National Ribbon Skirt Day Act (S.C. 2022, c. 16)

Preamble

Whereas Indigenous women are life-givers and are entrusted with traditional knowledge to care for their families, their communities and the environment;

Whereas the ribbon skirt is a centuries-old spiritual symbol of womanhood, identity, adaptation and survival and is a way for women to honour themselves and their culture;

Whereas the ribbon skirt represents a direct connection to Mother Earth and its sacred medicines;

Whereas Indigenous culture, tradition and ceremony, including Indigenous ties to language and the land, are critical to the vitality and well-being of Canada’s First Peoples;

Whereas section 1 of Article 15 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to which Canada is a signatory, states, “Indigenous peoples have the right to the dignity and diversity of their cultures, traditions, histories and aspirations which shall be appropriately reflected in education and public information”;

Whereas Call for Justice 2.1 of the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls calls “upon all governments to acknowledge, recognize, and protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples to their cultures and languages as inherent rights, and constitutionally protected as such under section 35 of the Constitution [Act, 1982]”;

And whereas Call for Justice 15.2 of that report calls on Canadians to “[d]ecolonize by learning the true history of Canada … and learn about and celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ history, cultures, pride, and diversity”;