"Throughout Native North America, great attention is paid to the common thread that binds our communities together – women, the lifegivers.

Sadly, from a survey of the landscape, things are not looking so good.

Despite the passage of new federal legislation that will bring direly needed resources to our communities, the violence largely has not been stemmed, and is, in fact, getting worse in some places.

At worst, Native women have been deemed disposable, literally tossed aside on roadsides and alleys like trash. Only three weeks ago, a 22-year-old woman was killed after being thrown from a fifth story window by drug dealers in downtown Vancouver, and she wasn’t the only one.

More than 583 aboriginal women in Canada have gone missing and been murdered, according to a groundbreaking report by the Native Women’s Association of Canada. The actual number is much higher, according to the 3,000 family members who signed petitions last year looking for their missing mothers, daughters, sisters and aunties.

We know there are ignorant, racist and uncaring attitudes pervasive among non-Native law enforcement agencies. If Vancouver police had listened to the scores of families who sought their help in locating their relatives, at least 13 women would not have died at the hands of serial killer Robert Pickton. The mishandling of his case has spawned fresh outrage in Vancouver, as well it should."

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Editorial: Violence against our women kills us all (Indian Country Today 10/8)