OTTAWA, ON - Canada’s largest union is welcoming today’s announcement of a long over-due national public inquiry into murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls. The Canadian Union of Public Employees is calling the inquiry a vital step on the path to reconciliation, and hopes it lead to real action on stopping violence against First Nations, Inuit and Metis women and girls.
“CUPE members across the country stand in solidarity with Indigenous peoples. We hope this national inquiry will help address troubling and tragic violence against Indigenous women and girls,” said Mark Hancock, national president of CUPE. “Our union pledges its support to this inquiry, and to the families of murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls, who we believe must be the guiding voices of this inquiry’s work.”
Delegates to CUPE’s recent national convention passed resolutions put forward by the union’s National Aboriginal Council committing the union to reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. This includes identifying and addressing the root social, political and economic causes of violence against Indigenous women and girls, and respecting the rights of all Indigenous peoples.
More information on CUPE’s National Aboriginal Council, and the union’s work towards reconciliation can be found at cupe.ca/aboriginal