover, current Prime Minister Mark Carney’s failure to mention the ongoing MMIWG2S+ crisis in his recent throne speech did little to boost her confidence in the new government.

“It’s very clear this is not a priority of this government, and I will make sure to do my part to hold this government accountable on their failure to address this genocide with the urgency that it requires.”

Part of that, she added, will be calling on the federal government to commit permanent funding for a national Red Dress Alert system.

CTV News Winnipeg has asked Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty if there are any plans to fund this initiative and is awaiting a response.

For its part, the federal government released an annual report Tuesday tracking Canada’s progress addressing the national MMIWG2S+ crisis. It listed the Red Dress Alert pilot project as an example of some of the work underway, along with a newly appointed chief advisor to combat human trafficking and dozens of safety and healing projects.

- With files from Kimberly Rio Wertman