“Our collective action today can change the future for all”: highlighting IWD voices

Community Events International Women's Day

March 21, 2025

On March 7th, the Northwestern Ontario Women’s Centre hosted the annual Flag Raising Ceremony for International Women’s Day. The event at City Hall saw a crowd of activist, allies, and community members come together to hear the declaration from City Council, as well as hear the words of our guest speaker, Karen Slomke, and attending advocate, Ardelle Sagutcheway

“I speak up now for young me, but also for future Indigenous youth.”
Ardelle Sagutcheway, attending aadvocate at International Women’s Day Flag Raising, 2025

From CBC News coverage: Advocate Ardelle Sagutcheway also raised her voice about the problem of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, who are six times more likely to be murdered than other groups of people in Canada. Sagutcheway spoke about the case of Emily Pike, a 14 year old girl San Carlos Apache Tribe, whose dismembered remains were found in Arizona in February 2025. After moving from Eabametoong First Nation to Thunder Bay to complete high school, Sagutcheway said she recognizes the heightened safety risks faced by Indigenous girls, particularly when they are displaced from home.

“There is a clear need for new community and society norms. Imagine a new tradition: On the eve of every International Women’s Day, men collectively commit to deleting any images that were never theirs to keep. A simple but profound action …”
Karen Slomke, Guest Speaker at International Women’s Day Flag Raising, 2025

Karen Slomke, MSW, RSW has worked in the community of Thunder Bay in her capacity as a social worker for the past 30 years. Her guest speech drew from her own understanding of how trauma informs and impacts our community on an individual and collective basis in this time of technology with an emphasis on the recent local event where citizens of Thunder Bay were charged with exploiting other citizens through the sharing of intimate, stolen images of local women.

Below are some photos taken at the event on March 7th: