A Gathering Place
The Oodena Celebration Circle sits at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers in Winnipeg, Canada -- the heart of Turtle Island. It was a traditional gathering place for thousands of years for the First Nations who call this area home. But in August 2014 there was nothing celebratory about the circle.
On August 17, 2014, Tina Fontaine’s body was pulled from the Red River. She had been murdered. Her small body was placed into a garbage bag and sent into the water. This city, this girl, this moment became the catalyst that strengthened calls for a national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
Over 2,000 people gathered at the Alexander Docks, close to where Tina’s body was found. They walked the approximately two kilometers to the Oodena Celebration Circle on a warm August night. It was the first time this city saw non-Indigenous citizens gather with Indigenous citizens to honour the memory of an Indigenous girl who had been brutally killed.
In February 2018, hundreds of people took to the streets of Winnipeg again, after the man who was accused of killing the 15-year-old teenager, was found not guilty by a jury. This time they walked from the steps of the courthouse to the Oodena Circle. They remembered Tina Fontaine and brought love for her short life and for her family as they grieved again.
The Oodena Circle, as it is written on The Forks website, says it is “a gathering place...which we share and thus, experiences which unite us as human beings.” Tina’s death did that for this city. It united as human beings. This is why we can never forget that someone out there took the life of a child. And that person is still out there.
Sharing the stories of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls is important work. The team that brought you Taken worked hard to care for the women’s and their families’ stories. They have done their best to provide a platform to help shed light and perhaps bring new clues to their murders or disappearances. Some of these stories have been turned into a 10-part podcast series. We hope you will listen and share them with your networks, in the hope some of these crimes will be solved.
Kim Wheeler is a writer and publicist. She is the original writer/researcher for Taken. Her daughter, Katarina Ziervogel, is walking in her mom’s footsteps. Katarina also worked on Taken as a writer and social media producer. Kim is holding the doors open for her daughters to walk through.