Women bike from Thompson to Winnipeg to raise awareness about sexual violence

Three women arrived in Winnipeg on Sunday after biking nearly 800 kilometres from Thompson to spread awareness about sexual violence in First Nation communities.

Nadine Erickson, Brenda Frogg and Grace Masse departed from the Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Inc. (MKO) office in Thompson on June 29. They biked for 72 hours to the Manitoba legislative grounds, arriving on Sunday.

"I'm very proud," said Masse. "It was nice to see support from the grandmas, from the children waving out of trucks and wearing their orange shirts."

Frogg, who is a nurse, says meeting victims of sexual violence in their communities motivated them to make the journey to Winnipeg. 

Frogg says nursing stations in First Nation communities are short-staffed, and she'd like to see more nurses receive training on trauma-informed care. There can be stigma around sexual assaults, as well as fear and embarrassment for victims, she said.

"It's expert care that's lacking in our communities," said Frogg. "When there's no training with doing rape kits and stuff like that, then you re-victimize the victim."

Masse would also like to see more nurses learn to provide trauma-informed care for victims of sexual assault. She said growing up in Brochet, a small First Nation community in northern Manitoba, the only people she knew outside of her family were from the nursing station and school.

Two years of COVID lockdowns also highlighted the need to focus back on families, Masse said, which were largely devastated for Indigenous people by the residential school system.

Masse would like to see more education around Canada's colonial history and the intergenerational trauma that was inflicted on Indigenous families. She cried during the bicycling journey, which was a "healing journey" for all of them, said Masse.

All three women hope to to encourage more victims of sexual assault to come forward.

"You have that power to stop this person.… That's what we want them to realize," said Frogg.

In a news release on June 29, MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee wished the women a safe trip, adding he appreciated "their efforts in raising their voice to advocate for all those who have been impacted by the issue of sexual violence."