IAC's event was cancelled. Their concerns were ignored. Indigenous women, artists and veterans deserve better.

For nearly a decade, the Indigenous Arts Collective (IAC) has brought Indigenous women, artists, Elders, performers, vendors and community members together through the National Indigenous Women’s Arts Conference and Festival.

This November, that long-standing celebration was cancelled after the St. Laurent Shopping Centre (Morguard) in Ottawa Ontario suddenly rescheduled its Remembrance Day activities to November 7 and 8 — the weekend of Indigenous Veterans Day, November 8 — displacing our event.

They tried to negotiate.

They proposed alternatives.

They explained the financial, cultural and human consequences.

Theyraised serious concerns about the impact on Indigenous women and the profound disrespect created by overshadowing Indigenous Veterans Day.

Their concerns went unanswered.

Now approximately 100 Indigenous women have lost an important economic opportunity, their charitable organization has been left carrying debt, and artists and community members are dealing with travel expenses, deposits, lost income and disrupted plans.

This is not simply a scheduling inconvenience.

THEY TRIED TO FIND A SOLUTION

When St. Laurent Shopping Centre displaced their November event, management suggested that they move it to September or October.

Those were not viable alternatives.

September conflicted with important community commitments surrounding the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

October did not provide their team with enough time to properly reorganize and deliver an event of this magnitude.

They therefore proposed November 14 and 15.

Those dates were refused.

They were told that November 12 marked the beginning of Christmas decorating and that their event could not be accommodated.

The result was devastating.

An Indigenous women's event that had been celebrated for nearly a decade was cancelled.

Approximately 100 Indigenous women lost work and economic opportunity.

The Indigenous women's charitable organization was left carrying debt after already investing heavily in planning.

Artists and participants had already booked flights, hotels and time away from work.

Payments and deposits had already been made.

And despite explaining these consequences, they were unable to obtain a meaningful resolution.

INDIGENOUS VETERANS DAY CANNOT BE TREATED AS AN AFTERTHOUGHT

November 8 is Indigenous Veterans Day.

Indigenous veterans served this country while Indigenous peoples faced discrimination and systemic inequality at home.

Their service deserves recognition.

Their history deserves recognition.

Their day deserves recognition.

Moving Remembrance Day programming to November 7 and 8 while simultaneously displacing an established Indigenous women's cultural event demonstrates a profound lack of consideration for the significance of Indigenous Veterans Day.

They raised this directly.

They received no meaningful response to those concerns.

That is unacceptable.

THIS RAISES SERIOUS CONCERNS ABOUT DISCRIMINATION

When decisions disproportionately harm Indigenous women, those decisions deserve scrutiny.

When approximately 100 Indigenous women lose economic opportunities because their established event is displaced, that matters.

When an Indigenous women's charity is left carrying debt, that matters.

When Indigenous artists lose income and incur expenses they cannot recover, that matters.

When an event celebrating Indigenous women is displaced on Indigenous Veterans Day weekend, that matters.

And when Indigenous people explain the cultural and financial harm being caused and those concerns are ignored, that matters.

They will not pretend this is simply about dates on a calendar. It is about whose events are considered important. Whose financial losses matter. Whose cultural celebrations are protected.

Whose veterans are recognized. And whose voices are heard when they say, “This decision is harming our community.”

RECONCILIATION REQUIRES ACTION

Reconciliation cannot exist only in corporate statements.

It cannot appear once a year on September 30.

It cannot be reduced to a land acknowledgement while Indigenous organizations are expected to quietly absorb decisions that cause significant cultural and economic harm.

Reconciliation must be reflected in actions and decisions.

Indigenous women should not have to fight to convince institutions that their livelihoods matter.

Indigenous artists should not have to absorb financial losses because their long-standing event suddenly becomes inconvenient.

And Indigenous veterans should never feel that their day of recognition is an afterthought.

 I AM ASKING THE PUBLIC TO STAND WITH THEM

We are calling upon St. Laurent Shopping Centre and Morguard to:

1. Publicly explain the decision that resulted in the cancellation of the National Indigenous Women’s Arts Conference and Festival.
2. Address the concerns they raised regarding Indigenous Veterans Day and explain why those concerns went unanswered.
3. Meet with the Indigenous Arts Collective in good faith to identify a meaningful remedy.
4. Address the financial harm caused to IAC and participating Indigenous women, including documented losses, expenses and commitments incurred before the cancellation.
5. Commit to meaningful consultation with Indigenous organizations before future decisions are made that could displace established Indigenous cultural programming.
6. Implement concrete measures to ensure Indigenous organizations, artists and cultural events are treated with respect and equity going forward.

THIS IS WHY IAM ASKING YOU TO SIGN

Your signature tells St. Laurent Shopping Centre, Morguard and other institutions that Indigenous organizations cannot simply be displaced without consequence.

It tells the approximately 100 Indigenous women affected by this decision that they are not standing alone.

It tells Indigenous artists that their livelihoods matter.

It tells Indigenous veterans that their service and their day of recognition matter.

And it sends a clear message that when Indigenous communities raise concerns about discrimination, cultural disrespect and economic harm, those concerns deserve to be heard and addressed — not ignored.

We will not be silent about what happened.

We will not allow Indigenous women to be treated as an afterthought.

We will continue demanding accountability, respect and meaningful reconciliation.

Stand with Indigenous women.

Stand with Indigenous artists.

Stand with Indigenous veterans.

Sign and share this petition.