LAC LA BICHE – Cool, rainy weather didn’t stop a group of people from participating in the third annual Moose Hide Campaign walk in Lac La Biche on May 15.
The walkers included Portage College officials, members of Lac La Biche County council, representatives of First Nations and Métis communities, and members of the public.
The Moose Hide Campaign is a nationwide initiative founded in 2011 by northern British Columbia resident Paul Lacerte and his daughter, Raven, meant to bring awareness to gender-based violence. The idea came about when the Lacertes were hunting moose.
Moose hide, as explained by the Moose Hide Campaign organization, symbolizes taking a stand against violence and undoing the effects of the residential school system in Canada. Many of the people who participated in the walk in Lac La Biche wore small moose hide square swatches to show support and solidarity for the movement.
According to information from the Moose Hide Campaign, the Lacertes felt strongly connected to the territory where they hunted, which was along the Highway of Tears.
The Highway of Tears is a 719-km corridor of Highway 16, between Prince George and Prince Rupert, which has been the location of several crimes again women. A high number of the women have been Indigenous, and the Highway of Tears is often associated with the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) movement.
Holding banners and placards, the walkers started the awareness walk at Portage College before moving down 94 Avenue and then onto Beaver Hill Road. Next, the procession made its way onto Lac La Biche’s main street and toward McArthur Place.
For the past few years, the walk has been put on as a joint venture between Lac La Biche County and Portage College.
Robert Rayko, the cultural and community facilitator for Portage College, explained how the Lacertes initiated the Moose Hide campaign to stop abuse against women, children, and men.
“And so, we wear the little moose hide square in recognition of that,” Rayko said.
Stephanie Harpe, an Edmonton-based Indigenous singer/songwriter and advocate for missing, murdered and exploited persons, took part in the Moose Hide walk and spoke at McArthur Place.
The Moose Hide Campaign is significant and aims to get men and boys involved in the conversation.
“With the negativity that we see in the world, I think we need to bring each other back to the table to have further discussions to keep each other safe, to look out for one another, and just have our men have more of an understanding with normalizing their feelings, and expressing themselves and making sure that they’re doing well so that they can help others,” Harpe stated. “I think that’s really important, and the anti-violence education needs to be talked about at many levels.”
While the focus is often on violence against women and children, according to Harpe, men and boys are increasingly in danger as well.
“We need to have those conversations of how we bring our men and boys back to the table to make sure that they’re the protectors, they’re the warriors . . . they’re communicating how they’re feeling and what they’re going through,” said Harpe.
Kevin Pare, Ward 2 councillor for Lac La Biche County, was also at the event. Pare said Moose Hide Day is important as it recognizes violence takes place against women - and the violence is unacceptable.
“If we don’t do events like this to remember violence against women, then we forget,” Pare stated. “We continue this every year. We put it in everybody’s head that we don’t accept this anymore.”
Nicholas Bartlett, president of the Alberta Native Friendship Centres Association, also spoke at the event. Bartlett explained that the original intent of the Moose Hide Campaign event was to bring awareness to all types of violence.
Paul and Raven Lacerte worked over the hide of a moose they had hunted and had discussions about the campaign they would start.
“They cut their first swatches out of that to give out in their community to raise awareness . . . because violence within all of our communities needs to be addressed, and they felt that it was their way to be able to contribute to awareness to that violence,” he explained.
Since the Moose Hide Campaign started over a decade ago, the initiative has spread across the country.
“When you do see someone that’s wearing a small square leather swatch, that means that they’re in support of the Moose Hide Campaign and our education of all peoples of violence towards other people," said Bartlett.
