Aboriginal students headed for DTES
Downtown Eastside Smudge Ceremony held to remember First Nations Women.
By Matt Law
[media editor]
Eight members of Kwantlen’s Aboriginal Club will be attending the Downtown Eastside Smudge Ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 24.
Members of the club, Melinda Bige and Roxanne Charles, spent Friday afternoon wrapping fresh sage, which will be given out by the students.
“The sage is used in ceremony and prayer, it’s used in cleansing,” said Bige.
The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. at the corner of Commercial Drive and Main Street. The event is meant to recognize and remember the many First Nations women who have gone missing on the DTES.
“Flags will be lifted in ceremony of the women of the world who suffer from violence and a call for support will be put out for all men to walk with women in a good way,” says one of the ceremony’s Facebook pages.
If students want to get involved with the other Kwantlen students attending the event, email Melinda Bige at melinda_bige@hotmail.com.
