Call for Proposals to Counter Domestic and Family Violence in Indigenous Contexts

Over the past few years, government action concerning Indigenous women and girls has changed, given numerous recent events that have highlighted major issues about gender-based discrimination and exposed vulnerabilities experienced by Indigenous women and girls in particular.

The Secrétariat à la condition féminine (SCF) is launching a call for projects to counter domestic and family violence in Indigenous contexts, with the aim of supporting Indigenous communities in developing concrete 
responses to these issues. This initiative will continue the work carried out under the 2021–2022 call for intent on sexual, domestic, and family violence in Indigenous contexts.

The general objectives of this call for proposals are as follows:

Support impactful projects aimed at preventing domestic and family violence or meeting the needs of First Nations and Inuit women and girls in urban areas and communities who are victims of this type of violence;

Support the development of culturally appropriate projects related to domestic and family violence projects for First Nations and Inuit men and their families.  

Projects must address one or more of the following priorities:

• Promotion, awareness, and prevention regarding domestic and family violence: In particular, this priority aims to support impactful projects that promote awareness of the causes and consequences of domestic and family violence experienced by Indigenous people, as well as encouraging non-violent behaviours.
• Support for victims of domestic and family violence and those around them: Among others, this priority aims to support projects aimed at developing or consolidating aid, self-help, and mentoring services, as well as initiatives to ensure the safety of Indigenous people who have experienced domestic and family violence.
• Recovery and healing: This priority aims to support projects that use culturally appropriate activities to promote the well-being of Indigenous women and men who have experienced domestic and family violence, their entourage, or the community as a whole.
• Knowledge development and transfer: This priority aims to support projects that promote cultural skills and knowledge related to preventing and responding to domestic and family violence in Indigenous contexts, such as projects to teach self-management and relationship conflict management from an Indigenous perspective.

Projects that do not address one of these four priorities, but are relevant and do meet at least one of the two main objectives of the call for projects, will remain eligible. The projects will be chosen based on their quality and expected benefits.

Here are the organizations that received funding support, for a total of $3,058,770.

Funding over two years

Sakkusivik

Organization

Saturviit Inuit Women’s Association of Nunavik

Project description

This project aims to set up workshops to train Inuit women to be healing facilitators, particularly for trauma related to domestic and family violence (DFV). An UQAM professor and an Inuit-Mohawk artist, both women, will lead these workshops in Nunavik over several days, covering topics such as healing, trauma, active listening, emotional self-awareness, and defusing dangerous situations. Ultimately, the workshops will empower Inuit women to develop initiatives in their communities to help reduce DFV and promote individual and collective healing.

Administrative region

Nord-du-Québec

Nation

Inuit

Amount funded

$243,700

Mirerimowin Project: Documenting and preventing domestic and family violence among Indigenous people in Lanaudière

Organization

Centre d’amitié autochtone de Lanaudière (CAAL)

Project description

The aim of this project is to document DFV among urban Indigenous populations in the Lanaudière region. Through a literature review and semi-structured interviews with Indigenous members of the Joliette community on the prevalence of, scope of, and solutions to DFV, the CAAL hopes to share its findings with its partners and develop training content to equip those working in the field. Lastly, annual activity programming will be developed and implemented at the Kitaskino healing site, in the Ouareau forest, at the Saint-Michel-des-Saints service point, at the CAAL, and in local communities.

Administrative region

Lanaudière

Nation

Atikamekw

Amount funded

$248,383

Indigenous community justice clinic – Domestic and family violence component

Organization

Val-d’Or Native Friendship Centre

Project description

The aim of this project is to set up a DFV component of the Val-d’Or Native Friendship Centre’s Indigenous community justice clinic. Proposed activities under this DFV component range from providing support and legal information to psychosocial and healing cultural activities designed to meet the multifaceted needs of Val-d’Or’s urban Indigenous community. Thanks to this project, women and girls who experience DFV will have a range of legal and social services available to them, while men struggling with violence will be supported through culturally relevant activities thanks to a partnership with SATAS, an organization that specializes in DFV.

Administrative region

Abitibi-Témiscamingue

Nation

All First Nations

Amount funded

$250,000

Developing and implementing an Atikamekw family violence intervention policy in Manawan

Organization

Conseil des Atikamekw de Manawan

Project description

This project will enable the Atikamekw community of Manawan to develop an Atikamekw DFV policy and concerted intervention frameworks in the Manawan community. Starting with formalizing Atikamekw law on DFV, the policy will be developed and then integrated into the intervention frameworks of the various stakeholders in DFV cases (community workers, police officers, and other community responders to DFV). This is intended to raise their awareness and train them in Atikamekw approaches and practices regarding DFV.

Administrative region

Lanaudière

Nation

Atikamekw

Amount funded

$250,000

Family and Domestic Violence Expertise at Isuarsivik Regional Recovery Centre

Organization

Isuarsivik Regional Recovery Centre

Project description

The aim of this project is to recruit a continuing care advisor with expertise in DFV. Practically speaking, this project aims to develop tools and protocols to equip the organization’s regular staff to intervene in DFV situations and offer support services to victims of DFV who come to the centre.

Administrative region

Nord-du-Québec

Nation

Inuit

Amount funded

$250,000

Outreach Clinic for Indigenous health

Organization

Doctors of the World

Project description

The aim of this project is to guarantee access to health and psychosocial care for Indigenous people in urban areas through an outreach clinic for Indigenous health in Montréal, located on the premises of Projets Autochtones du Québec (PAQ), a community organization. With the recruitment of a nurse practitioner specialized in primary care (IPS-PL) who is Anishinaabe herself, care will be offered to those in need in a way that is respectful of healing paces. Those benefitting will primarily be women who have experienced or are at risk from DFV. The care available will be promoted through collaboration with the Indigenous navigators responsible for guiding Indigenous people who have just arrived in the south of the province.

Administrative region

Montréal

Nation

All First Nations and Inuit

Amount funded

$250,000

Healthy Relations Project

Organization

Southern Quebec Inuit Association

Project description

This project aims to help Inuit living in southern Québec develop healthy relationships within their families, intimate partnerships, and the broader Inuit community of southern Québec, in an effort to reduce DFV. To that end, culturally relevant tools and educational materials will be developed (consent brochure, wellness plan, safety kits for Indigenous women and girls including emergency whistles, seatbelt cutters, and panic buttons) as well as modules on safety, rights, and healthy relationships to raise awareness among the organization’s clientele. The project will also include implementing cultural activities such as healing retreats for men and women, approaching DFV from a holistic perspective.

Administrative regions

Montréal, Laval, Laurentides and Montérégie

Nation

Inuit

Amount funded

$200,000

Self-defence empowerment program

Organization

Saturviit Inuit Women’s Association of Nunavik

Project description

The first component of this project involves adapting a self-defence workshop to the Nunavik context and training 8 Inuit women as instructors. For the second component, the newly trained instructors will conduct one-day self-defence workshops in Nunavik’s 14 communities and at Saturviit’s Women’s Centre in Dorval. The workshops, given in Inuktitut and English, will teach Inuit women and girls to recognize the signs of violence against women, understand the body’s response to fear, and protect themselves through de-escalation and self-defence techniques.

The self-defence workshops will also provide a safe space for Inuit women and girls to share their stories and listen to others’ experiences of domestic and family violence. They can then begin to heal from their trauma and strengthen their self-confidence. The workshops will also provide information on resources available to women in Nunavik and Montréal.

Administrative regions

Montréal and Nord-du-Québec

Nation

Inuit

Amount funded

$200,660

Funding over three years

Integrated intervention and support for countering domestic and family violence in Indigenous contexts

Organization

CIUSSS de l’Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal

Project description

The aim of this project is to provide cultural safety in the services offered to the Indigenous clientele of the CIUSSS Batshaw Youth and Family Centres, who have generally grown up in or fled an environment marked by DFV. To that end, the project aims to create training modules on Indigenous realities (DFV, culture, healing, etc.) and integration activities for staff with First Nations and Inuit partners. It will also be developing culturally relevant activities for Indigenous youth who use the centre, in partnership with Native Montréal.

Administrative region

Montréal

Nation

All First Nations and Inuit

Amount funded

$250,000

Domestic violence program

Organization

Kanesatake Health Center Inc.

Project description

The aim of this project is to hire a coordinator for the domestic violence program. In addition to developing culturally relevant workshops and activities to raise awareness, the coordinator will work directly with families and individuals subjected to or responsible for DFV in the community. They will also provide referrals to useful, culturally relevant resources.

Administrative region

Laurentides

Nation

Mohawk

Amount funded

$250,000

Naskapi Men’s Retreat Activities at Fort MacKenzie

Organization

Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach

Project description

This project aims to organize 6 men’s retreats at a healing lodge at Fort MacKenzie, led by a traditional healer from the Waseskun Healing Center and a Cree positive male role model. Through traditional activities (sweat lodges, sharing circles, etc.) and sharing traditional knowledge and culture, the men will address issues of violence and DFV and seek individual and collective healing. A promotional video of the first retreat will be produced and posted on the Healing Center’s social media channels to encourage others to seek help and healing.

Administrative regions

Nord-du-Québec and Côte-Nord

Nation

Naskapi

Amount funded

$249,665

Nuna

Organization

CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal

Project description

The project aims to improve access to services for Indigenous women (mostly Inuit) who have experienced domestic and family violence (DFV) by creating a culturally safe pathway for general services. The project will have three components: preventing/raising awareness of DFV in the community, offering culturally relevant support for victims and loved ones, and supporting a culturally safe pathway for services. The project is being carried out in partnership with the Inuit Makivvik organization, which has also referred the CIUSSS to other Indigenous organizations in Montréal (Saturviit, Qavvivik, Iskew, etc.).

Administrative region

Montréal

Nation

Inuit

Amount funded

$234,832

Sessions Ishkueu

Organization

Maison communautaire Missinak

Project description

This project aims to support healing for First Nations women staying at Missinak who have experienced DFV. This will be done through traditional activities, urban support groups, and trips to the Meshkenu site accompanied by an elder. Over 3 years, nine 5-day sessions will be held on topics related to DFV, and 8 support groups will be conducted to extend the psychosocial services the organization offers.

Administrative region

Capitale-Nationale

Nation

First Nations

Amount funded

$181,530