Murder victims' lives as tragic as their deaths

Page 4

Pikiskwe

In the past five years, the bodies of five aboriginal women have been found dumped within or near Edmonton's city limits. There have been no arrests made and little information released as to the actual deaths or manner in which the bodies were disposed of.

The tragedy of the deaths of these women was in the way they lived as much as in the manner they died.

Marlene Morowski, 35, Georgette Flint, 20, Lynda Aheekew, 22, Cassandra Irene Francis, 21, and Mavis Mason were all victims of neglect and alienation in life.

Most were raised in foster homes or institutionalized settings. As a result, they had little exposure to traditional Indian beliefs, culture or communities and very little opportunity to learn anything about their aboriginal origins.

These women were all alone. They were alienated by their home communities at birth and they were unable to find a common ground with their foster families once they grew into adulthood.

The five victims were known to spend time in Edmonton's inner city. This is home for many single mothers who are unable to find better accommodations because of limited budgets.

The system failed them. One failure was the lack of services that should have

been made available to these women and others like them. Another is the absence of

any support mechanism for people that find themselves in such circumstances.

Last week, nominations for mayor and city council were held in Edmonton. The candidates should be made aware that better quality services should be provided for inner city residents, such as adequate and affordable housing, job creation projects and community centered activities.

These programs should be made available if not for humanitarian reasons, then for electoral ones.

There are high numbers of urban Natives living in Wards One, Three and Four. It is estimated by the Edmonton Social Planning Council that in some of these wards the Native population is 12 to 18 per cent of the eligible voters.

That's a significant number of voters.

If all these people insist that elected officials listen to their demands for more and better services, perhaps council will listen. After all, that many voters carry some weight.

Indian people also have a responsibility to these women.

We have to make our culture, our belief systems available to them. There must

be some linking organization between the reserves and the urban centres.

Our chiefs, band councils, provincial and national organizations must work together with the urban Indian population to stop some of the tragedies that occur in the urban centre.