A CALL FOR QUILT SQUARES

[Okwes]

A CALL FOR QUILT SQUARES
> >>
> >> TO HELP ALEVIATE THE PAIN FROM THE DISCRIMINATION
> AND VIOLENCE
> >> AGAINST
> >> INDIGENOUS WOMEN IN CANADA: ACKNOWLEDGING &
> HONOURING OUR PAIN AND
> >> MOVING
> >> ON
> >> TO HEALING
> >>
> >> The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC)
> is group of
> >> organizations
> >> representing First Nations and Métis women in
> Canada. Established
> >> in 1974,
> >> NWAC works to enhance, promote, and foster the
> social, economic,
> >> cultural
> >> and political wellbeing of First Nations and
> Métis women within First
> >> Nation
> >> and Canadian societies. Like a ‘Grandmothers’
> Lodge,’ they as
> >> aunties,
> >> mothers, sisters, brothers, and relatives
> collectively recognize,
> >> respect,
> >> promote, defend, and enhance our native ancestral
> laws, spiritual
> >> beliefs,
> >> language and traditions given to us by the
> Creator. Please visit
> >> www.nwac-hq.org for more information on NWAC.
> >>
> >> The NWAC launched the national Sisters in Spirit
> campaign to raise
> >> public
> >> awareness of the alarmingly high rates of
> violence against
> >> Aboriginal women
> >> in Canada. We, the Indigenous/Aboriginal
> populations, are in crisis
> >> regarding the safety of us Indigenous women in
> Canada. The Sisters in
> >> Spirit
> >> initiative addresses the violence against
> Aboriginal (First
> >> Nations Inuit
> >> and Métis) women, particularly racialized and/or
> sexualized
> >> violence, that
> >> is, violence perpetrated against Aboriginal women
> because of our
> >> gender and
> >> Aboriginal identity. This type of violence
> typically occurs in the
> >> public
> >> sphere, where societal indifference often leaves
> Aboriginal women at
> >> greater
> >> risk. See www.sistersinspirit.ca.
> >>
> >> In 2004 Amnesty International released a report
> “Stolen Sisters: A
> >> Human
> >> Rights Response to Discrimination and Violence
> Against Indigenous
> >> Women in
> >> Canada”. The report discusses factors that have
> contributed to the
> >> level
> >> of
> >> violence against Aboriginal women, including
> historical events,
> >> and the
> >> contemporary socio- economic status of Aboriginal
> people in
> >> Canada. The
> >> report includes stories about Canada’s missing
> and murdered
> >> Aboriginal
> >> women, and concludes: “In every instance,
> Canadian authorities
> >> could and
> >> should have done more to ensure the safety of
> these women and
> >> girls.” For
> >> more information regarding Amnesty International
> Canada’s work on
> >> Stolen
> >> Sisters visit
> www.amnesty.ca/stolensisters/index.php Those of us
> >> Indigenous People who are still alive also suffer
> greatly from
> >> what has
> >> happened to our Stolen Sisters - our sisters, our
> daughters, our
> >> mothers,
> >> our aunties, our grandmothers, our cousins, our
> friends.
> >>
> >> The purpose of this quilt is to provide an avenue
> whereby we
> >> Indigenous
> >> People can express our horror, our pain, our
> anger, our fears and
> >> dreads,
> >> our extreme frustrations over the unfair
> treatment and abuses
> >> suffered by
> >> our Peoples because of the values, attitudes, and
> policies of the
> >> Canadian
> >> government and the general Canadian population.
> May we continue to
> >> work
> >> thru all that and come to that place of
> understanding,
> >> forgiveness, peace
> >> and healing that is within each and every one of
> us, and comfort
> >> ourselves
> >> and one another with the help of Creations’
> teachings and our sacred
> >> connections to All Our Relations.
> >>
> >> The project is to create a quilt comprised of the
> squares sent in
> >> to me by
> >> those Indigenous People who contribute a square
> depicting the
> >> theme. The
> >> squares should be 12½“ X 12½“, the main picture
> being 12”X12”
> >> with ¼“ space
> >> left around it for seam allowance. The design is
> yours; the
> >> colours are
> >> yours; the embellishments are yours; the
> materials you use are
> >> your choice.
> >> Just make sure the blocks can be added and used
> in the quilt. (For
> >> example,
> >> if you make your block from spider webs, it
> probably can’t be part
> >> of the
> >> quilt. (ha, ha)
> >>
> >> Please include:
> >> 1. a story telling what your square is about,
> >> 2. your name and address,
> >> 3. your email address and
> >> 4. your phone #. I may need to ask you something
> about your square
> >> and I
> >> would like to keep you informed about the
> progress of the quilt
> >> and maybe
> >> even be able to send you a picture of the
> completed quilt.
> >>
> >> I shall organize the putting together of the
> blocks and the
> >> quilting of
> >> this
> >> quilt. All the blocks have to be in my hands by
> June 21, 2006, the
> >> national
> >> Aboriginal Day.
> >> When the quilt is finished, completed, I would
> like it to travel to
> >> meetings, conferences, workshops, exhibits, etc.,
> accompanied by the
> >> stories
> >> of each block. As this is purely a volunteer
> project created by
> >> Alice Olsen
> >> Williams there are no funds for the project.
> >>
> >> When your square is finished, please send it to:
> Alice Olsen Williams
> >> Curve Lake First Nation, ON
> >> K0L 1R0
> >>
> >> Should you want to get a hold of me, my phone #
> is [phone].
> >> My email is [e-mail]
> >>
> >> For more information about me and my work, you
> can check out this
> >> web site:
> >> www.arts.knet.ca/crafts/awilliams/
> >>
> >> GOOD LUCK TO US ALL ON THIS PROJECT!!
> >> Kichi Miikwech,
> >>
> >> Alice Olsen Williams, Quilter
> >> Anishinaabe-kwe of the Curve Lake First Nation in
> Ontario.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
> www.redwiremag.com
> our stories, our voices, ourselves
> --
> "The Revolution will NOT be Televised...but it'll be
> featured in
> Redwire!"
>