Indigenous women’s needs remain dire.
Jane Paul Centre, Mi’kmaw elders partner to help Indigenous women in need
SYDNEY — The Jane Paul Centre is hoping to pair Indigenous women in need with Mi’kmaw grandmothers as part of a new healing strategy.
“Our women have been victimized, some since the day they were born,” said Karen Bernard, director of the Jane Paul Indigenous Women's Resource Centre.
Bernard took on the director's role in June and thinks pairing vulnerable women with Mi’kmaw grandmothers may help to redress some of the colonial harm. She was part of a gathering in March that collected knowledge and teachings from 25 grandmothers. Now Bernard hopes to use that information to benefit Indigenous women who need to heal.
Bernard said she learned a lot herself during the gathering and hopes to launch this initiative in July.
The grandmothers will be mentors and help conduct Mi’kmaq ceremonies along with teaching the young women how to make crafts. She hopes to start the program with a grandmother moon ceremony.
“I think (the grandmothers) are very important for respect of yourself and family,” said Bernard.
Bernard is still working out the details of the program, but she thinks the young women can benefit from some elder advice. And talk to someone who may have been through difficulties themselves.
The Jane Paul Centre has delayed reopening because of COVID-19 concerns but officials are gearing up to open the doors next month.
The centre had been closed for almost a year because of a lack of funding but received provincial funding in February. Nova Scotia Native Women’s association president Annie Bernard-Daisley said she's grateful for the effort the advocacy team put forth to land the money.
“With this money it opened up a whole new world, the hopes and dreams of what we wanted to accomplish, they’re becoming reality,” said Bernard-Daisley.
She said she’s excited for the women they serve but hopes the federal government will make more of a financial commitment soon.
In addition to the grandmother mentorship program, they’re hoping to add a medical professional for onsite health care tests and a justice system support worker. They also hope to expand existing programs which help Indigenous women with food insecurity, unemployment and housing. The centre is also going through renovations, adding a stove, new furniture and painting.
The centre is still looking to hire a missing and murdered Indigenous women prevention worker and are still seeking social justice for Indigenous women.
Bernard-Daisley said thanks to Senator Dan Christmas they are gathering information about the forceful sterilization of Indigenous women in Canada and working on the issue here in the province. They’re actively working to protect Indigenous women from human trafficking and to better the lives of the women they serve.
“It’s up to us, to ensure these women get the help that they need,” said Bernard-Daisley.
The centre is still seeking to raise money and those wanting to help should contact Karen Bernard.